MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Out of all of Sean Hays’ 36 rushing attempts Friday night against Meadow Bridge, it might be his final one that he’ll remember most.
On his way to what appeared to be a 15-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, Hays was hit at the 1-yard line and tried to stretch his body across the goal line. Before he got there, a Meadow Bridge defender knocked the ball loose and into the end zone, where it was recovered by the Wildcats for a touchback.
“I thought I made it,” said Hays, who finished with 155 yards and three touchdowns in a 28-15 Cee-Bees victory.
“Someone came in and punched it right out. Whoever it was, that was a pretty good play by them.”
It was the lone mishap from the Cee-Bees’ senior, who has become the team’s workhorse through two games. Just how much of a workhorse can be put into perspective by the state’s record book.
Through two games, Hays has rushed 66 times — a pace for 330 rushing attempts through 10 games. The state record through 10 games is exactly 330, set by Sistersville’s C.R. Howdyshell in 1978.
Another way to compare the total: 330 rushing attempts through 10 games is 26 more than Dallas’ Ezekiel Elliott had in 15 games last season.
“Hey, I learned long ago that if you have a horse, you ride it,” C-B head coach Ryan Wilson said. “We’re going to rise him as far as he’ll take us.”
Hays said he had no number in mind on how many times he could carry the ball in a game. Wilson simply smiled, “As many as we need,” he said.
Hays has turned those 66 carries into 333 yards. Many of his carries came while dragging multiple Meadow Bridge defenders with him.
“I was really tired last week (against Gilmer County), but it wasn’t so bad tonight,” Hays said. “I got a little tired, but it was OK.”
For those wondering about a single-game rushing-attempt record, well, Hays is far from it. The state record for most carries in a game is 61, set by Buckhannon-Upshur’s Cam Zopp, in 1980.
UHS gives Edwards a look at QB
With the game against Parkersburg South out of hand in the fourth quarter, University coach John Kelley decided to give freshman Chase Edwards a shot at quarterback.
The 5-foot-11, 147-pounder opened eyes in this limited reps, finishing 5 of 8 for 78 yards and a touchdown, including a 42-yard pass to fellow freshman Jaeden Hammack.
Hammack also caught a 39-yard pass from Joseph McBee earlier in the game before being tackled at the 1-yard line, and had an interception on the following drive.
“Hammack, Sage Clawges, Edwards, the Barner kid (Eliki) — there’s some dynamite kids there,” Kelley said. “We’re gonna have our day, it’s just not right now.”
Trinity makes vast improvements on ‘D’
For a first-year football program, one of the most important things to focus on is improvement from game to game as the team adjusts to competition.
Trinity Christian’s first game — despite ending in a win — was a bit of a struggle defensively, as they allowed 400-plus offensive yards and 34 points to Mapletown, Pa.
Friday night, the Warriors (2-0) showed plenty of growth defensively from Week 1, as they shut out Hannan, holding the Wildcats to just short of 60 yards offensively.
“I think we focused more on the execution and filled our gaps better,” Trinity player Carter Anderson said. “It was a better performance all-around, and the energy was better.”
“It’s all about alignment,” coach Marcus Law said. “You have to be able to line up in the right places. We have a lot of guys without a whole lot of experience, so we’ve been trying to make it simpler for them to pick up.”
The Warriors came out strong and energetic Friday, cracking pads with force from whistle to whistle. The brutal physicality from Trinity’s defense played a large role in wearing the Wildcats down as the game wore on.
“We’re a physical team. We love to hit, and that’s all we want to do,” freshman Davon Eldridge said. “We’re just trying to get out here and pop some pads.”
“That goes back to the three weeks period in June,” Law said. “One of the things I told them at the very start of this thing is that one of my jobs is to get into their heads and make them mentally tough and able to grind things out. That’s a credit to them taking the mentality we want to establish at Trinity and running with it.”
