ROCKINGHAM — The 7-on-7 season came to an end for the Richmond Raider football team on Thursday, and with it, the praise from head coach Bryan Till.
For the third time this summer, the Raiders hosted several schools from around the region. Competing in the finale were Chambers, Cheraw, Douglas Byrd and Lumberton high schools.
Playing four scrimmages, each matchup featured a 40-yard field and a 20-minute clock.
Also in action were the five schools’ offensive and defensive lines. Battling it out, the squads took turns competing in the tire pull, tug of war and one-on-one drills.
As the first official day of the season, July 31, looms nearer, Richmond again put its three potential starting quarterbacks to work with the playbook.
Senior Zaviar Lowry and sophomores Evan Hodges and Domonic Tillman split reps evenly and worked with a host of wide receivers out of numerous formations.
Of the nine touchdowns scored on the day, Tillman threw five. Hodges added three and Lowry finished with one.
While the team performed well overall, Till noted the play of senior safety Marquan Martin and senior wide receiver Javian Drake. Senior wideout Linden Garcia also had a good out, playing for the first time this summer after a hamstring injury.
Martin hauled in three of Richmond’s four interceptions across the four scrimmages. Garcia caught a team-high four touchdown passes, including three from Hodges.
Drake, who hasn’t played football since his freshman year, made a series of athletic grabs and pulled in three scores. Two of those touchdowns came from Tillman and the other was from Lowry.
Opening against Lumberton, Richmond’s offense found the end zone on two of its four offensive series. Hodges launched a 40-yard pass on second down to Garcia in the end zone on the second drive.
Junior A.J. Covington broke up a pass on Lumberton’s second drive, one of several plays made by Richmond to keep the Pirates out of the end zone.
Tillman added the second score on a 20-yard strike to Drake, who made a leaping grab between two defenders.
Richmond also managed to keep Chambers from scoring thanks to a couple of splash defensive plays.
Martin and senior Jarah Cook both picked a pass in the end zone on the first two series, and the Raiders forced a turnover on downs on the third drive.
The lone score came courtesy of Tillman to Garcia, which was set up by a first down grab by sophomore Keonta Pegues. From five yards out, Tillman laced a pass and Garcia hauled it in low to the ground.
A back-and-forth scoring affair saw Richmond and Cheraw each score three touchdowns. Lowry found Drake for his second touchdown on the opening drive, spiraling a pass just inside the front left pylon.
After Cheraw answered, Tillman made a first-down pass to Drake and hit junior wideout Nicholas Griggs over the middle from short distance for another score.
The Raiders’ final score of the meeting with the Braves was another 40-yard strike from Hodges to Gracia, who was wide open following busted coverage.
Closing the day, Richmond’s offense scored on three of its drives and the defense held Douglas Byrd to just two scores.
Martin made the first of his two interceptions against the Eagles on the first play, which was followed by a Tillman 40-yard score to Drake on the first play of Richmond’s drive.
The Raiders’ next series resulted in a 15-yard passing score from Hodges to Garcia, and Martin struck again a couple plays later when he intercepted a pass near Richmond’s sideline.
Sophomore linebacker Tate Craven tipped a ball in the end zone to force a turnover on Douglas Byrd’s penultimatel drive. Capping the scoring, Tillman threw a short touchdown pass to junior tailback Javion Smith.
Below are photos of Thursday’s four scrimmages taken by sports editor Kyle Pillar.
