William Byrd Resumes Game, Tops Colonels 26-6

William Byrd running back Larry Basham picks up yardage Saturday afternoon as the Terriers defeated William Fleming 26-6. Basham had four touchdowns and the Terriers improved to 4-2.
William Byrd running back Larry Basham picks up yardage Saturday afternoon as the Terriers defeated William Fleming 26-6. Basham had four touchdowns and the Terriers improved to 4-2.

Friday night’s scheduled Blue Ridge District football game between the William Byrd Terriers and William Fleming Colonels came to a fast halt just over three minutes into the game.

Approaching lightning and heavy rain sent the teams to the locker rooms and fans out of the Byrd Stadium with Byrd up 7-0.

When things resumed Saturday afternoon at 2 pm, Byrd picked up where they left off, outlasting the Colonels for the 26-6 win under drizzly skies and much cooler temperatures.

“You have to adjust to the situation, just like what these young men will face in life,” William Fleming head coach Bobby Martin said of having to return 18 hours after the original postponement.

Byrd had taken the opening kickoff Friday night and gone on a 7-play drive culminated by Terrier running back Larry Basham’s 1-yard plunge that staked Byrd to the 7-0 lead with 8:34 left.

Lightning was spotted after the ensuing kickoff, and Fleming ran its next play from their own 20-yard line 18 hours later.

The teams traded punts, but Byrd controlled field position, and the Terriers made it 13-0 on a Basham 11-yard touchdown run with one second left in the opening quarter.

After Byrd kicked off, Fleming answered with authority on their second play from scrimmage when running back Malik Traynham broke loose for a long run to the Terrier one-yard line. Two plays later, Traynham scored to cut the Byrd advantage to 13-6 with 9:59 remaining in the second quarter.

The turning point in the game came late in the first half after the Colonels were forced to punt from deep in their own territory. Byrd drove to the Fleming 25-yard line where quarterback Will Culicerto connected over the middle with a wide-open Basham for the score with 24 seconds left that put Byrd up 20-6 heading to the locker room.

“That was big,” Martin said of the late Byrd score. “We were prepared, but just had a total miscommunication on the play.”

“That score was definitely the turning point,” Byrd head coach Jeff Highfill noted. “We came out last night and scored quickly. We came out today and our offense looked sluggish. Our defense made some good stops that were key.”

Early in the second half, Fleming rolled the dice on a fake punt from inside their own 10-yard line that the Colonels converted for a big gain. It brought to life the Fleming offense before Terrier defender Damien Pry ended the drive with an interception.

Byrd finished the game’s coring with 53 seconds left in the third quarter when Basham scored from 3 yards out for his fourth TD of the game.

Bill Turner

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