Fitting Finish: Blue Ridge beats North Cross to win VISAA D2 State title

Blue Ridge celebrates winning the VISAA D2 title (photo by Colin Rutherford)

By Logan Riddick / Scrimmageplaycva.com Senior Contributor

Somehow, fittingly, inevitably, it had to come down to this.

Sure, Blue Ridge rolled through the regular season undefeated. But tropical rains forced the cancellation of one particular late-September game. The one opponent who spoiled more than one fall campaign since the Barons last defeated them in 2017. The back-to-back defending champion of VISAA Division 2: North Cross.

After both squads hung 48 points on their semifinal opponents, the defenses showed up to manifest the championship cliche. The offenses scored one touchdown in each half, but thanks to a blocked PAT and a backfield stop on a two-point try, Blue Ridge claimed the 2024 crown with a 14-12 triumph.

“I don’t know that we truly believed in our hearts that we could win last year,” said third-year Blue Ridge coach Clint Alexander, whose prior squad came up short against the Raiders in both the regular season and state final. As Saturday’s title game unfolded, there were ominous echoes of the September 2023 clash at Alumni Field, when the Barons took a one-point lead into halftime and scored first after the break to open an eight-point lead, only for the Raiders to storm back down the stretch. This summer, Alexander and staff focused on building strength and confidence.

“We put a lot of time in the weight room to make sure that we could earn the right to play with these guys, because they are big and physical,” said Alexander. “The boys bought in, put the time in in the offseason, and lifted all season as well.”

The pivotal defensive stop came with 2:07 on the fourth-quarter clock after North Cross quarterback Brock Miles capped a nine-play, 73-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jase Rhodes to pull within two. A post-score penalty on the Barons pushed the ball half the distance closer for the conversion attempt.

“They like to run option down there, so we had something dialed up,” said Alexander. “They did what we thought. Even though it was one and a half [yards], the boys really came through.”

Blue Ridge receives the state championship plaque. Photo by Colin Rutherford

Sophomore Ty Collins forced a quick pitch by Miles to Ja’Ziel Hart. At least three Baron defenders converged on Hart, with junior linebacker Jimmy Keseday wrapping up and taking him to the ground well shy of the goal line.

“We wanted it more than them, to be honest with you,” said junior linebacker Cory Shorts. “This whole week, we practiced that goal line play.”

With North Cross still holding two timeouts, the offense needed to move the chains to seal the victory. With the stakes as high as they could get, Alexander moved senior D’Myo Hunter into the backfield. Hunter had already made his mark in all three phases, first by blocking the Raiders’ first-quarter PAT. His second-quarter interception would have gone as a 69-yard pick-six but for a block in the back during the return. He later got on the board with a 55-yard catch-and-run touchdown on the first play of the fourth.

“He’s the best hidden gem in the state,” said Alexander. “In the [Clarkson North] game, he blocked two kicks and we won 35-33.”

Hunter picked up three yards on the first handoff and triggered the Raiders’ second timeout, during which Alexander opted to be aggressive.

“I said, look, we’ve got to get this [one first down],” said Alexander. “Everybody’s playing the run, let’s take one over the top because if we catch it, it’s over. And we caught it.”

Junior quarterback Luke Wuhrer completed just two passes after halftime, both downfield strikes with huge bearing on the game’s outcome. The 55-yarder to Hunter put the Barons up 14-6. With 1:56 remaining, he launched with pressure in his face and Tristen Fitzpatrick made the catch down the left-hand side for a 31-yard gain.

“We’ve done it a couple times this season, just trying to hit a shot because it’s a little bit unexpected, just trusting our players,” said Wuhrer, who finished 8-of-20 through the air for 173 yards.

Fitzpatrick had a game-high 73 yards on four receptions. He got the Barons on the board early in the second quarter with a 29-yard touchdown on fourth and 13.

“He had a crossing route and I saw him get behind the safely and no one was on him, so I let it fly,” said Wuhrer as Blue Ridge grabbed a 7-6 lead and capped an eight-play, 60-yard drive setup by senior Izayk Dolo’s interception.

The second quarter ended up featuring an array of interceptions and penalties, but no further scoring. At one point, there were picks on three straight plays, two by North Cross sophomore Jesiah Hines. The Raiders reached the Barons’ 28 on a last-second drive, but junior defensive back Jadon Minder made a leaping, one-handed endzone interception to send Blue Ridge into the break up by one. Combined, the teams drew 15 flags in the first half for 161 yards.

“We kept it a little closer than we probably needed to, but we eliminated a lot of the big plays and they (North Cross) live by them,” said Alexander. “If you watch any film on them, they’re dropping 50, 60-yard bombs on everybody, so we said they have to earn it. We knew it was going to be a wrestling match and the boys showed up for a fight. If you’re watching on TV, win or lose, you go, ‘that’s a great football game.’”

The Barons’ confidence was evident as the afternoon progressed. Despite 10 net rushing yards in the first half, Blue Ridge re-committed to the ground game with ten straight runs to start the second, en route to outrushing the Raiders 76-58 after the break. 

“That opening drive of the third quarter, we didn’t score, but it was like taking 50 body shots,” said Alexander. “That’s a great drive because we’ve got to get them tired, and they got tired. It’s a championship fight, we’ve got to take them to late rounds and see how bad they want it.”

North Cross’s only first down in the third quarter came via penalty. Although Blue Ridge came up empty after forcing a turnover on downs at the Raiders’ 27 midway through the period, the offense set the stage for a Hunter strike when it started a series at its own 30 with 1:31 left. Three runs picked up 15 yards before the teams switched ends to start the fourth.

“We tried to hit it earlier in the game and it didn’t work out, but we saw it was there,” said Wuhrer. “We went to a different formation and it was a green light.”

Wuhrer aired it out down the middle for Hunter, who made the catch already a step beyond his diving defender and cruised the last 20 yards for six.

“They came through on some big-shot plays when we had to, but that doesn’t work if you’re not running the ball,” Alexander said.

Trailing by eight, the Raiders were poised to answer right back as they drove to the redzone. Tristan Lange corralled a deflected swing pass from Miles and dove inside the pylon, but a flag for holding nullified the score.Two plays later, sophomore linebacker Linkin Stevens sacked Miles for a turnover on downs with 8:16 remaining. It was the Barons’ fourth sack, following three by Shorts in the first quarter.

“I got the help from everybody else on that defense, they freed me up and, all of us together, we just went out there and tore them up,” said Shorts. “It’s a blessing, honestly, just being a part of this group.”

North Cross would have just one more series on offense, which did yield their second touchdown of the afternoon. But Blue Ridge made the stand on the two-point conversion and moved the chains on offense to run out the clock.

The Raiders opened the contest with an 11-play, 80-yard drive. The Barons assisted with two defensive penalties for first downs before Hart raced in from 13 yards for a 6-0 lead. He finished with 12 rushes for 63 yards. Lange led North Cross (9-2) with a game-high 83 yards on 13 carries. Miles completed 13-of-25 passes for 114 yards.

After that initial drive, Blue Ridge’s defense steadied. In addition to Shorts’s sacks, senior linebacker Demetrius Allen was a frequent backfield disrupter with multiple tackles-for-loss. He was also in on the critical two-point conversion stop.

Meanwhile, the offense was slow to get in gear. Late in the first quarter, with a gust of north wind aiding, senior Eliott Nahon uncorked a 67-yard punt to tilt field position in Blue Ridge’s favor. The ensuing Raider possession ended with the game’s first turnover, as Dolo’s pick on the first play of the second teed up the Barons’ first scoring drive.

Nahon led Blue Ridge (11-0) with 15 rushes for 50 yards. Crucially, he was also 2-for-2 on PATs. Senior Darius Stafford, who was banged-up in the semifinal win over Atlantic Shores, gutted out 22 yards on eight first-half carries. Hunter added 19 yards on four runs down the stretch, and tallied 82 yards on two catches.

“What I’ll remember is they bought into the values that we talked about constantly, which is being unselfish, being a leader, being disciplined,” said Alexander. “It shows up in the dorm, in the classroom. We haven’t had one kid who was academically-ineligible all year. They all bought in and I couldn't be prouder of what they’ve done for our school.”