LUMBERTON — From the opening snap of Friday’s game, which featured a three-yard tackle for loss by junior linebacker Gabe Altman, the Richmond Raiders were all gas and no brakes at Lumberton High School.
Scoring in all three phases of the game, the Raiders used a running clock to hand the Pirates a 48-8 loss in the Sandhills Athletic Conference contest.
The Raiders scored 35 points in the first quarter, and a 30-yard punt return by senior Tremel Jones down the right sideline started the winding clock with 10:48 to play in the second quarter.
With the win, Richmond and head coach Bryan Till improved to 3-0 on the season and extended their SAC regular-season winning streak to 17 games. The Raiders, along with Jack Britt High School, are the only two remaining undefeated teams in the standings.
“The guys played well early and jumped on (Lumberton),” Till said. “There were a lot of different opportunities, whether it was the pick-six or Tremel returning the kick. We scored a lot of ways and the offense had a short field and we took advantage of it.
“It’s big that we were pretty efficient in all phases of the game,” he added. “We improved in all three areas and cleaned it up.”
Richmond only had seven offensive drives in the game, but started their first four on Lumberton’s side of the field. Taking advantage of the good field position, it took the offense just 11 plays from scrimmage to score four touchdowns on those drives.
A quarterback sack by Altman and junior linebacker Mikey Baldwin on Lumberton’s Russell Echard on third down, one of four on the night for Richmond, forced a punt by the Pirates on the game’s first drive.
Pressure from junior Cason Douglas helped make it a short kick and Richmond started at the Pirates’ 24-yard line.
Senior tailback Jaron Coleman took the first two touches for the Raiders, the second resulting in a 13-yard score up the middle. Following a successful PAT by senior Mack West, Richmond led 7-0 just 2:53 into the game.
On the second play of the ensuing Lumberton drive, junior cornerback Jamari Broady jumped a pass intended for Ernest Bratcher, and returned the interception 24 yards down the left sideline for a defensive score.
It was Broady’s second score of the season, who returned a fumble for a touchdown in the first game of the season. Just 1:17 after taking an early lead, Richmond jumped ahead 14-0.
Junior CB Jamari Broady returns an interception for a touchdown early in the first quarter.
Following a three-and-out by the Pirates on their next drive, the Raiders took over at the Lumberton 43-yard line. Junior quarterback Kellan Hood, who went 2-of-4 passing with 48 yards, wasted little time to put Richmond up by three possessions.
On the first play, Hood made a completion to senior wide receiver Jarod Morrison over the middle at the 33-yard line, who turned on the jets and raced to the house for his first career varsity touchdown. The Raiders’ lead grew to 21-0 with 5:12 left in the opening stanza.
Lumberton’s offensive woes continued on its next drive, going three-and-out again, one of four drives that ended that way. This time, Richmond would take five plays to go 44 yards to score.
Hood started the drive with a five-yard completion to senior Dalton Stroman in the flat, followed by a 14-yard gain by Coleman on the ground. The next three plays featured rushes from junior tailback Nasir Crumpton, who capped the drive by bullying his way in from three yards out.
It was the first of Crumpton’s game-high two rushing scores, and was the first of his varsity career.
“We’ve been working hard all week at practice and it feels great to score my first two touchdowns,” Crumpton said after the game. “I was able to execute my plays and this is a big win for our team.”
Senior WR Jarod Morrison (15) moves around Jordan Williams on his way to his touchdown.
Senior kicker Trevor Moss followed with one of his four touchbacks in the game to make Lumberton start at its own 20-yard line. Baldwin and junior Kelay Lindsey teamed up for a sack on third down and forced another punt, which was tipped and gave the Raiders the ball at the Pirates’ 18-yard line.
On third down, Hood kept the ball and found open space to his right, rushing into the end zone for an 18-yard score. West’s PAT was good and Richmond held a 35-0 lead with 14.1 ticks left in the first.
Richmond’s next splash play came following a Jorge Gomez punt from the back of his own end zone on a three-and-out by the Pirates to open the second. Jones caught the punt at the 30-yard line and picked up several blocks down the right side to score and start the running clock.
“All week I’ve been watching film of me returning punts and I saw that there’s always open space on the back side of the return,” Jones explained. “And I always have my teammates who set blocks and they told me I should turn the opposite way and get north.
“The biggest thing right now helping me create big plays is confidence,” he added. “Going into the season knowing I’ve put in a lot of hard work has allowed me to make good decisions to help the team.”
Kelay Lindsey (11) and Mikey Baldwin (19) sack Russell Echard during Friday’s win.
The Pirates moved the sticks for the first time of the night on their next drive, but a sack on Echard by juniors Jayme Allen and J.D. Lampley thwarted an 11-play drive, Lumberton’s longest of the game.
With the clock winding, Till sent in sophomore quarterback Emoni McBride and a host of other Raiders on both sides of the ball, who played much of the remainder of the game.
“I told the guys at halftime that if they were coming out (of the game), they weren’t going to be sitting on the bench,” Till said. “I wanted them to be a teammate and cheer the other guys on and coach them up.
“Our guys did that and were really excited for each other, and that’s the great thing about team sports and what we’ve missed this last year,” he continued. “It was great to see the guys there for each other.”
Lumberton got on the scoreboard with 2:02 left in the third quarter, using a 12-yard pass from Echard to Darral Echard. The two connected again on the two-point conversion to make it a 42-8 ball game.
Richmond had just two second-half drives, with the final one ending in a two-yard push from Crumpton up the middle on fourth down. He led all rushers with 68 yards on 11 carries, while Coleman added 38 yards on three rushes.
The Raiders recorded 203 yards of total offense on 26 plays. Defensively, Richmond’s front seven and secondary limited the Pirates to 34 yards of total offense on 37 plays, including 0 rushing yards.
The defense forced one fumble (not recovered), had an interception and eight tackles for loss.
“Everybody gave their all on every play tonight, and that’s what helped the defense set the tone,” Lampley said. “Every game we continue to get better with our assignments and that showed tonight.”
The next two weeks will see the Raiders play a rollercoaster of games to wrap up the regular season. Richmond will travel to Seventy-First (2-3) next Thursday, before turning around and hosting rival Scotland High School four days later in the team’s final home game on Monday, April 5.
Concluding the regular season will be a road trip to Purnell Swett on Friday, April 9, Richmond’s third game in 10 days. That game is make-up from the season opener on Feb. 26.
Despite the packed schedule in the coming weeks, Till said the win over Lumberton helped the Raiders prepare for what lies ahead.
“A lot of guys got reps and what Lumberton did alignment wise is similar to what some of the other teams we play will do,” Till closed. “It was a great opportunity to get out and play, and the next two games will be pretty physical, so we never know who is going to have to play where.
“Tonight gave us the chance to move guys around and play some different positions. This game helped us a ton.”
