As if the Big Red running attack wasn't already scary enough, imagine how Waynesboro felt tonight when they discovered that the Gladiators had added a few new wrinkles to their game. By the time the running clock sent everybody heading to their cars by 8:55, the Gladiators had completely dominated the home team with a well-executed game plan that did not even remotely resemble the penalty and turnover-filled Covington game a couple of weeks ago. So as much as he says he dislikes bye weeks, in this case Coach Casto was probably glad he had this one to settle his team down.
The game started out the way most Big Red games do, with all-state running back Harrison Schaefer striking paydirt. This time he scored from 68 yards out on his very first carry to put RHS ahead 7-0 less than a minute into the game. He added a 44 yard run moments later giving him over 100 yards rushing in less than half a quarter.
With a 14-0 lead and the Little Giants already frustrated, Riverheads opened up the playbook a little bit and with just a few exceptions gave Mr. Schaefer the rest of the night off. One of the new plays was a direct snap to fullback Dalton Jordan who had some nice runs.
But by far the most effective new weapon for RHS was a shotgun snap to quarterback Chase Armstrong. He then faked a handoff, put a spin move on the defense and darted right up the middle. The Giants were quite obviously not expecting him to be a running threat so the play caught them off guard as Riverheads ran it 8-10 times, including a 20 yard dash for touchdown number three. Later Gladiator touchdowns unofficially came from Jordan, Brett Hostetler, and Devin Morris as everybody got plenty of PT in this one.
As impressive as the Gladiator offense was, a suffocating defense kept Waynesboro bottled up all night. RHS blocked two punts, one of which came within three yards of being returned directly for a touchdown and they also sacked the quarterback a good half dozen times. Waynesboro also had trouble holding on to the ball, including one particularly frustrating sequence that had to leave everyone in purple pulling their hair out.
RHS was already leading 35-0 with Waynesboro itching to score so they would not have to go into the locker room scoreless. The Big Red cooperated by fumbling for their only turnover of the evening and moments later committed a horse collar penalty. The Giants then moved the ball all the way down to the 1 yard line before they coughed it up on a fumble.
At halftime, Arnie Doyle, who has ties to both schools, was deservedly inducted into the Waynesboro Hall of Fame. Then with the clock moving continuously, RHS added one score in each of the final two quarters before the Giants finally avoided the shutout on a 50-yard quarterback keeper with about 3 minutes left.
This victory evens the all-time series between the two teams at 4 wins apiece, with RHS winning each of these past four games, to offset Waynesboro's 4-game sweep from 1970-73, long before the Gladiators became the juggernaut they are these days. Sadly the series may stay tied for a while, as word in the stands says that the two will part company after this year, possibly due to the new district re-alignments.
As for next week, everybody in the area starts their district play. I am not sure who Waynesboro plays but Riverheads, now 3-0 on the season, will welcome fellow unbeaten Luray for a Homecoming game. Based on the long range weather forecast, it should be a beautiful night, but somebody will suffer their first loss of the season, no matter how nice it is outside.
The game started out the way most Big Red games do, with all-state running back Harrison Schaefer striking paydirt. This time he scored from 68 yards out on his very first carry to put RHS ahead 7-0 less than a minute into the game. He added a 44 yard run moments later giving him over 100 yards rushing in less than half a quarter.
With a 14-0 lead and the Little Giants already frustrated, Riverheads opened up the playbook a little bit and with just a few exceptions gave Mr. Schaefer the rest of the night off. One of the new plays was a direct snap to fullback Dalton Jordan who had some nice runs.
But by far the most effective new weapon for RHS was a shotgun snap to quarterback Chase Armstrong. He then faked a handoff, put a spin move on the defense and darted right up the middle. The Giants were quite obviously not expecting him to be a running threat so the play caught them off guard as Riverheads ran it 8-10 times, including a 20 yard dash for touchdown number three. Later Gladiator touchdowns unofficially came from Jordan, Brett Hostetler, and Devin Morris as everybody got plenty of PT in this one.
As impressive as the Gladiator offense was, a suffocating defense kept Waynesboro bottled up all night. RHS blocked two punts, one of which came within three yards of being returned directly for a touchdown and they also sacked the quarterback a good half dozen times. Waynesboro also had trouble holding on to the ball, including one particularly frustrating sequence that had to leave everyone in purple pulling their hair out.
RHS was already leading 35-0 with Waynesboro itching to score so they would not have to go into the locker room scoreless. The Big Red cooperated by fumbling for their only turnover of the evening and moments later committed a horse collar penalty. The Giants then moved the ball all the way down to the 1 yard line before they coughed it up on a fumble.
At halftime, Arnie Doyle, who has ties to both schools, was deservedly inducted into the Waynesboro Hall of Fame. Then with the clock moving continuously, RHS added one score in each of the final two quarters before the Giants finally avoided the shutout on a 50-yard quarterback keeper with about 3 minutes left.
This victory evens the all-time series between the two teams at 4 wins apiece, with RHS winning each of these past four games, to offset Waynesboro's 4-game sweep from 1970-73, long before the Gladiators became the juggernaut they are these days. Sadly the series may stay tied for a while, as word in the stands says that the two will part company after this year, possibly due to the new district re-alignments.
As for next week, everybody in the area starts their district play. I am not sure who Waynesboro plays but Riverheads, now 3-0 on the season, will welcome fellow unbeaten Luray for a Homecoming game. Based on the long range weather forecast, it should be a beautiful night, but somebody will suffer their first loss of the season, no matter how nice it is outside.
