The Shadow
Yowie wowie!
If one phrase could sum up last night’s Covington Cougars/Bath County Chargers varsity football game.
If you have never heard that phrase before, I get it from pro wrestler, Bray Wyatt aka The Fiend.
Enough pro wrestling talk, lets talk about last nights rival football game.
In a heated contest, the Cougars shut out the Chargers 22-0.
All 22 points coming on the second half for the home team.
Let’s recap the game.
It was a hot one in Covington last night.
At the start of kickoff it was 92 degrees and it wasn’t just the players trying to stay hydrated, but also the spectators.
It was a good thing concessions stocked up on waters for the game.
The players, the fans from both sides were ready for this game to begin.
It hasn’t been that long since both teams were on the football field.
Both teams seasons concluded in April.
It has been over a year since the last time both these teams had played on a Friday night in the month of August.
So of course, both of these schools had the energy and drive to get out on the field.
Game time.
Bath County received the ball first.
Before Bath County could even get their first play of the game, the Cougars committed two penalties. The team committed five in the game.
After the two penalties, the Chargers eventually coughed the ball up on a quarterback keeper. The Cougars recovered the fumble.
On the Cougars first possession of the game, the team had a few nice runs but eventually turned the ball over on downs after Javier Yancy threw an incomplete pass.
As the first quarter moved forward, both teams struggled with pushing the ball down the field.
The Chargers were held on their second drive to six yards and Covington’s second drive ended in the start of the second quarter on a fumble by Neeko Jeter.
There was no score after one quarter.
In the second quarter, as mentioned, the Cougars committed their first of three turnovers in the game.
Following the turnover, the Chargers would hold the ball for majority of the second quarter.
On a 12 play drive that lasted almost seven minutes, the Chargers turned the ball over on downs on their opponents 19 yard line.
It was the Chargers best opportunity to score all night and could have changed how things played out the rest of the way.
After holding the Chargers on defense, the Cougars offense had a few solid plays resulting in a first down, but were ultimately held and were forced to punt.
The Chargers had two plays for no yards on their final possession before halftime.
To open the second half, the Cougars got a great kickoff return from Purcel Turner, who returned the ball for over 55 yards and into the Chargers territory.
On fourth down. Yancy was looking for the first points of the game and threw an interception that was picked off at the one yard line.
With what seemed like a momentum turning play, the Chargers fumbled the ball again on a third down play by Kamoy Stone who caught the ball and as he went to turn was hit and fumbled the ball allowing the Cougars to pick it up.
On the next play from 18 yards out, Turner rushed the ball into the endzone for the first score of the game.
The extra point was good, giving the Cougars a 7-0 lead.
The Chargers looking to answer the touchdown by the Cougars, were held in check despite an eight-play drive.
The third quarter came to an end with the Cougars leading 7-0.
Quickly in the fourth quarter, on a five-play drive, highlighted by a Mitchell Tallman 36-yard reception to the goal line, Yancy with a quarterback sneak found himself in the endzone for the Cougars second touchdown of the game.
Following the extra point, the Cougars took a 14-0 lead.
But then with 9:48 to play, things got very heated and I do not mean the temperature.
A scuffle between the two teams going into the Cougars sidelines, multiple players were ejected from the game as a result of a near bench clearing brawl.
After the dust settled and play resumed, the Cougars found themselves in the endzone for the third time minutes later on Turner’s second rushing touchdown. This time from 21 yards out.
The Cougars grabbed a two-point conversion for a 22-0 lead.Moments later, that was the ball game after a few Chargers plays and the clock striking zero.
The fans at Boodie Albert Stadium at Casey Field were sent home happy with their home team picking up their first win of the season.
The Cougars are at Staunton this Friday while the Chargers are at Alleghany.
Chargers Stats
6 first downs
104 yards total
90 yards rushing
14 yards receiving
7 penalties (not counting ejections)
2 turnovers
6 fumbles, 2 lost fumbles
Cougars Stats
238 yards total
185 rushing yards
53 receiving yards
5 penalties (not counting ejections)
3 turnovers
3 fumbles, 2 lost fumbles
10 first downs
(Unofficial Stats)
