Five first-half turnovers helped the Redskins score on its first eight drives to open a 51-14 first-half lead
5A state finalist Lamar showed the potential that local and state polls predicted it has in its possession, by crushing district rival Westside.
It didn’t take much for the Redskins to get up for the Wolves Friday night, as its defense dominated throughout and Senior quarterback Darrell Colbert directed eight consecutive first-half scoring drives, building a 51-14 first-half lead as Lamar cruised to a 71-21 victory over Westside at Delmar Stadium.
It was billed as one of the top games in the area; it was anything but.
Both teams entered the contest unbeaten in district play. Westside’s high-scoring offense versus Lamar’s defense.
Redskin’s defense dominated from the outset, holding the high scoring Wolves, who came in averaging 49 points per game, to 21.
“Well we were off last week and we were pretty focused on this game,” says Lamar’s Coach Tom Nolan. “We didn’t make as many mistakes, we executed better. The defense played great. The kicking game was great. Kicking off was unbelievable. The hold offense played great.”
Upfront the defensive line of Brandon Agomuo, Willie Harris, Regan Johnson and Ira Lewis sacked Wolves’ quarterback Michael Haywood five times and forced four turnovers all in the first half alone.
Trevion Duncan, Lamar’s active defensive back blitzed Haywood from his position, while covering talented receiver Bobby Hartzog on an island. Its defensive line stunted while linebackers dropped back into pass coverage as well as a brutal pass rush, overwhelming the Wolves.
“We prepared two weeks, because we had a bi-week off,” explained Redskins’ Defensive lineman Willie Harris, III. “We came out and executed well. Our stunts were good. We work really hard in practice and our drills with Coach Mel helped the whole defense.”
Colbert directed Lamar (5-0, 2-0) on its first eight scoring possessions of the game to open a 51-14 lead with the help of defense, short fields and turnovers.
“They’re a good ball club (Lamar). There is no doubt about it,” Westside Coach Mark Byrd said. “They’re one of the top five in the state. But one thing about our ball club, and our coaching staff, we’re never going to back away from competition and going to keep throwing the ball and doing the things we do. But when you’re playing a team like that, you can’t turn the ball over four times and I think they have a great defense.”
Three plays into the game, defensive back Trevion Duncan intercepted Haywood at the 50-yard line to setup Lamar’s first score.
Running back Ronnie Wesley carried twice coupled with receiver Shelby Walker’s catch at the seven-yard line to setup Colbert’s seven-yard touchdown run, giving Lamar a 7-0 lead after kicker Nathaniel Rios’ extra point kick.
After a quick three-and-out, which included a third-down sack of Haywood, the Redskins turned a short punt into a 19-yard field goal by Rios, extending its lead 10-0, after receiving great field position down at Westside’s 45-yard line.
Trailing 31-0 to begin the second quarter, Haywood hooked up with Bobby Hartzog on a 48-yard touchdown pass to put the Wolves aboard with 8:48 left in the quarter.
“I’m proud of this team,” says Coach Byrd. “I think that our kids are resilient and we’ll get through this. They put up a lot of points, but there are a lot of small victories we got out of this.”
Westside added another touchdown with 2:16 left in the second quarter when Haywood spotted Frank Ihenanacho for a nine-yard reception.
The going was tough for Westside, as it had trouble picking up the blitz and getting a block on the quick attacking Redskins.
Other first-half Lamar touchdowns included Holton Hill’s five-yard run, Ronnie Wesley’s 15-yard run and a four-yarder. In addition, Colbert connected on a 29-yard scoring pass to receiver Nicholas Turner, 12-yards to Shelby Walker, and a 23-yard strike to Turner.
Lamar continued its offensive dominance by scoring 20 second-half points to build a 71-21 lead. Backup running backs Ivy Smith and Travi’ane Whiteing scored three touchdowns. Smith had touchdown runs of 62 and 45-yards while Whiteing scored on a 45-yard run.
Christian Aleman’s 20-yard reception from Haywood closed the scoring for Westside.
