Blacksburg drops Great Falls in fumble-filled opener

In game that included multiple fumbles amongst both teams, the Blacksburg Wildcats were able to capitalize off opportunities and use their option attack in a 38-6 road win over Great Falls.

“It was clearly a Week Zero game on both sides,” said Blacksburg head coach Drew Chisholm, citing the nearly 10 fumbles in the contest.

Blacksburg junior quarterback Jordan Rodgers led the way on the ground with 90 yards rushing on 12 carries along with a pair of touchdowns, including one that came on the Wildcats’ first drive after recovering their own onside kick to start the game.

Rodgers also had help for a multitude of Wildcat running backs including junior Isaiah Burris, who had their only other offensive touchdown on a 22-yard run early in the fourth quarter.

Great Falls seemed to be settling down on defense throughout the latter part of the quarter, but the Red Devils were unable to put points on the board aside from a 48-yard strike from sophomore quarterback Connor Henson to senior receiver Zykerrion White early in the second quarter.

Henson, who replaced the unavailable senior Pierce Funderburk, ended up with 68 yards passing and was just 3-10 on the night, as he was hounded by the Wildcat defensive line for most of the game. The sophomore also fumbled near the end zone twice, resulting in two Wildcat touchdowns in the first and fourth quarters, respectively.

With a big road win under their belt, the Wildcats are already looking forward to a showdown with Lewisville next week while the Red Devils will look to rebound on the road against Gray Collegiate Academy.

“Goal number one, we can mark it off the list,” said Chisholm.

Blacksburg 38, Great Falls 6

Blacksburg ;14;0;10;14- 38

Great Falls 0;6;0;0- 6

SCORING SUMMARY

First quarter

BHS – Jordan Rodgers 24 run (Grayson Nix kick) 10:46

BHS – Fumble recovery 5:13

Second quarter

GFHS – Zykerrion White 48 pass from Connor Henson (run failed) 8:52

Third quarter

BHS – Nix field goal 8:08

BHS – Rodgers 12 run ( Nix kick) 6:42

Fourth quarter

BHS – Isaiah Burris 22 run (Nix kick) 10:07

BHS - Kwame Sutton fumble recovery (Nix kick) 4:00

TEAM STATISTICS

BHS;GFHS

First downs;4;1

Rushes-yards;39-255;21-(-23)

Passing;0-2;3-10

Passing yards; 0;68

Fumbles-lost;7-3;3-3

Penalties-yards;5-30;8-43

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING Blacksburg: Jordan Rodgers 12-90; Isaiah Burris 4-56; Alonso Davis 6-48; Bobby Riggs 6-13; Antonie Wilson 2-2; Shane Sweatt 1-9; Austin Owens 1-16; Raymond Littlejohn 1-5; Great Falls: RaJean Perry 7-19; DeAndre Perry 4-(-2); Zykerrion White 4-(-14); Connor Henson 5-(-26)

PASSING Blacksburg: Rodgers 0-2-0-1, 0 yards. Great Falls: Henson 3-10-0-0, 68 yards.

RECEIVING Great Falls: Zykerrion White 1-48; Adrian Glover 1-12; DeAndre Perry 1-8

RECORDS Blacksburg 1-0; Great Falls: 0-1

This story was originally published August 22, 2015 at 1:07 AM with the headline "Blacksburg drops Great Falls in fumble-filled opener."