SOUTH CHARLESTON, WV (WOAY) – Nine area seniors competed as three of Southern West Virginia’s premiere athletes led the South Cardinals to victory in the annual North-South Football Classic on Saturday.
Oak Hill’s Leonard Farrow, Independence’s Logan Phalin and Woodrow Wilson’s Maddex McMillen each had one touchdown in the game.
The South took an 8-0 lead about halfway through the first quarter, thanks to Spring Valley’s Ty Bartrum. In the second, Phalin’s one-yard score made it 14-0.
The North Bears scored as time expired in the first half and again at the beginning of the fourth quarter to make it a 14-13 game.
McMillen dominated the fourth quarter, passing to Leonard Farrow for one touchdown and taking it into the end zone himself for another. The South Cardinals defeated the North Bears for the first time since 2015 by a final score of 30-13. Farrow was named the MVP for the South.
“It’s amazing, it’s just a dream come true honestly. It’s just a great experience to play in this game. Everybody’s been telling me I’m going to remember it for the rest of my life and I think I will for sure,” explained Farrow.
McMillen added, “We came out and we knew what we needed to do to win. We just started moving the ball down the field and throwing it and it was just a fun time.”
“Coach called my number and it was fourth and goal and I knew I had to get it in, no matter what, for us to win the game,” said Phalin. “I just did what I could do to get my team the win.”
“It means a lot. Just the win means a lot for me, really. I just wanted to win my last game and I did that.”
Farrow, Phalin and McMillen, along with Lincoln County’s Isaiah Smith led the South Cardinals in rushing yards. McMillen also lead the team in passing yards with 73. Woodrow Wilson’s Keynan Cook and Mount View’s Tony Bailey were in the top four for receptions and receiving yards. Mount View’s TJ Bell tied for most sacks in the game.
Oak Hill’s Braxton Hall, Montcalm’s Devin Green, and Liberty’s Logan Doddrill also competed on the South squad.
