Blog LIVE Blog - Kellam (4-5) at Cox (7-2)

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Greetings from Frank W. Cox High School in Virginia Beach, where it's Senior Night on this chilly Thursday night in November.

The Cox Falcons (7-2) play host to the Kellam Knights (4-5), who need a win to make the playoffs. A victory will make Kellam either the No. 5 or No. 6 seed in Region 5A, whereas the Falcons have already sewn up a postseason berth. Depending on tonight's result, they will either be a No. 2 or No. 3 seed.

It has been quite a first season at the helm for the Falcons under first-year Head Coach Tyler Noe, rallying in the fourth quarter for more than half of their seven wins, four in fact over the likes of Landstown, Salem, Bayside and Kempsville in the final few minutes.

We have the great Dan Trevino braving the cold temperatures on the field and getting us great action shots tonight, too.

Here are the Predictions from yours truly and Coach Ed Young. You can catch us every weekend on 757 Saturday Sports Talk, streaming on the VB Sportsplex YouTube channel and right here on VirginiaPreps.com.

Matt Hatfield Says – Cox 17-16
Coach Ed Young Says – Cox 21-12

Updates to follow right here on the Blog this evening and via Twitter or 'X' as it is known these days @hatfieldsports

 

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Cox begins with the football from their own 39. First run is by Josh Walton, who bursts up the middle for six yards to set up a manageable 2nd & 4. Ther eit is QB Gage Trefry keeping it and getting just enough for the first down. Senior Daniel McGrath makes another tackle for the Kellam defense, but it's not until after Walton picks up six yards on the run. Walton gains three more to bring up 3rd & 1 from the Kellam 42.

Great blocking on the left side of the Cox o-line - junior tackle Hudson Lyon and senior guard Mason Cheatum - helping Walton break off a long run of 27 yards to the Knights 15, where he is strung out of bounds. This o-line - which also features senior center Graydon Howard, senior RG Kole Kresham and junior RT Hudson Bartley - is really blowing the Kellam defensive front off the ball.

It appears QB Gage Trefry has a TD run on 3rd & 2 from the 7, but an inadvertent whistle wipes away the TD as they will replay the down. This time it's Walton darting up the middle for an easy TD run.

 

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Kellam will have possession at their own 32 with 8:17 to go in the first quarter, where sophomore QB Luke Ashcraft goes to work to direct this attack for Head Coach Brian Neas.

Crisp tackling from the Cox defense with linebackers Max Palmerton and Braden Lyons, two juniors, allows the Falcons to pin their ears back on 3rd & 9. Ashcraft's first pass is incomplete. So a 3 & out for the Knights, meaning they will punt it back to a Cox offense that put together a very impressive opening drive.

Rex Miller makes the fair catch on the punt return with 6:36 to go in the first period. A 36-yard punt by Davis Funk has Cox starting at their own 31.

 

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Going back to their roots with the option, Cox sees QB Gage Trefry fake out the Kellam defense and he keeps it for a really nice 23-yard run. Then it's Josh Walton continuing to do damage on this Senior Night. Walton breaks away from the defens efor a run of 37 to the Kellam 7 before he's knocked out.

Another splendid fake by Trefry, who gains 6 yards and then polishes off the quick scoring drive with a TD run, this one coming from a yard out.

 

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To be successful in the playoffs, it usually boils down to being able to run the ball, stop the run and setting a physical tone in the trenches. Cox is doing that as well as you can to begin this football game, not even a full seven minutes into action.

Sam Braidwood, the William & Mary commit, boots the kickoff out of the end zone for a touchback. He's such a valuable weapon for them, too, because it means the offense has to go a full 80 yards to slice the deficit in half.

 

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Exactly the type of response Coach Brian Neas and his Knights needed to stay in this ballgame, given the trouble their defense has out of the gate. Wilk took off on the left side and he was virtually untouched on his way to the end zone.

There are plenty of good ball carriers in the Beach District, but you can make the case that Wilk is the best of the bunch.

The Falcons take over at their own 29 with 4:06 to go in this first quarter that has seen plenty of action thus far.

 

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It took just four plays on their third possession of the night for Cox to find the end zone for a third time on the night.

You want to be playing your best football as the playoffs approach and I can't imagine that Tyler Noe could've asked for a better offensive showing, where they have yet to attempt a pass. They haven't needed to either. Their ground game is clickign on all cylinders with 196 yards on 16 attempts between two guys in Trefry and Walton.

This surpasses the first quarter season-high of points - 14 against both Princess Anne and Landstown - for the Falcons with some time to spare.

 

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A quick 3 & out for the visiting Knights.

After an incomplete pass and no gain on a run, Kellam is forced to go to the air on 3rd & 10 from their own 40. QB Luke Ashcraft hits junior WR Torren Taylor for a completion of five yards, where he is stopped by the duo of Josh Walton and Max Palmerton. Both Palmerton and Walton are captains along with Gage Trefryt, Graydon Howard and Gerard Johnson, the Virginia Tech commit who has dazzled on both sides of the ball this year.

Cox has it at their own 17 with 10.9 seconds to go in the first period after a solid Kellam punt.

Josh Walton runs for about three yards to end the opening period.

 

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It'll be 2nd & 7 from the 20 to begin the second quarter for the host Falcons. Walton gains five to bring up 3rd & 2. The Falcons get exactly two yards with Walton on the next carry.

After gaining ten on a run play to move the sticks, back-to-back runs of four yards each for Walton creates another 3rd & 2 for Cox. Thsi time it's at their own 45 and they go right back to the workhorse who gains exactly two yards.

The second and third levels of the Kellam defense are finding it very hard to make plays against the run.

After running the ball on their first 23 plays from scrimmage, the Falcons decide to take a shot down the field towards WR Chace Laundre (pronounced Lon-dray) and he is basically tackled by the defender covering him in the secondary. That pass interference takes the ball into Kellam territory at the 38 with 9:09 to go in this first half the Knights would certainly like to forget.

 

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Tyler Ellis, a two-sport performer in football and basketball, stops Cox QB Gage Trefry on a 3rd & 3 run from the 31-yard line of the Knights. However, Trefry got four yards on the run to move the sticks again. The first pass completion or attempt is Trefry hitting Josh Walton in the flat, stopped by Sullivan Dziekan after a short gain of +3.

Faced with another crucial third down - this one being 3rd & 4 from the Kellam 21 - and it's Walton slipping out of tackles to gain eight yards. Cox is called for its first penalty of the night, an illeghal procedure, pushes them back. Then a holding makes it 1st & 25 from the Kellam 28. Rex Miller, a sophomore slot for the Cox offense, gains a healthy amount of yardage, but a personal foul puts it back to the 23. A 20-yard run technically. So it's 2nd & 20 from the 23.

Might be a time to go to the air for the Falcons here.

 

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Four possessions and four touchdowns for Cox tonight. Think about this - - the Falcons came in averaging 20 PPG and the Kellam defense entered allowing 20.9 PPG.

The season-high for Cox in a first half was 31 points in the opener vs. winless Princess Anne (thanks for that nugget from public address announcer Doug Ripley).

Kellam begins its latest drive at their own 20 with 4:34 to go in the first quarter.

 

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David Wilk cannot get to the outside on 3rd & 3 from the 27 as the Cox defense, led by Hokies commit Gerard Johnson, drops him for a loss of a yard.

The Cox ground game has produced 268 yards on 29 carries, dominating with their option attack.

Josh Walton came in with just 103 yards and 2 TD's on 24 attempts. Tonight, he's already run it 20 times for 146 yards. Oddly enough, we have not seen the leading rusher for Cox, freshman Tyre Jefferies, who ironnically enough was our most recent Chicho's Pizza 757 Football Player of the Week.

After the Kellam punt, Cox takes over at the Knights 47 with 2:54 to go in the second quarter, giving them plenty of time to strike again before the half.

 

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Kellam is not helping its cause as they appear to sack QB Gage Trefry of Cox, but a face-mask penalty puts the Falcons near the red zone at the 25. Trefry runs for six yards.

Going for Chase Laundre in the end zone, Trefry's pass is broken up in the end zone by sophomore DB Christian Henry. So it's 3rd & 4 at the Kellam 19 - and the Falcons are a perfect 6 of 6 on third down this evening - which means I just jinxed them. The run play is going to be a yard short of moving the sticks, but a time-out will be called with 55 seconds to go in the half before 4th & 1 from the 16.

 

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Gage Trefry moves the sticks with ease on 4th & 1 for Cox against the Kellam defense. He gains four yards. A shrewd move here by Head Coach Tyler Noe as the goes to the Wildcat formation with junior Max Palmerton and he gets it to pay off with a solid run of 10 to get them at the 2. Then he finishes off the drive, plowing into the end zone from a couple yards out.

 

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More to come later - including some stat numbers - stay tuned...

 

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Stats at the Half:

Cox 35:
Gage Trefry - 2-3 for 26Yds. 1-0 TD/Int. ratio; 12Car. 122Yds. 2 TD's
Josh Walton - 20Car. 146Yds. TD; 1Rec. 3Yds.
Max Palmerton - 2Car. 12Yds. TD; 4 Tackles
Gerard Johnson - 1Rec. 23Yds. TD; TFL

Falcons - 38 plays for 326 total yards (35 rushes for 300 yards, 4TD's; 2 of 3 for 26 yards passing); 0 turnovers; 3 penalties for 30 yards


Kellam 7:
Luke Ashcraft - 3-7 for 28Yds. 0-1 TD/Int. ratio
David Wilk - 6Car. 78yds. TD
Torren Taylor - 2Rec. 19Yds.
Daniel McGrath - 4 Tackles

Knights - 13 plays for 106 total yards (6 rushes for 78 yards; 3 of 7 for 28 yards passing, 1 INT); 1 turnover; 3 penalties for 35 yards

 

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Kellam goes 3 & out to begin the third quarter and they punt it back it to Cox, where the Falcons have it with excellent field position with 10:23 showing on the clock. The Falcons remember a game a few years back with Kellam where it was 28-7 in their favor and they had to hold on for a 38-35 victory over the Knights in 2017.

Cox goes back to the ground game with Gage Trefry, the QB, gaining seven. Then it's Josh Walton for 11 yards on 2nd & 3. Now they feed Walton, who dashes to the right and shows outstanding effort to get to the end zone.

What a performance from the Cox offense tonight to get a season-high in points and we still have 20+ minutes left in regulation to go.

 

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With the running clock now in effect, time is running out on this season for the Kellam Knights, who needed a win to qualify for the postseason.

It was looking so promising during a three-game winning streak that included a touchdown in the closing seconds against Tallwood and 23-0 shutout of Bayside to spoil Homecoming on a rainy Saturday in October for the Marlins. But unless they put forth a magical rally, it will end with three straight losses to close out at 4-6.

The good news for Coach Brian Neas is they graduate just nine seniors and return a bevy of underclassmen for the 2024 season.

After picking up one first down, Kellam's Davis Funk punts it away 46 yards to the Cox 10 with 4:01 remaining in the third quarter.

 

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Cox goes back to the ground attack and do you blame them? They're well over 350 yards, and doing so without freshman phenom Tyre Jefferies, who we understand has been battling an illness this week. Last week, the Falcons ran for 209 yards in a 22-21 comeback escape against Kempsville, who ran for 302 yards on 42 attempts on them. Kellam was hoping for simialr results, but outside of David Wilk's 71-yard TD run, they've been bottled up completely.

 

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Beautiful aerial strike by Gage Trefry to Chase Laundre, fitting that the two seniors connect through the air for a touchdown they'll remember for quite a while on Senior Night.

If you're wondering what the most points scored in this series - which dates back to 1963 - it is 55 by the Falcons in a 1991 win. The Falcons are on their way to making it a 35-28 series advantage and notching their 10th straight victory over the Knights.

 

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To begin the fourth quarter, it's senior corner Landon Fedele intercepting a Kellam pass. That's the second takeaway of the night.

Josh Walton then breaks off a run of 40 yards to put him over 200 for the night. Exactly 230 yards on 25 attempts.

Expecting Cox to host No. 7 seed Kempsville in the opening round of the playoffs.

 

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Tell you what, one senior that Kellam will certainly miss is Daniel McGrath, who has been in on a boatload of the tackles for them. But Cox continues to get pretty much whatever they want with the running game as Josh Walton is up to 238 yards on 27 carries.

Have to give the o-line for Cox, from left to right, of Hudson Lyon, Mason Cheatum, Graydon Howard, Kole Gresham and Hudson Bartley, a lot of credit.

If you're wondering the Cox single-game rushing record, it was 334 yards by Lamonte Still back in 1991, ironically enough against Kellam. Currently, Walton is sitting at 245 with 5:32 to go and a running clock, so it will be tough for him to catch that mark. Nonetheless, one heck of a night.

As far as Cox players to go for 250+ in a game on the ground, nine have done it and it's best individual effort statistically speaking sine Andre Boone's 257 yards rushing vs. Bayside in 2003.

Shout out to Doug (Ripley) again for passing on those nuggets.

 

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More to come later...

 

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Final Stats from Doug Ripley...

VERIFIED STATS FROM FRANK W. COX HIGH SCHOOL:
(full box score with play-by-play attached)

Kellam	(4-6)	7	0	0	0	-	7
Cox	(8-2)	21	14	14	0	-	49

SCORING SUMMARY
C - Walton 7 Run (Braidwood kick)
C - Trefry 1 Run (Braidwood kick)
K - Wilk 71 Run (Funk kick)
C - Trefry 49 Run (Braidwood kick)
C - Johnson 23 Pass from Trefry (Braidwood kick)
C - Palmerton 2 Run (Braidwood kick)
C - Walton 28 Run (Braidwood kick)
C - Laundre 71 Pass from Trefry (Braidwood kick)

TEAM STATS	KELLAM	COX
First Downs	6	26
Rushes-Yds	12-96	50-426
Comp/Att/Int	9/19/2	3/4/0
Passing Yds	71	97
Fumbles-Lost	0-0	1-0
Penalties	3-35	7-65
Punts-Avg	5-34.6	0

Unofficially, new school record set for first downs (26) while the 523 total yards and 426 rushing yards both rank second most by Cox in a game and the third time they've ever surpassed 500 total yds in a game.

Josh Walton's 245 yards on the ground (28 att.) in relief of Tyre Jefferies who was out due to illness is most by a Cox running back since Andre Boone had 257 on the ground in a 2003 game at Bayside. Tyler Noe, Cox's current head coach, was Boone's teammate under then-head coach Steve Allosso at the time. It's the 9th most rushing yards by a Cox player (record is 334 by Lamonte Still in 1991 vs. Kellam).