The 2020 season and Jacob Campsey Era officially began Friday as the Tigers captured a dominating win against the La Grange Leopards, 40-14. However, the victory did not come with its usual fanfare as the Tigers watched three-year starter Jace Robinson go down with a broken right leg.
“Obviously the win is bittersweet,” RHS Head Coach Jacob Campsey said. “My heart is without a doubt with the Robinson family right now.”
La Grange came out of the gates quickly. The Leopards drove down the field and scored a touchdown on a 7-yard run on their first possession. Rockdale responded with a touchdown of their own as Robinson hit Kesean Raven on a six-yard slant route. Both teams missed the extra point to make the score 6-6. A few minutes later, Enrique Rivera forced La Grange quarterback Caden Cooper to fumble, while Gavin Aguilar recovered. This led to 19-yard touchdown run by Raven, making the score 13-6 at the end of the first quarter.
Due to lightning in the area, the game was delayed twice in the second quarter. Spectators were told to leave the bleachers and return to their vehicles. The football players returned to locker rooms and the cheerleaders and band returned to their buses. The delay lasted for 90 minutes.
With the game returning to play, RHS running back Cam’ron Valdez ripped the La Grange defense with a 55-yard touchdown run, making the score 20-6. La Grange would respond with an 8-yard touchdown run by Ryan Imhoff.
Things took an ugly turn of events in the second quarter. With a few seconds left until halftime, Robinson scrambled for a 47-yard run as the play broke down but injured his right leg while being tackled. EMT’s had to be called on the field, as he was unable to get up. You could hear a pin drop in the stadium as the medical staff attended to him. As the EMTs carried him away on a stretcher, Robinson put two thumbs in the air signifying he was going to be okay. This caused the crowd to cheer. Robinson was diagnosed with a broken leg and taken to the local hospital. Junior Kobe Mitchell stepped in at quarterback for Robinson.
Because of the previous weather delay, halftime was only five minutes. In the second half, the Tigers rallied for Robinson and dominated the game. Valdez found the end zone on a 9-yard touchdown in the third quarter and a 21-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. The last score came from Mitchell on a 41-yard scramble to seal the victory for the Tigers.
The defense played lights out in the second half, shutting out La Grange. The Tigers also forced three turnovers in the second half with Anthony Dansby and Rivera each recovering a fumble and Davioun Scott snagging an interception.
Valdez showed why he’s one of the top running backs in the country totaling 132 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the night. Raven also had a great showing recording 43 rushing yards, 46 yards receiving and two total touchdowns. Mitchell played well in relief of Robinson going 3 of 7 for 46 yards passing, 67 rushing yards and a touchdown.
For the defense, linebacker Drayton Castaneda led the Tigers with 12 tackles. Linebacker Chase Mayfield also had a monster game with 11 tackles, four tackles for loss, and one sack.
Campsey praised his team for playing hard through adversity.
“I was extremely pleased about how we handled the tough moments,” Campsey said. “Things could have gone south, but we battled back and continued to show heart and fight.”
The Tigers will look to carry the momentum from their win as they prepare to face the Taylor Ducks on Friday at home. The live stream link will be placed on the RHS Facebook page. Capacity for the stadium will be 800 on the home side and 375 for the vistor side.
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