RALEIGH — Following its winningest season since 2015, the Richmond Senior High School football team continues to see the postseason accolades rolling in.
After having a conference-best 18 players selected to the 2018 All-Sandhills Athletic Conference team in December, head coach Bryan Till’s team and a pair of Raider players have been recognized by HighSchoolOT.com, which is associated with WRAL-TV in Raleigh.
Kicking off the week on Monday, HighSchoolOT listed the entire Raider program as its No. 4-ranked team in the eastern part of the state its final rankings of the 2018 season.
Richmond went 11-2 overall, and won the SAC title with a perfect 7-0 record, while also beating rival Scotland High School for the first time in eight seasons. The Raiders also won 10 straight games to close out the season, the first time accomplishing that feat since 2014.
Also announced that day was senior linebacker Jonathan Jones’ selection to the 2018 first All-East team, a regional team recognizing players in the eastern half of the state. Lastly, sophomore quarterback Caleb Hood landed as the lone signal caller on the “Super Sophomores” list, highlighting some of the state’s top players in the class of 2021.
“It’s great for our program and Jon and Caleb to be recognized,” Till said Thursday. “But the big thing for us (as a program) is we don’t just want to have those accolades — we want to get back to being ‘Richmond’.”
“This shows that we’re moving in right direction,” he added. “We have some really good football players here, and have guys like Daryus Skinner and Devon Hunt doing big things in Division II. Any time anyone recognizes our players, we’re ecstatic to see that.”
Topping the list of the best teams in the east according to HighSchoolOT was Wake Forest High School, which has won 45 straight games and notched its third consecutive 4AA state title this season. The Raiders played the Cougars in Week 2, falling 49-28 on the road.
No. 2 was Tarboro High School, which went 15-0 and repeated as the state’s 1AA champion this fall, while Jacksonville High School edged Richmond for the No. 3 ranking after the Cardinals fell to Charlotte Catholic in the 3A championship.
Richmond was the highest-ranked team that didn’t make a championship round, as the Raiders fell just short of their “eight year” goal in the third round against Myers Park High School. Other SAC schools to make the top 25 teams were Scotland (6), Seventy-First High School (7) and Pinecrest High School (12).
Jonathan Jones (58, right) makes a tackle against Hoke County.
Jones made the All-SAC team, his first career selection, after what Till called a “fantastic” senior season. The senior linebacker led a stout Raider defense with 123 total tackles, 72 of which were solo plays. He averaged 10.3 tackles per game, and racked up a team-high 19 total tackles for loss.
Other notable statistics for Jones were his nine quarterback sacks (second on the team only to Rasheed Patrick), five forced fumbles, two recovered fumbles, a pass deflection and one interception. His pick came against Reagan High School in the second round of the playoffs, a 49-7 win, which he returned for a touchdown.
“I was shocked at first because I thought they had already named everyone to those teams,” Jones explained. “Coach (Milton) Swinnie told me congrats, but I didn’t know what he was talking about.
“It feels good to end my career this this way,” he added. “My dad told me this was my last year to get it, so I’m glad I did. (As a team), we did what we had to do to get the No. 4 ranking, and I know they’ll get No. 1 next year.”
Caleb Hood (5) makes a pass attempt during a game against Pinecrest.
Hood was chosen to the 10-man list of the “Super Sophomores” after another impressive campaign during his second year under center. He tallied 1,956 passing yards on 129-of-222 passing. He averaged 150.5 passing yards per game through the air, and impressed with a 15.2 yards per completion average, while tossing 21 touchdowns.
A dual-threat quarterback, Hood added 594 rushing yards on 112 carries and a team second-best six rushing touchdowns. He turned the ball over just three times on interceptions, and impressed against Reagan in the playoffs with a five-touchdown performance (three rushing, two passing). He was also selected to the All-SAC team for the second time in his career.
“Coach (Jay) Jones called me and told me congrats and I didn’t know right away what he was talking about,” Hood laughed. “I looked it up and was surprised. I’m happy to be picked — I had hoped to be a top player (in the state), and in eighth grade I thought I had a good chance at doing that.”
With two more years ahead of him, Hood explained he wants to “keep working hard and never look too far ahead.” He added that his “focus will be on one day at time” as the Raiders seek a state championship.
“I’m glad for Jon going out like that,” Till noted. “We all knew what a great season he had, and it’s great for him to get another postseason recognition. He had an incredible stat line this season, and numbers like that just don’t happen.”
The Raider defense allowed an average of just 12 points a game this season, and Till added that Jones’ stats were “pretty amazing” because the defense wasn’t on the field as much as the offense.
“We all feel that Caleb has a bright future, and he’s done really good things so far,” Till concluded about his quarterback. “We want for all of our kids to get everything they deserve, and sometimes rural area guys don’t always get recognition.
“We play great competition even though we’re not in the metro area. There are still some areas we’re trying to work on — Caleb had a great game against Wake Forest. We’ve seen what he’s capable of just as a sophomore, and there’s a lot more ahead.”
The Raiders will hold their annual end-of-season banquet next Thursday, Jan. 24, in the school’s cafeteria.
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