EAGLEVILLE — Positive steps forward but lot of work left to do. That’s the take away from the Raiders Friday night 21-0 win in Eagleville, according to Head Coach Kris White.

All week, Coach White and his staff repeated the same message, “Let’s fix us … the mistakes, the missed tackles, and dropped passes … and the ballgame will take care of itself.”

The Raiders acknowledged they’d struggled against the Eagles and their high scoring offense in the past. But this year with wins against traditional Region 5 powerhouses Forrest and Cornersville already in the books, the Raiders felt optimistic.

Turnover riddled first quarter

Question marks remained in the first offensive series as the Raiders pieced together a six play march down the field that got them into the Eagle’s red zone only to fumble at the 15 yard line.

After the turnover, the Eagles put together their own frustrating attempt — a 15 play series that saw two different QBs and ate up much of the first quarter clock. On third and 10, Raider Tyler Smith got a solid hit on Eagle QB Marcus Collins, forcing the fumble. The Raiders recovered and were driving as the first quarter clock expired.

The defensive firm of Carawan, Trice, and Pearson

After a false start penalty to start the second quarter, Raider QB Kyler Parker threw to Brayden Cashion who then ran just short of the goal line. His first and goal effort gave the Raiders four shots at the end zone but they only needed one. On the very next play from scrimmage, Parker rushed into the end zone for six points. Chase Bradford’s PAT sailed through the upright to give the Raiders a 7-0 second quarter lead.

On the next Eagle’s series, they found a rhythm and pieced together several first down plays before Eagle QB Collins got hammered by the firm of Carawan, Trice, and Pearson. The ghost of that hit followed Collins for the rest of the game as he could often be seen turning towards Raiders footsteps that weren’t always there. The Eagles punted on fourth and five.

It was two steps forward and three steps back on the next Raider series. Moore County got a first down on a Parker to Cashion pass and then suffered two consecutive plays for a loss. On third and 14, Parker found Kaden White at midfield for a first down play with 5:14 remaining in the first half. After another set of downs thanks to a hand off to Cashion, the Eagles tackled Parker in the backfield for a loss at the 33 yard line to set up third and 12. Moore County called time out and then Parker under pressure threw incomplete to Cashion to make it fourth and 12.

With time expiring in first half, the Raiders were in two down territory. On the very next play, Parker threw a screen pass to Dawson White who scampered in for six Raider points. Bradford’s PAT added another.

After scores from Parker and Dawson White, the Raiders headed into the half time locker room up by 14.

Half time adjustments

In the first half, the Raider offense found its rhythm. Raider play makers came down with the ball and the offense managed crucial third down conversions. Despite outstanding first half defensive play by Tyler Smith and Donavin Pearson, the defensive line struggled. So did the offensive line and most the Raiders first half runs were managed by QB Parker as Moore County run blocking just wasn’t here. QB Parker continued to get hassled and forced out of the pocket in the second half.

After a scoreless third quarter, the Raiders and the Eagle continued to trade downs and turnovers until around the six minute mark, Parker continued to do the heavy rushing lifting to get the Raiders a couple of first downs. Then, on second and goal, Tyler Smith muscled into the end zone for the Raiders final score of the contest. Bradford’s PAT gave Moore County their final points.

The 21-0 victory improves the Raiders record to 5-1 while the Eagleville falls to 2-4. The Raiders will enjoy a bye week during fall break before playing to a homecoming Raider crowd against Jo Byrnes on October 9. •

{The Lynchburg Times is the only independently owned and operated newspaper in Lynchburg, Tennessee. We cover Metro Moore County government, Jack Daniel’s Distillery, Nearest Green Distillery, Tims Ford State Park, Motlow State Community College, Moore County High School, Moore County Middle School, Lynchburg Elementary, Raider Sports, plus regional and state news.}