In the book “The Art of War,” Sun Tzu writes, “Victory is reserved for those who are willing to pay its price.” Many times we think that the payment for victory happens during the game. I assure you payment for victories on a football field are paid months in advance. The payments are installments made daily during the heat of the spring and summer, through weight training and conditioning, some supervised, some by the player’s inner drive and desire. When a team has paid substantially more than their opponent in the off season, then the game is simply a formality of procedure. The Trojans led by the offensive and defensive line dominated every aspect of the game against Bruceton on Friday night. To thoroughly explain just how lop-sided the contest was, at halftime Collinwood had 16 POINTS to Bruceton’s 13 TOTAL YARDS.
Collinwood started the scoring early in the 2nd quarter, when Peyton Ward ran through a hole on the left side of the line that Bruceton’s bus could have fit through on an 11 yard run. He dove in from 2 yards out on the point after as well. Eight minutes later, Joe Houston Thompson found another large hole off tackle and scampered in from 8 yards out. Alex Haddock took the 2 point conversion over the goal line and just like that “Earth, Wind, and Fire” were reunited and it felt so good! The Trojans ran the ball 37 times on the night and ate almost 34 minutes of the clock, forcing the game to seamlessly fly by. Two turnovers on the night by the Trojans prevented the scoring from being as reflective as the other statistics. Bruceton’s only score of the night came after an interception return to the 11 yard line. After being held to 4th and 10 from the 11 yard line, a pass was deflected into the unexpected arms of an alternate receiver. Collinwood ended the night with 1:46 seconds to go on the Bruceton 7 yard line with a fresh set of downs. At that time, the lightning lit up the eastern sky and instead of waiting 30 minutes for a weather delay, the Bruceton coaching staff threw in the proverbial towel and called the game. The Trojan defense gave up 41 yards in the 2nd half to go along with the 13 from the first, in an impressive defensive effort. Collinwood was balanced on the night with 126 yards on the ground and 142 through the air, while converting 16 first downs to Bruceton’s 4. Peyton Ward had 55 yards on 8 carries and Joe Houston Thompson added 50 on 12 carries.
Defensively, Fletcher Thompson and Peyton Ward each had 8 tackles. Lane Makara added 6 of his own, followed by Lige Craig and Joe Houston Thompson with 5 each. Blake Whitten came up with a big interception on the night as well.
Games such as this one are not flashy or have a lot of sizzle. This is mainly because of the power displayed by the Trojan offensive and defensive linemen. It is no coincidence that these positions are the only ones on the field called “man,” and the men in green in the trenches brought home the victory on Friday night. “Linemen” are rarely celebrated and usually only have their name in the paper due to a fumble recovery at best. But this week we are going to celebrate the offensive and defensive line and credit them with this victory.
This Friday night we welcome that team from the north. Muhammad Ali would have never been Ali without Joe Frazier. The Macho Man Randy Savage, “Ohhhh Yeah!” would have never been macho without Jake “the Snake” Roberts. Collinwood would not be Collinwood and Waynesboro would not be Waynesboro without one another. We welcome our favorite opponent to Pat Brewer Stadium this Friday night for our annual contest to determine bragging rights for the next 364 days. We want you at your very best, Wildcats. “Come on with it!”—Submitted
Photos courtesy of Shannon West
