Even though George Wythe sports a rather youthful squad for this year’s fall campaign, learning the proverbial two-minute offense took a unique turn during Friday’s five-team jamboree at Virginia High’s Gene Malcolm Stadium.

Arriving down Euclid Avenue much later than planned, the Maroons swiftly got off the bus, stretched for a minute or two and then immediately trotted onto to the playing surface – ultimately getting a hard-earned 7-0 victory over the host Bearcats behind a late 6-yard TD run from quarterback Alex Willis.

"That’s not bad for running off the bus, stretching for about two minutes and then coming out here to play," admitted George Wythe coach H.S. Ingo, who received a respectable 116 yards (7-of-12 passing) through the air from the aforementioned Willis.

Ironically, the Willis score came with exactly two minutes remaining on the respective clock. Teammate Tanner Price’s diving interception just 33 seconds later sealed it for the Maroons, who battled formidable Region D foe Gate City well before falling 21-14 in the fourth contest.

Virginia High did move the ball in chunks, posting six plays of 11 or more yards – including three plays from the feet of quarterback Charlie Bradley, who racked up 80 all-purpose yards before leaving with an ankle injury during the second quarter.

"We’ve got a lot of people injured right now, so we’re just trying to get healthy," noted VHS coach Chris Thurman. "As soon as we get healthy, I think we’ll look a lot better."

The Blue Devils, on the other hand, demonstrated the most consistency and balance on the offensive side – going 2-0 in the jamboree by also besting speedy Graham 30-14.

The reigning Clinch Mountain District champs racked up a combined 22 first downs and over 400 yards of total offense against the Maroons and G-Men, respectively, with senior Dusty Clark throwing in a 64-yard scoring scamper on the squad’s second play from scrimmage.

"We’ve got some kids who can do a lot of things for us," said Gate City coach Bill Houseright, who got solid rushing efforts from Clark (102 yards) and Joseph Vaughn (66 yards) against Graham. "We’ve just got to take care of the football better."

The G-Men – who rallied to defeat Powell Valley 20-13 in the third game after the two teams played an extra quarter to give their future varsity stars valuable minutes – took advantage of an interception, along with a subsequent 5-yard punt, to put all of their points on the board against the Blue Devils.

Crafty junior running backs Lamont Edwards and Darius Jackson combined for 31 carries and a whopping 203 yards for physical Graham, which moved the ball at will in posting a 1-1 mark.

"They’ve worked extremely hard in the weight room," said Graham coach Doug Marrs of his squad. "It really makes a big difference."

The Vikings, meanwhile, put together two drives of over 60 yards against the G-Men, with senior workhorse David Bledsoe – who rushed for a team-high 46 yards on 10 carries – helping a determined offensive line cross the goal line twice.

"We decided to go to a double-wing type of offense, and the guy we wanted to be the fullback has gone in there and been really good for us," said Powell Valley coach Phil Robbins of Bledsoe’s early rushing efforts.