The Lord Botetourt football team warmed up for tougher games ahead by easily disposing of Christiansburg in a Region 3D quarterfinal last week. The Cavaliers beat the Blue Demons 62-6 in Daleville in a game played Thursday night to avoid predicted Friday rain.

This was basically a tune-up for tougher foes to come. Christiansburg came to town with a 2-8 record after a winless 2017 season and the Demons just weren’t ready for prime time. However, talent-starved Region 3D had three teams in the playoffs with three wins or less and they proved to be no more than chum for the sharks like Botetourt at the top of the rankings.

“Our kids played well and it was a solid win,” said LB coach Jamie Harless. “I was real pleased that the jayvees got in the game for a quarter and a half. They played against Christiansburg’s regulars and each team scored once while they were in there.”

Botetourt led 42-0 by the half and the clock ran continuously after intermission as the Cavs put two more scores on the board in the third period to make it 55-0. For the game Botetourt had over 500 yards of offense while holding Christiansburg to around 150.

Lots of people got to carry the ball for LB but the leading rushers were Hunter Rice with 181 yards on 14 carries and Evan Eller with 110 yards on nine. Rice scored four touchdowns and Eller had two.

LB only passed four times and it was four different players. Peyton Haston caught a 63-yard TD pass from Sammy Peery in the fourth quarter and Jake Dewease had one reception for 41 yards.

This week it gets tougher with Abingdon, the third seed, coming to town for a regional semifinal. The game will be played Saturday at 7 p.m. at LB to avoid a possible conflict with the girls volleyball team if they make Friday’s VHSL Class 3 championship game.

“We’re trying not to conflict with them,” said Harless. “They have our full support.”

THIS WEEK’S GAME
ABINGDON AT LORD BOTETOURT

This week the Abingdon Falcons come to Lord Botetourt for a Region 3D semifinal football game in Daleville. The game will be played at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

Abingdon comes in at 9-2 after winning a quarterfinal round game against Hidden Valley last week, 20-0. Abingdon had lost to 3-8 Hidden Valley during the regular season, 37-25, and the Falcons also lost at Pulaski County, 42-14. Their only common opponent with LB is Christiansburg. Abingdon beat the Blue Demons 21-0 and Botetourt beat Christiansburg in a region quarterfinal game, 62-6.

LB coach Jamie Harless is quite familiar with Abingdon, as that’s his high school alma mater. Jamie was a four-year varsity player and in his first three years the Falcons were 5-25, but 9-3 his senior season in 1992.

Botetourt played Abingdon in 2015 when the Cavaliers went to the state championship game and finished as runner-up in Group 3A. The Cavs beat Abingdon 39-28 in the third round that season.

While the coaching staff has changed since Harless ruled the line of scrimmage, he still knows some folks involved with the program.

“A couple kids are on the team who are sons of friends of mine,” he said. “They keep me abreast.”

The Falcons run a spread offense with an H-Back on offense and run the ball approximately 60 percent of the time. They play a 3-4 defense with a “bear” front.

LB is in a good spot to make a move in the playoffs. By playing Thursday last week, and not playing until Saturday this week, the Cavs have two more days of rest and preparation than they’d normally have. They’ve been practicing some at Greenfield Elementary on nasty days as the Cavalier volleyball and basketball teams have been keeping the high school gym occupied.

The Cavaliers come in as healthy as you’ll find at this time of year, and Harless expects fullback and linebacker Brett Meacham to return from an injury this week. Look for the Cavaliers to handle Harless’ alma mater and move on to the highly anticipated game between Northside over Thanksgiving weekend.