Week 11 preview: Scots face Raiders in 55th all-time meeting

LAURINBURG – The New York Yankees vs. the Boston Red Sox. North Carolina vs. Duke. The Boston Celtics vs. the Los Angeles Lakers. They’re known as some of sports’ greatest rivalries. But, in North Carolina high school football, it’s hard to beat the 55-year rivalry of Scotland vs. Richmond. The classic showdown has favored the Richmond Raiders all-time at 38-15-1, including the last three times both teams have met.

But, Scots head coach Richard Bailey feels it’s not very long compared to the past.

“The three years (we’ve lost) is a while,” Bailey said. “We went 18 years at one time without beating them, so three years isn’t that long when you look at it in that perspective. We obviously want to win this game. Anytime you can beat Richmond in anything, it’s great for our community. It’s the biggest rivalry in the state of North Carolina and hopefully our fans will show up and support us, and give us that extra edge. I’m really looking forward to a great Friday night.”

The Raiders and Scots have mirrored records at 5-4 overall going into Friday night’s game, but Richmond has the advantage of playing the game at Raider Stadium this year, something that Bailey doesn’t mind.

“It is more difficult, but sometimes I like to get away from our place,” Bailey said. “We’ve traditionally played well on the road. We’ve probably lost as many home games as we have away games, so I don’t think that bothers us. I think our kids are used to those kinds of atmospheres.”

The Richmond Raiders are currently on a three-game winning streak after victories against Hoke County, Union Pines, and Lee County, averaging 36 points per game in the three contests. And, Bailey knows this Raiders offense will challenge the Scotland defense, but feels they play a similar style to the Scots’ offense.

“Richmond’s got a big offensive line, a really good tailback, (and) a quarterback that’s athletic,” Bailey said. “You know, they haven’t thrown the ball as much as they have in recent years, but they’re pretty balanced. They play a lot like we do. Their formations, some of their running plays are almost mirrored images of us. Offensively, there is a lot of similarities in how we go about moving the football.”

Richmond’s offensive line includes two massive tackles in 6’4 Tyson Holloway and 6’5 Jeffery Linton. Running back Taye Spencer, who was All-SAC a season ago with 792 rushing yards, has 1,009 yards rushing this year, along with 15 touchdowns (four receiving) and 17 catches for 297 yards. And, quarterback Emoni McBride has been stellar after a rocky start to the season. After week five, McBride’s touchdown-to-interception ratio was 4-4, but since then, has been 9-0. McBride has also thrown for 1,103 yards on the year. McBride’s top two wide receivers, Travion Smith and Linden Garcia, have combined for 371 yards this season, but have not scored a touchdown.

Defense has been a strong point for the Raiders, and Bailey said the way they play is unique compared to other teams the Scots have faced this season.

“They’re a little different,” he said. “We haven’t really played anybody that was 3-3 stack all year. It’s not something a lot of people play. So, that’s a little bit different; something we’re going to have to prepare for. We try to find ways to attack that defense because, again, we haven’t played anybody all year that was a true 3-3 stack. Marlboro did it as a change-up, but it wasn’t something they did all night. But, Richmond is very committed to that.”

Defensive end Jacoby Martin has recorded 39 total tackles (18 solo), six tackles-for-loss, two sacks, and an interception on the year. Linebackers Bobbly Little and Joe Parsons have combined for 104 total tackles (78 solo), 21 tackles-for-loss, 10 sacks, and two forced-fumbles. And, safety Messiah Shaw has tallied 21 total tackles (13 solo), four interceptions, four passes defensed, and three tackles-for-loss.

The Raiders’ defense stands out, but Bailey believes his defense has stood out the last few weeks, as well.

“The last three or four weeks, we’ve gotten a lot better defensively,” Bailey said. “As far as fundamentally and sort of simplifying some things. We even started using “Duke” (Izeem Graham) a little bit on defense to try and get a better athlete on that side of the ball.”

Offensively, Bailey knows mistakes will be the key to the outcome of Friday’s game.

“Unless we shoot ourselves in the foot, and have turnovers or penalties, we’ve been pretty good on offense all year,” Bailey said. “We have more experience on that side of the ball, and we came into this year thinking our offense was going to be really good. And, at times, we have been, and other times, we should’ve been probably. And, like every good football team, you should get better as the year goes on and our team’s have only been that way. I think you’re seeing the culmination of that now, where we’re kind of playing our best football here at the end of the year.”

Injuries have continued to be an issue for the Scots this season, with another one in running back Patrick Primus last week. Bailey reported that Primus is day-to-day leading into the Friday’s game. Matrice McRae is also a possibility to be active Friday night, but notes that because he hasn’t played most of the season, he won’t see a lot of time on the field.

Kickoff between the Scots and the Raiders will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday night from Raider Stadium in Rockingham.