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There’s one matchup on Central High Coach Will Thomas’ mind this week. Due to rescheduling as a result of Hurricane Helene, Central’s game against undefeated Buckingham was moved to Tuesday, Oct. 22. Leading up to the game, however, Thomas said he hoped for his team to be at full tilt for the James River District showdown, but that’s not going to happen. 

“We unfortunately couldn’t do that because we got a couple kids hurt, but that’s life and football.  One of them was a concussion and the other was a nagging knee injury.  Even if we played on Friday, they probably wouldn’t be available,” said Thomas about the matchup against a 6-0 Knights team that has given up just 34 points on the season.  

“We’ve got one day to get ready and they had a bye last week, so they’ve got eight days to get ready, plus it’s over there and it’s always a tough place to play,” Thomas said. “If we can beat Buckingham, it would be huge.  I don’t think we’re going to move anywhere drastically in the power points because Poquoson and Bruton are so far ahead.  We prepped for them that other week and thought we had a good week of practice.  We just have to gear up and see if we can get them going.”

The game will be at Buckingham High, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.

Central High looks back

But as the Chargers prepare for Tuesday’s game, Thomas also looked back over last Friday. It may not have started off the way he wanted, but Central High took control and didn’t let up against Nottoway on Friday, picking up the 42-14 win. That win improved Central’s record to 5-2 overall on the season. It also marked the third consecutive win in the series after dropping three in a row to them from 2019-21.

“Any time you beat them it’s always a big win.  It didn’t start off good with them recovering that pooch kick, which we figured they’d try something to get the big boy (Anton Carter) the ball.  They moved the ball in the first quarter better than I’ve seen them in any game on film,” Thomas said, pointing out his squad kept the Cougars out of the end zone in the second half.

“Our defense is really playing well and has been all season with the exception of probably the Randolph-Henry game and our first one against Altavista,” Thomas added. “I think the best play they had in the second half was a pass interference call and believe that was the biggest gain they had.  That might’ve been the only first down they had after half-time.”

A dominant run game

As a team, the Chargers ran the ball 47 times for 348 yards.  Pacing Lunenburg’s attack was sophomore halfback Jalin Freeman, who ran the ball 18 times for 185 yards and two touchdowns to go with a 38-yard scoring reception.  

Senior tailback Amarion Moore added 95 yards and a score on 11 attempts.  Another senior, Antonio Jones, was the top tackler for the defense with eight total stops, four behind the line of scrimmage, while also rushing for 68 yards on offense.  

“Our tackling seems to be better and we’re not letting teams get in space.  If you can tackle in space, that’s good.  But if you can’t, you have to keep people from getting in space,” Thomas pointed out.

Junior DB Reece Hart had a scoop and score, returning a fumble he recovered five yards for a touchdown.  Sophomore Chad Mattox, who doubles as a starter at both quarterback and defensive back, added a 25-yard interception return to go with the touchdown he threw.