WINCHESTER — James Wood football’s offense broke school records last year, and it showed no signs of slowing down during the season opener.
The Colonels amassed 597 yards during a 63-7 victory over visiting Clarke County on Friday. Quarterback Owen Neal completed eight of 10 passes for 278 yards and three touchdowns, connecting with receivers Aidric Yurish and Xavier Price on a pair of one-play scoring drives in the first quarter. All three were recognized along with their fellow fourth-year players during James Wood’s Senior Night ceremony before kickoff.
Neal also ran five times for 32 yards and a touchdown, while junior running back Jackson Ledford added six carries for 102 rushing yards and three scores on the ground. Yurish caught two touchdown passes for a combined 60 yards.
The Colonels’ defense held Clarke County to 36 rushes for 90 yards and an additional 16 passing yards.
Neal said his familiarity with his pass-catching targets, along with the Colonels’ strong preparation, positioned James Wood for success.
“We saw on film that we had the matchups outside, and we took advantage of them,” Neal said. “Toward the end of the game, they started honoring them and playing back, so that’s why our run game kicked into gear. But until then, we just got playmakers everywhere, and we just used them. I’ve been with these dudes forever, so I know what they’re thinking and they know what I’m thinking. So we can make adjustments on the fly. It’s going to be a good year.”
Before the two quick strikes, Neal led a five-play, 53-yard drive that ended with his 3-yard touchdown scamper. Junior receiver Jackson Lang caught a 39-yard reception to move the Colonels into the red zone at the 12 before Price tallied a 9-yard catch to set up the score. Lang, the team’s backup quarterback, caught four passes for 67 yards and later threw a 38-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.
On the first play of James Wood’s second drive, Neal found Yurish at midfield past the sticks, and Yurish broke free for a 49-yard touchdown that made it 14-0 with 5:48 on the clock.
“It started off with the safeties. They were too high, and they just spread out instead of coming down toward me,” said Yurish in descibing how he got open in the play. “And then the outside linebacker just shot out [away from midfield], so as soon as I saw him shoot out, I instantly looked back. Owen threw me the ball, and I thought the [defender] was going to be closer to me … so I just ran and scored a touchdown. Great feeling for Senior Night.”
One drive later, following Clarke County’s punt to James Wood’s 19, the Colonels again scored immediately when Neal found Price along the sideline near midfield. Price made the catch and sprinted the rest of the way for an 81-yard touchdown, extending the lead to 21-0 with 3:03 left in the first.
In the second quarter, the Eagles punted again, leading to another monster gain when Neal found newcomer Parker Kerns for a 70-yard reception that placed the ball on the Eagles’ 10-yard line. Kerns has played baseball with Neal dating back to before high school, and Neal said Kerns has come in “wanting to learn” on the gridiron.
After a delay of game, Ledford ran for a 5-yard gain and a 10-yard touchdown to make it 28-0 with 9:46 left before the break. Ledford, also a productive inside linebacker, broke through the gap and plowed past a defender on the goal line to reach the end zone.
Ledford said his linebacker background aids his physicality, while James Wood head coach Todd Wilson said Ledford works hard to achieve his goals.
“My biggest thing is keep my feet moving and don’t let one person stop me,” Ledford said. “There’s a certain mentality that you have to have to be able to play both sides of the ball like that, especially linebacker and running back … every rep, every single day in the weight room led up to this day.”
“He’s a strong, tough kid,” Wilson said. “He works hard in the weight room. He does all the right things in school and in the classroom. He’s just a great kid. You saw the style of run that he wants to play with. He wants to finish his run forward, and you saw that tonight.”
Clarke County’s next drive saw junior quarterback Mason Jarvis connect with senior running back Bryce Jacobson on an 8-yard reception that brought up a new set of downs, but the drive ended with a turnover on downs at the James Wood 42 due to a miscommunication on a snap.
The Colonels then engineered a seven-play, 58-yard drive that ended with Ledford’s second touchdown, but the possession didn’t come without difficulties.
After Neal opened the drive with a 24-yard gain, James Wood soon sustained three penalties for 25 yards, the second of which wiped out what would’ve been a Kerns 28-yard catch.
Facing third-and-15 on the Eagles’ 39, Lang caught a 14-yard pass to bring up fourth-and-short. The home team then drew Clarke County offsides to secure first down on the 20.
Three plays later, Ledford again battered through an Eagles’ defender near the goal line for a 12-yard score. James Wood now led 35-0 with 2:04 remaining and carried that lead into halftime.
Penalties hurt the Eagles not only here, but throughout the game, as they finished with 10 calls for 55 yards. The Colonels finished with 10 for 70 yards.
On the game’s opening possession, Clarke County lost 15 yards due to penalties, minimizing junior running back Grady Ferrell’s two carries for 12 yards to start the drive. Ferrell finished with 18 carries for 42 yards.
Clarke County head coach Casey Childs said the Eagles ran well, but must clean up pre-snap penalties moving forward.
“In the first half, before things really got out of hand, we were actually moving the football,” Childs said. “But then we got behind the chains with penalties. We had a holding call and a couple illegal procedures, and against a team like that, when you’re undersized and undermatched a little bit, you’ve got to be able to stay ahead of the chains, and that’s what we just didn’t do.”
James Wood started with the ball after the break and quickly scored again when Yurish caught his second touchdown.
Ledford opened the drive with a 39-yard run down to the Eagles’ 20, and Lang caught a 13-yard pass to get James Wood back on the doorstep. After a 4-yard loss, Neal found Yurish in the deep left corner of the end zone for six.
“I’m very happy that I’m a high school and not an NFL player, and can get one foot down and have a touchdown,” Yurish said of the play.
After another Clarke County punt, the Colonels’ next drive ended with Ledford securing a hat trick. This time, he cut outside and broke a tackle for an 11-yard score, making it 49-0 with 4:58 remaining in the third.
The play was set up by fellow running back Dane Tews, who ran for 46 yards to put the ball on the Eagles’ 7. A penalty knocked James Wood back before Ledford’s score.
On the Colonels’ first drive of the final quarter, Tews continued making big plays. The junior, who converted from wideout to running back in the offseason, ran for consecutive gains of 10, 35 and 23 yards before being rewarded with a 1-yard punch-in.
Lang entered at quarterback on this drive, and James Wood now led 56-0 with 8:01 to go. Tews finished with eight runs for 119 yards.
On the ensuing kickoff, Jacobson fielded the ball at the 28 and made his way down the far sideline for a 52-yard return.
Freshman running back Owen Mooney then ran for two 11-yard gains, the latter of which was a touchdown. Drake Barton made the extra point, putting the Eagles on the board with 6:32 left.
“We never stopped playing hard,” Childs said. “That was a testament to Bryce and those guys that made a couple of players there at the end of the game. It’s something to build off of. I thought that effort was really, really good tonight.”
It’s possible Mooney’s opportunity came due to an injury to senior Eidyn Mina-Hamerman, who didn’t return after being injured on the first play of the second quarter. Mina-Hamerman is expected to be one of Clarke County’s primary offensive weapons this season, and was one of multiple Eagles to deal with injuries on Friday.
Childs said he didn’t have any update on Mina-Hamerman yet, and added that he’s hoping to flush this loss quickly.
“We’re wiping this,” Childs said. “We’re going to look forward to Fort Defiance next week, heal up and hopefully turn the page. That’s what it’s all about, because the kids did what we wanted them to do; they played hard.”
On the Colonels’ final possession, Lang led an eight-play, 65-yard drive that ended with him finding junior receiver Cannon Edgerton for six with 73 seconds remaining. Freshman kicker Draven Hernandez made his ninth extra point of the night, putting the final bow on James Wood’s victory.
Wilson said he thought his team’s pace paid dividends.
“That’s just what we’ve been working on and building on the last four years,” Wilson said. “We’re an up-tempo team, and we want to go really fast, and the guys have bought into that. And when you don’t practice against that speed and tempo, it’s tough on the opponents. Clarke’s a smaller school. They’re tough kids. We know that. But we know they have to play a lot of their guys both ways. It’s a benefit to us … that we have the opportunity to play some guys just one way, which obviously helps us stay a little bit fresh.”
Next week, the Colonels will hit the road and visit Dominion on Thursday at 7. Clarke County will remain away, facing Fort Defiance on Friday at 7.
— Contact Joe Tuman at jtuman@winchesterstar.com
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