Liberty High School football team ready for final RCB faceoff

SHINNSTON, W.Va. (WBOY) — On Friday night, the Liberty Mountaineers’ football team will be hosting the Robert C. Byrd Eagles for the final time ahead of next year’s merger of Liberty High School into RCB .

Mountaineer Coach A.J. Harman said that although the Board of Education’s decision to merge the schools was hard for Liberty, the preparations and training ahead of the game have not been any different.

“It’s been a fun rivalry for a lot of years, so they’ve had the upper hand,” Harman said. “It’s been very few times that we’ve been able to get these guys, so we’d love to go out in this last one and be able to get a W.”

Liberty’s community has gone through a lot of changes in a year, with not only the Board of Education’s vote to go through with the Liberty into RCB merger but also the death of beloved Liberty Assistant Football coach and longtime teacher, Ryan Lantz .

“It’s been a challenging year for a lot of different reasons, but with this merger with Robert C. Byrd, you know, it was a tough pill to swallow there for a while, you know it kind of still is as we’re trying to navigate through this last season,” said Harman.

Harman’s future as a coach is uncertain, but he said he’s looking forward to finishing the season with the mountaineers.

“Playing these guys we know they’re going to be teammates in the very near future so it’s kind of like playing against your brother, you know,” Harman said. “Anything you do inside your home, you always want to win, you always want to have those bragging rights so, you know, we’d love to go out and get a W, and next year when everybody’s together, you know, be a fun thing kind of reflect on we got this last one.”

Harman told 12 News there are a few Liberty players who transferred to RCB this year and will be playing for the Eagles.

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