ROCKINGHAM — Heading into Friday night’s quarterfinal game of the NCHSAA 4AA state playoffs, the Richmond Senior High School varsity football team knew the stakes were the highest for the program at any point in the last decade — and the Raiders fell just short of the task at hand.
No. 2 Richmond, which was playing in its fourth third-round playoff game since 2008 and its first since 2015, welcomed in the No. 6 Myers Park Mustangs (Charlotte, N.C.) in front of a packed Raider Stadium. But it would be the Myers Park players and coaches who rode off into the night with a victory, as the visiting team ended the Raiders’ season with a 37-14 win.
Entering the game, the Raiders (11-2) were riding a 10-game winning streak, and saw it snapped by Myers Park (13-1), which stretched its winning streak to five games. Despite seeing their season come to an end, the Raiders fought hard down the stretch, something head coach Bryan Till relayed to his players in a heartfelt speech after the final whistle.
“The message is that the season isn’t just about this one game — it’s about all of the life-changing things we talk about with football,” Till commented after the game. “We want to help our guys deal with the pain of it, but also let (this loss) make them better.
“Anything in life that you strive so hard for and you fall a little bit short, there’s going to be some pain,” he continued. “But we can go back and look at all of the good that came out of it and all of the good things that happened along the way. I refuse to look at this as an awful night — yeah, it hurts like crazy. But I refuse to let (tonight) define a great season and our great young men.”
The Raiders scored a season-low in points during their loss to the Mustangs, and managed to only score on their opening possession of each half. Richmond’s defense started the game off with a bang, as a quick three-and-out forced a Mustangs’ punt.
Myers Park punter and wide receiver Moose Muhammed saw his attempt blocked by a towering Antonio Isaac, who recovered his own block at the Mustangs’ five-yard line. On their first play from scrimmage, the Raiders scored on a direct snap to junior tailback Jaheim Covington, who split to his right and plunged into the end zone. Just 1:01 into the game, Richmond led 7-0 following Trevor Moss’ point after attempt.
On the ensuing Myers Park possession, the Raider defense held the Mustangs to another three-and-out. But the Raider offense, which has used a balance air and ground attack all season, couldn’t find its footing. Senior punter Kyle Goodwin would stay busy for the rest of the first half, as Richmond punted the ball on five of its final six possessions before halftime.
Richmond would only muster 90 yards of total offense in the first half, while Myers Park sophomore quarterback Drake Maye led four scoring drives to score 27 unanswered points. Junior Michael Girardi tied the game 2:30 after Richmond took the lead, as he capped off a two-play, 49-yard drive with a 33-yard rushing score.
Maye would connect with wideout Andre Francois on a 40-yard score two possessions later, then keep the ball himself for a one-yard push to put the Mustangs up 21-7 with 8:56 to go in the second quarter.
To end the half, Myers Park scored for the third-straight drive, this time a 22-yard catch and run by Maye to Virginia Tech commit Elijah Bowick. The PAT by Matthew Dennis was blocked by D’Marcus Harrington, giving Myers Park a 27-7 advantage.
The 20-point deficit was the largest Richmond had faced since Week 2 of the season, when it fell to two-time defending 4AA state champion Wake Forest High School by 21 points. It was also only the third game all season in which Richmond trailed its opponent at any point in the game (Butler, Scotland and Wake Forest high schools).
Out of the break, Till’s Raiders drove the ball 81 yards on eight plays that culminated in Hood extending his right arm over the goal line while running into a wall of Mustang defenders from three yards out. Moss’ PAT rang true and Richmond closed the gap to 27-14 with nearly two full quarters to play.
On the kickoff, Moss booted an onside kick attempt that appeared to be hauled in by a Richmond player on the near sideline. Following the scuffle, the Raiders emerged with the ball, but the officials determined that it was “simultaneous possession,” and rewarded the Mustangs the ball. Till explained “that’s the rule” and said he couldn’t argue the call.
With good field position, the Mustangs went 35 yards in three plays, with Girardi scoring his second touchdown of the night from the 20-yard line. The final score for either team would come with 3:26 left in the third quarter, as Dennis split the uprights from 22-yards away to make the score 37-14.
“The biggest thing was Myers Park continued to make plays,” Till said. “Every adjustment we did make, their kids get in position to make a play. Hats off to those kids for being big in the moment.
“Our effort was there all night,” he concluded. “I hate that we couldn’t make a few more play. But there was no lack of effort at all. I’m proud of our young men.”
Richmond tallied 296 yards of total offense, with Hood going 13-for-24 through the air with 121 yards. Hood was also the team’s leading rusher, as he scrambled for 87 yards on 19 attempts and scoring his lone touchdown of the night with his legs.
Covington added 77 yards to Richmond’s 175 total rushing yards on 14 attempts, while scoring his team-leading 22nd rushing touchdown of the year. Hood connected with six different receivers at least one time, with five of them having two or more catches. Senior Jordyn Wall ended his career with a team high four receptions (for 29 yards and two first downs), while senior Bobby Terry had a team-high 35 receiving yards on three catches.
Maye and the Mustangs’ offense racked up 403 yards of total offense, with Maye gaining 321 passing yards on 15-of-25 passing. Bowick was responsible for 177 receiving yards, and hauled in five catches for 20 or more yards. Girardi was the team’s leading rusher with 65 yards on eight attempts and scored a game-high two touchdowns.
Although Richmond’s state championship run fell short in 2018, several Raiders are expected to be named to the All-Sandhills Athletic Conference team. ROSports will publish the full team, including a full feature on Richmond’s selections when it’s announced following the state playoffs.
ROSports will also publish a comprehensive season recap of the Raiders’ 2018 campaign.
