Ravenscroft football
FILE PHOTO
Junior running back Connor Gonet (44) averaged nearly 10 yards a carry in the Ravens' 48-14 victory over North Raleigh Christian Academy Friday night.
Ravens' running game gashes North Raleigh Christian
After rushing for 144 yards and two scores on just 15 carries Friday night against North Raleigh Christian Academy, Ravenscroft junior tailback Conner Gonet summed up what he thought about his offensive line in five short and simple words.
“I love my offensive line," he said.
It was the blocking by the big five upfront that lead to the Ravens' dominating performance on the ground that accounted for a total of 345 yards, leading Ravenscroft to a 48-14 victory over the Knights.
With the victory, the Ravens improved to 6-3 this season.
Ravenscroft head coach Ned Gonet knew heading into Friday’s game that his rushing attack would be crucial if his team wanted the victory.
“It’s something we wanted to establish in the last two or three weeks,” Gonet explained. “It was something that was pretty productive for us and we wanted to get back to it. We wanted to mix it up with some different running backs early in the game and we were able to do that. We had short fields and executed outside stuff. Our running was very efficient.”
Along with Gonet’s yardage and scores on the ground, senior Hartland Jones added 117 yards on six carries — with four of those coming from the popular “Wildcat” formation — and a score. Along with sophomore quarterback Quinn Billerman and junior ball carrier Will Massey’s scores on the ground, Ravenscroft was able to find the end zone five times on rushing plays.
It wasn’t all about rushing for the Ravenscroft offense, however, as Billerman added two touchdowns in the air and accounted for 165 yards of passing yards
In all, the Ravens gained 510 yards of total offense and seven total trips to the end zone.
And no score in the air was bigger than a trick play that occurred early in the first quarter.
As Billerman took the snap he set up what looked like an outside run for Gonet. But as Gonet ran to the right, wideout Temple Sloan ran to the left to set up the reverse.
If a reverse wasn’t a confusing enough, Sloan then pitched the ball back to Billerman who found a wide open Shane Bird 47 yards down the field. The reverse flea flicker gave the Ravens a 14-0 lead just 8:07 into the first quarter.
Despite the trickery, Coach Gonet said the reverse flea flicker was a normal play the Ravens have in their offense.
“We have it in our book, we just haven’t had the chance to run it the last few weeks,” the long-time Ravens coach explained. “We work on (trick plays) just like everything else and we expect to run them just like a base play. It helped keep North Raleigh Christian off balance.”
If the reverse flea flicker for a score kept the Knights off balance, the Ravens’ special teams might have knocked them over.
Ravenscroft was able to apply pressure on every punt and, thanks to returns by Bird, were able to get fantastic field position all night. Many of Bird’s returns resulted in possessions starting at midfield or in one case, the Knights' 26 yard line.
“Blocking is a big part of all plays,” explained Bird, who also recorded an interception return. “In the return game they helped me get down field where I can get into an open field and make some juke moves.”
In a game with more than 500 yards of offense and seven touchdowns, it’s easy to forget about the Ravens' stellar defensive effort.
Despite the offense being the story of the game, the Ravenscroft defense was solid all night, constantly applying pressure and forcing several hurried throws.
While watching on the sideline, Conner Gonet was impressed with what he saw from his team’s defensive unit.
“They got us a lot of three and outs and puts lots of pressure on the quarterback,” the junior said. “That makes the offense that much easier to run.”
In a game that can be called nothing but successful, there were a few missteps for the Ravens.
Along with an interception thrown by Billerman and lost fumble by Gonet, Ravenscroft had three touchdowns called back due to penalties.
Overall, despite the mistakes, coach Gonet was more than pleased with the Ravens' victory on homecoming.
“We did what we needed to do on a big night,” Gonet said. “It was homecoming and we had a big crowd for it. We played well in the first half until the second quarter where we got a little sloppy. North Raleigh Christian fought hard and came back, but we were able to put the ball in the end zone.”
Ravenscroft’s next game is set for Friday, Oct. 23, hosting Charlotte Christian. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.
