Raiders Hold Their Own Against Top Ranked Ryan

Thursday Oct. 6, Rider lost to Denton Ryan 20-17. Driving home from Memorial Stadium that night, my friend texted me and asked how the game went. I told him we lost, and he promptly responded saying, “I knew y’all would get creamed.”

I’m so happy my car is still intact, because I was so mad at his ignorance that I wanted to drive to his house and run my Grand Am through his front door. What happened on the field on Thursday might be the farthest thing from, “getting creamed,” possible. If anything, it showed how incredible of a team we have this year.

Allow me to share some statistics about Denton Ryan: 5 state championship appearances in the past 10 years, 2 championships in that span, currently ranked No. 2 in the entire state, numerous players already committed to D1 football programs like Texas, Texas A&M, Baylor and Florida State. They’ve beaten us by a combined 52 points the last two seasons, and had two weeks to prepare for the game after a by week.

Seems like a true David and Goliath situation right? Every newspaper in the state predicted Ryan would slaughter us.

In the first 15 minutes, Ryan got up 17-0, and it seemed like those papers were right. At this point in the game, I along with some of the people next to me on the rail of the student section couldn’t help but remember the 21-point fourth quarter comeback against Abilene Cooper, which Coach Gar described as, “one of the best wins in Rider history.” We knew Rider had the capacity to win this game, and right one cue, we started on an incredible comeback.

Over the next 33 minutes, the defense held the red hot Ryan Raiders scoreless. The Ryan Raiders attempted a total of five passes the entire game, and so the defense needed to stop the run. In the first quarter, Ryan ran a 72-yard touchdown, so stopping the run might seem like a tall order. But if you were at the game, it seemed like every player on the defense morphed into an NFL player, or maybe a Greek god. It felt like every play there were players in the backfield hassling the running back. Considering that the average weight of Ryan’s starting offensive lineman is upwards of 280 pounds, and we were pushing them around wherever we pleased, I’d say something extraordinary possessed those players after the first 15 minutes.

And then there’s the offense. This is where we ran into our biggest problem, and his name is Mario Edwards. He is a 6’4 285-pound senior defensive end for Denton Ryan, who has already committed to the Florida State. In the August edition of ESPN the magazine, he was ranked as the No. 3 player in every division of high school football and by far the best defensive end. You could recognize him before the game incredibly easily. He was the one who was casually walking around while his team warmed up. He also wore a chain wrapped around his body while he warmed up. Oh yeah, and he was also one of the biggest human beings I’ve ever seen, and I’m the same age as him!

But, I’d say we have the perfect solution to this problem. During the comeback, the offense was still able to conduct itself nicely. JT Barrett had plenty of time to let his pass plays develop. Our plethora of running backs (especially Dominic Thrasher and Anthony Wagner) had holes to burst through. All of this largely due to 6’4 283-pound junior offensive lineman Harrison Sorge, who was matched up against Mario Edwards.

During the comeback, Sorge went toe to toe with Edwards every down of those 33 minutes, and basically shut him down. Sorge held Edwards to two tackles the entire game, which is a monumental accomplishment considering Edwards averaged that many sacks a game last season. If Sorge would not have played as lights out as he did, we never would have come back.

We tied the Ryan Raiders 17-17 in the fourth quarter. Barrett threw a perfect 49-yard touchdown pass to junior Brandon Williams, who beat two defenders by about 1 step. Anthony Wagner capped a 14 play, 63-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown run and Cal Johnson hit a 46-yard field goal.

The Ryan Raiders had 1st and goal on our 4-yard line. This is where we made an incredible goal line stand, which was punctuated by senior Cody O’Donnell forcing a fumble on 4th and goal from the one yard line, and giving us the ball back on our own 3-yard line.

We were forced to punt, but once again, the resurgent Raider defense took the field and held the Ryan offense, forcing them to attempt a 31-yard field goal with about one and a half minutes left. This is where senior Blake Brom came storming around the blockers, and blocked the kick, giving us the ball back, and an overflowing amount of momentum and drive.

Barrett ran for 12 yards, completed a pass to junior Brylan McCoy for another first down, and then threw an interception to Denton Ryan, which eventually led to them kicking the game winning field goal.

A heartbreak to say the least, but there is no way we would have comeback to tie Ryan without his passing, tough running, and overall leadership on the field. I heard nobody at school blaming JT for the loss. That’s one of the things I love about being a student at Rider: we stay united.

The Road to Victory: Football’s playoff run started with early wins

“If we win, we’re in!” he yelled out to the field house, his voice stretching way back to the very last row of the stands, through several teens. His heart raced as he looked around the massive gym. In the stands, students were filled with Rider Spirit as they cupped their hands around their mouths, shouting words of praises into the air. To his left, his boys stood with excitement, adrenaline pumping.
They were ready.
Just four hours later at Memorial Stadium, the football game has been postponed. The stands have been partially evacuated, and in the main walkway of the Stadium stand many students and adults stand, all anxiously waiting for the game delay to be over. Murmurs of anticipation for what would become one of Rider’s biggest games of the year floated around the walkway.
It’s thundering, the rays of electricity lighting up the sky almost as brightly as the sun does. Accompanying the lightning is thunder. It shakes the earth and rattles eardrums as the lightning blazes the sky.
The boys can’t play if it’s lightning, but Rider head coach James Garfield “was not worried at all about the weather.”
“I knew the boys would respond no matter what the situation would be,” said Garfield. “We have a plan in place for weather-type situations.”
They didn’t need a plan as the game delay ran out, only setting the kickoff 30 minutes back from its normally scheduled time. Now that it was game time, the boys and fans couldn’t wait to get their heads into the game.
Rider came out with a strong win, beating The Colony with a final score of 24-21. The win, which solidified a playoff slot, thrilled Coach Garfield.
“I was as excited as a kid on Christmas day,” Garfield said. As his first year as head coach, the opportunity to bring a team to the playoffs speaks volumes about his talent as a coach.
“Coach always tells us, ‘Take it one play at a time, one series at a time, one quarter at a time, one half at a time, and one game at a time,’” Junior and linebacker Eddie Speight said. Adding that Garfield is great at inspiring the boys to work hard.
The boys on the football team were also overjoyed when they won the game. They played a hard game, and worked harder to pull a win.
“I felt great. I knew all the hard work and dedication the team put in would pay off,” Speight said.
A strong strategy is in place for the playoff games.
“The team strategy is to maintain the ball on offense and play with a fast tempo,” said Garfield when speaking about Rider football offense. “[With] defense, we want to play fast and physical without breakdowns.”

Rider beats #10 Kennedale 13-10

Football Starts Season

“We knew what we were up against when we scheduled to play them (Cooper),” senior Bryan Kisinger said. “We needed to set the tone, but mistakes killed us.”
The Raiders actually had the lead three times in the first half, but each time Cooper was able to retake it from the Raiders.
After Cooper scored on their second drive due to favorable field position, Connor Nutt nailed a 34-yard field goal to give the Raiders the lead 9-7, however the Cougars pulled off a 76-yard touchdown pass and just like that Cooper retook the lead 14-9. The Raiders would answer back when Malcolm Carter hooked up with Graham McGregor on a 26-yard touchdown pass to give Rider its final lead of the game. The Cougars would score one more time to preserve a 21-15 halftime lead that never really came in question for the duration of the second half. The Raiders managed to pull within 34-21 when Deron Royster scored from one-yard out, but Abilene Cooper would score one more time in the fourth to put the game away.
“We need to play as a team,” senior Devon Garvin said. “We need to practice real hard and work on our mistakes.”
The Raiders once again will be tested as they travel to Arlington to play the #10 team of 3A Kennedale Sept. 3.

One Team, One Goal

After a shaky start, the varsity football team looks forward to a strong season as they rely on the leadership of the seniors.
“[I’m looking forward to] a district championship and a state championship,” Coach James Garfield said. “[And] kids playing hard and doing what is right all the time.”
Rider lost many key seniors this year, including four division one athletes, due to graduation.
“It happens every year,” Garfield said. “The dynamic of every team is different, therefore, you have plans and adjustments in place before the senior class reaches their senior year.”
Garfield said the difference between this year’s team and last is team cohesiveness.
“Both teams were very close, the thing about this years group is a ‘workman’ type attitude,” Garfield said. “This is the kind of team that puts on their hard hat and brings their lunch pail.”
Garfield’s personal goals include being a leader not only to the team, but also to the school.
“I would hope that the love I have for the game would come through and the players would see it,” Garfield said. “If a player does something that may be detrimental to our team chemistry then we will handle it with some type of punishment.”
Senior Zach Apperson looks forward to playing in December.
“We are a team,” Apperson said. “It’s not just about any one player, offense, defense, or who is going where, it’s about Rider Raider football as a whole.”
As he does his job, makes plays, and tries to keep everyone’s head up, Apperson said he will contribute to the team.
“[This team relies on] unity and heart,” Apperson said.  “We have already gone through a tough season so far and we have worked extremely hard for all of this, now its just time to let everything fall into place.”
Apperson said the coaching staff is very motivational and would do anything for a win.
“Leadership is extremely difficult, sometimes you may have to do or say something you don’t want to do,” Garfield said. “The team is more important than the individual.”