Fort Frye quarterback Grady Hesson (2) carries the ball during last year’s game against Wheeling Central in Wheeling, W.Va. (Photo by Missy Huck)

BEVERLY — After an eye-opening 35-7 loss at Barnesville in week one, the Fort Frye Cadets had to regroup.

Facing a West Muskingum squad that won nine games, including two playoff matchups, a year ago didn’t make things any easier in week two.

Fort Frye locked in and was able to leave Zanesville with a 36-7 statement win over the Tornadoes. Any thoughts of, ‘Is Fort Frye down this year?’ were promptly quelled.

“Our guys were really not happy with the way things went in week one,” said FFHS head coach Eric Huck. “You could see it. They expected more, and I felt like they responded very well with how hard they practiced. They definitely had a sense of urgency last week to get better. They worked really hard.”

Holding onto a 15-7 lead in the final seconds of the first half, Cadet quarterback Grady Hesson found Luke Phillis on a 41-yard heave to the end zone to make it a two-score game at halftime. That seemed to take the sails out of West M’s ship, and Fort Frye scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to put it away.

Fort Frye’s Kainan Bradford (10) tries to power through tackles during last year’s game against Wheeling Central in Wheeling, W.Va. (Photo by Missy Huck)

“They’ve handled it very well,” Huck said. “Especially after the Morgan scrimmage didn’t go very well, and then Barnesville didn’t go well — they’ve faced adversity already, and they’ve handled it well. We’ve had a couple good practices this week.”

Once again, the Cadets will need to be on top of their game as W.Va. small school powerhouse Wheeling Central comes to town Friday for Fort Frye’s home opener. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

“They have a really good running back and a quarterback who throws it very well and can run,” Huck said. “That’s always a challenge.”

Nico Kusic runs the Central offense. In last week’s 25-19 win over Union Local, Kusic executed a game-winning drive in which he was 5 for 5 passing for 79 yards and tossed a go-ahead TD to Kade Koroneos.

Max Olejasz, listed at 6-foot-7, and Joey Hall are other talented targets for the Maroon Knights.

“They have multiple guys they like to throw to,” Huck said. “They’re balanced and can do a lot of things offensively. They bring pretty much their entire defense back from last year. They’re very good defensively. Good up front. Good linebackers. Sound all over. They present a lot of problems defensively.”

Fort Frye has been a nemesis for Wheeling Central in recent years. Last year in Wheeling, the Cadets claimed a 38-19 win. The two teams also faced off in 2019 and 2020, with Fort Frye outsourcing the Knights a combined 75-0 those years. Still, Huck has the utmost respect for head coach Mike Young and his program.

“We know each other well,” he said. “Both teams are pretty familiar with each other.”

Against West Muskingum, Gavin Rauch and Tyce Beardsley were an unstoppable 1-2 punch. Rauch carried 12 times for 165 yards and a touchdown while Beardsley had 19 rushes for 141 yards and a pair of scores.

Hesson was 4 for 11 for 103 yards, a TD and no turnovers.

“I thought we played with a lot of heart,” Huck said. “Guys really wanted to win that game. The way things went week one, we were focused and ready to go. I was real excited to see the way we controlled the line of scrimmage. We didn’t give up too many big plays. (West Muskingum) had a lot of weapons and I felt like we really stepped up and played well.”