GIFTS AND CURSES: Rider defense stifles rival Old High in 58-10 victory
Rider’s offense didn’t do its defense any favors in the first half Friday night.
The Raiders turned the ball over four times against rival Wichita Falls High, giving the Coyotes ample opportunity to put some points on the scoreboard.
But the turnovers played more like curses than gifts for the Coyotes.
The Rider defense made sure those turnovers resulted in no points for Old High, setting the Raider offense up in a 58-10 throttling in the 61st meeting of this crosstown rivalry. It’s the ninth consecutive victory in the series for the Raiders, who now hold an all-time edge of 40-18-3 over the Coyotes.
“We put our defense in some tough situations,” said Rider coach Marc Bindel, who commended the work of defensive coordinator Ross Dillard and his assistants. “But we have a really good defense, and it starts with the line. We have some really, really talented defensive linemen. I feel like over the past five years, the identity of Rider football has changed from just being explosive on offense to having an aggressive defense.”
The Coyotes not only failed to score after Rider’s four turnovers, but they also didn’t earn a first down, either. Twice the Coyotes turned the ball back over to Rider one or two plays after stealing possession.
“That’s been a huge focus of ours – forcing turnovers,” Rider senior defensive lineman Luke Gambs said. “Our defense has been pretty good, but we want to force more turnovers and give the ball back to the offense. We’ve got 11 guys out here flying around and playing hard through the whistle. I think as long as we’re doing that, then good things are going to happen to us.”
Rider scored on the third play of the game, with Anquan Willis finding the end zone on a 3-yard run, for a 7-0 lead. The score was the same when Old high punted with 8:35 left in the first quarter.
The Raiders muffed the punt, giving the Coyotes the ball at the Rider 46. On the next play, a Rider defender punched the ball out of Old High running back Jordan Watson’s arms, and it flew into Willis’ grasp.
Rider didn’t get points off the turnover, instead ending the ensuing drive when Old High linebacker Cameron Jones picked off Jack Pitts at the Rider 28. The Coyotes still couldn’t move the ball, turning it over on downs at the Rider 27.
The Raiders were up 14-0 when sophomore tailback Kenji Johnson fumbled and the Coyotes recovered at the Rider 49. Two plays later, Coyote freshman Eric Powell had the ball jarred lose after catching a screen pass by Xavier Banks, and Rider’s Jacob Cahill scooped the fumble and ran it back 41 yards for a 21-0 lead with 11:07 left in the second quarter.
The Rider defense forced another fumble on Old High’s next possession, with Gambs recovering on the Old High 36. Five plays later, Willis scored on a 2-yard run for a 28-0 advantage.
The Raiders led 28-3 and were on the cusp of extending the advantage when running back Jordon Gibbs fumbled just before crossing the goal line. Old High senior Ayden Ramirez recovered in the end zone and ran the ball out to the Coyote 6.
But keeping with the theme, the turnover was a bad omen. Two plays later, Jailyn Gibbs tackled Powell in the end zone for a safety, pushing Rider’s lead to 30-3 with 1:27 remaining.
The Raiders took the ensuing free kick and traversed 41 yards in three plays, with Tobias Oliver scoring on a 24-yard receiver screen pass for a 37-3 lead that held up till halftime.
“I thought our defense played well in the second half,” WFHS coach Grant Freeman said. “We got stops and turned them over. We just couldn’t get anything going on offense. They turned us over, and we couldn’t get any traction.
“I talk about it all the time. You must win the turnover and the line of scrimmage battles to win the game. They won both of those tonight.”
The Coyotes were held to just 125 total yards, but that total is misleading. They were in the negative for rushing yards until a couple long runs by freshman Eric Powell in the game’s final minutes.
The Coyotes four turnovers on offense were compounded by failing to cover two Rider kickoffs that the Raiders snatched for prime field position.
“We actually spend a lot of time working on pooch kicking the ball to a spot on the field where their special teams isn’t aligned,” Bindel said. “That’s been a focus for us the past couple seasons, and (kicker) Kenji Johnson executed that perfectly twice tonight.”
It wasn’t a perfect night for the Raiders, who had 120 penalty yards along with four turnovers. But Rider proved it has a defense that can erase imperfections.
And turn gifts into curses.
Rider 58, WFHS 10
Rider 14 23 14 7 -58
WFHS 0 3 7 0 -10
FIRST QUARTER
R – Anquan Willis 3 run (Kenji Johnson kick), 11:24
R – Jake Pitts 5 run (Johnson kick), 3:11
SECOND QUARTER
R – Jacob Cahill 41 fumble return (Johnson kick), 11:07
R – Willis 2 run (Johnson kick), 9:06
W – FG, Patricio Maldonado 27, 5:20
R – Safety, 1:27
R – Tobias Oliver 24 pass from Pitts (Johnson kick), :54
THIRD QUARTER
R – Willis 3 run (Johnson kick), 7:22
R – Kohen Marony 2 run (Johnson kick), 4:55
W – Caden Justice 34 pass from John Ledesma (Maldonado kick), 1:31
FOURTH QUARTER
R – Jordon Gibbs 6 run (Johnson kick), 10:34
TEAM STATS
First downs: (R) 21; (W) 9
Rushing: (R) 51-314; (W) 25-40
Passing: (R) 13-23-1—192; (W) 8-17-1—85
Punting: (R) NA; (W) 3-32
Fumbles: (R) 5-3; (W) 3-3
Penalties: (R) 11-120; (W) 2-20
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: (R) Jordan Gibbs 11-89, Anquan Willis 9-67, Tyrone Morgan 8-56, Kenji Johnson 7-43, Tobias Oliver 3-21, Kohen Maroney 3-15, Jack Pitts 3-12, Cayse Jung 2-6, Logan McAllister 1-4, Leronick Wilson 1-2, Steven Marrs 1-1, Team 1-(-2); (W) Eric Powell 11-44, Jordan Mitchell 3-11, Christian Velasquez 2-2, Jae’Den Williams 1-(-1), Jacobey Clay 1-(-1), John Ledesma 7-(-15).
PASSING: (R) Pitts 12-22-1—192; Marrs 1-1-0—5; (W) Ledesma 8-17-1—85.
RECEIVING: (R) Oliver 6-99, Kaden Jones 3-69, Xavier Banks 1-17, Braysen Pike 1-5, Baylor Wilson 1-4, McAllister 1-3; (W) Caden Justice 2-43, Mitchell 1-24, Williams 1-8, Zage Gravitt 1-8, Brayden Treadway 1-2. RECORDS: Rider 1-0; WFHS 0-1.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Rider Raiders vs. WFHS Coyotes 2022 high school football score
