Two undefeated football teams will go head-to-head Friday in a “Battle of
Williams” at Robert A. Patterson Stadium. William Byrd will host William Fleming in a
Blue Ridge District showdown that is the big game in the Roanoke Valley this week.
Both teams are 5-0 and ranked high in the first Virginia High School League
rankings of the season. Byrd is the top-ranked team in Region 3D and the only
undefeated team in the region. The Terriers have a rating of 22.8 while 5-1 Carroll
County is second at 21.3 and 5-1 Abingdon is third at 20.8. Lord Botetourt is fourth at
20.6 with a 4-1 record.
William Fleming is in Region 5C and one of two unbeaten teams. Matoaca is the
top-ranked team at 5-0 with a 28.0 rating and Fleming is second, also 5-0, at 27.2. If Byrd
can win Friday night that would be good for a bunch of VHSL points, as Fleming is not
only a larger school but figures to win a lot of game, good for “rider” points.
“We are excited about hosting this game,” said Byrd coach Brad Lutz. “With both
teams being undefeated it should be a packed house Friday. Our players and coaches are
grateful for the incredible support we get from our community, and we look forward to
our home crowd providing a lot of energy for this week’s game.”
Fleming is off to a 5-0 start for the first time since 1997, when coach George
“Killer” Miller took them to the state championship game against Hampton. The
Colonels have three shutouts and have outscored their five opponents 260-20. Their
closest game was a 25-7 win at Salem, their first win over the Spartans since 2002. That
was a big win for Fleming coach Nick Leftwich as he’s a Salem High graduate and
former Spartan quarterback.
Meanwhile, the Terriers have outscored their five opponents 229-9. They had a
string of 15 shutout quarters broken last week when Cave Spring kicked a field goal late
in the second quarter of a 47-3 Byrd win. At that, the Terrier defense has allowed just one
touchdown in five games.
Byrd dominated last week’s game against Cave Spring at Bogle Field. Jamez
Toler scored four first half touchdowns, including TD runs of 10, one and 13 yards in the
first quarter alone.
In the second quarter Byrd dialed up a gadget play that worked as Kam McKee
passed to Ethan Haston for an 85 yard score. Jerrett Shepherd then scored on a 59 yard
run and Toler added his fourth touchdown on a two-yard run to go up 41-0. The Knights
kicked a 41 yard field goal and it was 41-3 at the break.
The clock ran continuously in the second half as Thomas Purcell finished the
scoring on a four yard reception from quarterback Cannin Lutz. Connor Whitehead
drilled his sixth extra point of the game and Byrd got some subs in the game.
“Our team had success early and often, which allowed us to work on a few things
offensively and get all our players quality game reps against their starters,” said coach
Lutz.
Cannin Lutz finished 12 for 19 passing for 145 yards and when you add McKee’s
pass the Terriers had 230 yards of passing. Purcell had five receptions for 66 yards,
Haston had three for 105, Jamez Toler had two catches for 35 and Shepherd had one for
nine.
On the ground Jamez Toler had 10 carries for 53 yards and Shepherd had two for
69. Jalen Toler came off the bench to run four times for 19 yards.
On defense Justyn Rozenboom was all over the field with eight tackles, including
three sacks and five tackles for losses. He also forced a fumble.
Maurice Burnette had six tackles, including a sack and two tackles for losses.
Greg Stiltner and Jahdai English had six tackles each, Blake Anderson had five tackles
and a forced fumble and Tate Kotz had an interception.
Byrd’s Jayvee team also won last week and they’re also undefeated at 5-0. The
jayvees are at Fleming tonight in what’s shaping up as a very exciting week of football.
