T.C. Williams Runs Through Wakefield 51-7

With junior quarterback Alec Grosser and senior running back ZaQuan Summers in the lineup, Titans football coach Dennis Randolph expects the T.C. Williams offense to be able to score some points this season.

But when the Titans tallied three times on special teams—including two kickoff returns for scores—in the Titans' 51-7 road victory over Wakefield Thursday night, Randolph was pleasantly surprised.

“They were awesome,” Randolph said. “We knew they couldn’t kick it very deep, and we created a mismatch of speed.”

That mismatch was exploited on the opening kickoff when Mohamed Sesay fielded a short kick and returned it 70 yards for an the early 7-0 lead.

“Last year, we didn’t score a TD on special teams,” Randolph said. “Rodney Johnson, our special teams coordinator, and Avery Williams do a great job getting those kids ready. They have worked this hard all summer and it paid off tonight.”

The Titans found the end zone again in the first quarter when Grosser capped an 80-yard drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to senior Derek Kramer.

A strong defensive series by the Titans was derailed when a holding penalty on fourth down took away a three-and-out. Wakefield senior quarterback Drew Powell took advantage of the mistake and marched his team into T.C. Williams territory for the first time. The drive stalled around midfield and the Warriors turned the ball over to the Titans on downs.

It only took the Titans one play to increase their lead to 21-0 in the second quarter. Landon Moss took a screen pass from Grosser on the left side, broke a tackle and streaked down the sideline for a 58–yard score.

“Landon took that ball and they actually hit him,” Randolph said. “He broke that tackle and he has that long stride and he was gone.”

After an interception by senior Jamal Williams, the Titans looked poised to add to their lead. However, penalties erased three big plays on offense, including a 40-yard touchdown run by Summers.

Williams said the Titans can’t afford to waste opportunities with sloppy play as the season continues.

“We have to work on it in practice,” Williams said. “It’s discipline. That’s all it is.”

Randolph agreed. 

“We gotta correct [our mistakes]. A lot of it was holding, some were late hits that I’m a little concerned with,” he said. “We have to address that. It has to stop. It is a pattern we have to break.”

The Warriors capitalized on the Titans’ mistakes and Powell single-handedly brought his team down the field on a six-play drive capped off with a 6-yard touchdown run to make the score 21-7.

“Drew is a good quarterback. We knew we couldn’t let him sit back there and throw,” Randolph said. “When you try and scheme and put pressure on him defensively, sometimes that opens the gaps and he found the right ones and did an excellent job of running the ball.”

For a team that had less than 30 players in uniform, the momentum was short-lived. The score turned out to be Wakefield's only points on the night.    

T.C. Williams junior Dealo Robertson fielded another short kickoff on the right side and, with one cut, broke free down the left sideline for a 68-yard return to give the Titans a commanding 28-7 halftime lead.

Any remaining hope for Wakefield was quickly dashed in the second half when the Titans' special teams struck for the third time.

Senior A.J. Jones blocked a Wakefield punt and Williams fell on the ball in the end zone for a touchdown and a 35-7 advantage.

“It’s momentum. We had three touchdowns on special teams and they only scored 7,” Grosser said. “We would have won if we didn’t score on offense at all.”

Grosser, who added a third touchdown pass before being pulled midway through the third quarter, finished 5-of-6 with 138 passing yards. 

“We were just running our plays,” Grosser said. “Guys were breaking tackles and getting downfield. We had good execution.“

Robertson finished off the scoring with a 10-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, his second touchdown of the game, to make it 51-7.

With the special teams touchdowns and short scoring drives, Randolph wished his offense had gotten some more work before next week’s game at Westfield.

“I really wish we ran some more offense,” Randolph said. “Alec needs more work, and we didn’t get a chance to throw the ball a lot tonight. We didn’t even get a chance to break a sweat on offense.“

The win was the first season-opening victory for the Titans since 2007 when they defeated Mount Vernon 14-0.