WEST POINT — “Devastated.”
That’s how Drew Riley said the Oak Hill Academy football team felt two weeks ago after starting quarterback Ken Dill had to leave the game against Heritage Academy with an injury. In addition to losing to the Patriots 10-0, the Raiders learned shortly after the setback that Dill could be lost for the season with a foot injury. They also had to deal with an assortment of other bumps and bruises, including Riley, who used ice to tend to an aching side as he listened to coach Chris Craven’s post-game talk.
The following Monday, Riley wasn’t sure he was going to get a chance to dress out and listen to Craven’s speech before and after his team’s game against West Memphis Christian (Ark.). It wasn’t until Thursday that Riley received clearance from his doctor and was allowed to play in the week four showdown. On the three-hour bus ride to the game, Riley said he was nervous as he talked to teammate Macon McBrayer about what role — if any — he was going to play on offense for the Raiders.
“I kept asking Macon, ‘I wonder if I am going to get any carries? I wonder if I am going play good? I wonder if I am going to get hit in the back?’ ” Riley said. “That was going through my head the entire time. After I scored the first touchdown, I ran it on the outside and nobody touched me. In the whole game, I don’t think anybody touched me on offense.”
Riley’s apprehension turned out to be unwarranted. Not only did Riley have five carries for 137 yards and two touchdowns, he also caught a 70-yard pass for a score, and returned an interception 51 yards for a touchdown. The defensive score was the first of his career.
For his accomplishments, Riley is The Dispatch’s Prep Player of the Week.
“I didn’t expect to play throughout the whole week,” Riley said. “I started feeling a lot better Wednesday. The doctors said you are going to get hit the same as offense, so he said why not (go ahead and play both sides of the ball). I gave it a try and it turned out really well. I felt 100 percent after the game.”
Riley said he had to add a rib plate to his uniform Friday night to help him protect the contusion he suffered against Heritage Academy. He said the padding didn’t bother him too much and actually straightened his back. With strong contributions from McBrayer and Collins Brown, Riley said he was happy to be a part of an offensive performance in which a lot of things worked really well.
“The offensive line blocked really well and, like coach said, run where they are not,” Riley said. “I ran where they were not and scored touchdowns.”
Craven said someone like Riley always is in the game plan, but he said the team prepared all week for Riley not to play. Riley didn’t start and entered the game in the first quarter after Collins Brown’s helmet came off.
Craven said the Raiders wanted to protect Riley’s body as much as possible after he suffered some bumps and bruises in a 10-0 loss to Heritage Academy a week earlier. But Craven said Riley looked fine when he hit the field.
“We let him play most of the first half, and he played just a little bit in the second half,” Craven said. “He wasn’t playing at all in the second half, but he had to go in for somebody who had to come out so we had enough high school people out there.”
Craven agreed that Riley’s interception return helped set the tone for the rest of the evening. He said Riley already had made his mark with an offensive touchdown and that it was satisfying to see him overcome his aches and pains to make an impact on the game.
Craven also praised the efforts of sophomore John Carver Middleton, the team’s third-string quarterback. Middleton came on in relief of injured starter Ken Dill early in the first half against Heritage Academy. But issues with the center-to-quarterback exchange hampered the Raiders’ ability to move the football, as did the Patriots’ defense.
Last week, Craven said seniors Chance Wilson and Heath Ford also were going to take snaps at quarterback in practice to give Oak Hill Academy versatility at quarterback in case it suffered another injury. Second-strong quarterback Kaleb Darnell missed the game against Heritage Academy due to a torn quad. But Craven said Middleton did a solid job under center and the Raiders didn’t have to go to another quarterback.
“John Carver really took care of the ball and stepped up,” Craven said. “I feel we needed to prove to ourselves after losing our first-string quarterback — an athletic talent on our team — that we could still play football at the level we want to play. … I feel it was a big stepping stone for us to prove to ourselves that Chance was right when he said we were ‘back in business’, that we can still play football, and that we’re going to be OK.”
Riley agreed and credited Middleton for knowing the plays and showing poise in his first start. After shaking off the uncertainty he felt on the bus ride about how he was going to feel in the game, Riley said he was happy he could contribute on a night he and the Raiders got back on track.
“John Carver for was one of the big reasons for our win,” Riley said. “He was reading the defense and did a great job.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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