The Gladiators ran their all-time record against East Rock to a perfect 8-0 here tonight but in all fairness to the Eagles, it was a closer game than the score indicates. East Rock brought a young, aggressive team with a well-balanced offense into Greenville and if they had not shot themselves in the foot with a number of penalties and turnovers, this could have been a much closer game.
RHS took the opening kickoff and appeared ready to drive it in for an easy first touchdown. But suddenly the East Rock defense stiffened and the Gladiators settled for a 27 yard Peyton Skillman field goal to open the scoring. East Rock then got a great kickoff return deep into RHS territory and had a chance to take the lead. But Riverheads matched their defensive effort once the visitors got in the red zone and the East Rock field goal barely cleared the crossbar for a 3-3 tie.
Later in the first quarter, the first of four or five Eagle turnovers led to RHS scoring the first touchdown of the game. An Eagle pass was successfully completed out near midfield and the receiver was struggling for extra yardage when a hard hit jarred the ball loose. Riverheads' Blake Smith, the younger of a brother combination, scooped it up on one hop and rambled untouched for a 10-3 Gladiator lead.
The Eagles started mounting up the penalties at that point, and RHS was able to tack on two more scores in the second quarter to lead 24-3. The older brother, quarterback Tyler Smith had one, and fullback Dalton Jordan, who easily had the best game of the night for the Big Red, scored the first of his two TDs, and as the clock ticked toward halftime, it appeared that the Eagles were losing their focus and that the second half might be a runaway.
Instead of going quietly, ERHS got the passing game going and drove in for a score just before the break, helped along by a personal foul penalty against the Gladiators. That closed the gap to 24-10 and with the Eagles due to receive the second half kickoff, they went into the locker room feeling as if they had a fighting chance.
Riverheads handed them a break to open the second half with a rare 15 yard penalty for failing to come out of the locker room in time. That forced a kick-off from the RHS 25 but the Eagle deep man inadvertently touched a knee down at his own 30. Shortly after that, another ER turnover put RHS on the offensive again and T. Smith capped off the drive with his second score of the night to make it 31-10.
ER responded with its best drive of the game, which was capped off by a pretty 30-yard strike into the end zone that would have been worthy of a Sportscenter highlight. That closed the gap to 31-17, and when RHS fumbled around midfield on its next possession, the Eagles were right back in business, threatening to close the gap to a single TD.
They drove down into the red zone, but just when it looked like we might have a game again, RHS got a crucial quarterback sack that ended that drive and effectively the game.
Jordan, who had some hard runs on the night and showed surprising speed once he got out into the open, broke loose a couple of times on the final Gladiator drive and deservedly scored the final TD for the home team.
RHS got the ball back with around four minutes left and had the chance to score once more to widen the margin, but elected to take the high road and the game ended quietly inside the Eagle five-yard line.
Next week the Gladiators travel to Buffalo Gap for the second straight year, due to the new two-year scheduling cycle. Last year's visit resulted in a resounding 49-7 Riverheads win, but something tells me that it will not be that easy this time around.
In closing, I offer apologies to the East Rock fans for an error I made both on another Preps thread and in the printed program at tonight's game. I was attempting to call positive attention to their great passing duo that is now playing college ball together in West Virginia. I referred incorrectly to the "Williams to Butler" passing combination, when of course I meant the Eagles' great quarterback Jaylen McNeir, who gave the Shenandoah fits during his time in Elkton. Tonight's quarterback, who I believe really IS named Williams, showed flashes of McNeir at times, especially with that third-quarter strike, and will only get better with more experience.
RHS took the opening kickoff and appeared ready to drive it in for an easy first touchdown. But suddenly the East Rock defense stiffened and the Gladiators settled for a 27 yard Peyton Skillman field goal to open the scoring. East Rock then got a great kickoff return deep into RHS territory and had a chance to take the lead. But Riverheads matched their defensive effort once the visitors got in the red zone and the East Rock field goal barely cleared the crossbar for a 3-3 tie.
Later in the first quarter, the first of four or five Eagle turnovers led to RHS scoring the first touchdown of the game. An Eagle pass was successfully completed out near midfield and the receiver was struggling for extra yardage when a hard hit jarred the ball loose. Riverheads' Blake Smith, the younger of a brother combination, scooped it up on one hop and rambled untouched for a 10-3 Gladiator lead.
The Eagles started mounting up the penalties at that point, and RHS was able to tack on two more scores in the second quarter to lead 24-3. The older brother, quarterback Tyler Smith had one, and fullback Dalton Jordan, who easily had the best game of the night for the Big Red, scored the first of his two TDs, and as the clock ticked toward halftime, it appeared that the Eagles were losing their focus and that the second half might be a runaway.
Instead of going quietly, ERHS got the passing game going and drove in for a score just before the break, helped along by a personal foul penalty against the Gladiators. That closed the gap to 24-10 and with the Eagles due to receive the second half kickoff, they went into the locker room feeling as if they had a fighting chance.
Riverheads handed them a break to open the second half with a rare 15 yard penalty for failing to come out of the locker room in time. That forced a kick-off from the RHS 25 but the Eagle deep man inadvertently touched a knee down at his own 30. Shortly after that, another ER turnover put RHS on the offensive again and T. Smith capped off the drive with his second score of the night to make it 31-10.
ER responded with its best drive of the game, which was capped off by a pretty 30-yard strike into the end zone that would have been worthy of a Sportscenter highlight. That closed the gap to 31-17, and when RHS fumbled around midfield on its next possession, the Eagles were right back in business, threatening to close the gap to a single TD.
They drove down into the red zone, but just when it looked like we might have a game again, RHS got a crucial quarterback sack that ended that drive and effectively the game.
Jordan, who had some hard runs on the night and showed surprising speed once he got out into the open, broke loose a couple of times on the final Gladiator drive and deservedly scored the final TD for the home team.
RHS got the ball back with around four minutes left and had the chance to score once more to widen the margin, but elected to take the high road and the game ended quietly inside the Eagle five-yard line.
Next week the Gladiators travel to Buffalo Gap for the second straight year, due to the new two-year scheduling cycle. Last year's visit resulted in a resounding 49-7 Riverheads win, but something tells me that it will not be that easy this time around.
In closing, I offer apologies to the East Rock fans for an error I made both on another Preps thread and in the printed program at tonight's game. I was attempting to call positive attention to their great passing duo that is now playing college ball together in West Virginia. I referred incorrectly to the "Williams to Butler" passing combination, when of course I meant the Eagles' great quarterback Jaylen McNeir, who gave the Shenandoah fits during his time in Elkton. Tonight's quarterback, who I believe really IS named Williams, showed flashes of McNeir at times, especially with that third-quarter strike, and will only get better with more experience.
