Photos courtesy of Braden Gilley
The Raiders won the coin toss and elected to defer so the Warriors got the ball first. The Warriors started the opening kickoff at the 33-yard line. They started the game with a short pass of 2 yards, but Raiders safety Taevion Parker tackled the running back for a loss on the next play bringing up 3rd and long. A quarterback scramble went for a couple of yards but resulted in a punt for the away team.
The Raiders started their first drive at the 21-yard line. Running back Tony Marshall took the first carry of the game for 20 yards but was injured on the play. After a short run by quarterback Chris Denson, he found Josh Tyson for a 5-yard gain. An encroachment by the Warriors gave the Raiders a first down. After an incomplete pass, Denson found wide receiver TJ Knighten for the first touchdown of the game. After a blocked extra point, it was 6-0 with 8:03 left in the first.
The Warriors started their second drive at the 32-yard line with a run for 3 yards. After another short run, the Warriors quarterback scrambled for the first down. The Warriors stayed committed to the run with a gain of 5 yards, putting them past midfield. After two more runs, the Warriors were faced with a 4th and short in Raiders territory. They went for a fake punt and OLB Seth Hogan read it perfectly, stopping the Warriors from getting the first down, resulting in a turnover on downs.
The Raiders started the drive with two incomplete passes bringing up third and 10. Denson kept it for a 60-yard Raiders touchdown. After another blocked extra point, it was 12-0 with 3:33 left in the first.
On the return, the Warriors had a personal foul backing them up 15 yards. They started the drive with back-to-back big catches. putting them inside the Raiders 20-yard line. The Raiders were all over the following run, tackling the Warriors for a loss, followed by an incomplete pass bringing up 3rd and long. Seth Hogan sacked the quarterback for his second big defensive stop of the quarter. The Warriors lined up to go for it on 4th and 20 but the Raiders called a timeout. It didn’t work out as the Warriors scored on a vertical route. After the extra point, the score was 12-7. The Warriors went for the onside kick and recovered it at midfield. They went for a deep shot to start the drive, but the wide receiver was out of bounds. Raiders cornerback Ta’zayvion Moller picked the ball off for the Raiders to end the first quarter.
The Raiders started the second quarter with the ball at the 33-yard line. The drive started with an incomplete pass on a deep pass attempt. Marshall returned to the game and had a 2-yard carry. After an incomplete pass, the Raiders were forced to punt on a three-and-out.
The Warriors took over at the 32-yard line. After a short run, an official timeout was called due to injury with 10:46 left in the first half. The Warriors continued their passing arsenal, and the big play had them in the Raiders red zone. After two short runs, the Raiders cornerback, Masiyah Lattimore, picked it off in the end zone and the Raiders took over at the 20-yard line.
After two short runs, the Raiders got a first down on a slant in the middle of the field. During the play, the Warriors were called for a personal foul with an illegal hit, which cost them 15 yards and put the Raiders at midfield. On the following play, the Raiders had a run for no yards bringing up 2nd and 10. Running back Tylor Morton had a nice carry on the next play bringing up third and three. Denson ran it for the Raiders first down. Denson kept it again, this time for a gain of 7. Morton then ran it for another Raiders first down putting them outside the Warrior’s redzone. The Raiders turned it over as the Warriors picked it off in the red zone.
The Warriors took over at the 20 with 4:33 left in the half. They picked up the first down on an end-around play to their wide receiver. After a short run and incomplete pass, the Warriors had a third and long. They completed it with another deep pass and were tackled at the Raiders 20-yard line. A false start on the Warriors backed them up 5 yards. They got their first lead of the night as the wide receiver caught the ball on a curl out and after the extra point, it was 14-12 Warriors.
Morton ran for 4 yards on the Raiders first carry of the drive. After an incomplete on second down, Denson ran for a big gain, running out of bounds past midfield for the first down. Denson ran it again, this time for a gain of 7. Morton ran it for the first down. Denson ran it once again for a solid gain. Denson then found wide receiver Haven Pierce for a first down and a Warrior’s personal foul made it half the distance to the goal at the 5-yard line with 25 seconds left in the half. Denson was sacked on the following play and the Raiders called a timeout with 12 seconds left. Denson had another run and slid down at the 2-yard line. The Raiders called their final timeout with 6 seconds left in the half. Denson attempted to rush for the go-ahead touchdown but was stopped by the Warriors. At halftime, the score was 14-12 with the Warriors up.
The Raiders started the third quarter with a run by Morton. Denson followed it up with a first down before being tackled at the 35-yard line. A Warrior’s offsides moved the Raiders up 5 yards, followed by a short run by Denson. The Warriors got a sack to bring up third and long for the Raiders. Denson kept it again for a big run, running out of bounds at the Warriors 37-yard line for a first down. They went for a deep pass near the end zone, but it was incomplete, bringing up third and long. Wide Receiver Treon Williams had a nice catch in the middle of the field bringing up 4th and short. Denson threw a touchdown pass after recovering the bad snap and found a wide-open Raiders receiver. The Raiders went for a 2-point conversion and were unsuccessful, making it 18-14.
A bad Raiders punt gave the Warriors great field position, starting their drive at the 39-yard line. They started with a deep pass attempt, but it was incomplete. They found a wide-open wide receiver at midfield for a first down. After two incomplete passes, the Warriors picked up the first down on the run-pass option play. The Warriors stuck to the run game after the timeout, this time the running back had a 10-yard carry, and it put them at the Raiders 25-yard line. They had a costly penalty on second down with an intentional grounding, which cost them the down and 15 yards. After an incomplete pass, the Warriors attempted a trick play, but another penalty backed them up even more with an ineligible man downfield. The Warriors quarterback ran for about 15 yards, but they were still not close to the first down. A timeout was called by the Raiders with 3:07 left in the third. The Warriors opted to punt it, and the Raiders got the ball at their 15-yard line.
Denson ran it for one of the biggest plays of the game, getting tackled at the Warriors 25-yard line. It got worse for the Warriors as they had an encroachment penalty right after the big play. Maurian Hugee checked in at running back and had a nice run, getting tackled at the 1-yard line. The Raiders gave it back to him and Hugee ran it in for the touchdown. It was 25-14 Raiders after the extra point.
The Warriors had a nice return, and the Raiders gave them an additional 15 yards after a personal foul penalty. Back-to-back runs by the Warriors ended the third quarter with the Raiders up 25-14.
The Warriors started the 4th at the Raiders 25-yard line. The quarterback scored on a play-action play, running to the left side relatively open. They attempted the 2-point conversion to make it a 3-point game. An illegal shift was called and backed them up. They failed to get the conversion, making 25-20 with 11:51 left in the game.
The Raiders started their first drive of the 4th at their 30-yard line. Hugee got the carry to start and got the first down for the Raiders. Hugee got another carry and was tackled at the 45-yard line. After a short completion to Knighten, Denson ran it for the first down. After numerous runs, the Raiders went for it on 4th and long and it was incomplete.
The Warriors took over at the 30-yard line with 6:32 left. The drive started with an incomplete, followed by a 5-yard pass. The quarterback scrambled for the first down putting them at their 40-yard line. The Raiders sent pressure, and the quarterback had to throw it out of bounds. The Raiders broke up the following pass which made it third and long. An illegal formation on the Warriors made it third and 15. A Raiders pass interference gave the Warriors an automatic first down. A Warrior’s holding negated a go-ahead touchdown from their QB making it first and 10 at the 25-yard. A short run by the Warriors made it second and 7. Another Warriors touchdown was wiped off the board due to an ineligible man downfield. A short pass to the running back made it 3rd and 6 for the Warriors. The quarterback ran it on the run-pass option play and made it first and goal. A quarterback sneak made it second and goal at the one. An injury timeout was called by the officials with 1:26 left in the game. An encroachment was called which made it half a distance to the goal. A timeout was then called by the Raiders with 59 seconds left in the game. The quarterback for the Warriors snuck it in for the go-ahead score. The 2-point conversion was incomplete making it 26-25 Warriors with 57 seconds left.
The Raiders took over at the 20 after the touchback. The first play was incomplete with 50 seconds left. Treon Williams caught it for a nice gain of 20 yards. Denson ran out of bounds near midfield with 30 seconds left. Josh Tyson caught another one for the first down. The next play was incomplete after a pass near the sideline. The Raiders went for it all in the end zone but it was incomplete. With 5 seconds left, the Raiders threw it quickly down the sideline. With 1 second left, the Raiders had one play left at the 38-yard line. Denson was sacked while trying to extend the play and the game was over. West Orange defeated the Plant City Raiders 26-25.
Passing:
Chris Denson: 202 Passing Yards, 2 Passing Touchdowns, 1 Interception
Rushing:
Chris Denson: 18 Carries, 235 Rushing Yards, 1 Rushing Touchdown
Maurian Hugee: 8 Carries, 52 Rushing Yards, 1 Rushing Touchdown
Tylor Morton: 10 Carries, 28 Rushing Yards
Tony Marshall: 3 Carries, 20 Rushing Yards
Receiving:
Tj Knighten: 3 Receptions, 67 Receiving Yards, 1 Receiving Touchdown
Haven Pierce: 3 Receptions, 50 Receiving Yards, 1 Receiving Touchdown
Treon Williams: 3 Receptions, 44 Receiving Yards
Josh Tyson: 3 Receptions, 41 Receiving Yards