HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: Groves Back In Groove At Patrick Henry

EMORY, Va. – Ronnie Groves is back in familiar surroundings, and he couldn’t be happier about it.

Groves, who played at Patrick Henry High School his freshman and sophomore seasons, moved last year with his family to Texas. Playing at Houston’s class 5A North Shore High School, he experienced first-hand the Lone Star State’s passion for high school football.

But Southwest Virginia loves its high school football, too – a fact Groves appreciates now that he’s back in Glade Spring for his senior season.

There’s little question teammates and fans appreciate Groves. The quarterback/running back rushed for 102 yards, passed for 50 yards and scored three second-half touchdowns as Patrick Henry opened the season last weekend with a 25-8 victory over Pound.

It was Groves’ first game in his familiar blue-and-white No. 4 uniform since 2006.

“It was great,” Groves said of the game. “I missed everybody down here. [Friday] was a good experience, and it feels good to be back here for my senior year.”

Groves had quite an experience last fall in Texas. He spent time – and contributed – at several different positions for North Shore. He caught a touchdown pass against rival South Houston and helped the Mustangs advance to the state semifinals.

“To me it felt like I had gone off to college,” Groves said. “It was a big 5A school and there were different faces every time you turned around, even later on in the school year. It was a bigger place and a different mentality on football.”

The benefit has been obvious. Groves has added muscle to his frame and refined his game after testing his skills against college prospects daily in practice.

“It helped me get a lot better,” Groves said.

Groves will participate in a familiar rivalry tonight as PH travels to Abingdon for a non-district clash.

First-year head coach Mike Compton has been busy preparing for this week.

“I’m really impressed [with Abingdon],” Compton said. “They have a really good offensive and defensive line. They have good skill people and run a lot of different sets. Basically, they line up and run what they run and they are good at it. It’s going to be an awful big task to keep up with them.”

For Groves, it will be another Friday night experience.

| (276) 645-2570