WHEELING – The West Virginia Coal Association and Friends of Coal are proud to once again sponsor the “Super Six” State High School Football Championships this weekend at Wheeling Island Stadium in Wheeling. This will mark the 19th consecutive year the championships have been held in Wheeling.
The games this year include AAA #1 ranked Cabell-Midland taking on two-time defending champion and current #2 rated Martinsburg. The game begins Saturday at Noon. In AA, Wayne returns to Wheeling trying to wrap up back-to-back titles against Keyser. Meanwhile, in Class A, Wahama will meet Madonna on Saturday night.
The WVCA and Friends of Coal sponsor the event along with all other state high school sports championship events, and the Friends of Coal logo is featured prominently on all trophies presented to athletes.
C.W. “Butch” Powell, assistant director of the WV Secondary Schools Athletic Commission said having the WVCA and Friends of Coal involvement is vital to the success of the events.
“The WVSSAC is proud to have Friends of Coal sponsor the championship awards,” Powell said. “Our 283 member schools and 83,000 student athletes benefit greatly from their participation and it allows us to provide more services to them because of the financial support. No state association, like SSAC, can fund their activities solely on gate receipts and we receive no support from local, state or federal taxes.”
WVCA President Bill Raney said he is always been proud of the organization’s sponsorship of the state championship events and it clearly shows the important role the coal industry plays in our state.
“This sponsorship is really our pride and joy,” Raney said. “There is something special about high school sports. The school is often the centerpiece of the community, the glue that binds it together. In many of these communities, coal provides the economic base that employs the parents and provides direct support to the individual schools. Sponsoring these events is one way we give back to those communities around this state that have been our home for generations.”
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