CLEVELAND, Tenn. – Cleveland High School’s approach toward its opening football game was different than it was last year, and so were the results.
Chad Voytik threw five first-half touchdown passes and the Blue Raiders scored 47 points in the first 24 minutes, on their way to a 47-6 victory over McMinn Central at Raider Field. The Chargers won 20-6 in last year’s meeting.
“I’m real happy with how we approached the week,” Cleveland coach E.K. Slaughter said. “We’ve been hammering it to the guys about preparation and how they needed to act on the field. We’ve been waiting a long time to get under these Friday night lights, but I was happy with how we performed tonight.”
Voytik was on point Friday night, completing all 10 of his passes for 248 yards and the five scores. He hooked up with B.J. Davis for scores of 44, 27 and 3 yards, Jeremy Simpson for 28 yards and Lebron Sadler for 63 yards right before the end of the first half.
“The protection was awesome tonight,” Voytik said. “The line stepped up and we had a good week, but we knew we were going to do this because we had a good week of preparation.”
Davis was the team’s leading receiver with four catches for 80 yards. Simpson had three catches for 59. Jamarcus Mobley was the team’s leading rusher, with 64 yards on eight carries. None of the offensive starters played in the second half.
McMinn Central (0-2) was led by Charles Turner, who had 68 yards rushing – most of which came in the second half with the 35-point mercy rule in effect. Chargers quarterback Wyatt Barnett had 28 yards rushing and the team’s only score, on a 3-yard run in the third quarter.
The Raiders turn their attention to crosstown rival Bradley Central for a big district game next Friday. Last year, the Bears ended a 21-year, 13-game losing streak in the series by defeating Cleveland 27-26 in overtime.
“Next week will be a very important week,” Slaughter said. “We’re going to have to try to tone down the game some and not try to win on every play. Bradley is a good team.”
Added Voytik: “We’re looking to have a turnaround season this year. We know next week there is going to be more people, more pressure and more noise, but we’re just going to execute what we practice and be ready to play.”