If William Byrd football needs a backup carpet to the new artificial turf at Robert A. Patterson Stadium in Vinton, they may want to keep the reservation line at Dwight Bogle Stadium on speed dial.
Dominating from the outset for the second straight Friday night in Southwest Roanoke County, Byrd put on an offensive show in the opening 24 minutes and rolled to the 45-21 win over the Hidden Valley Titans.
Similar to the previous week when the Terriers blasted Cave Spring 42-14 in week-one of high school football, Byrd was virtually unstoppable in the first half against the Titans, scoring 38 points. The Terrier confidence was on cruise control to the point of spending the majority of their halftime break not in the locker room, but kneeling in the end zone as the Titan band finished their halftime performance. Little need for talk when all the cylinders are clicking.
Byrd wasted no time getting the ball rolling. After taking the opening kickoff and stalling at the Titan 29, Byrd split the uprights with a field goal with room to spare from 46 yards to put the visitors up 3-0. Less than three minutes later the Terriers were in the end zone after a Hidden Valley interception led to a 75-yard scoring gallop by Nick Hale to make it 10-0.
Hidden Valley rebounded on their next series when Titan quarterback Grayson Carroll connected on a bomb to end Kelly Mitchell to the Byrd 5-yard line. Three plays later junior running back Jovan Wilson took it in from two yards out to cut the Terrier lead to 10-7.
But, Byrd, led by quarterback Sam Dantzler, put their offense in overdrive. Dantzler had the Titan defense’s number all evening, rushing for 291 yards and mixing in pinpoint passes before Highfill pulled the 5-9 senior in favor of backup sophomore Hunter Harris early in the fourth quarter.
After the ensuing kickoff, a two-play, 62-yard scoring drive capped off by Hale’s 5-yard TD run increased the Byrd lead to 17-7 with 51.9 seconds left in the opening quarter. After Hidden Valley went three-and-out, Byrd went 90 yards in two plays for their third touchdown to make it 24-7 with 9:34 left in the second frame.
Two and a half minutes later the Titans looked ready to get back in the game when Carroll found Mitchell on a scrambling toss from 15 yards on fourth down to slice the Terrier lead to 24-14.
After regaining possession, Hidden Valley wasn’t able to convert on fourth down with three minutes left in the half, and Byrd took control of the game. Dantzler scored on a 16-yard run with 45 seconds left and after Hidden Valley fumbled the ball away on their next possession, Dantzler connected on the first play with junior Trevor Thompson on a 28-yard strike with 16.5 seconds remaining to put the Terriers up 38-14 heading to the break.
Hidden Valley shot themselves in the foot to open the third quarter, with two interceptions in Byrd territory, followed by a personal foul that kept a Terrier drive intact, leading to a 49-yard scoring run by Hunter Meador that put Byrd up 45-14 with 8:14 left in the third.
Hidden Valley tacked on a fourth quarter 8-yard touchdown run by Wilson for the final margin, but Highfill, in his 38th and final season in Vinton, had his team firmly secured with a 2-0 start to the season at Bogle before the Terriers open their home field slate next Friday against the Bassett Bengals.
Bill Turner
