ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, October 12, 1996 TAG: 9610150030
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KEITH POMPEY STAFF WRITER
Who would have thought the William Byrd High School football team could get back into the Blue Ridge District race?
The Terriers were 0-2 in the district heading into Friday night's showdown with first-place Salem and were expected to be sacrificial lambs against the Spartans, ranked second in Timesland and first in the district.
Not so, as Byrd upset Salem 10-7 in Vinton.
``The kids really played their hearts out,'' said Terriers coach Jeff Highfill. ``We have played two weeks in a row where we didn't play together as a unit and we had some internal problems as a unit [in losses to Lord Botetourt and Northside]. But we came back this week and had a great week of practice. Then we beat the big dogs in the district when everybody counted us out. We proved them wrong. We are still in the hunt. Although there is still a long way to go in the district race, this win put us back on track.''
William Byrd can credit quarterback Frank English, running back O.J. Thomason and its defense for the victory.
None of the three dominated the game. However, they made the big plays when needed.
English completed only three of five passes for 33 yards. But he and Thomason connected on a 16-yard screen pass that provided the winning touchdown.
Thomason, arguably the best freshman rusher in Timesland, came into the game averaging 110.6 yards a game. He was held to 76 on Friday, but he muscled his way to several first downs.
And the William Byrd defense put on a bend-but-don't-break performance. It gave up 309 yards, but forced six turnovers, including four interceptions.
``We just wanted to come out here and play hard and do the things that would get us back into the district race,'' English said.
Salem didn't exactly resemble the team that defeated Lord Botetourt 28-0 on Oct. 4.
``We were never really in the game,'' said Willis White, the Spartans' coach. ``I don't know what happened. I don't think that we played as tough as we could have.
``But Byrd played a good game and they deserved to win.''
Salem had trouble holding onto the ball early.
After forcing William Byrd to punt, fullback Brandon Poff fumbled on the first play from scrimmage.
On their next possession, the Spartans marched 49 yards only to see quarterback R.J. Beckwith's pass intercepted by Josh Jones at the Byrd 17-yard line. Salem missed a 23-yard field goal on its next possession.
The Spartans broke through first for a 7-0 lead when running back Matt Anderson capped a three-play, 55-yard drive with an 11-yard touchdown run.
The Terriers answered with Chris Dowdy's 37-yard field goal just before halftime.
Sophomore Matt McGuire provided the key play for the Terriers in the second half by blocking a Salem punt, which Byrd recovered at the Spartan 38. Seven plays later, Thomason crossed the goal line with the winning score.
``It felt great to score that touchdown,'' Thomason said. ``After I caught It, I was running hard all the way. I knew nobody was going to stop me until I reached the end zone.''
Salem had several chances to get back into the game, but lost the ball on its next three possessions And with seven seconds remaining, Beckwith was flushed out of the pocket by Kenny Moore, thus thwarting a fourth-down conversion.
``We can make it to the playoffs,'' said William Byrd linebacker Daniel Wagner said. ``All we have to do is take it one game at a time. But guess what? We are back, baby!''
see microfilm for box score
LENGTH: Medium: 72 linesby CNB