After three close games to open up the season, the Stone Bridge Bulldogs returned home on Friday night to open Liberty District play against the Thomas Jefferson Colonials. The game was not competitive, as the Bulldogs had 483 yards of total offense, to the 32 that they allowed.
The game did not start favorably for Jefferson, as on the first play they lost 13 yards on a muffed shotgun snap. Two plays later, Jefferson quarterback Kevin Karn was sacked for a 12-yard loss that forced the Colonials to punt from their own two-yard line.
A very short punt gave the Bulldogs excellent field position on the Colonial’s 26-yard line. Just seven plays later, junior running back Marcus Harris ran the ball four yards for the touchdown. Senior kicker Abdul Shaban nailed the extra point to put the Bulldogs up 7-0.
The Colonials got the ball back, but couldn’t get anything going offensively, and for the second time had to punt the ball. The punt was short again, and gave the Bulldogs the ball at the Jefferson 34-yard line.
The Bulldogs’ offense picked up from where they started, and the Bulldogs marched down the field easily on a drive that was highlighted by a 25-yard pass from Stone Bridge quarterback Brian Rody to sophomore wide receiver Stan Johnson. Johnson was Rody’s favorite target of the night, and caught six passes for a total of 88 yards. Junior Adrian Thomas then ran the ball in six yards for his first touchdown of the season, which put the Bulldogs up 13-0. Shaban connected for the extra point to give the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead.
Jefferson’s next possession was again unsuccessful as the Colonials were unable to pick up a first down. After punting the ball to Stone Bridge, the Bulldogs’ offense continued to impress, especially in the passing game. Rody completed a 22-yard pass to senior Alex Miller, and then threw to Harris who found the end zone. After Shaban’s third extra point of the night, Stone Bridge led by the score of 21-0.
The offense kept rolling from there, and Rody kept hitting his receivers. The quarterback hit junior Ryan Lowdermik for a 35-yard gain, and then found Harris in the end zone for a two-yard catch. Shaban once again came through to put the Bulldogs up 28-0.
After the Bulldogs scored, they got the ball right back following a Jefferson fumble on the ensuing kickoff. Stone Bridge recovered the ball and quickly scored once again. Harris found a hole, and ran 25 yards for his fourth touchdown of the night, on only seven touches. He finished with 35 yards rushing, and 104 yards receiving. The running back is leading the team with 453 yards rushing and six touchdowns.
On the Bulldogs’ final possession of the first half, they were able to put seven more points on the board. The team marched down the field, and capped the drive on an eight-yard run by Rody. The score put the Bulldogs up 42-0 going into halftime.
Stone Bridge Coach Mickey Thompson pulled the starters at halftime, including Rody, who finished the night nearly perfect, completing 12 of his 14 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns. Rody has thrown for 445 yards and 3 touchdowns this season, only throwing one interception.
At the start of the second half, Stone Bridge had the ball to start the half. They were also playing with a running clock because they were winning by more than 35 points. The remainder of the game for the Bulldogs was all running, and freshmen running backs Sean Rankin-Bell and Warren Miles took over for Harris. Both impressed, as midway through the third quarter, Miles took a direct snap, and ran the ball for 26 yard to give the Bulldogs a first and goal. Senior running back Mike Girdy ran the ball in 10 yards, and Stone Bridge continued to dominate the Colonials by a score of 49-0.
The final score of the game occurred with eleven minutes to go in the game, on a long 73-yard run by Rankin-Bell. That touchdown put Stone Bridge up 56-0.
Even though the Colonials were down by 56, they kept playing hard. They drove down to the Stone Bridge 10, but with less than 10 seconds on the clock, they had to rush the field goal unit on the field, and the Jefferson kick was blocked by Stone Bridge.
The Bulldogs improved to 4-0 on the season, and continue Liberty District play on Friday, October 2, when they play Marshall High School at home. The Statesmen are 0-4 and 0-1 in the Liberty District.
Thomas Jefferson falls to 0-4, and will play Washington-Lee High School (1-3) on Friday.
