Warhill takes to the air early, and QB Chase O’Neil’s big night leads the Lions to one-sided win over Smithfield
When Warhill coach James Rhodes said his team was embracing more of a passing identity this season, he wasn’t kidding. Led by quarterback Chase O’Neil’s 173 yards and three touchdowns in the first half, the Lions pulled away from Smithfield quickly in a 42-0 homecoming win in a Bay Rivers District game on Friday night at Wanner Stadium.
O’Neil, a 5-foot-11, 170-pound senior, completed 6 of 7 passes in the first half, throwing for touchdowns of 25, 73 and 39 yards, in addition to running four times for 32 yards and a touchdown. The surprisingly one-sided victory is the third consecutive for the Lions (3-2, 3-0 district), who stumbled out of the gate offensively to start the season, scoring only two touchdowns in losing two of their first three games.
“Personally, I wasn’t expecting that,” Rhodes said after his team stymied the Packers (2-2, 1-1), who entered having beaten two comparatively weaker foes by a combined 91-27 score. “We put together a good week of practice and that set the tone for the game.”
The Lions displayed their passing prowess on the game’s first play, when Taylen Eady gained 21 yards on a screen. Liam Francisque demonstrated the running game’s strength moments later, running behind the blocking of Jack Baker, Nicholas Marrero, Adam Shadrix, Kevin Lee and Gustavo Facundo-Bacelar for 20 yards.
But, with those big linemen protecting him nicely, O’Neil threw a 9-yard completion to Tavyion Blockett. Three plays later, Blockett beat his defender and made a leaping catch falling backward in the end zone on a 25-yard pass from O’Neil that gave the Lions a 7-0 lead three minutes in.
That margin swelled to 21 points quickly. The Lions’ defense forced a three-and-out and, when the punt snap was low, the offense took over at the Packers’ 4. Francisque ran for a 4-yard touchdown on the next play.
The Lions needed only a play to score the next time they had the ball, following Ashton Gardner’s tackle of Smithfield running back Chris Dennis for no gain, prompting another Packers punt. O’Neil connected along the sideline to Blockett, who turned his catch into a 73-yard touchdown with a nifty move to shake a Smithfield defender.
“We preached all week we had to execute three phases of the [passing] game,” O’Neil said. “I’ve got to complete passes, the receivers have got to catch the ball and the line has got to block. Tonight, it all came together very nicely.”
Warhill moved more methodically, but no less effectively, on the ground following Isaiah Rembert’s interception at the Packers’ 36. The Lions used 12 running plays to cover that distance, converting two third downs and a fourth down, with O’Neil carrying the final yard for a touchdown to make it 27-0 in the second quarter.
O’Neil capped a first half in which he produced 205 yards and four touchdowns with his 39-yard touchdown pass to Eady on fourth and 6. Francisque ran in the two-point conversion to give the Lions a 35-0 lead at halftime, and the second half rolled by quickly with a running clock.
The Lions’ defense played its part, allowing just 59 yards.
