The Virginia Crusaders have started their 2017 campaign in the same fashion that marks their others. Win, and then win again and again.
The Crusaders started slow, but with a 28-8 win over the Portsmouth Mustangs, followed by a 21-0 spanking of the Washington Warriors, the team has jumped to a 5-0 start. Much to their dismay, the Palmetto Hurricanes (5-1) and River City Outlaws (4-1) have almost held their pace in the South Division of the Mason-Dixon League.
They should catch a break this week as they take on a youthful Carolina Stallions (2-3) team, while Palmetto and River City square off against each other.
Head coach Larry Stith plans to use the opportunity against Carolina to look at some of his younger players.
“We usually carry about 60 players, and dress 50 each week,” said Stith, who was inducted into the Semipro Football Hall of Fame in June. “We’re going to rotate players, as everybody has to battle for their job every week.”
The offense has been sluggish at times, averaging just under 20 points per game. However, against Portsmouth, they burst for a 28-point first half with Raquan Artis and Mike Codie scoring on runs of five and ten yards, while Marcus Hofler scored on an ten-yard pass from Phonta Williams. Defensively, TyShawn Washington broke into the scoring ranks with his 50-yard fumble recovery for a score.
Still, Stith, always looking for improvement, was less than pleased.
“We were lagging after a week off, and left a lot of points on the field.” As far as the defense went, he added that “we shouldn’t have given up that touchdown.”
Still, the solid defense of the Crusaders has been the team’s calling card, with the unit allowing only 6.8 points a game so far.
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