By Carl Holcomb
Moorefield Examiner
The Strasburg Rams stampeded into Moorefield as Quincy Williams rushed for 225 yards with four touchdowns to obliterate the Yellow Jackets 37-6 last Friday.
Yellow Jacket Field was bursting at its seams with fans lining the fences for the showdown.
“The community is great all the way around. We are 0-4 and still packing the stands. They are helpful with us, they’re enthusiastic and they are making noise. They are just as much a part of this as the boys are. Once we get over the hump, they will still be here. We knew these first four games were going to be tough. Now we can start playing ball and keep people coming,” Moorefield coach Eric Linville commented.
“[Strasburg] They keep everything in the box. They are crisp and they are huge and they are strong. They didn’t lose a single lineman from last year that I know of. They are a good team and they were close to the state finals over there. We knew it would be a tough one, but we hung in there and kept fighting. That’s what we do. We got six freshmen in and out. We are the walking wounded, but hopefully everybody will be back next week. I am happy for Bill [Lewis] getting his second touchdown. He is one of our young players stepping up. We don’t want to throw them to the wolves, rather work them in slowly. These guys are going to be really good. Good things are coming.”
Moorefield started the game on its own 25-yard line and failed to gather a first down as Strasburg’s Gage Gutierrez and Nathaniel Turner recorded a sack on the third play forcing a punt.
Strasburg began inside midfield and on the second play from scrimmage, Williams dashed 40 yards for a touchdown and Pablo Mora Hernandez added the kick for a 7-nil edge at 8:59.
It took less than two minutes for the Rams to get the ball back as Moorefield punted again after short carries by Mathew Iman and Oliver Crites.
The Rams were inside midfield commencing the ensuing possession, but the Yellow Jackets defense stepped up as Zeke Eye and Adison Wolfe garnered a sack after an incomplete pass.
Moorefield’s Blake Snyder and Shawn Reed made a tackle to force the Rams into a punt.
Reed converted third down on a 10-yard pass from Cyrus Kump racing the 40-yard line.
Kump added four yards on the ground and Crites collected another yard, then there was an errant throw.
The Yellow Jackets lined up for a punt and the snap sailed high creating a fumble.
Williams hit pay dirt again for the Rams from 30 yards out and the kick was good for a 14-0 lead with 2:54 left in the opening frame.
Iman eluded a defender in the backfield before being taken down moments later for no gain by Hutson Conrad.
Crites plowed ahead for six yards and collected two more yards prior to a third punt by the Yellow Jackets.
Strasburg started at the Moorefield 41-yard line and a huge run into the red zone was negated on a penalty.
Williams garnered a first down at the 30-yard line, then Linkyn Bosworth lost the ball crashing to the gridiron, but the Rams maintained possession as it was determined the ground caused the fumble to end the first quarter on the edge of the red zone.
Bosworth caught a 21-yard touchdown pass from Brayden Hough at 11:51 and Hernandez added the kick for a 21-nil Rams advantage.
Reed made a big kickoff return and was rocked along the sidelines as Moorefield began the next series near midfield.
Iman entered Rams territory on a seven yard run and Crites added a yard prior to a false start.
Reed erased that negative yardage, then Iman converted a fourth down plowing ahead to the 30-yard line.
Kump moved the chains on third down entering the red zone on a six yard keeper arriving at the 17-yard line.
However, the drive stalled with stops by Strasburg’s Conrad and an incomplete pass.
The Yellow Jackets got into formation for a 29-yard field goal attempt and tried a fake kick with Reed’s pass falling incomplete and the Rams took over possession at the 12.
Strasburg’s Brady Knight raced down the sidelines getting near midfield before getting hammered with the ball being jarred loose for a fumble recovered by Moorefield’s Blake Snyder at the Rams 45.
Three plays later, Strasburg’s Hough made an interception at the 27.
Williams unleashed a 73-yard touchdown run and the kick went awry as the Rams built a 27-0 lead at 3:43.
Moorefield began the following series at its own 20-yard line with offsetting penalties, ineligible receiver and pass interference.
Iman rushed for two yards and Crites created three yards.
Iman took the pitch and his run was wiped out on an offensive face mask penalty.
A Strasburg defender crushed Kump a little too late on a deflected pass situation resulting in a roughing the passer penalty creating a first down for the Yellow Jackets at the 37-yard line.
A sack by Strasburg’s Gage Gutierrez led to a Moorefield punt with 31 seconds left.
Williams collected a first down on a 24 yard carry to the 45-yard line and was forced out of bounds by Thomas Simmons, then Snyder tackled Hough to end the first half with the Rams holding a 27-0 lead.
“”We challenged the guys to come out in the first half. I thought we were slow the past couple of weeks in the first half, so we challenged them. We got after it. I thought our offensive line really opened up holes and our backs hit it hard. Quincy puts the work in and deserves it. Quincy will e the first to tell you it is the guys up front, then after that it is just a foot race for him. He stepped it up today. To come out and set the tone and score early and score often was important there. It was key stopping them because they have good players on the team. They will figure it out. To be able to stop them early, was important, because we thought they were going to push us around a little bit,” Strasburg coach Tripp Lamb remarked.
The Yellow Jackets failed on an onside kick attempt to commence the third quarter with Strasburg starting at the 48-yard line.
Bosworth rushed 18 yards for a first down in Moorefield domain at the 34-yard line.
Two plays later, Williams rushed 28 yards for a touchdown and the kick was made for a 34-0 lead at 10:44.
The Rams defense forced a three-and-out punt by the Yellow Jackets and the punt returner signaled for a fair catch before taking off with the ball and was knocked down causing a small fracas and possession at the 31.
Williams dashed 22 yards to enter Yellow Jackets territory at the 47.
James Trainor converted a third down at the 36-yard line, despite a tackle by Snyder.
Moorefield’s Gage Wolfe made a sack on third down, but the Rams’ Logan Cooper picked up a first down on the ensuing play.
Strasburg got down to the 10-yard line, but the Yellow Jackets defense stung back with tackles for no gain by Snyder and Daltan Ault, plus a false start leading to a 32-yard field goal made by Hernandez putting the Rams up 37-0 with 15 seconds to go in the third quarter.
A huge run by Moorefield’s Zakk Keplinger was negated on a block in the back penalty to close the third stanza.
Moorefield’s Bill Lewis converted a third down taking a pitch for a dozen yards reaching the 39-yard line.
Iman collected six yards, then Kump connected with Jackson Helmick moving the chains again on the nine yard sequence entering Rams domain at the 47-yard line.
After a sack by Strasburg’s Michael Kessinger Lewis flew forward for five yards.
Lewis plowed over the defense converting another fourth down on a nine yard run to the 35-yard line.
A leaping catch by Simmons moved the chains on fourth down once again for the Yellow Jackets getting inside the red zone on the 21 yard catch at the 10-yard line with two minutes remaining.
Short runs by Lewis and Snyder put the Yellow Jackets at the 4-yard line prior to an errant pass setting up fourth down with under 50 seconds left.
Lewis rammed through the Strasburg defense for Moorefield’s lone touchdown score with 41 seconds on the clock and the kick was blocked creating a final score of 37-6.
Strasburg improved to 3-1, while the Yellow Jackets fell to 0-4.
Moorefield travels to Petersburg for the annual Burke and Herbert Bank Brawl this Friday.
