Bradley Central strong early, late in win over Blue Raiders

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Scores and Photos of Friday Night High School Football - Sept. 11

CLEVELAND, Tenn. - Bradley Central football coach Damon Floyd's first win of the 2015 season came at an opportune time.

Led by quarterback Cole Copeland, the Bears overcame a slow start following a lengthy rain delay to defeat rival Cleveland 34-20 Friday night at Bear Stadium. The Bears improved to 3-1, while the Blue Raiders fell to 1-3.

Copeland, a 6-foot-3, 185-pound junior, threw for 159 yards and three scores while rushing for 129 yards on 26 carries and two more scores.

"Our emotions were so high in the first quarter. We came out jacked, but once the storm went by, we came out slow and dead, with no emotion," Copeland said. "The break drained us, but we got it together and came out on top."

Floyd missed the first two games of the regular season due to suspension. After a narrow loss to Science Hill last week, he was still looking for his first win of the year.

The Bears looked as though they were going to run away from the Raiders, taking a 14-0 lead nine minutes in after a touchdown pass from Copeland to Tyler Carpenter and a run by the quarterback on the next possession.

"We had 14 real quick, then we came out after the break and couldn't get a yard," Floyd said. "It's a big, win, though - it's Cleveland. I don't care if it's my first win of the year or my 10th, I'm happy for our team. We've played three rivals in four weeks, and I was proud of how we handled ourselves and overcame adversity (after) we came out sluggish."

The delay lasted about an hour, and it was the Raiders who came out of the break with more energy, cutting the lead to 14-13. Bradley then responded with scores on its next three drives.

Copeland had eight carries for 56 yards on a 69-yard drive, finding Jeffrey Brewer for a 4-yard score. He then scored from 3 yards out on the second possession before connecting with Carpenter for a 15-yard score.

Cleveland tacked on a score on a sneak by Hill - who finished with 164 passing yards - with 11.3 seconds to play.

"The reality of it is that we're babies," Cleveland coach Scott Cummings said. "We're playing freshmen, sophomores and a few seniors, but I think we grew tonight. We've been struggling for an offensive identity, and I think we found something about ourselves."

Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.

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