New-look Ridley not a passing fancy in win over Truman
RIDLEY TWP. >> Brock Anderson had an idea that he might get hawked down from behind.
After Anderson had left a Harry S. Truman defender gasping for air and grasping none of Anderson’s green jersey, he put his foot in the ground and quickly hit top speed. Any thoughts of getting tracked down dissipated when the roar of the approving Ridley crowd reached a crescendo, and when he finally crossed the goal line 82 yards later, he was able to come to a realization.
No one was even close to him, the nearest Tiger a solid 25 to 30 yards away from the future Hofstra Pride lacrosse attackman. Pretty good for a fullback, right?
It’s weird to say that, but this isn’t the Ridley of yesteryear…or even last year. The Raiders looked the part in a 41-6 drubbing of Truman to open their 2016 slate at Phil Marion Field and mark the debut of head coach Dave Wood, but it looked so atypically Ridley that it’s going to take a few games to get used to it.
Triple option from under center. Slotbacks, 170-pound fullbacks, and receivers going every which way. Thirty-seven rushes compared to three passes.
Wait, roll that back.
Delaware County’s Cradle of Quarterbacks threw the ball three times, and once you factor in a pair of kneeldowns, ran the ball 35 times. Quarterback Cade Stratton was efficient, converting on a bubble screen to Ociele Miller for a 40-yard touchdown for one of his two completions, but three attempts?
“It’s definitely been a big change,” said Anderson, who was asked to move to fullback from his traditional outside receiver spot. “The atmosphere of everything, we take practice like a game. Everything is so uniform, it’s so…”
“Organized,” Stratton interjected.
“Organized,” Anderson affirmed. “Everything about it is on time. Coach Wood is a great coach. He understands what he’s doing. He has a tremendous staff behind him. Every day, we’re out here and we’re pushing ourselves to our limits. It’s a big change, but it definitely helps us a lot.”
The Green Raiders (1-0) have their share of work to do if they want to get back to the playoffs, especially with the boost to Class 6A. That being said, for one night, they played the bully role to perfection. Ridley built a 35-0 halftime lead on the strength of two touchdowns apiece from Miller and Malik Young to go with Anderson’s jaunt, and the outcome of the game was never in question after the first few possessions.
That doesn’t mean that it won’t take Ridley more time to get accustomed to the Wood Way, but it’s never a bad thing to win your opener by five touchdowns.
“At first, I was very frustrated with (the new offense), but I had to do what was best for the team and buy in. That’s what everyone did this year. This is very different than dropping back and being a pocket passer like I was last year,” said Stratton, a Marquette lacrosse commit. “In this offense, you run, you run, you run, and you hit ‘em with a pass.
It’s something that works. You could see it tonight. This team is built to run the ball. There’s definitely a change from reading the outside ‘backer when I used to run the read last year out of shotgun. This year, it’s more present. I can see it better. When I run option, it’s easier. It’s actually a lot easier than last year because you know exactly where (defenders) are going to be. The offense is a lot more organized and more sound than last year.”
For one night, everything fell into place the way it was supposed to.
