There were no shortage of reasons for Ed Reynolds to take Woodberry Forest and put the Tigers on his shoulders – his team was banged up, it was his last high school home game, and he needed 200 yards to break 1,000 yards rushing for the year. But one more reason loomed above all of those.
With members of the 1971 T.C. Williams football team that inspired the film ‘Remember the Titans’ in attendance and walking the Woodberry Forest sideline, the Tigers’ running back wanted to make sure he played his best in front of football royalty.
“We’ve all seen the movie,” Reynolds said. “We know their story very well. They’re legends and it was great to have them around for our last home game, just to hear all the stories they have.”
Well Reynolds certainly left an impression on all those in attendance. The Woodberry senior piled up 210 yards rushing and four touchdowns to lead the Tigers to victory on senior day over visiting St. Christopher’s, 35-22.
“With Titans watching you at home?,” Reynolds said. “You definitely can’t lose with the Titans watching you. That was definitely a big pick-me-up for all of us.”
The Tigers jumped out to a quick start against the Saints as they only needed four plays from scrimmage to score their first touchdown of the game to take a 6-0 lead. With Reynolds chewing up big chunks of yardage at a time, Woodberry went up 19-10 by the half.
But things got tight in the beginning of the third quarter when St. Christopher’s quarterback hit Patrick Martin on a 88-yard pass to cut the lead to three points.
With 12 minutes to play, Woodberry’s defense took over, forcing three interceptions, two of them by sophomore C.J. Proisse. The Tigers converted those turnovers into 14 points to put the game on ice.
“On that first interception it was all instincts,” Proisse said. “I was just able to get there and get my hands on the ball. I don’t even remember what happened after that. It was just all instincts.”
Having a sophomore come up with the big plays was big for a number of reasons, but from a long term perspective, Alexander is excited to see that he’s got some kids with playmaking abilities ready to step up.
“We’ve been trying to get a look at the young guys out there because we’re going to be losing a lot of talented seniors next year,” said Woodberry coach Clint Alexander. “We’ve been real excited about C.J.”
With a number of players out because of injury, Reynolds’ performance was crucial. Ade Oyalowo, one of the few players Alexander plays on both sides of the ball and who spells Reynolds at tailback, wasn’t available.
Not only did Reynolds score four of the five Tiger touchdowns, but he also played admirably at cornerback as Woodberry looked to stop an active Saints passing attack.
“Ed played so great for us,” Alexander said. “He did it on offense, but really on defense as well. And as good as a player as he is, he’s outstanding leader on top of it. That might be his greatest contribution.”
Last week Reynolds carried the ball 37 times, and though his work load was light by comparison with just 16 carries this week, he was able to pick up at least 190 yards for the second straight week, with his longest run coming on a 59-yard score late in the second quarter.
“I’ve kind of taken upon myself to try and get this team fired up,” Reynolds said. “But at the same time, I can’t do it all by myself. The offensive line, my fullback Hatcher Williams, they were to open up the holes for me.”
Woodberry Forest (5-1) travels to Norfolk Academy on Saturday at 3 p.m.
