By Zach Smith for High Country Sports. BOONE, N.C. – Friday night lights returned to Watauga High this week as the Pioneers continued to roll through their opponents, this time defeating South Caldwell, 49-7.
Entering the contest, Watauga had won three of their previous five games by at least three scores, earning a No. 11 ranking out of all 4A schools in the state via MaxPreps. South Caldwell, on the other hand, took the trip to Boone having lost their last two matchups.
Evan Burroughs had a career game Friday, placing himself all over the stat sheet. The sophomore two-way star recorded an interception, 84-yard touchdown rush and an onside kick recovery, although according to head coach Ryan Habich, the recovery was unintentional.
“We don’t kick the ball that deep because we’re not getting the ball in the endzone,” Habich said. “So we place where we kick the ball.”
Watauga, this year, is known for short kickoffs to prevent long returns. In cases like this week, those kicks can be recovered by the Pioneers, who controlled two kickoffs just before halftime.
The Watauga offensive line dominated the Spartan defense, opening holes that led to two long touchdowns in the first half. Sophomore Everett Gryder was responsible for one of those, a 91-yard foot race down the right sideline. Gryder carried for nearly 170 yards in the game, pushing his season total to over 700.
The rest of the Pioneer offense continued to perform as well, earning a running game clock for the third time this season. Because of their 42-point lead, Watauga was able to give more players time on the field, something Habich is hoping will give his key backup players enough playing time to be prepared in case their numbers are ever called.
“We got a lot of people in the game to see what they can do,” Habich said. “We’re still in the process of creating some depth within our football team, so we got a lot of guys in so they can show what they can do on film.”
Habich also spoke on what Burroughs means to the team going forward and how to keep him on track in his playing career.
“Evan [Burroughs] is a very dynamic player, he’s still a young player,” Habich said. “So, the challenge with Evan is making sure he’s going in the right direction mentally. He could be a very good player for us and we’re going to need Evan to be a very good player for us as we keep going through conference and playing better competition.”
Watauga’s offense kept their impressive run going, improving their scoring average to 42.3 points per game on the 2023 campaign. The defense continued to show out as well, holding their opponent to 14 or less points for the fourth time this season.
The Pioneers are home again next week for a matchup against Alexander Central. Kickoff will be at 7:30p.m. and can be streamed on the NFHS Network.
