Tag Archive for: #VanceCountyHighSchool

Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Building A Culture Of Winning At Vance Co. High School

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Vance County High School Athletic Director Philip Weil has been on the job for less than a year but he is working to change the culture at the high school.  Weil and Head Football Coach Aaron Elliott were guests on Tuesday’s SportsTalk. Weil, who came from Las Vegas, Nevada, said he had goals for his first year.  “I wanted to bring new ideas and new projects to the school.  We still have more to accomplish,” Weil said.  Part of what he is attempting to do is build a culture of winning. “It takes a commitment to excellence to build a winning program,” Weil said.

Where does that start?  “It all starts with Coach Aaron Elliott,” Weil added.  Coach Elliot’s Viper squad won the conference championship last season and has the program on solid footing.  That winning culture has already filtered down form Elliott to the women’s basketball and softball teams as they have found success on the court and the field this season.

Weil also said that women’s flag football, coached by Elliott, will begin this May. “It’s probably going to be the next sanctioned sport,” Coach Elliott added.  Sixty-five young women are ready to hit the field for tryouts with the first game scheduled for May 23rd against Southern Durham.  The flag football program is a collaboration between Durham County Schools and the Carolina Panthers.  Durham County reached out to Vance County to become involved in the league.  The 7 on 7 league will likely play four to five games this year with a full season expected in January of 2025.

Elliott is also busy with his usual duties as he prepares the Vipers for the spring football game on Friday, May 3rd at 8pm at Viper Stadium.

When Weil was asked where he sees Vance County High School athletics in five years, he had two word answer: “State titles.”

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vipers Prepare For Spring Football

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It may be the season for baseball, softball and other spring sports but Vance Co. High School Head Football Coach Aaron Elliott is ready to hit the field.  Coach Elliott was a guest on Thursday’s SportsTalk to discuss this year’s Spring football game. “It will be at 8pm on Friday, May 3rd at the high school,” Elliott said.  “The state allows us to practice for ten days during the Spring and we will finish with our offense playing our defense during the game,”  Elliott added. Coach Elliott expects between 50 and 60 kids to participate.

The Vipers lost all of last year’s receivers to graduation and will be looking at replacements during the game.  Additionally, defensive backs will also be evaluated during the Spring practices and game Elliott said.

The Vipers won their conference championship last season and that success has resulted in an invitation to the High School OT Kickoff Scrimmage in Wake Forest on Saturday, August 17th at 6pm where they will play Jordan High School.  The week before, on August 8th, the Vipers host their annual Jamboree at Vance Co. High School.

The season kicks off August 23rd with a visit to rival Warren County.

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Elliott Reflects On Vipers Season

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Vance County Vipers Head Football Coach Aaron Elliot summed up the school’s loss to Terry Sanford in the first round of the state high school playoffs with three words “Too many mistakes,” he said on Thursday’s SportsTalk.  The 34-27 loss followed an undefeated regular season for Vance County.  “We knew they were a good team.  Certainly not a 26th ranked team,” Elliott commented.  After the loss Elliott gave his team one week off but now they are back to work preparing for next season.  The Vipers have already headed back to the weight room.

The Vipers will lose 10 seniors from this year’s team when the hit the gridiron late next August but Elliott sees a bright future for the Vipers.  “Our team will work personnel.  We will put kids in the right place to be successful,” Elliott said.  He says he expects the conference to improve next year.  Louisburg went to the second round of the playoff, J.F. Webb had their best season in years and there’s always Southern Durham to contend with.

While naturally disappointed that the Vipers lost he continues to look favorably on this past season and should have another great year in 2024.

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vipers Prepare For Terry Sanford In First Round Of Playoffs

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The Vance County Vipers open the playoffs Friday night at home against Terry Sanford High School.  The Bulldogs are 6-4 this season while the Vipers are a perfect 10-0 but Vipers Head Coach Aaron Elliott knows that the Bulldogs will be a challenge.  “We don’t look at them as a 26 seed.  They play in a strong conference,”  Elliott said on Thursday’s SportsTalk.  The Vipers will have to play strong on defense as the Bulldogs’ quarterback Jaylen Wright has thrown for over 1900 yard and 26 touchdowns this year.  The Bulldogs have scored 387 points this year so they know how to get in the end zone.

The Vipers have relied on great running all season long as well as a potent passing attack of their own but Elliott knows where his team’s bread is buttered.  “Defense will be the key.  I always hear defense wins championships,” Elliot said.  His defense has been stellar all season and the Vipers are coming off a 61-6 victory over rival J.F. Webb.  Terry Sanford is on a three game winning streak and should prove to be the toughest opponent the Vipers have faced since Southern Durham.

Join WIZS for Vance County Friday Night Football starting with the pregame at 6:50, immediately following the Joy Christian Center broadcast with kickoff at 7pm.

 

Vance County High School

The Local Skinny! Elliott Credits Community Support And Consistency To Vipers’ Success

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The Vance County High School football team marched through the 2023-24 season, tackling opponents one after the other and coming out with wins each time. The Vipers hope to build on that 10-0 record later this week in the opening round of the state playoffs.

Head Coach Aaron Elliott said he and his staff have been preaching consistency to the team, and that is paying dividends.

The Vipers host the Terry Sanford Bulldogs Friday night at 7 p.m. and Elliott said he hopes the community will come out to support the local team.

“This year has been a little different than last year,” Elliott said on Monday’s The Local Skinny! Last year, he said, the coaching staff was working to build that culture of consistency to the football program that had been missing.

Elliott played football here and remembers how Northern Vance and Southern Vance fans got behind their teams. “There was a big deal for Friday night” games, he said.

And he’s looking to get that momentum going again.

“Having a 10-win season,” Elliott said, shows that the kids have bought in to what coaches have been saying. Those wins – one by a whopping 76 points – shows that the players are enjoying the process.

Elliott said he and the team appreciate all the community support that businesses, churches and others have shown, whether by providing meals or sending congratulatory emails, phone calls or text messages.

“That’s been real important,” he said.

He said he’s proud of the way the staff has worked to instill that sense of consistency to the players, and it’s what has contributed to their success this season.

“These kids really feed off the community’s energy,” Elliott said.

The 6th-seed Vipers face the Bulldogs in the first round, and Elliott said if they get the W Friday, they’ll stay at home for the next round – and possibly for a third game at home, depending on how the bracket shapes up.

He said the Bulldogs, like the Vipers, have a good quarterback who can run and throw the football. “We’re going to have to play good and not take them lightly,” he said. But they’ve got a good defense, too, and Elliott’s been watching a lot of film to be ready for Friday.

“I feel real confident on what we can do on offense,” he said. “We’ve gotten really good at executing plays on offense.”

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vipers Tangle With Warriors For Final Regular Season Game

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With the Vance Co. Vipers assured of a playoff spot and at least a share of the conference championship, one could think that the Vipers would be taking it easy in the final regular season finale Friday night against the J.F. Webb Warriors. One could also be wrong. Coming off a dominant performance last week at a rain soaked Carrboro, the Vipers want to finish the regular season at 10-0 and not share the conference championship but win it outright. “We’ve had a good week of practice,” head coach Aaron Elliott said on Thursday’s SportsTalk. That may be a bit of “coach speak” that one expects but Coach Elliott isn’t letting the Vipers relax. “We needed to clean some things up on defense,” Elliott said referring to how Carrboro was able to use a short passing game to move the ball. Win or lose, the Vipers are in the playoffs. “We won’t know who we are playing until lunchtime on Saturday,” Elliott stated. The Vipers can’t look past an improved J.F. Webb team though. “They are disciplined, it’s Senior night and it’s a rivalry,” said Elliott.

J.F. Webb Head Coach Keionte Gainey echoes Elliott’s feelings about the rivalry. He knows, even in his first year at Webb, that the rivalry is important. Gainey only has a handful of seniors on his team and has, much like Coach Elliot has done at Vance County, turned the J.F. Webb program around. Webb is 5-4 this season. “It’s the most wins we’ve had since 2010,” Gainey said on Sports Talk Thursday. While that is impressive, what may be more impressive is that his players have increased their GPA from 1.9 to 3.0. He credits the team’s improvements both on and off the field to players, teachers, administration and community buying into his program.

Expect a packed house Friday night at J.F. Webb High School in Oxford. WIZS’ live coverage will begin around 6:50 p.m. immediately following the Joy Christian Center broadcast with Bill Harris and Doc Ayscue on Vance County Friday Night Football.

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vipers Are Well Rested For Carrboro Game

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When the Vance Co. Vipers football schedule was first released, Head Coach Aaron Elliott wasn’t pleased with where his bye week fell.  “It was late in the season and I was skeptical,” Elliott said on Thursday’s SportsTalk.   However, now that the bye week has occurred, the coach feels it’s worked to the Vipers’ advantage.  “We were pretty beat up.  We had some injuries,” Elliott said.

One of those injuries was to star defensive end Taeshawn Alston.  A shoulder problem has kept him out of several games this season, but he is now cleared to return.  Alston will be a game time decision this week at Carrboro.

The Vipers, according to Elliott, needed a break and the bye week has meant that they have come back to practice refreshed and ready to go.  “We had some great practices this week.  Monday’s was one of the most fun practices all season,” Elliott stated.

Elliott expects Carrboro to throw the ball Friday night but rain may interfere with offensive plans for both teams.  “We are prepared for whatever,” Elliot said.  Carrboro has struggled for much of the season, but it is senior night and nothing would please Carrboro more than to upset the 8-0 Vipers.

Listen below to Coach Elliott from SportsTalk, and tune in to the live broadcast of the game starting at 6:50 p.m. on 1450 AM / 100.1 FM / online here at wizs.com.

 

Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vipers Take A Week Off Before Facing Carrboro

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The Vance County Vipers are guaranteed to remain 8-0 until, at least, October 20.  Why? Because the team has a late season bye week.

According to Head Coach Aaron Elliott, it’s time for one.  “I didn’t realize how beat up we are,” Elliott said on Thursday’s SportsTalk.  Several players are banged up including quarterback Javion Vines-Holder who has a bruised hip.  That injury occurred in the second half of the Vipers’ 14-0 win over South Granville.  The week off will help not only Vines-Holder but several other Vipers.

Elliott said the win over South Granville was hard fought.  “They were physical and disciplined,” said Elliott of the Vikings. “Their defense really stood out,” Elliott continued.  Things will likely be less contested on the 20th when the Vipers travel to Carrboro which has struggled through much of the season.  “They can throw the ball.  They have a good, solid quarterback,” Elliott said.

Meanwhile, Elliott was happy that the Vipers’ JV team has won the conference championship and is 6-0 with two games remaining on the schedule.  Once the JV team finishes up around 15 of those players will be moving up to the varsity team just in time for the state playoffs.

 

Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vipers Take On South Granville For Senior Night

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94 – 18.  Doesn’t sound like a football score, does it?  Yet that’s what the final score was last Friday night as the undefeated Vance Co. Vipers had a record setting win against Granville Central.  Quarterback Javion Vines-Holder tied the state record by throwing ten touchdown passes.  “We wanted to do something for the team and the community,” commented head coach Aaron Elliott on Thursday’s SportsTalk.  When Vines-Holder approached his coach at half time and said he wanted to go for the state record it was decided by the coaching staff to support the decision.  Vines-Holder now holds the record with a couple of other players in the state but for now, his name is in the record books.

This Friday night is unlikely to see the Vipers put up 94 points as the Vikings of South Granville come to Henderson.  “They find ways of making it a ball game and they are looking for a share of the conference championship,” Elliott said.  To do that, South Granville will have to rely on a run heavy offense to take down the Vipers.  South Granville leads the conference in rushing so the Vipers will have to be ready on defense.  “We are focusing on ourselves.  Cleaning up mistakes on offense and defense,” Elliott stated.

It will be a big night at Viper Stadium as ten seniors will be honored during Senior Night festivities and there will be fireworks!  Those were supposed to take place during Homecoming but rain caused the fireworks to be cancelled.  Those will take place after the game Friday night which is the final home game of the regular season for the Vipers.

Join Bill Harris and Doc Ayscue immediately following the Joy Christian Center broadcast about 6:50pm for all of the action as Vance Co. takes on South Granville on Vance County Friday Night Football here on WIZS.

 

Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Elliott Prepares For Granville Central Friday Night

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Homecoming for the Vance County Vipers proved to be another successful outing, even if a bit on the wet side, as they faced off against Louisburg.  The result was an impressive 36-3 win.  Head coach Aaron Elliott said one of the keys to the victory was shutting down the Louisburg offense which dominated the second quarter of the game.  “We did a good job at half time.  We were prepared for the wishbone offense but not for the unbalanced line they used,” Elliott said of the game.  In the second half the Vipers turned former Louisburg player Shamir Sheppard loose on offense and defense and the rout was on.

Granville Central is this week’s opponent and Elliott knows that despite a 1-4 record the Vipers have to be ready. “Granville Central is disciplined and they don’t make mistakes,” Elliot said.  “We are confident and if we stay disciplined and stay humble we should be OK,” Elliott continued.

Elliott, who was a guest on Thursday’s SportsTalk, knew the Vipers would be good.  “Back in the spring I told everyone we could be 10-0 this season,”  Elliott stated.  With only four games left in the regular season that prediction may come to pass but three of the last four games are on the road with three games against Granville County rivals.

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