The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Riverside posts shutout in opener
You wouldn’t have been able to see it, but behind Riverside coach Dave Bors’ mask had to be an expression that was a mix of happiness and relief after the Beavers’ 30-0 blanking of visiting South in a season opener on August 28.
Overcoming a sluggish start offensively, primarily a result of a lack of normal preseason preparation due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, Riverside rode a suffocating defensive effort to prevail over a young Rebels squad.
Riverside (1-0), which returned 18 of 22 starters from last season, held South to 6 total yards and three first downs for the game.
Meanwhile, senior QB Dom Lulow passed for 122 yards and a touchdown, and ran for 63 yards and two more scores to lead the Beavers, who were much sharper offensively in the second half after taking a 9-0 lead into the break.
“It feels great,” Lulow said. “We didn’t play great in the first half, but just to be out there with my brothers — I love all these dudes. We’ve worked really hard for this, so I’m glad we got our first win and now it’s on to Week 2.”
South, which has just three seniors among its starters, had trouble with the shotgun snap on several occasions, including the game’s first possession, in which it moved backwards 8 yards.
A punt attempt after the first drive went out of the end zone for a Riverside safety. Despite the entire first half being played in Rebel territory, it took the Beavers until the second quarter to get untracked offensively.
After a punt, a loss of possession on downs, and a missed field goal, Riverside found paydirt when James Bruno took a Lulow screen pass into the end zone for a 34-yard score and a 9-0 Beavers lead.
“The defense did a great job, and our offense, I think you saw both sides,” Bors said. “(Thank) the pandemic — let me put it that way. I don’t think I’ve ever felt worse after a 30-point win, because it was sloppy, ugly and what not.
“All the things that we’re usually able to do (preparation-wise) by this time, we haven’t been able to do. You have to give a lot of credit to the players and the coaching staff with everything they’ve had to deal with.”
The Rebels exhibited considerable speed on defense, and that helped them stay in the game with an interception by James Searcy, and a fourth-down stop at their own 2-yard line to keep it 9-0 at the half.
But the South offense could not generate any momentum, thanks to its own youthful mistakes and a swarming Riverside defense.
“The defense did a great job in the first half,” South coach Matt Duffy said. “We gave up two points on a punt, that was our fault, and they got us on a screen, which was a nice call by them. But other than that the defense did a good job in the first half. Unfortunately, our offense kept putting our defense in bad situations.”
Riverside, employing a no-huddle in the second half, marched 78 yards in 13 plays to score on a 2-yard Lulow keeper to start the third quarter, and then a two-point conversion pass from Lulow to Mason Stephens.
The Beavers went 65 yards in seven plays on their next possession, culminating in an 11-yard touchdown run by Lulow early in the fourth to make it 23-0.
Backup QB Wyatt Wunderle ran for a 10-yard score to finish the scoring.