Blues Open District Play With First Win

A bruising ground game and a punishing defense proved to be the winning formula as the Parry McCluer football team bashed its way to its first victory of the season, rolling past Craig County, 40-0, Friday, Oct. 11, in New Castle. 

In the first Pioneer District contest of the year, and PM’s first game against Group 1A competition, the Blues ground out 393 rushing yards, with two backs surpassing the 100-yard plateau and three runners scoring two touchdowns apiece. 

Junior Keaton Coleman led the way, piling up 171 yards on 20 carries and scoring two TDs, while junior Ethan Moore also scored twice while making his way to 102 yards on 10 carries. John Snider, a freshman, added 74 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 11 carries. 

However, a big part of this game was the defense. The Blues held the pass-happy Rockets to just 117 yards of total offense, only 17 on the ground, and Craig County mustered only six first downs in the game. The Blues recorded four quarterback sacks in the game and a total of nine tackles for loss. They held Craig to a lowly 2-for-10 on third-down conversions, and the Rockets crossed midfield only four times in the contest. 

Defensive linemen Holden Kerr, a senior, and classmate Caleb Mason paced the PM stop unit. Kerr finished the game with two solo tackles, including a quarterback sack, and three assists. Mason was in on five tackles and two sacks. 

The Blues set the tone for this one early, stopping Craig County on its first drive of the night and then embarking on a 12-play drive that ate up nearly six minutes of the first-quarter clock. Moore opened the scoring with a 3-yard TD run, and when Snider booted the extra point, the Blues had a 7-0 lead. 

Moore found the end zone again late in the second period, sprinting in from 12 yards away, and PM held a 13-0 halftime lead. After intermission, the Blues blew the game wide open. 

The Blues took the opening kickoff of the third quarter and drove 84 yards in 10 plays, all on the ground. Snider scored the TD from a yard away, and when Coleman ran in the two-point conversion, the lead swelled to 21-0. 

A stop on fourth down after a botched punt set up the Blues deep in Craig County territory for their next drive, and Coleman, carried the ball on the last two plays of the short march, including the last two yards into the end zone to push the advantage to 28-0. 

The defense stopped Craig County’s next drive when Nick Reid broke up a fourth-down pass, and Coleman put the contest away with a 55-yard sprint that extended the PM lead to 34-0. Snider provided the final margin with his 6-yard TD run with 2:41 remaining in the contest.
 

With the victory, the Blues improved to 1-5 on the season and extended its winning streak over the Rockets to nine straight games. Craig County fell to 2-4. 

The Blues return home Friday, Oct. 18, to take on Covington for homecoming. 

Blues Blanked at Buffalo Gap

Parry McCluer’s early-season woes continued Friday (Sept. 6) with a 48-0 setback at Buffalo Gap.

The Bison piled up nearly 400 rushing yards in the game, with two runners crossing the 100-yard mark and another coming awfully close. Bryce Hildebrand led the hosts, picking up 156 yards on just six carries and scoring a pair of touchdowns, while Tucker Kiracofe finished with 108 yards on 14 carries with three TDs. Seth Fitzgerald added 90 yards and a touchdown on eight attempts. 

The Bison put this one away early, scoring on their first possession of the game when Kiracofe found the end zone from five years out and racing to a 42-0 halftime lead. 

The Blues continued to struggle offensively, managing just 91 total yards, including only 39 rushing yards. Junior Keaton Coleman led PM with 37 yards on three carries, while Colton Painter completed four of nine passes for 52 yards and an interception. 

The Blues fumbled six times in the contest, losing one. 

Parry McCluer’s road trip continues next Friday night (Sept. 13) when the Blues travel to Buchanan to take on former Pioneer District rival James River. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.

Wildcats Blank Blues in Opener

Rockbridge County’s Jay passed for 260 yards and three touchdowns, and teammate Ty Ruley ran for 103 yards and three scores as the Wildcats blanked Parry McCluer, 62-0, in the season-opening football game Friday (Aug. 30) at Robert E. “Bobby” Williams Field.

The Blues held their own early on in the contest, stopping RCHS on a fourth-down try inside PM territory. After that, however, the Wildcats scored on nine consecutive possessions to pull away.

For the game, Jay completed 13 of 22 passes, without an interception, all in the first half. Ruley took over at quarterback in the final two quarters, carrying the ball eight times for those 103 yards and three TDs. As a team, the Wildcats piled up 515 yards of total offense.

Meanwhile, the young Blues really struggled on the offensive side of the ball. For the game, Parry McCluer mustered only 52 yards rushing, just 56 yards of total offense and only a pair of first downs.

Nick Reid finished as PM’s leading rusher, finishing the game with 25 yards on seven carries. Eric Jimenez carried the ball nine times for 20 yards.

This Friday (Sept. 6) the Blues hit the road for the first of six away games this season, taking on Buffalo Gap in Swope, Va. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.