MATTHEWS, N.C. - For the second time in three games, the Richmond Senior High School varsity football team was a participant in one of North Carolina’s premiere Friday night lights showcases on the road at David W. Butler High School Friday night.
With the season’s stakes raised against the No. 4 Bulldogs, Richmond head coach Bryan Till noted earlier this week that his team needed this “big win” to make a statement that the Raiders are the real deal for state championship contention this fall.
And the second-year head coach got exactly what he, his players and Richmond County wanted. And he made a point to tell his kids after 48-minutes of play to “enjoy the mess out of this.”
In what turned out to be runaway game in the middle quarters, the Raiders notched their third win of the season, and their biggest one through the first four weeks of the 2018 campaign, in convincing fashion with a 30-19 victory over the Bulldogs (1-2).
With the win, Richmond (3-1) completed its non-conference schedule on a high note, as it sent Butler to the pound, racking up 316 yards of total offense, while scoring four touchdowns by three different players.
Friday’s win avenged a 27-21 loss to Butler a season ago, and the Raiders turned the tables on their opponent, breaking the game wide open in the second and third quarters in the latest chapter of the storied rivalry. It also snapped a three-game losing streak to the Bulldogs.
Since the two teams’ first meeting in 1999, the Bulldogs have been the team to hold the overall record over Richmond with a 7-4 tally.
“We had some busts early because of the nerves of the game, but we didn’t want to leave anything on the table in a game like this,” Till said with a big smile after the game. “We were willing to do anything to put all the cards out on the table, and we did, and got great field position as a result of that.
“A huge turning point for us in the game was holding (Butler) to bad field position,” Till added. “The defense could play tougher and we could bring more against them because they were backed up (in their own zone). The guys played great and they deserved this win.”
Prior to the game, a three-helicopter flyover hovered above Butler’s stadium, but after that, it was offensive coordinator Brad Denson’s Raider offense that led the aerial attack. A trio of sophomores had standout performances, as quarterback Caleb Hood launched 205 passing yards on 12-of-21 from the pocket to five different receivers, and added one touchdown. Hood also had five pass plays of 20-yards or more.
Joining him in the onslaught were sophomore wide receivers Jakolbe Baldwin (four receptions, 94 yards and a touchdown) and Dalton Stroman (two receptions, 56 yards).
“How about those three sophomores,” Till grinned. “All of them are going to be here for three years and will terrorize people for a long time. That’s huge that those guys are growing up so fast for us.”
Dalton Stroman comes down with a big 44-yard reception that set up a Richmond touchdown.
Butler amassed more total yards than Richmond, collecting 338 yards of offense, but a solid ground game by the Raiders in short-yardage situations inside the red zone was what proved to be the difference.
Running the ball 31 times between two tailbacks and Hood, Richmond gathered 111 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Junior tailback Jaheim Covington racked up 77 yards on 18 carries, but his two scores gave Richmond the cushion it needed. Hood scampered for 36 more yards on seven attempts.
After both teams traded possession to start the game, it was Richmond sophomore kicker Trevor Moss who broke the scoreless tie on the Raiders’ second drive, splitting the uprights from 31 yards out. The field goal gave Richmond a 3-0 lead with 3:10 remaining in the opening quarter.
But the Bulldogs wasted no time taking their first lead of the night, scoring on just two plays after a kick out of bounds gave them good field position. Quarterback Christian Peters handed the ball off twice to junior tailback Quasean Holmes, and he collected gains of 19 yards and 35 yards, respectively, with the latter resulting in his first of two rushing touchdowns on the night. The score came just 16 seconds after Moss’ field goal.
Richmond looked to be in position to take the lead back again, after senior kick returner DJ Stephens took the ensuing kickoff back 69 yards to the Bulldogs’ 20-yard line. But Covington got caught in the open, and a Butler defender punched the ball loose, and the Bulldogs recovered it at their own 32-yard line.
But back-to-back big tackles by seniors Rasheed Patrick and Jonathan Jones, coupled with a nice punch play on a pass by junior cornerback Zyier Baldwin made up for the early turnover, forcing a Butler punt to end the first quarter.
Like Till noted, the second and third quarters were the best for the Raiders, as they outscored the Bulldogs 27-12 during that span. On Richmond’s second possession in the second stanza, senior Bobby Terry capped off a seven-play, 49-yard march with a leaping two-yard run over the middle. Moss tacked on the PAT as the Raiders regained the lead 10-7 with 5:42 to go in the opening half.
It was the first of four straight Richmond possessions, two in each quarter, that resulted in a touchdown.
Unfortunately for Till’s defense, Holmes played deja vu with another long touchdown run, this one just five plays later, and going for 30 yards down the right sideline before cutting back to an open middle of the field. The CJ Trottie PAT was no good, and Richmond trailed by just a field goal.
Looking for a spark, Richmond used its final drive of the half to take the lead yet again. The eight-play, 64-yard drive started with Hood connecting with Terry for a 16-yard gain, before he hit Stroman for the first time on a 12-yard toss.
Stroman’s most impactful play of the game came a few moments later when the 6-4 receiver reeled in a 44-yard reception down the left sideline to the Butler two-yard line. Covington took advantage of the long gain, and pushed up the middle on the next play to put Richmond up 16-13 when Moss’ kick sailed wide left.
Jones and fellow senior defensive end AJ Isaac teamed up to sack Peters at his own five-yard line, a 17-yard loss, to close out the first half.
Out of the break, the Raiders would squander their lead one last time, as a Jamal Worthy two-yard run made it 19-13 just over three minutes into the third quarter. Trottie’s PAT was low and wide, and Worthy’s score would prove to be the final time the Bulldogs crossed into the end zone on the night.
The Raiders would use their next two possessions to put Till’s biggest victory as Richmond’s head coach on ice. On the first drive, rushes of 11 yards and 17 yards by Covington and Hood, respectively, set up a Jordyn Wall sliding 20-yard catch down to the Butler five-yard line. On the next snap, Covington ended his night with his seventh touchdown of the season.
With a wave of momentum from the Raider Nation faithful who made the trek, senior defensive ends Divine Nicholson and Patrick teamed up to get back-to-back sacks of Peters inside his own five-yard line to force a Butler punt.
Jakolbe Baldwin (4) celebrates his third-quarter touchdown with teammates Dalton Stroman (81) and Caleb Hood (5).
Taking over at the Bulldogs’ 37-yard line, Hood slung a 37-yard bomb to Baldwin on the second play from scrimmage, and the sophomore wideout pulled it in over the hands of Donovan Law for the Raiders’ final touchdown of the night, and the only passing score of the game. With 4:34 to go in the third quarter, the Raiders had all they needed to lock up the win, as neither team managed to score in the fourth quarter.
“We knew they played a lot of man-press,” Baldwin said postgame. “So, we just had to have good releases and run our routes. On my touchdown, (Law) was playing inside, and Coach told me to run at his toes. I did that and I was open. It feels great to make that catch.”
A week after the Raider defense shut down Pine Forest High School for the program’s first shutout in nearly two years, it was back to its usual grind Friday. While it allowed more total yards than its counterpart, and played 17 more snaps than the Butler defense, the Raider defense made several clutch plays to thwart Peters and company.
Richmond held Butler’s offense to just 50 percent on third-down conversions (8-for-16), and also stopped two of the three fourth down tries during the win. Led by Jones, Nicholson and Patrick, Richmond collected five sacks and 11 tackles for loss. Senior linebacker Trevor Whittington had one of those sacks.
Several secondary players broke up passes, including Z. Baldwin, Derreck Barringer, Taveon Ellerbe, D’Marcus Harrington and Stephens. Perhaps the biggest tip-away came when sophomore linebacker CJ Tillman leapt up and pushed away a Peters pass during the final drive of the game. To close things out, Nicholson bullied his way into the backfield and sacked Peters for a 10-yard loss with just over two minutes remaining in regulation.
“We came in here with a great attitude and we were ready to execute our plays,” Jones said following the game. “We got the job done -- we wanted to show no mercy and keep pushing. Our defense has a great bond with each other that let’s us be successful.”
Senior defensive end Jonathan Jones (58, center right) sacks Christian Peters in Friday’s win.
On the season, Hood has collected 710 passing yards on 41 completions, and now sits with six passing scores. He’s averaging 177.5 yards per game, and an impressive 17.3 yards per completion. Covington has 292 yards on 52 carries, and is rushing for 73 yards per game.
With his touchdown Friday, Baldwin is tied for the team lead with Terry with two touchdown receptions.
For Butler, Holmes was the biggest threat on the night, as he rushed for 94 yards on 11 carries and two 30+ yard touchdown runs. Peters went 13-for-31 through the air with 195 passing yards -- his primary target was Worthy, who snagged 93 yards on five catches.
Just like last season, Richmond will take its bye week in Week 5 and use an extra week to prepare for opening Sandhills Athletic Conference play on the road against Purnell Swett High School, a usual suspect to be near the bottom of the conference standings.
With a string of seven straight SAC games to close out the season, Till noted the imperativeness for his team to keep the momentum going against the Rams.
Purnell Swett (2-1) was off Friday, and will face John T. Hoggard High School (2-1) in Week 5. In last season’s matchup, the Raiders notched a season-high in points, as they smoked the Rams 56-34.
Richmond will look to keep its 23-game winning streak against Purnell Swett alive with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. in Pembroke on Friday, Sept. 21. In the all-time series, the Raiders hold a 27-2 record and have outscored the Rams by 949 points.
ROSports will publish a bye week article featuring the matchup with the Rams.
