The Randolph Raiders football program kicked off their season last week with a huge 47-0 win at #10 ranked Pisgah.

“We were 0-4 against those guys all-time”, said Head Coach David Lloyd. “It was great to go on the road and pick up a big win to open our season. Our guys have put in a lot of work and it was good to see that work pay off.”

The Raider defense put on a strong showing as they held the Eagles scoreless for the first time since 2016. “Man, the defense played lights out! Coach Smith had a great plan for us defensively and our guys really played fast out there. I was really impressed with our physicality from start to finish. Pisgah is always a physical football team and I thought we did a great job matching that physicality.”

Augie DiRico led the defensive effort with 11 total tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, and 1 fumble recovery. The Raiders forced 5 takeaways including 1 interception by Greg Gunter. “I thought we pressured the quarterback all night. We didn’t let him get comfortable in the pocket. I thought that was big for our defense.” Jesson Mixon contributed 4 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 sack, and 2 forced fumbles.

Offensively, the Raiders piled on the points. “I thought we could score some points, but I don’t think you go into a game thinking you’ll get to 47. Our guys executed our game plan and took advantage of those takeaways our defense produced.”

Lefebvre Watson led the ground attack for the Raiders with 15 carries for 102 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Raiders rushed for 257 yards and 5 scores on the ground. Augie DiRico had 1 score and Alex White rushed for 2 more. Landon Leo, who added 163 yards through the air, threw 2 touchdown passes to Aaron John who led the team with 65 yards receiving.

“We still have a lot to work on and a lot of areas to improve. That’s our only focus moving forward, the Relentless Pursuit of Improvement.”

The Raiders will hit the road again this week for a rivalry game with Whitesburg Christian (1-0) on Friday, August 28 at Madison County Elementary School. This will mark the first regular season matchup for these two teams.