By Liz Keller / Scrimmageplaycva.com contributor
GOOCHLAND — An analysis of the Goochland football team so far this season has been a story of halves and halve nots.
However, the Bulldogs didn’t let this one slip away.
Goochland, which watched its lead disappear in each of its last two Jefferson District losses, put it all together on Friday night against rival Fluvanna County.
The Bulldogs led from start to finish en route to a dominating 54-14 win over the Flucos on Homecoming night in front of a packed stadium.
“I told the kids, right now in the Fluvanna locker room they’re telling their kids that they can come back and beat us because it’s happened. We’re a cautionary tale at halftime for probably everybody in central Virginia right now,” Goochland coach Joe Fowler said. “We finally put together two decent halves. It was very refreshing after the past couple weeks to come out in the second half and move the ball and get some stops.”
Goochland (2-2 JD, 4-3) broke to a 20-0 first-quarter lead behind its potent ground attack. David McKenna and Dustin Plummer carried the load on the opening drive before quarterback Ryan Crouch punched it in for the 1-yard touchdown.
The Goochland defense prevented the visitors from getting any positive yardage on their first possession and forced the Flucos to punt. The Bulldogs took advantage of good field position to extend their lead as McKenna rumbled in the end zone from 15 yards out.
Goochland forced Fluvanna to go three-and-out again, and after a penalty on the Flucos, McKenna broke free and sprinted 62 yards for the score. McKenna added the conversion to give the hosts a sizeable advantage.
The Bulldogs were unrelenting. Cody Johnson intercepted YaYa Anderson’s pass, and Goochland took advantage of the turnover, using a four-play drive to add to its lead. Plummer broke to the sideline and evaded defenders for a 39-yard gain and then scored from one yard out.
In the second quarter, Fluvanna (2-3, 3-4) put together a nice drive that was predominantly T.J. Dudley. The 6-foot-3, 195-pounder carried the ball on seven of the 11 plays on the drive and capped it with a 21-yard run to cut the lead to 27-7. Dudley, who also had a fourth-quarter TD, paced the Flucos with 93 yards on 24 carries.
But Goochland quickly answered, as Ryan Coles ripped off an electrifying 83-yard kickoff return to give the team a 34-7 halftime advantage.
Things didn’t get better for Fluvanna in the second half, as the Bulldogs continued to run their offense efficiently and capitalize on the Flucos’ turnovers.
“We have a lot of things we have to fix, and it won’t just magically happen,” Fluvanna first-year coach Jason Barnett said. “My six-year-old daughter told me, ‘you can’t just say things and have them magically happen.’ You can’t just say you’re going to win a game and it’s going to magically happen. Our kids have to understand that.”
Goochland added three second-half TDs, including a 17-yard strike from Crouch to Brent Alvis. But the Bulldogs ran the ball with ease all night. McKenna, who was crowned Homecoming King at halftime, rushed for a game-high 121 yards on 10 carries, while Plummer was impressive with 97 yards on seven carries. In all, ten different players toted the ball for Goochland.
But Fowler knows there’s still plenty for his team to work on before next Friday’s matchup with unbeaten Louisa County.
“There’s a million things to fix and we’ll get back at it Monday,” Fowler said. “We’re staring at Louisa next week and coach [Mark] Fischer’s got a great team. They’re undefeated and we’ve got to go over there and play and as everybody knows, that’s not a friendly environment for the visitor.”
