Britt tips hat to WF-R

Coach lauds Cougars' class

Fayetteville Britt football coach Richard Bailey said he was very impressed with Wake Forest-Rolesville during Britt's 27-16 4-AA North Carolina High School Athletic Association semifinal win on Friday.

"Wake Forest had an outstanding team and played extremely hard," Bailey said.

"Their kids played so hard that you see how disappointed they were to lose."

Bailey said he was impressed with WF-R on the field, but his favorable impression increased after the game.

"We brought in some food for them after the game," Bailey said. "Their kids were disappointed, but handled themselves first class.

"They left their dressing room spotless. Earl Smith is a first-class coach and that was a first-class team."

0-8 AGAINST THE RAIDERS: Fayetteville Britt won the Mid-Southeastern 4-A Conference, but during the regular season it continued its losing streak against Richmond County, the team it faces Sunday in the 4-AA championship at the University of North Carolina's Kenan Stadium.

"We are 0-8 against Richmond in our history," Bailey said. "But we're 0-0 on neutral fields and in Sunday games. We've lost to them on Friday and Saturday before, but we're undefeated against them on Sundays."

Britt said quarterback Everett Proctor, an N.C. State commitment, has played hurt most of the year.

"We put him at wide receiver to get him on the field," Bailey said. "He has helped us.

"He has seven catches for five touchdowns."

Proctor also broke two long scoring runs against Wake Forest-Rolesville and was able to return to his kicking duties.

"He still isn't 100 percent healthy, but he is about 90 to 95 percent," Bailey said. "He has really helped us in the playoffs."

FAMILIAR FACES: Former Athens Drive coach Mike Byus and former Enloe coach Ron Massey have teams playing for state football titles this weekend.

Byus left Athens Drive for Robbinsville in 1999 and has been at East Lincoln for four years.

East Lincoln is 14-1 and will play 15-0 Reidsville for the 2-AA title at Carter-Finley Stadium.

"I still have friends here," Byus said. "When I saw the finals were going to be at [N.C.] State, I thought it was a good omen."

Byus coached with Ron Massey at Enloe before taking the Athens Drive job.

Massey left Enloe to coach at Fayetteville Seventy-First in 1991 and later led Kings Mountain to the state final.

Massey's Kannapolis Brown team plays 15-0 Greensboro Dudley at 4:30 p.m. at Wake Forest University's BB&T Field.

A SECOND LOOK: Mark Dreibelis, an NCHSAA assistant executive director, expects to see a tape of the roughing-the-snapper violation during Fayetteville Byrd's 9-7 4-A semifinal victory over Durham Hillside.

"I haven't seen it yet," Dreibelis said Monday, "but I'd like to get a copy and take a look at it."

Dreibelis said roughing the snapper is a point of emphasis among officials because snappers are in a vulnerable position.

"The big thing is that the snapper's head is down and they need to be protected to keep someone from hitting them in the back of the head and causing a serious injury," Dreibelis said.

"You can go to either side of the center, but just can't go through his head."

Hillside blocked a Byrd field-goal attempt with about five seconds left and seemed to have won the game at that point.

But the Hornets were whistled for a roughing-the-snapper violation, and Byrd made the kick after the penalty was assessed.

Dreibelis said both teams had been warned about roughing the snapper earlier in the game.