Bryce Verble's first pass didn't quite turn out how the Baylor quarterback had hoped.
Less than a minute into his team's game Friday night against the Red Bank Lions, Verble's first attempt of his junior year went into the hands of a Lions defender, creating a less-than-stellar first impression on the Red Raiders faithful.
However, despite his early miscue, Verble stuck with it and was able to bounce back, completing 8 of 15 passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns in helping lead Baylor to its second win of the season, 48-7.
"I mean, it didn't go too well," Verble said of his first varsity start. "I didn't see the guy catch it at first, but when I saw him running the other way, it was either make a tackle or knock him out of bounds, and move on."
Verble got the start while senior Wil Austin, who led the Raiders to a 35-27 victory last week against Class 5A power Rhea County, was nursing an injury he received against the Eagles.
"Bryce has been a great competitor, and he's competed hard, and he did a good job tonight," Baylor coach Phil Massey said.
"I wanted us to maintain focus. We're happy to get through this game. Now we've just got to focus our attention on our first league game next week. "
Despite having what would be their best starting field position of the night following the early interception, the Lions were unable to convert a fourth-and-goal, resulting in a turnover-on-downs. On its next possession, Baylor marched 96 yards and found the end zone on a 22-yard toss from Verble to tight end Daniel Monroe.
"I feel like I played pretty well," Verble said, "but it was a team effort. We all came out here, did what we needed to do, but we'll improve and come back next week."
Red Bank struggled to respond early to the Baylor defense, finding very little room to run in the first half.
In the second quarter, the Red Raiders scored 27 straight points before Red Bank's Caleb Tate found freshman Calvin Jackson streaking down the sideline for a 28-yard touchdown pass. Substitutes from both teams played much of the second half.
"We're playing with a lot of young guys," Red Bank coach Chad Grabowski said after the game. "But being able to get those guys some experience and keep working and playing against good teams every week is just going to make us that much better at the end of the season."
The Red Raiders finished with 244 yards of offense, compared to 73 for Red Bank. Baylor also forced two interceptions, one of which was returned 30 yards for a TD.
Baylor opens league play with a visit to Ensworth next week. The Lions remain winless but will look to turn the tide as they usher in region foe Howard.
"We knew these first two games would be tough," Grabowski said to his team postgame. "But those games are done and over with. We start our region next week. It's going to be a way different game."
Contact Taylor Ellis at sports@timesfreepress.com