Riverheads 46 Sussex 0 F
- Thread starter RedPride07
- Start date
8:06 2nd quarter. 10-0. Not much rhythm to the game on the radio. One long injury timeout and a bunch of penalties. Sussex has done a good job of slowing down the Riverheads O. Sussex hasn’t gotten a first down yet.
This one is going to get lopsided I’m afraid. Riverheads has 9 first downs. Sussex still has 0. Riverheads up 17-0 in the 2nd 3:59
Smiley runs it in. 24-0. I’m not sure what the Sussex offense has in its back pocket, but they need to make something happen
Imo RH will win it all no matter who they play. But Galax will move the ball on anyone they play. They arent like the Galax of past years they dont just line up and hit you. They can lol but thats not all they do now they can spread you out and throw it very well. Don't get me wrong they're still Galax and use dominating O line play to set the tone. But don't be surprised if they use the pass alot to open up the middle.
Congratulations Riverheads ! You guys were great host , best wishes going forward !
@trutiger16, glad I got to meet you tonight, you are a class act. Young Tigers team with some heavy hitters on D. The score doesn’t reflect that part but I know what I saw with my own eyes. I think the second half alignment offensively looked better for you guys but the QB had tunnel vision by that time and didn’t see the open guys on the back end. Good luck to you and your work with the youth program. I will do what I talked to you about and hit you up.
Thanks it was absolutely great to meet you all and take in the Riverheads experience, what a treat. Yeah at times there were not a safety present but hey you guys played great defense, Also I got the opportunity to meet Coach Casto he introduced himself , what a great LEADER of young men you have in him ! Good luck and Go 4 Peat !
I thought Sussex played us tuff if they could have puts some points on board early may have been a different game that’s the best I seen are defense play and I thought our offense was a little out of sinc at times but they may have been Sussex D
You guys passed more than I thought I ever would see from you , Sussex defense performed very well , the undoing was the off sides on us on 4th and 3 and the 15 yd facemask penalty in the 1st half in combination with a excellent kicking game that kept us in a hole all night made things tuff in us.
A better team than the final score. Only graduating 6 seniors so look for them again next fall to be right back in the thick of things in Region B.
We passed more but didn’t complete them and several were straight drops. That was unusual to have that many incomplete. Its “Air Casto” this year so it’s a threat even though we really never hit it tonight like we have most of the year.
Thanks for hitting the highlights as I may be suffering from a little too much of a Commonwealth Cup Hangover to do my usual in depth report. Happy the Wahoos finally got that monkey off their back by the way but it was in doubt until the very end, as most games usually are between those two in just about any sport.
OK back to Riverheads. As already stated the Gladiator defense posted a shutout in this one, but better than that, held the Tigers to minus yardage. If Sussex crossed midfield tonight I don't remember it and I would say their longest play from scrimmage was no more than five yards. The only time their respectable-sized crowd got to cheer, and I do mean the ONLY time, was when they were presented with the regional runner-up trophy, which is of course nothing to sneeze at.
However, as completely as the RHS defense dominated, it is only fair to mention that the Tiger defense did not really do that bad a job on Riverheads, despite the final score. For one thing they did something no other team had done this season.....they kept the Gladiators from scoring on their opening possession, as they had done in all 12 games thus far.
Also Riverheads failed to have any big plays of its own tonight and some of that has to be attributed to the Sussex defense. The Gladiators have usually managed at least one or two explosive plays per game but the longest play I can recall tonight was probably the final TD of the game, a run scored by reserve running back Isaac Hartless with only one second left in the game. Sorry but I was getting a half price hot dog when he scored so I can't give you the exact yardage but it appeared to be in the 20-25 yard range.
Zac Smiley as usual was the workhorse for RHS but instead of breaking any big ones, I would say he had more of a 15 carry/120 yard night give or take. Yes he scored four of the Big Red's six TDs but none were of the highlight reel variety.
QB Elijah Dunlap opened the scoring for RHS on its second possession, scoring on a one-yard sneak. He would later have two or three other tough runs but the Big Red had very little success through the air tonight. Braeson Fulton was held to only one catch as I recall and the Big Red's total yardage through the air was probably no more than 30. However last week's Franklin game showed that they can be effective with the pass when needed.
Another Gladiator that deserves special praise tonight was sophomore Aiden Miller. He only stands about 5'6" and "maybe" weighs 140 but he was all over the field tonight, especially on defense where he recorded a safety and routinely brought down guys who were nearly twice his size. He also pinned the Tigers deep with the only RHS punt of the night, which rolled dead inside the 10.
Speaking of the kicking game, someone else mentioned that RHS excelled in that aspect, which is true because place-kicker Peyton Skillman was perfect on PAT's, added a short field goal and just as importantly, buried the Tigers deep on every kickoff.
In fact the field position advantage gained by Riverheads tonight also factored into the score being what it was despite a lack of big plays. Riverheads has been able all season to move steadily downfield on 70 and 80 yard drives almost at will, but tonight, due to Skillman's kicking and the already-described defensive dominance, the Gladiators had many short fields to work with. More often than not, a Tiger drive would start somewhere around the 20, they would fail to move the ball at all, their punter would get it no further than midfield, if that, and the Gladiators would have a short drive to paydirt. If I had to guess I would say Riverheads' average touchdown drive tonight was less than 50 yards.
Not only that but Sussex had a dreadful time with its center snaps, both on punts and on routine scrimmage plays, which led to a number of sacks, which in turn contributed to the negative total yardage figure. We all understand this was a young Tiger team so hopefully this time next year, they will have some of those timing issues corrected.
Last but not least, both teams did their part to keep the flags flying and the referees conferring. We probably had 20 or more flags in the game, several unsportsmanlike conduct calls, at least two or three reversals (and remember we don't have instant replay in high school ball yet!) and well let's just say it was not either team's finest moment in terms of efficiency.
But a win is a win and now the Gladiators await the results of tomorrow's Essex/Rappahannock game. If Essex wins that one, it will be a repeat trip to Riverheads for the semis. If Rapp wins, they will make a first-time ever visit to the Coliseum. In either case, keep your afternoon free next Saturday, and luckily the daytime kickoff will not interfere with the 7:30 ACC title game.
(P.S.) Both newspapers report that back up freshman QB Bennett Dunlap scored that final TD for the Big Red so I will bow to their superior knowledge and professionalism. I could have sworn that I looked up and saw Hartless as the one dragging tacklers into the end zone, but maybe that hot dog affected my vision!
OK back to Riverheads. As already stated the Gladiator defense posted a shutout in this one, but better than that, held the Tigers to minus yardage. If Sussex crossed midfield tonight I don't remember it and I would say their longest play from scrimmage was no more than five yards. The only time their respectable-sized crowd got to cheer, and I do mean the ONLY time, was when they were presented with the regional runner-up trophy, which is of course nothing to sneeze at.
However, as completely as the RHS defense dominated, it is only fair to mention that the Tiger defense did not really do that bad a job on Riverheads, despite the final score. For one thing they did something no other team had done this season.....they kept the Gladiators from scoring on their opening possession, as they had done in all 12 games thus far.
Also Riverheads failed to have any big plays of its own tonight and some of that has to be attributed to the Sussex defense. The Gladiators have usually managed at least one or two explosive plays per game but the longest play I can recall tonight was probably the final TD of the game, a run scored by reserve running back Isaac Hartless with only one second left in the game. Sorry but I was getting a half price hot dog when he scored so I can't give you the exact yardage but it appeared to be in the 20-25 yard range.
Zac Smiley as usual was the workhorse for RHS but instead of breaking any big ones, I would say he had more of a 15 carry/120 yard night give or take. Yes he scored four of the Big Red's six TDs but none were of the highlight reel variety.
QB Elijah Dunlap opened the scoring for RHS on its second possession, scoring on a one-yard sneak. He would later have two or three other tough runs but the Big Red had very little success through the air tonight. Braeson Fulton was held to only one catch as I recall and the Big Red's total yardage through the air was probably no more than 30. However last week's Franklin game showed that they can be effective with the pass when needed.
Another Gladiator that deserves special praise tonight was sophomore Aiden Miller. He only stands about 5'6" and "maybe" weighs 140 but he was all over the field tonight, especially on defense where he recorded a safety and routinely brought down guys who were nearly twice his size. He also pinned the Tigers deep with the only RHS punt of the night, which rolled dead inside the 10.
Speaking of the kicking game, someone else mentioned that RHS excelled in that aspect, which is true because place-kicker Peyton Skillman was perfect on PAT's, added a short field goal and just as importantly, buried the Tigers deep on every kickoff.
In fact the field position advantage gained by Riverheads tonight also factored into the score being what it was despite a lack of big plays. Riverheads has been able all season to move steadily downfield on 70 and 80 yard drives almost at will, but tonight, due to Skillman's kicking and the already-described defensive dominance, the Gladiators had many short fields to work with. More often than not, a Tiger drive would start somewhere around the 20, they would fail to move the ball at all, their punter would get it no further than midfield, if that, and the Gladiators would have a short drive to paydirt. If I had to guess I would say Riverheads' average touchdown drive tonight was less than 50 yards.
Not only that but Sussex had a dreadful time with its center snaps, both on punts and on routine scrimmage plays, which led to a number of sacks, which in turn contributed to the negative total yardage figure. We all understand this was a young Tiger team so hopefully this time next year, they will have some of those timing issues corrected.
Last but not least, both teams did their part to keep the flags flying and the referees conferring. We probably had 20 or more flags in the game, several unsportsmanlike conduct calls, at least two or three reversals (and remember we don't have instant replay in high school ball yet!) and well let's just say it was not either team's finest moment in terms of efficiency.
But a win is a win and now the Gladiators await the results of tomorrow's Essex/Rappahannock game. If Essex wins that one, it will be a repeat trip to Riverheads for the semis. If Rapp wins, they will make a first-time ever visit to the Coliseum. In either case, keep your afternoon free next Saturday, and luckily the daytime kickoff will not interfere with the 7:30 ACC title game.
(P.S.) Both newspapers report that back up freshman QB Bennett Dunlap scored that final TD for the Big Red so I will bow to their superior knowledge and professionalism. I could have sworn that I looked up and saw Hartless as the one dragging tacklers into the end zone, but maybe that hot dog affected my vision!
Last edited:
good win by riverheads, the offense was sluggish at times, but that was because of to much turkey and Sussex young defense, the defense played lights out, and pressured the qb at all times, he had a wr open on several plays but threw to the wrong guy. hats of to Sussex for a great season, and from a great turn around from the previous season, a young team with lots of potential, it was great meeting the one and only tiger, obguthr, Susie 33, and reconnecting with red pride nation, now I need to meet up with baseball 215 and fence patrol, also got to talk with Essex football coach, but did not get to meet Greenville,s finest and hiding seek champion, and next of kin to bigfoot, XCROSS, GO BIG RED
I will try to get them to join
