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Alleghany Racks Up 245 Rushing Yards
Facing a 21-0 deficit after the first quarter, the Rockbridge County High School football team never recovered, suffering a 63-14 road loss to undefeated Alleghany on Friday night in Covington.
The Cougars (3-0) dominated in every aspect of the game at a crowded Boodie Albert Stadium, racking up 345 yards of offense and forcing three turnovers, while the Wildcats (0-3) had 212 yards of offense.
Alleghany quarterback Des Jordan completed 5-of-5 passes for 100 yards and three touchdowns, while running back Carter Nicely rushed for 80 yards and a TD on seven carries.
After the Alleghany defense prevented the Wildcats from earning a first down on their first possession, the Cougars scored on their first drive when Nicely made a 5-yard TD run. Mason Hale, who made 7-of-8 extra-point kicks, converted the first to give Alleghany a 7-0 lead less than five minutes into the first quarter.
The Wildcats fumbled the ball on their next possession, and Alleghany’s Tamarion Calloway recovered it at the RC 23-yard line. From there, Jordan connected with Sarger Persinger in the end zone to extend the Cougars’ lead to 14-0 with 6:15 left in the first quarter. Alleghany made it 21-0 when Jordan completed a 40-yard TD pass to Xzavier Hayslet with 1:15 left in the quarter.
On their next possession, the Wildcats fumbled again, and Alleghany’s Joseph Rogers recovered the ball at the RC 27-yard line. The Cougars stretched their lead to 28-0 when Jordan found Hayslett for a 19-yard TD pass 42 seconds into the second quarter. After Alleghany’s defense stopped RC, the Cougars scored again when Nicholas Frye made a 7-yard TD run. RC blocked the PAT, keeping the score at 34-0 with 8:11 left in the first half.
The Wildcats then finally put together a solid drive,
, page A12 making a series of runs and passes to get into the red zone. A 15-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Elijah Watkins to Pat Looney got RC to the Alleghany 1-yard line. Watkins ran the ball in from there on the Wildcats’ next play. A PAT by Aiden Meyers cut Alleghany’s lead to 34-7 with four minutes left in the first half.
It was the first start for Watkins, who had backed up senior Jayden Layman the first two games. As Layman switched to running and receiving, Watkins completed 4-of-12 passes for 38 yards. “Considering it was his first start and who it was against, I thought he did very well,” said RC head coach Martin Cox of Watkins Alleghany responded quickly, scoring less than a minute later when Frye ran for a 54-yard TD. A two-point conversion pass from Nicely to Gavin Via extended the Cougars’ lead to 42-7 going into halftime.
In the third quarter, the Cougars made it 49-7 when Via ran it in from 18 yards with 5:41 left.
On the Wildcats’ next drive, Marshall Earhart ran the ball well to get RC down the field. Runs by Earhart, Layman, Looney and Watkins set up Looney for a 3-yard TD run. A PAT by Meyers cut Alleghany’s lead to 49-14 with 11:02 left in the game.
The Cougars answered with a 54-yard TD run by AJ Godfrey Jr. to make it 56-14 with 6:44 left. After Alleghany’s defense stopped the Wildcats again, Meyers punted on fourth-and-6, and Alleghany’s Elijah Leisure-White returned the punt 60 yards for the final TD of the game with 3:02 left.
Alleghany racked up 245 rushing yards. Other than Nicely, the Cougars’ leading rushers were Frye with 61 yards and two carries, both for TDs, and Godfrey Jr. with his 54-yard TD run. The Wildcats rushed for 174 yards, led by Earhart, who led all players with 82 yards on seven carries. Also stepping up for RC was Looney, who rushed for 71 yards and a TD on 11 carries.
Hayslett led Alleghany’s receivers with two TD catches for 59 yards, while Layman and Looney each caught the ball once for 15 yards for the Wildcats.
After the game, Cox gave credit to the Cougars, who also routed their first two opponents this season. “Alleghany’s probably one of the better teams we’re gonna face this year,” said Cox. “They’re doing a really great job.”
Going over the game, Alleghany head coach Will Fields said, “We got a chance to get some of the young guys in, and they played hard. I’m proud of them. We executed pretty well early.”
“Rockbridge was down some kids,” added Fields. “They’ve got some kids hurt and banged up. They’re struggling right now, and I certainly know what that’s like.”
Fields said the game plan against the Wildcats was an adjustment from the Cougars’ first two opponents, Waynesboro and Fort Defiance, teams that Alleghany beat by the same score, 47-13. “They’re a power running offense,” said Fields of the Wildcats. “It was a little different than what we’ve faced, so we had to pack it in a little bit and try to stop the run. Their kids played hard tonight. They come off the ball and get after you, so that was good for us.”
After playing their last two games on the road, the Wildcats will return to action at home on Friday night when they play host to Blacksburg (1-2) at 7 p.m. at Prasnicki-Ross Field at Veterans Stadium in Lexington. At halftime, RC will recognize its third annual Athletic Hall of Fame class.
RC 0 7 0 7 14
AHS 21 21 7 14 63
First Quarter AHS – C. Nicely 5 run (Hale kick) AHS – Persinger 23 pass form Jordan (Hale kick) AHS – Hayslett 40 pass from Jordan (Hale kick) Second Quarter AHS – Hayslett 19 pass from Jordan (Hale kick) AHS – Frye 7 run (kick blocked) RC – Watkins 1 run (Meyers kick) AHS – Frye 54 run (Via pass from C. Nicely) Third Quarter AHS – Via 6 run (Hale kick) Fourth Quarter RC – Looney 3 run (Meyers kick) AHS – Godfrey Jr. 54 run (Hale kick) AHS – Leisure-White 60 punt return (Hale kick) RC AHS
First downs 12 7 Rushes-yards 38-174 20-245 Passing yards 38 100 Comp-Att-Int 4-12-0 5-5-0 Fumbles-lost 4-3 0-0 Penalties-yards 0-0 1-5
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING – RC, Earhart 7-82, Looney 11-71, Meyers 6-18, Layman 3-17, Wells 2-11, Wade 1-3, Knick 1-0, Watkins 6-(-8), Team 1-(-20). AHS, C. Nicely 7-80, Frye 2-61, A. Godfrey Jr. 1-54, H. Knighton 3-24, Via 2-11, H. Nicely 2-8, Myers 1-7, K. Rice 1-0, Griffith 1-0.
PASSING – RC, Watkins 4-12-0 38. AHS, Jordan 5-5-0 100. RECEIVING – RC, Layman 1-15, Looney 1-15, Wade 1-5, Welsh III 1-3. AHS, Hayslett 2-59, Persinger 1-23, J. Godfrey 1-9, A. Godfrey Jr. 1-9.
