Gallery by Tina Laney
CLEAR FORK – West Virginia University and Pitt will renew the “Backyard Brawl” next Thursday in Pittsburgh.
Friday night at the Burial Ground it was the “Backyard Brawl” Wyoming County style, when Westside welcomed Wyoming East for possession of the famed Golden Shovel.
As if the rivalry needed any more drama and intensity, there were plenty of storylines to go around in the 20th edition of one of West Virginia’s best high school rivalries, no matter the sport.
Former Renegade stalwart Justin Cogar was coaching his first game for his alma mater, while the Warriors were looking to keep the Golden Shovel in their trophy case on the eastern side of the county.
Gatorade shower for Justin Cogar…. his first win as head coach at Westside and it comes against Wyoming East #wvprepfb pic.twitter.com/wZayrm0CkD
— Rusty Udy (@rusman1981) August 27, 2022
Turns out, no one really saw the biggest storyline of the game coming at all.
Starting for the first time at quarterback, sophomore Kaiden Vance established himself as the difference maker Friday to bring the Golden Shovel back to Westside.
Vance ran for two touchdowns, threw for third and made two key interceptions to lead the Renegades to a 28-20 win over Wyoming East.
“It’s such a good feeling to get that first (win) out of the way,” Cogar said. “It’s such an emotional game as you can see with the packed house. It was a hard-fought game and both team played really hard. We just outlasted them right there in the fourth quarter. That is when it matters.”
The game was a battle of attrition with numerous early season penalties, mistakes, cramps and injuries. It was also a tale of two halves.
The first half had plenty of fireworks and scoring, while the second half belonged to the defenses.
Vance gave Westside the early lead before his counterpart, Jackson Danielson, put Wyoming East back in front with a 10-yard run.
Trailing 8-7 after the first quarter, Hunter Cline raced past the defenders for a 51-yard score to put the Renegades back on top 15-8 after Vance converted the conversion run.
Jacob Cooper then returned the kickoff back 85 yards for an apparent score for the Warriors, but it was nullified by a block in the back.
While Wyoming East did eventually score on the ensuing drive, penalties derailed the Warriors all night at key times.
“It was a bad night for penalties both ways. We would be driving the ball, then it would be penalty after penalty,” Wyoming East head coach Jimmy Adkins said. “We had some big time plays that came back which could have set the tone for the game. We just couldn’t overcome it.”
Two plays after the kickoff return was negated, Danielson hit Bryon Huff on a curl route and Huff raced to the end zone for a 31-yard score. The conversion run failed keeping Westside in front, 15-14.
The Warriors would retake the lead later in the quarter after forcing a punt. Wyoming East then marched 54 yards for a score when Danielson found Kaiden Weaver behind the defense on fourth-and-10 for a 28-yard touchdown pass with 1:40 left in the half.
Just when it appeared the Warriors had made the play to steal the momentum going into halftime, Vance came up with an even bigger throw just seconds later.
Having no thoughts of taking a knee, Vance launched a strike to Ashton Reed for a 55-yard touchdown to give Westside a 22-20 lead that it never would relinquish.
“Kaiden has such a great football IQ and he going to be such a good player. I was really proud of him tonight,” Cogar said. “He (threw) the two interceptions, but this is his first game as a starter. You will have that. He made up for it with two picks on defense. That is the thing about him, he doesn’t get down on himself. He stands right back up for the next play.”
Westside set the defensive tone for the second half on the first series when Vance came up big again.
With the Warriors on the march for the go-ahead score, Vance made an athletic play for an interception in the end zone to again flip the momentum back to the Renegades.
The Renegades did not yield a score in the second half to secure the win.
“That’s a huge testament to our defensive staff. Darren Thomas does a great job with those guys. Our whole staff works super hard,” Cogar said. “We have been down here every night since Aug. 1 working until midnight. We had two rough scrimmages and we really looked awful. We worked hard this week on getting some things right. In the second half we really got things in check a little bit.”
Cogar also went a bit old-school putting the game on Vance’s back, bringing back flashes of when the first-year coach was toting the ball for the Renegades.
“A lot of people don’t think of Kaiden as a running threat, but I am a big quarterback run guy,” Cogar said. “I told him for us to win this game, he had to do it. He got tough and had some big runs for us.”
Vance added the final score of the game with a four-yard run less than a minute into the final period. He then sealed the game with an interception on the final possession for the Warriors.
“This feels really good. I knew in the second half I might have to make some crucial plays. I had faith in all of us, including myself,” Vance said. “I am just glad we could fight through it.”
Asked how it felt to lift the Golden Shovel high above his head and a huge smile came across his face.
“It felt wonderful. It was the first time I have ever had it,” Vance said.
Now a new challenge faces Cogar. Can his team put this win behind them and come out ready to play Mingo Central next Friday at the Burial Ground?
“That is the challenge. You can’t let this be your Super Bowl or your championship,” Cogar said. “It’s week one and we will celebrate tonight, but tomorrow we have to get ready for Mingo Central. We have nine more games.”
Wyoming East will look to bounce back next Friday when it plays Wahama at Laidley Field in Charleston.
WE: 8 12 0 0 – 20
W: 7 15 0 6 – 28
First quarter
W: Kaiden Vance 11 run (Owen Hamon kick)
WE: Jackson Danielson 10 run (Danielson run)
Second quarter
W: Hunter Cline 51 run (Vance run)
WE: Bryson Huff 31 pass from Danielson (run failed)
WE: Kaiden Weaver 28 pass from Danielson (run failed)
W: Ashton Reed 55 pass from Vance (Hamon kick)
Fourth quarter
W: Vance 4 run (kick blocked)
Team stats
Rushing: (WE): Danielson 15-108, Nathan Parsons 4-27, Damion Brown 108, Braxton Morgan 1 (-6), Devan Walls 1-5, Weaver 1-4; (W) Parker Lambert 10-68, Vance 12-147, Hunter Cline 14-77.
Passing: (WE) Danielson 14-26-147-2-2; (W) 4-10-106-2-1
Receiving: (WE) Cooper 1-9, Cole Laxton 3-30, Huff 4-49-1, Parson 1 (-2); (W) Reed 3-81, Ivan Clay 1-25
