Senior Javares Stanback (13) cuts upfield on his 44-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter against Union Pines Wednesday.
                                 Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

Senior Javares Stanback (13) cuts upfield on his 44-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter against Union Pines Wednesday.

Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

<p>Freshman Joe Parson (32) blocks the punt for the Raiders Wednesday against Union Pines.</p>
                                 <p>Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal</p>

Freshman Joe Parson (32) blocks the punt for the Raiders Wednesday against Union Pines.

Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

<p>Junior Emerson Wall (23) stuffs a Union Pines ball carrier Wednesday night.</p>
                                 <p>Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal</p>

Junior Emerson Wall (23) stuffs a Union Pines ball carrier Wednesday night.

Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

ROCKINGHAM — From the opening kickoff against Union Pines Wednesday night, the Richmond varsity football team could seemingly do no wrong.

Well, almost.

Save for a fumble on a botched handoff that led to the Vikings’ lone touchdown of the game in the first quarter — a six-yard touchdown pass — the Raiders were mistake-free in their 69-6 win over Union Pines, something that head coach Bryan Till has emphasized in recent games, especially after 18 penalties in last week’s win against Hoke County.

“Other than that fumble and touchdown, I feel like it went really well,” Till said. “That’s what I told them. Our goal is to try and play a perfect game every week. Obviously you’re not going to do that, but you’re going to be the best you can be if that’s what you’re chasing and that’s what’s important.”

Union Pines (1-7, 0-4 SAC) was without seven starters against Richmond, including leading rusher Ethan Biggs, due to a combination of injuries and suspensions, according to The Pilot’s Jonathan Bym.

By halftime, the Raiders (6-1, 3-0 SAC) had already built up a 55-6 lead, which triggered a running clock for the entirety of the second half against the undermanned Vikings team.

“We executed,” Till said. “We gave up the touchdown and that stuff, but we fixed that and kept playing. A lot of guys played and they were playing well. You can put guys in and they may not know their assignments, but they knew what to do. So I was really pleased with that. The kids understood coming in that if it gets to this point, it’s easy to relax, and they didn’t.”

Senior receiver Javares Stanback’s first three touches of the ball all went for touchdowns and all came in the first quarter.

On the first touch, he took the opening kickoff back 70 yards for a touchdown. Then on the second, which came on Richmond’s first offensive play of the game, Stanback took an end-around touch pass 44 yards to the end zone. Finally, on his third touch, he returned a punt 46 yards for his third and final touchdown of the game.

“My boys were blocking for me — I just hit the hole like we’ve been practicing all week long,” Stanback said. “Coach (Greg) Williams has been helping me, staying after practice with me every day. I’ve been working hard and all my boys have been working hard. We’ve been practicing every day, nonstop. Even on our days off, we’ll still come to the field and work.”

In addition to Stanback’s three touchdowns, both senior quarterback Kellan Hood and senior running back Nasir Crumpton also each added three rushing touchdowns. Hood finished with 176 total yards of offense, including 144 passing yards, while Crumpton and junior Taye Spencer each ran for more than 70 yards on the ground.

Overall, the Raiders finished with 389 total yards of offense.

The second unit saw the field for the entirety of the second half and backup quarterback junior Emoni McBride spearheaded two touchdown drives for the Raiders.

“We got to work on a lot of things, even on that last touchdown, we’re working with the second, third-string guys, the H-back position,” Till said. “All that was huge. Offensive line that played the whole second half was the twos. So that builds a ton of depth. They ran it and they knew how to run it.”

McBride said he’s learned a lot from watching and playing alongside Hood.

“Kellan is a great mentor,” McBride said. “He helps me out all the time — in film or dialing up something, he always keeps me up when I’m doing well. Whenever coach can get me in, I always try to run the offense how (Hood) runs it.”

Freshman kicker Billy West, who made his first career varsity start with senior kicker Alex Medina out for the Richmond boys soccer team’s road game at Hoke County, set the school record for most PATs made in a single game with nine.

Next for the Raiders is a visit from Southern Lee on Tuesday Oct. 12 in a game that was rescheduled since the Cavaliers were in quarantine earlier this season due to COVID-19 protocols.

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Reach Neel Madhavan at 910-817-2675 ext. 2751 or [email protected]. Follow on Twitter at @NeelMadhavan.