CBA throttles North Lenoir
By David Hall
Published in Sports on October 11, 2009 2:00 AM
LA GRANGE -- If North Lenoir is in rebuilding mode, consider the youthful Hawks somewhat deconstructed.
Marcus Cobb rushed for 136 yards and three touchdowns and Pikeville Aycock put up 457 yards of total offense in a 62-0 dismantling of North Lenoir on Friday in the Eastern Carolina 3A Conference opener for both teams.
The super-sized Golden Falcons (7-0, 1-0 EC3A) dominated the line of scrimmage from the beginning, putting up 24 points in the first quarter and 46 in the opening half.
"They jumped on us, and that's the trademark of a good team," said first-year Hawks coach Calvin Sutton. "Like I just told my team, they're 7-0 right now for a reason."
Tyheim Pitt added 132 rushing yards and three scores on just five carries, including a 64-yard run to open the scoring less than two minutes into the game.
North Lenoir (2-5, 0-1) managed just 107 yards of total offense, 82 of which came through the air after the Golden Falcons had assumed a commanding lead.
The game began with four penalties, on alternating offsides and illegal procedure infractions, before either team ran an offensive play. And then it got uglier.
The teams combined for 28 penalties for 250 yards, conspiring with halftime homecoming festivities and the visitors' scoring barrage to stretch the game to nearly three hours.
Aycock coach Randy Pinkowski said he was "not pleased" with how his team played despite the lopsided score, citing penalties and an overall lack of execution.
"We're physically pretty big up front and can move some people around, and when you can do that, that's what happens," he said, pointing to the scoreboard. "But I'd like to see us execute better."
The Golden Falcons, aided by four North Lenoir turnovers and advantageous field position for most of the unseasonably muggy night, scored on each of their first seven possessions. The Hawks fumbled a whopping eight times, losing three.
Of Aycock's nine touchdown drives, seven took fewer than six plays and only two were longer than 60 yards.
In a futile comeback effort, North Lenoir quarterback Romero Arnold completed 10-of-16 passes for 82 yards and an interception. The Hawks, who were penalized 15 times, advanced the ball past midfield just once.
"There's going to be games like this," Sutton said. "We're going to have our bumps and bruises. All we've got to do is make sure we get the ones we're supposed to win."
Pinkowski said a large, versatile defensive front combined with an offense balanced between the pass and the run affords him options he hasn't had in his previous 11 seasons at the school.
"This is kind of an unusual year, to be able to do pretty much what we want to do," he said. "When you analyze what people are doing to stop you, then you can come back with something else to counter that. And hey, that's thanks to the man upstairs. He blessed me with some athletes that we can do those things with."