By Liz Keller / Scrimmageplay.com contributor
GOOCHLAND — Fork Union used its size, strength and speed to its advantage as it overpowered Goochland on Friday night.
Julius Puryear replaced Sam Allen (out with an illness) at quarterback and the Blue Devils didn’t miss a beat as their offense piled up 403 yards in the 33-14 win.
Puryear threw for a pair of scores and ran for another as Fork Union picked up its first win of the season.
“Julius stepped in and did a great job,” FUMA coach Brian Hurlocker said. “Coach [Joe] Fowler’s always got a great team. Coming over here, this is a great game. It’s a game we want to keep playing. Next year they can come out and do the same thing to us.”
Goochland (1-1) had won two of the previous three meetings, but this game proved to be in stark contrast to last year’s contest.
“Last year we came out and took it them and this year they came out and took it to us,” Fowler said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve been physically pushed around on our own field and that’s definitely what happened tonight. Up front they were bigger, faster and stronger, and that’s where the games are won — in the trenches.”
After turning the ball over on their opening drive, the Blue Devils forced Goochland to punt and then took over. FUMA (1-1) moved the ball downfield effectively as Rashon Torrence dodged defenders. That opened things up for Puryear, who capped the drive with a 20-yard strike to Lewis Freeman. Chase Bowman converted the point after attempt and FUMA took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
The Blue Devils added another score on a 3-yard run by Josh Nevers to make it 13-0 midway through the second quarter. FUMA’s defense clamped down as Torrence intercepted a Reid Chenault pass and then capitalized on the miscue. Puryear found Freeman again in the back of the end zone for an 8-yard TD and the romp was on. The 5-foot-9, 173-pound quarterback finished 10 of 17 for 115 yards passing.
Fork Union’s defense stifled Goochland’s normally-potent ground game, holding the Bulldogs to 102 yards on the ground. Eight different ball carriers touched the ball but no back rushed for more than 26 yards.
FUMA, on the other hand, amassed 288 rushing yards, thanks in large part to the workhorse, Torrence. The elusive back broke tackles and finished with 162 yards on 22 carries.
“It didn’t really open up because it was five down linemen and we’re really not used to that,” Torrence said. “But I got what I could get, and bounced out on a couple. I need the o-line, I can’t do it by myself.”
Hunter Lewis added 88 yards on the ground, including a 21-yard TD jaunt late in the game.
Goochland added second-half scores from Chenault (2-yard run) and Daric Clarke (8-yard run).
The Bulldogs travel to Bluestone for their district opener on Friday, while Fork Union visits another public school powerhouse in Monticello.
“It’s a big week,” Hurlocker added. “If you want to be good, you’ve got to play good people and we’ve got a schedule full of them — we don’t get a week off.”
