A game that was billed as one of the best in central Virginia Friday night, well, wasn’t.
Madison County couldn’t find a way to contain the Clarke County offense and fell to the Eagles 47-7 in the de facto Bull Run championship as Clarke handed Madison the Mountaineers’ first loss of the season.
Clarke put the game virtually out of reach on its first drive of the second half, milking an incredible 10:02 off the clock on a 14-play drive, culminating in a 15-yard run by junior running back Grant Shaw. Clarke was deadly on the ground the entire night, racking up 353 rushing yards, while completing just two passes for 15 yards.
“[The single wing] is a little more complicated than people think,” said Clarke coach Chris Parker. “I researched it for over a year in-depth and there’s no one way to run it. We felt, as a staff, with the athletes we had, we could get the ball in many players’ hands. There’s a lot of misdirection and it’s hard defend.”
Clarke (10-0, 4-0 Bull Run district) quickly took control of the game on its first drive, scoring its first touchdown on a one-yard plunge by senior running back Sam Shiley at the 8:07 mark of the first quarter. The extra point was blocked but Clarke had struck first. The Eagles never once passed on the nine-play drive and methodically used misdirection running plays to pick up huge chunks of yardage. It was a sign of things to come.
Mountaineer senior Antonio Childress had a solid punt return to the Madison 45-yard line but the home team was stymied after just one first down and Clarke took over on downs.
The Mountaineer defense saw more of the same on the Eagles’ second drive and Shiley scored again with a five-yard touchdown run. After a two-point conversion, Clarke led 14-0 late in the first quarter and the big-game atmosphere emanating from the home side had noticeably diminished.
“Our kids were ready to play and were fired up,” Parker said. “We knew it wasn’t going to be easy. [Madison is] well-coached — a great program.”
The Mountaineers (9-1, 3-1 Bull Run District) were unable to move the ball very far down the field for several more possessions but they kept the Eagles within striking distance by forcing a couple punts.
Madison seemed on the verge of breaking through on offense late in the second quarter when a controversial call quickly swung the momentum back in Clarke’s favor. Mountaineer senior quarterback Dustin Kirby’s pass was intercepted by Clarke senior Zach Shiley and as Shiley tried to race to the sideline, it appeared Kirby was able to shove him out-of-bounds. But the play continued, and Shiley was able to make it all the way to the end zone to give Clarke a 21-0 lead. With just a minute left in the half, it was unlikely that Clarke would have scored if Shiley had been ruled out of bounds. The Madison coaches and fans were irate following the no call, but Mountaineer coach Stuart Dean downplayed any significance the call had on the game.
“You’re always going to have plays and calls like that in any game but that’s just part of the game and things are going to happen,” he said.
Though Madison was now down 21-0, it got a boost on the kickoff when senior A.J. Butler was able to return it 80 yards for the Mountaineers’ lone score on the night. Childress had a good night on returns, gaining 124 yards on five returns.
“We did a heck of a job returning kicks tonight so it was great to see that,” Dean said.
It took Clarke just two plays to respond to the Butler score when Zach Shiley broke through the line and dashed 70 yards for yet another Eagle rushing score. In under a minute, the score of the game went from 14-0 to 27-7. Clarke missed the extra point but clearly had the momentum after a wild final minute of the first half.
The only way it looked like the Mountaineers were going to get back in the game was to score on the opening possession of the second half but they were unable to as the Eagle defense held strong. Madison senior running back Logan Terrell, its main offensive force, was held to only 24 yards on 12 carries during the game while the entire Mountaineer offense accumulated 123 yards on the night.
“I felt that our defensive game plan was excellent,” Parker said. “I know we scored 47 points but our defense helped them out. I’m real proud of [our players].”
For Madison, the game was a disappointment, but it is focused on what’s ahead.
“This game meant so much to the kids,” Dean said. “They put all their hearts into it. They got after it—they wanted to win this one so bad so I feel sorry for them. But we got to look at the big picture and put it behind us and say, ‘It’s a new week’ and start from scratch for the playoffs and come out and get after it again the same way we do in practice.”
Because of the VHSL classification system, the Mountaineers and Eagles — though they are in the same district — are not in the same division and won’t have to meet each other in the region or state playoffs. Parker said he did not know who Clarke will play next week in the playoffs and Dean said Madison will likely play on the road, either at Riverheads or Altavista.
