Ground game vaults Linden past Washington County

Andro Williams hoped going into the game that his team would be able to limit a Washington County offense that was averaged 42 points per game through its first four contests. His defense answered emphatically Friday night as Linden defeated Class 2A No. 7 Washington County 62-14.

“I knew we had to play great defense, but we had to do a great job in our specialty game as well. We played with a little bit more of a sense of urgency there. You’ve got to play a complete game overall,” Williams said following the win. ““We had a couple of times we had them wrapped up in the backfield, but they’ve got some talented runners that were able to make some plays and keep some drives alive for them. Overall, I thought we played scrappy and made the adjustments.”

The Patriots used a 27-point third quarter to blow the game open, carrying a 41-14 lead into the locker at halftime. Linden anchored the effort in the trenches where its offensive line paved the way for 386 rushing yards on 35 attempts.

“It’s always a chess match in this game. We’re a multiple set offense. We base out of the Wing-T, but we’re a multiple set. I thought they gave us some things in some sets and we had to take advantage of it. Hats off to our guys, I thought we blocked well up front,” Williams said. “That offensive line has come a long way. It’s a tribute to our coaches and the guys who have bought in and understanding that games are won in the trenches. Our line play is going to take us where we’re going this year. That’s on both sides of the ball.”

Xavier McIntosh opened the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run with 7:54 remaining in the first quarter. Charles Blackmon took his second carry of the night 60 yards for a touchdown with 6:08 left to stretch the lead to 14-0.

Washington County got a 25-yard run from Curtis Anderson to cut the deficit in half with 44 seconds left in the opening frame, marking the first points surrendered by Linden in nearly 16 quarters of play.

McIntosh punched it in from a yard out just 25 seconds into the second quarter to move it to 21-7 before C.J. Robinson did the same with 8:22 left before half to make it 28-7. With 2:06 to go before intermission, McIntosh scored on another 1-yard run to make it 35-7 in favor of the Patriots.

Washington County fired back quickly with a 60-yard scoring strike from Matthew Glass to Anderson with 1:12 left in the quarter. Not to be outdone, C.J. Robinson found Isaiah Scott for a 70-yard touchdown pass with 37 seconds remaining until halftime.

Linden tacked on a 17-yard run from DeAntonio Williams, a 30-yard Blackmon sprint and a 1-yard Jonathan Biggs plunge to set the final tally.

The Patriots amassed 475 yards on only 39 snaps while limiting the Bulldogs to 168 yards on 41 plays. Blackmon led the way for Linden with an eye catching 232 yards on only seven carries.

“Charles Blackmon has bought into what we’re doing. When we start practice, we do a bunch of cone drills and he has bought into understanding that those drills are what are going to get him to the next level. He is just reaping those benefits now,” Williams said of the senior tailback.

Linden (5-0, 3-0) returns home to face region rival Sweet Water next week.