North Carolina Football Association (NCFA)

Exactly what changes spurred the Granville County Capitals' mild second-half
improvement?

Coach Freddie Friar overhauled his 1-5 team's offense at midseason with
new starters at quarterback, halfback, wide receiver and along the
offensive line. After a 27-26, fall-from-ahead loss to the 8-3 Orange County
Tourists, the Capitals now stand 3-8 heading into the final week of NCFA2 action.

The second-half starter at quarterback, a true rookie named Seth
Hatfield, amassed a quarterback rating of 74.1, slightly better than the true
rookie he replaced, Charlie Williams (71.3). But like Williams and Dan DeLong
(58.6) before him, Hatfield couldn't shake the fumbling problem. DeLong
had five fumbles in his two starts; Williams, nine in his four starts, and
Hatfield, seven in his first four. DeLong, seeded from the NCFA-parent
Raleigh Capitals, might be able to improve his falling stock in Week
12. Hatfield was injured late in an eight-of-12-for-101-yards first half
against Orange County. On the first play of the second half, DeLong looped a
perfect pass to streaking WR2 Robert Hartfield in stride for a 76-yard catch
and run for touchdown. The rest of the way, however, DeLong missed on eight of
14 passing attempts, as Granville County squandered a 16-point advantage.

The Capitals' scheme favors handoffs to the fullback, so Friar shifted
NCFA2 veteran Stan Ruether to FB1 from HB1 at mid-season. The seven-year pro
averaged 3.9 yards per carry on his 68 attempts through Week 10. Robert
Hernandez, seeded from the parent Caps, had little success (2.5 yards
per carry) at HB1, so Friar started Robert Gallardo. The tackle-busting,
third-year man averaged 6.2 yards on 23 carries and 9.3 yards on 19
receptions over his first four starts.

Brian Long, Raleigh's first-round draft pick in 2008, didn't do much in
his two starts at WR1 (11.7 yards on four receptions). Plodder Marty Riddle
(seven years, speed of 76) turned out to be one of NCFA2's most
dependable receivers (56 catches, 15.0 average yards per reception and seven
touchdowns through 10 weeks), and, Harbert, the second-half-of-the-season starter
at WR2, had 26 catches for an average of 12.4 yards in his first four
starts. (The Caps rarely utilize their tight end as a receiver; Robert Hodgson,
the starter since Week 3, had three catches through Week 10.)

Friar also shook up his offensive line at midseason. The unit allowed
30 quarterback sacks in the season's first six weeks. The current
lineup-C1 Montgomery Bench, G1 Sean Capper, G2 Terry Edwards, seeded T1 Dennis
Crow and T2 Jon Aldridge usually, except when injuries or fatigue have been
a factor-has allowed an average of fewer than three per in the five games
since.

Granville County's defense (rated second against the run, 12th against
the pass) has been wholly unspectacular. DE1 Eric Green had six of the
Capitals' league-low 13 sacks through Week 10. And Granville County had recorded
zero interceptions this season until LB1 Jeff Jackson got one against Orange
County. The two leading tacklers, LB1 Jeff Jackson and LB3 Willie
Green, have no sacks, and Green has shown himself to not be a strong run
stuffer. Seeded DT4 Gerald Augustine, LB2 Charles Ralph and CB3 Scott Osullivan
have not impressed.

Through 10 games, K1 Earl Little made 84.6 percent of his field-goal
tries, second-best in the league, including all 10 from inside the 30. He
missed two extra points. P1 Willie Teel's gross average of 44.2 yards per punt
ranked second in the league, but the net, 39.2, was only sixth best. S1
Vaughn Hollas, with an average of 11.8 yards, was rated NCFA2's
second-best punt returner.