ROCKINGHAM — The Richmond Senior High School football program is in one of its last down periods before the 2019 season officially kicks off with summer practices next week. But an exclusive invitation received late last week will get the Raiders looking to be in mid-season form over the summer vacation.
Following an exciting ending to spring practice two Fridays ago that saw Washington Street Elementary School fifth-grader Malik Covington replace cousin Jaheim Covington at running back and race in a touchdown (that went viral with over 62,000 views), head coach Bryan Till received a call from Blazing 7-on-7 inviting his team to the seventh annual Powerade 7-on-7 Invitational.
The invitation-only tournament is a three-day event held in Charlotte from July 11-13, and will feature “elite competition” from 20 different states along the east coast and midwest, as well as Washington, D.C.
Schools from North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia will be among those competing with the Raiders.
Till explained that he applied his program for the tournament and the Raiders initially received an alternate spot. A phone interview accompanied the alternate posting, and last week Richmond’s ticket to the big show was punched following another team’s withdrawal from the competition.
According to the official release, Richmond can take a maximum of 30 players. A “Special Kickoff” event, entailing dinner and registration, will be held on Thursday, July 11, with pool play opening on Friday, July 12. Top matchups will be featured on ESPN3.
To end the tournament, teams will compete using a double-elimination bracket on Saturday, July 13. The semifinal and championship games will be broadcast on ESPNU. Also on hand to scout players will be “representatives from ESPN300, Rivals, XOS, Scouts.com and many others.”
Aside from developing players and serving as a way for the Raiders to get their hopeful state championship season started, the top tournament finishers will also receive a monetary prize. The winnings will be presented in the form of BSN Sports vouchers, Richmond’s official uniform and equipment provider.
The first-place program will receive a $15,000 voucher, with second place earning $7,500. The third and fourth-place teams will get $5,000 and $2,500, respectively. The overall winner will also get a championship trophy.
“We will probably just take our ones and twos at the skill positions on both sides of the ball,” Till explained of which of his players will get to participate. “We are only allowed 30 guys, so if we are two deep at all the positions, that would be 28 players.
“We will look for who will be those last two spots over the course of the month of June,” he added. “Whoever earns it will go.”
Richmond will also compete in the “King of the Hill” 7-on-7 scrimmage at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Thursday, June 13, an event the Raiders went 5-1 in last summer.
Other 7-on-7 dates throughout the summer include June 20 and 25, and July 9, all at home from 10 a.m. through 11:30 a.m.
