Football: College Park pounds Oak Ridge in 14-5A opener

College Park’s run-oriented offense is boring. No blazing 4.4 speed or razzle-dazzle plays. But so far, it has gotten the job done.

Led by another strong performance by quarterback Zach Wright and running back Austin Boudreaux, the Cavaliers scored over 50 points for the second game in a row, beating Oak Ridge 54-27 in the District 14-5A opener for both teams Friday night at Woodforest Bank Stadium.

Wright was 0-for-2 passing the ball, but had a strong night running the ball, rushing for 176 yards and five touchdowns. Boudreaux was just as impressive, running for 159 yards and three touchdowns. The Cavs dominated the line of scrimmage and pounded the War Eagles for 407 offensive yards, all on the ground.

“We felt we could run the ball on them, and we just kept doing it,” Cavalier head coach Richard Carson said. “Our offensive line and our tight ends did a great job. Austin Boudreaux has been outstanding all year and Zach Wright gets us where we need to be.”

Defensively, the Cavs held Oak Ridge to only 97 yards rushing , forced three turnovers and controlled the more athletic War Eagle squad for most of the game.

“We threw a little wrinkle at them, but we’re going to play good people all year,” Carson said. “We’ve done well and we will continue to do well against good people.”

It took College Park five plays on its first drive of the game to score, as Wright scored from 20 yards out. Oak Ridge responded as quarterback Michael Handy found Macklin Thomas for a 25-yard gain that set up a 1-yard touchdown plunge by Bernard Pierre.

The game had its wacky moment, as Boudreaux scored on the Cavs’ first play from scrimmage, going 80 yards up the middle. But the extra point was blocked and Oak Ridge defensive back J.D. Hurd, who ran it all the way back for two points, making it 13-9.

College Park (4-1, 1-0) recovered the ensuing kickoff and marched down the field 35 yards on 10 plays as Boudreaux scored from two yards out. Then after forcing a three-and-out to open the second quarter, Wright and Boudreaux pounded the War Eagle defense for three runs of 15 yards each, setting up a 2-yard sneak by Wright to increase the lead to 27-9.

Later in the quarter, a 23-yard run by Domynique Lindo set up a 5-yard touchdown run by Wright to increase the Cavs’ lead to 25, but a late touchdown pass by Handy to wideout Kyle Adams and a 29-yard field goal by Patrick Coale at the end of the half helped Oak Ridge to cut the lead to 34-20 at the half.

After an interception by defensive back Alan Rikke gave College Park good field position to start the third quarter, Boudreaux pounded in a 15-yard touchdown to put the Cavs back up by 21. The War Eagles answered with a 9-play, 70-yard drive that resulted in a 3-yard touchdown run by Handy.

With just under two and a half minutes left in the quarter, a shanked punt by Oak Ridge (1-4, 0-1) led to another Cavalier score, as Wright ran it in from 10 yards out. He would end his night with a 19-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to put a capper on a stellar night for him.

“We’re going to enjoy it, but we got a lot of stuff to work on,” Wright said. “I saw the whole Woodlands team watching us (in the stands), so we have to get better and change up our offense.”

Meanwhile, Handy was 20-of-33 for 231 yards and a touchdown, but threw two interceptions that halted drives that could have put the War Eagles back into the game. He also led the team with 81 yards rushing.

While Oak Ridge will try to bounce back against Conroe next Friday, another big game is on the horizon as College Park meets Kingwood Friday at Woodforest in another game that could decide the Cavs’ playoff destiny.

“Getting this first win allows us to control our destiny,” Carson said. “We’ll be tied for first in the morning, in fact, right now. And that’s all that matters.”