Going into the season with an unproven defense, having to replace several members of the offensive line, as well as the top two wide receivers from last year’s team, going into the open date at 5-1 is not a bad accomplishment.
Looking at the schedule before the season started, the only game where Richmond may not have been a favorite going in was against Butler.
The Bulldogs have a who’s who list of college prospects on the roster, but needed to score 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to pull out the victory.
Besides that 12 minutes of game play, the Raiders have been rolling along and look poised to make a deep run in the playoffs and defend its state championship. Even Friday’s game against New Hanover was a testament to how much the team is beginning to come together as the Raiders will head into Southeastern Conference play next week.
The defense rebounded from three tough weeks when it allowed an average of 31 points per game and limited the Wildcats to just six points. Also, the defense managed to put up some points of its own, with a safety.
Even though the defense stymied New Hanover, there is still a great deal of work to be done. The Wildcats were able to get receivers open deep in the secondary, but because of wet and windy conditions at Raider Stadium those passes fell incomplete. Plus, the tackling, which was horrible against Butler and South View, is getting better.
Before the season started, Richmond coach Paul Hoggard hoped to have his offense at or near 50 percent passing and 50 percent running. Right now, the scale is tilted way over to the run. While the Raiders’ option attack has been very good at times, at other times it’s like the old adage of “three yards and a cloud of dust.”
The option relies on quarterback Tedarrius Wiley to make a split second decision on where the ball should go. Should he give the ball to the first man through the line on a dive? If he keeps the ball, then he faces another decision, should he keep the ball or pitch it back to the running back. Wiley is getting better at running the option, but right now he appears more comfortable making plays with his arm rather than his legs.
Through its first six games, the Raiders are averaging an impressive 35.8 points a game. While scoring five touchdowns a game will win a lot of games at any level of competition, the Raiders are still leaving points on the field.
The number of big plays called back because of holding, an illegal block in the back or some other infraction is incredible. It’s like in the NFL, where for years the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders were the most penalized team, the Richmond Raiders are close to earning that reputation in North Carolina.
Just like fumbling the football while battling for that extra yard, the coaching staff will love the effort, but hate the result — the same thing can be said for committing a penalty while blocking 15 yards downfield.
There is no need for the “Chicken Littles” to believe the sky is falling, the Raiders are still coming together as a team and with an open date this Friday the team can focus on itself, not an opponent.
Let’s all take a deep breath and get ready for what should be an exciting final five weeks of football.
If you could do a better job, you would be the one on the sidelines.