FAYETTEVILLE – Richmond Senior High School head football coach Bryan Till grinned as he predicted that Thursday’s highly-anticipated battle of the two remaining Sandhills Athletic Conference unbeatens would see the “story write itself.”
Till would be right, as the No. 5 Raiders penned another chapter in their winning narrative this season, as they toppled No. 12 Seventy-First High School 49-14 on the road Thursday for their seventh-straight win. Not only did the late-season game carry heavy playoff implications, but the 35-point victory inched the Raiders (8-1, 5-0 SAC) one game closer to their first conference title since 2010, which would put an end to Scotland High School’s seven-year reign.
Entering the night, both the Raiders and the Falcons (7-2, 4-1 SAC) had identical records, and were the stars of the SAC standings. Clipping the Falcons’ wings for the second straight season, Thursday’s action wasn’t as suspenseful as Richmond’s 25-19 late-game win in 2017 that saw Malik Stanback haul in an 86-yard score in the closing minutes. Instead, Richmond controlled the game from the very first drive, and jumped out to a 28-7 lead at halftime.
“This is huge for us,” Till shared with his trademark grin surrounded by players following the game. “This is something that we’ve been battling for all season — but it’s not the end all, be all. It’s a great goal that we achieved, but we have more goals we’d like to reach. We’re going to keep striving and pushing until we reach them.
“We knew tonight was going to be physical, and I can’t say enough about how our guys answered the call,” he continued. “We keep putting challenges in front of these young men and they keep answering — I’m glad to see them rise up.”
On paper, Richmond and Seventy-First had the top two offenses and defenses in the conference, respectively, before the game started. The Raiders held up their end of the deal on both sides of the ball, while a strong running game of 276 total rushing yards and a suffocating defense dismantled the Falcons.
Richmond’s junior tailback Jaheim Covington was one of the stars of the game, as he rushed for a season-high four touchdowns on the ground, and added 158 yards on 22 attempts, with three of those going for 20 yards or more. Covington now has an SAC-best 18 rushing touchdowns on the season, and Thursday’s performance completed the trifecta of him having at least three scores and over 100 rushing yards in the last three games.
Complimenting Covington’s ground attack and the Raiders’ 395 yards of total offense was sophomore quarterback Caleb Hood, who tossed two touchdowns on the night, both going to sophomore wide receiver Jakolbe Baldwin. Hood finished 10-for-19 passing, with 119 yards and added 94 rushing yards, several of which came at crucial points to extend drives.
On the opening drive, Richmond powered its way 65 yards on nine plays, resulting in Hood and Baldwin’s first hook up of the game. On third-and-goal at the four-yard line, Hood laced the ball to Baldwin in the back right of the end zone as Baldwin was being pushed out of bounds. Sophomore kicker Trevor Moss tacked on the extra point, his first of seven, and the Raiders held a 7-0 lead with 8:27 remaining in the first quarter.
With the Falcons beginning their first drive of the night at their own 20-yard line, senior linebacker Taveon Ellerbe flashed his athletic ability to jump start the Raider defense. On second down, Ellerbe picked up a tackle for loss, and forced a punt when he dove to break up a Kyler Davis pass on third-and-seven.
A couple of drives later, Richmond got great field position on a fumble by Seventy-First, and took over at the Falcons’ 15-yard line. A stout defense held the Raiders out of the end zone after three-straight running plays saw the green and gold stopped at the one-yard line. Moss came on to try the 18-yard field goal, but it was tipped at the line and hit the turf.
Richmond held only a seven-point lead at the start of the second quarter, but in the 12 minutes of play before the half, it put the game out of reach. Covington would blitz his way for the first two of his four scores, and Baldwin would cap off his performance in the final four minutes of the quarter.
Covington’s first score of the night came on the Raiders’ first drive of the second frame, a four-yard run up the gut that finished a three-play, 31-yard drive following a short Falcons punt. The Raider faithful in attendance went into a frenzy when Ellerbe made a backward diving interception, his first of the season, on the ensuing Seventy-First drive at the Richmond 29-yard line, but the elation was short lived, as Baldwin threw an interception on the next play, a trick play, to Ezra Brown.
That pick would result in the Falcons’ first score, as Davis captained a six-play, 55-yard drive that ended with him connecting with Stephon Johnson from 20 yards out with 5:34 to go before halftime.
The Raiders responded with scores on their next two drives, the only time on the night in which they did so. Following the home score, senior wide receiver Jordyn Wall made a 21-yard grab as Hood was knocked to the ground to give Richmond the ball at the Falcon 25-yard line. Two plays later, Baldwin cut in on a slant from the right side and caught the ball at the 13-yard line and raced through an empty secondary for a 23-yard touchdown. He’s now second in the SAC in touchdowns with eight, three behind Seventy-First’s Camari Williams.
With 3:59 to go in the second quarter, the Raiders held a 21-7 lead, and Covington tacked on score No. 2 just 2:04 seconds later. After another Seventy-First punt, one of six on the night, Covington plowed his way forward with runs of 36, four and six yards, respectively, on three straight plays, with the last one crossing the goal line.
“The offense in general played great tonight,” Till commented. “The play action worked tonight, but Jaheim’s ability to be physical after initial contact was huge. He set the tone for the entire offense.”
Davis and company threatened to cut the deficit in half in the closing 1:55, but a defensive stand by Richmond inside the red zone culminated in an Antonio Isaac sack, one of seven on the night for the Raiders, on fourth-and-10 to get a turnover on downs.
Antonio Isaac (92) sacks Kyler Davis, one of Richmond’s seven sacks.
In the final 24 minutes of play, Richmond would add three more scores, two by Covington and a late-game fumble recovery by sophomore linebacker CJ Tillman. The Raiders took advantage of an ill-advised Seventy-First fourth-and-two attempt at its own 35-yard line, and six plays later, Covington would smash his way past defenders for a seven-yard score. With 7:36 left in the third quarter, the Raiders held a commanding 35-7 lead.
After trading possessions, Davis found Williams on a nine-yard fade in the back corner of the end zone that was just out of the reach of senior cornerback DJ Stephens. Prior to the score, senior linebacker Jada Edwards sacked Davis on first down, and Stephens defended an identical passing play on second down. The score with 2:57 left in the third quarter would serve as the home team’s final tally of the night.
In the fourth quarter, Covington made easy work for his fourth and final score from one yard out up the middle. On the next Seventy-First drive, the Falcons were driving and Davis hit Joneek Manning for a completion at the 29-yard line. That’s when Tillman made his splash play.
Tillman was in coverage and managed to strip the ball loose from Manning, and picked up the bouncing ball at the 31-yard line before racing 69 yards to the house for the game’s final touchdown with 7:24 remaining. It was deja vu for Tillman, as he recovered a fumble and returned it 38 yards for a score late in last week’s win over Lumberton High School.
Hood connected with five different receivers in the win, with Baldwin racking up 53 yards and two scores on four receptions. Wall had a team second-best three receptions for 31 yards, and Covington, senior Bobby Terry and sophomore Dalton Stroman each caught one pass, combining for 35 yards.
CJ Tillman (24) races 69 yards for a fumble recovery touchdown.
Joseph Ferguson collected 109 rushing yards on 11 attempts for the Falcons, with Devante Wedlock (32 yards) and Davis (23 yards) helping out. Williams had four catches for 68 yards and caught his SAC-leading 11th touchdown.
The 14 points given up by the Raiders were the most in the last five games, but Till was proud of his defense’s efforts, including a fourth-quarter turnover on downs inside the three-yard line on Seventy-First’s final drive.
“I’m so proud of our (second team) guys who came in and made a stop late,” Till said. “That showed it was important to them and they wanted it just as badly as the starters did. As a program, that’s what’s important.
“We want to enjoy this moment,” he concluded. “And then we’ll prepare to clinch the conference championship against Scotland next week.”
Richmond will look to win a share of the SAC title and go for its eighth-straight win next Friday at home against its biggest rival. When the Raiders and Fighting Scots played in Laurinburg in the season finale last year, it was for the SAC title and saw the two teams score the most combined points ever in the series, with Scotland winning 69-47.
This time around will be different, as the Fighting Scots (4-4 and 3-2 SAC) are having an off year due to graduated players and the injury bug. They’ll be without starting junior quarterback Bruce Wall (torn ACL), but the Scots’ run game has been stronger lately with the return of senior tailback Syheam McQueen from injury.
Sure to be a physical, run of the mill rivalry game, kickoff against the Fighting Scots is set for Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Raider Stadium.
