COVINGTON, Ga. – The Newton Rams are picking up where they left off in 2024, securing a 65-15 win in a scrimmage over the Mays Raiders on Friday night.
Newton controlled the narrative throughout the contest, never letting up off of the gas pedal.
The Rams once again excelled on the ground, with sophomore Kevin Hartsfield rushing for over 100 yards in the first quarter. A total of six different running backs found the end zone for Newton, firmly identifying as a dominant rushing force.
Newton’s defense was also in midseason form, too, forcing four turnovers throughout the contest.
Game action
It only took 90 seconds for sophomore running back Kevin Hartsfield to make his impact felt on the game, scoring a 65-yard touchdown to give the Rams the early lead.
The momentum continues to shift in the Rams favor following a fumble recovery by Ashton Roberts. As it seemed like the Rams would capitalize again, veteran quarterback Deron Benson threw a rare interception to give the ball back to the Raiders.
After Mays failed to score on the turnover, Newton capitalized once again with another Hartsfield rushing touchdown to give the Rams a 14-0 lead.
Three minutes later, Benson connected with wide receiver Jaqwan Carr to put the Rams up 21-0.
The Raiders attempted to gather some momentum as they drove the ball past midfield. But a fourth and short attempt pass from Robinson was broken up by Omarion Wallace to keep the tide in Newton’s favor.
In just 30 seconds, Newton found the end zone once more, this time with a 32-yard run from Darius White to put the game seemingly out of reach in the first half.
Midway through the second quarter, the game was stopped for 15 minutes after a member of the chain crew was injured.
The unplanned intermission proved to be to the Raiders’ benefit as Robinson connected with Stepney Lee for the Raiders first score of the night.
Following a two-point conversion pass from Robinson to D’andre Hennix, the Raiders trailed 28-8 to close out the half.
While the Raiders looked to capitalize on the late first-half score, it was Newton’s defense that stepped up.
A fumble recovery by Chase Blackman set up a Tabian Thomas touchdown two minutes into the first half. The next drive, it was Roberts who came away with his second fumble recovery of the night to set up a Samuel Velasquez field goal to give the Rams a 38-8 lead.
Then, it was an overthrown ball by the Raiders’ backup quarterback Jameel Freeman that resulted in an interception by Brandon Nolley for a third consecutive takeaway.
After both teams traded possessions, backup running back Kenyon Mayes got his chance to see the end zone, putting the Rams up 45-8 to end the third quarter.
The scoring only continued in the fourth for the Rams, with touchdowns from Rae Whitehead and Zayden Harden.
The final moments of the game were beneficial to the Raiders, as Tarrence Moore ran back an 80-yard touchdown with the clock winding down.
But the Rams were not satisfied, as backup quarterback Josiah Frazier threw an 80-yard touchdown to Demarious Henderson with the clock expiring to get one last score to end the game.
Coaches comments
Despite the team’s dominant showing, Newton Head Coach Josh Skelton was wary of some of the early unforced errors that his team showed. But overall, Skelton said he came away proud of the team’s performance.
“We started off making a lot of mistakes, but I think we were able to clean them up,” Skelton said. “There’s a lot of things we want to clean up before the regular season, but I’m very proud of these guys.”
When discussing the run game, Skelton also highlighted the synergy between the many pieces in the Rams backfield.
“I think all the way down to our young backs, we were able to get a good rotation and keep our guys fresh,” Skelton said. “I thought all of our backs ran physically behind their pads and that’s what we preached. We really see a lot of chemistry in the backfield.”
Skelton also praised Roberts, who was the defensive standout of the night.
“I think he’s come along,” Skelton said. “He’s had a really good summer. He’s answered the challenge that our defensive staff have put together for him and we’re happy to see him come out and perform tonight.”
With the preseason almost over, the Rams will open the season at Sharp Stadium in the first Newton Cup battle against the Eastside Eagles.
Last season, the Rams fell to Eagles in Week 1, losing their first head-to-head matchup since 2018. This eventually led to the Eagles claiming the Newton Cup, in what was considered an upset at the time.
The Rams and the Eagles face off at Sharp Stadium on Friday, Aug. 15 at 7:30 p.m.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
