The win improved Chapmanville to 7-1 overall and 5-0 in the Cardinal Conference and kept the Tigers in a first-place tie in the league standings with No. 2 and unbeaten Point Pleasant.
More importantly, the win kept the Tigers in line for possible home field advantage in the upcoming Class AA playoffs with two weeks to go in the regular season. Chapmanville has all but locked up its fifth straight playoff appearance and had already secured its sixth winning season in a row but are also searching for its first home post-season game in three years.
Winless Tolsia dropped to 0-9, 0-6 on the season.
It was the third straight win by Chapmanville over the Rebels, which had controlled the series with the Tigers up until that point.
Despite spotting the Rebels an early 6-0 lead after one quarter it was a complete run-away after that.
The Tigers scored four touchdowns in the second quarter and led 28-6 at the half.
Chapmanville held onto a 49-6 advantage early in the fourth quarter and had an opportunity to score another touchdown but fumbled the ball into the Tolsia end zone for a touchback.
Chapmanville coach George Barker then emptied his bench and the Rebels scored two late touchdowns on the Tigers’ second unit defense to save a little face.
“We came off the off week and started out a little bit sluggish,” Barker said. “We were a bit slow to start but once we started playing football we shared it around and played well.”
The Tigers were led by junior quarterback Brandon White, who scored three touchdowns on runs of 32, 81 and 51. On the last TD run — the first play of the second half — White appeared to slow up some around the 15-yard line on the way to the end zone. It was a pulled hamstring and White left the game but at that point the Tigers were leading 35-6 with 11:47 left in the third quarter.
White finished the game with 150 yards rushing on just five carries and was 3-for-7 passing for 39 yards and three scores.
“Our quarterback played a great game,” Barker said of White.
Dustin Smith was also an offensive leader with two touchdowns on runs of 3 and 7.
Brothers Dylan and Devin Wiley also scored for the Tigers. Dylan grabbed a 26-yard touchdown pass from White and the freshman Devin Wiley scored on a 56-yard TD dash.
Chapmanville kicker Max Spradlin was a perfect 7-for-7 on his PATs for the night and spelled White, who sat out the rest of the second half due to injury.
Friday’s game was also the debut for Chapmanville junior running back Deshawn Alexander, a St. Albans High School graduate, who was just ruled eligible to play. Alexander finished with six rushes for 45 yards and had a 2-yard catch from Spradlin. Alexander, the son of former WVU and Los Angeles Rams running back Robert Alexander, bulled for a 21-yard run on his first carry and also had a 30-yard run down the sideline late in the game.
Tolsia jumped on top of Chapmanville 6-0 at the 4:35 mark of the first quarter with quarterback Jacob Copley’s 34-yard touchdown bomb to Brandon Ward. The extra point kick was blocked by Trevor Payne.
“Copley is a pretty good quarterback,” Barker said of the Tolsia signal-caller. “He put three or four passes right on the money to where it needed to be but we hit hard on defense and our physicality ended up being the difference.”
Late in the first quarter, Chapmanville was in business with a 33-yard punt return by Tyler Cox to the Tolsia 17-yard line, setting up a first-and-10 within the red zone.
Four plays later, it looked like the Tigers’ drive might stall but on a fourth-and-seven at the 15, White tossed a 13-yard completion to Cox for a first-and-goal at the 2.
Then on the very next play, Smith bulldozed in for a 2-yard touchdown run. The score, however, was nullified as the officials ruled the first quarter clock had expired.
Chapmanville then had to walk to the other end of the field to try a second attempt at the go-ahead touchdown.
The officials, however, mysteriously placed the ball one yard back at the 3-yard line. The Chapmanville coaching staff protested the spot but the ball was put into play and, play it again Sam, Smith charged forward for a 3-yard TD run. Spradlin’s PAT then put Chapmanville ahead for good, 7-6, with 11:56 to go until halftime.
It was all Tigers after that.
On the second play of Chapmanville’s next drive, White ran in for a 32-yard touchdown. After Sprad-lin’s extra point kick it was 14-6 CRHS with 8:24 left until the break.
Copley tried to get Tolsia back into the game with a 35-yard kickoff return to the Rebel 49, but he then fired an interception to Cox at the 31.
Chapmanville would make it 21-6 with 2:57 to go with White’s 81-yard keeper to the house.
Tolsia fumbled the ball away late in the second quarter as Simon Anderson, a sophomore lineman from Copenhagen, Denmark, fell on the football at the Tolsia 36-yard line.
Five snaps later, Dylan Wiley caught a 26-yard TD pass from White with only 10 seconds to go until the half. Spradlin tacked on the PAT to make it 28-6.
Brady Cox intercepted Copley on the last play of the half.
The Tigers continued their dominance in the second half.
White’s 51-yard score with just 13 ticks gone in the third quarter then put Chapmanville on top 35-6.
Then at the 6:58 mark, Smith’s 7-yard touchdown run made it a 42-6 game.
Chapmanville appeared to be headed for another score but fumbled the ball away in the end zone on a first-and-10 play at the Tolsia 12.
Then with 11:01 left in the game, Devin Wiley dashed in from 56 yards out to make it 49-6. Spradlin was again true on his extra point kick.
The Rebels would score two late touchdowns on Chapmanville’s second-team defense. The first was a 14-yard strike from Copley to Morgan Williamson with 7:36 left in the game. The second score was a 35-yard pass from backup QB Justin Roberts to Ward. Wesley Waller then ran in the two-point conversion to make it 49-20 with 25 seconds left in the game.
Chapmanville got the ball back and ran one play to extinguish the clock.
Tigers’ notebook
n Tyler Cox finished with six carries for 28 yards. He had two catches for 14 yards.
Smith had 10 rushes for 72 yards.
Dylan Wiley had two carries for eight yards and the TD catch.
Devin Wiley had three carries for 56 yards.
Dustin Conley had one catch for 12 yards late in the game.
Spradlin was 2-for-2 passing for 14 yards off the bench.
Paul Workman had one carry for seven yards.
On defense, Joe Woody led the Tigers with six solo tackles and three bone-crushing QB sacks.
Erik Siljeholm, a senior foreign exchange student from Sweden, had five solo tackles from his DB post.
Cox had four solo tackles and a pick, while Brandon Farley also had four solos,
Mark Lawson had three solo tackles, one assist and one sack.
Anderson had three solo tackles, one assist and one fumble recovery.
Brandon Killen contributed three solo tackles and one assist, while Payne had three stops.
Brady Cox, Smith, Austin Watts, Chase Queen, Tyler Goble, Caleb Belcher, Jeffrey Oxley and Waylon Dingess all had two tackles. Queen also had an assist.
John Toler had one tackle and one sack.
Andrew Workman, White, Spradlin, Alexander, Brent Bigley, Matt Chapman, Morgan Jackson and Dustin White all had one tackle.
Conley punted three times for an average of 39 yards per boot.
Chapmanville was penalized seven times for 55 yards. Tolsia had four flags for 45 yards.
n The Tigers return to Wayne County next Friday night with a big Cardinal Conference clash at No. 13 Wayne. The Pioneers are 6-2 after blitzing the Poca Dots 43-23 on Friday night.
Chapmanville has lost the last seven meetings with the Pioneers since 2000, including last year’s 16-14 heartbreaker at home in which a potential game-winning field goal by the Tigers was botched.
The Tigers then host No. 2 Point Pleasant on Nov. 4 in the huge regular season finale. The Black Knights are 8-0 after destroying Scott 55-6 on Friday night at home.
“We have to get ready to play football and get focused on what it is that we’re trying to do,” Barker said about the two showdowns ahead.
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