Coach Mike Propst of Reynolds cracked his players up at halftime, and the Demons' stars spent the whole fourth quarter on the sideline digesting what, for all purposes, was a postseason appetizer.
Indeed, Reynolds 38-0 win over Asheville Roberson was a laugher, but it propelled the speedy Demons forward in the Class 4-A playoffs.
After that breather of a first-round win, Reynolds can now wait with bated breath to determine who it will play next week -- the winner of tonight's first round game between Western Guilford and Mount Tabor, the Demons' biggest rival.
The No. 1-seeded Demons (12-0) made sure No. 16 Roberson wouldn't develop any early confidence, scoring on four of five first-half possessions. Craven Knotts, the Demons' senior quarterback, had all kinds of time to complete 18 of 21 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns, and he also ran for two more scores.
On the only possession the Demons didn't capitalize on in the first half, sure- handed Jake Gainey dropped a pass while open in the end zone, and Knotts had a 44-yard touchdown run called back for a false start.
"We told Jake that was his one drop for the year," Propst said. "No more the rest of the way."
Gainey, a junior receiver and the Demons' big-play artist, wound up getting in on the act with a 62-yard touchdown catch, his 18th score of the season.
"The most important thing is having that home game for the first game because everything after that is wide open," Propst said.
"It was a good, solid football win. It was a bad week of practice.
"Worst week of practice we have had weather-wise. I was all tight because everything wasn't for sure, so I was glad we came out businesslike."
On the soggy turf at Deaton-Thompson Stadium, Knotts scored the first two touchdowns on two 1-yard runs, Gainey scored on the long pass, and Damien Booe scored on a 3-yard run for a 28-0 lead at halftime.
In the second half, Knotts hit De'Vyne Julius on a 20-yard touchdown pass and the Demons added a safety.
Roberson, which defeated one 4-A team this season, didn't have the speed or any semblance of a passing game to keep up.
The Rams finished with 82 total yards.
Propst wasn't sure the game would be played.
He lives close to the stadium, and said his swimming pool had eight to nine inches of rain this week.
"I knew the field would be a mess, and we had to adjust to that," Propst said. "They did too. There is a big speed difference between our team and their team. The game is just played faster down here (than in the mountains)."
The laughter will die down soon enough. The Demons expect to see Mount Tabor -- a team they beat 28-21 last month -- in what would be an enormous rematch next Friday.
mlinker@wsjournal.com.
727-7324
Roberson 0 0 0 0 -- 0
Reynolds 7 21 10 0 -- 38
R -- Knotts 1 run (Teasdall kick)
R -- Knotts 1 run (Teasdall kick)
R -- Gainey 62 pass from Knotts (Teasdall kick)
R -- Booe 3 run (Teasdall kick)
R -- Julius 20 pass from Knotts (Teasdall kick)
R -- safety; fumble out of end zone
Records -- Reynolds 12-0, Roberson 4-8
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