By LUKE EASTERLING — For The Independent
Russell — A little bit of Travis Jones and Will Rice went a long way.
Russell’s running duo combined for 347 yards on the ground, leading the Red Devils to a 36-20 victory over Lewis County on Senior Night at Henry R. Evans Stadium.
Jones racked up 202 yards on 13 carries and found the end zone four times, while Rice carried nine times for 145 yards and a score.
The backs averaged more than 15 yards per carry. Rice also led Russell in tackles with 10.
It was a strange game for the Red Devils though. Normally a team of long possessions, Russell was outgained 419-385 and Lewis County possessed the ball for all but 9:37 of the game.
However, the Lions couldn’t overcome a Red Devils’ quick-strike attack that ran no more than four plays on any of their five scoring drives.
The Lions opened up the scoring with a 12-play, 82-yard drive that took up the first 7:38 of the game, culminating in a 21-yard TD pass from Cole Cooper to Blake Kilgore. Lewis County would take an 8-0 lead following a successful 2-point conversion.
It didn’t take long for Russell to answer, marching the ball 64 yards on four rushes, with Jones scoring from 22 yards out to make it 8-7. Russell would recover a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, this time taking just three plays to find paydirt by way of a 24-yard run by Jones, giving the Red Devils a 15-8 lead.
Lewis County got back to business on the following possession, putting together a 15 play-drive that went all the way down inside Russell’s 5-yard-line. The Red Devil defense stiffened, however, stuffing the Lions on fourth-and-goal to perserve their lead.
Russell wasted no time, running the ball six times for 77 yards, finding themselves within striking distance just before the half. Lewis County would dodge the bullet however, with Cooper intercepting Russell quarterback Brandon Sparks inside the 10.
The Lions opened up the second half strong, overcoming an illegal shift penalty that negated a 41-yard strike from Cooper to Kilgore, en route to a 14-play, 59-yard drive, capped off by a 4-yard TD run by Cooper.
However, it took Russell just 56 seconds to find the end zone, again by way of a Jones run, this time from 1 yard out.
Russell would pull away early in the fourth, as Jones bounded 72 yards for yet another score. Immediately following a Luke Bailey interception, Rice scampered 58 yards to the end zone, giving the Red Devils a 36-14 lead.
The Lions would not go quietly, as Cooper would find Kilgore once more, this time from 17 yards, for the final score of the game. Kilgore finished with seven receptions for 106 yards and a pair of scores, while Cooper turned in a solid performance, going 14-of-19 passing, for 172 yards and three touchdowns (2 pass, 1 rush).
“I wasn’t expecting them to control the football like they did,” said Russell coach Ivan McGlone. “You’ve got to make some plays somewhere in the course of the game, and we did that with the goal-stand, the fumble recovery on the kickoff, and Luke Bailey made a great interception for us. You’ve got to have those things.”
The win clinches a first-round home playoff game for the Red Devils (6-3), and ensures them a second-place finish in the district.
