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Columbia teammates celebrate after running back Naqualyn Grice crosses the plane for a third-quarter touchdown run in Saturday's non-district football game against Randle at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia's Cade Lamb (47) chases Randle quarterback Leo Garza during the first quarter of Saturday's non-district football game at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia's Mudassir Abdullah, Cade Lamb, Jamarcus Higgins and Casey Webb tackle Randle receiver Cortney Brown during the third quarter of Saturday's non-district football game at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia running back Kai Castile has his jersey tugged by Randle linebacker Jaquin Parker during the fourth quarter of Saturday's non-district football game at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia running back Naqualyn Grice runs past the Randle Lions defense during a first-quarter carry Saturday at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia teammates celebrate after running back Naqualyn Grice crosses the plane for a third-quarter touchdown run in Saturday's non-district football game against Randle at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia's Cade Lamb (47) chases Randle quarterback Leo Garza during the first quarter of Saturday's non-district football game at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia's Mudassir Abdullah, Cade Lamb, Jamarcus Higgins and Casey Webb tackle Randle receiver Cortney Brown during the third quarter of Saturday's non-district football game at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia running back Kai Castile has his jersey tugged by Randle linebacker Jaquin Parker during the fourth quarter of Saturday's non-district football game at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
Columbia running back Naqualyn Grice runs past the Randle Lions defense during a first-quarter carry Saturday at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
RICHMOND — Columbia’s motto is tough people win. The Roughnecks stuck to that motto Saturday afternoon, especially senior Naqualyn Grice.
Last year was a heartbreaker for the ’Necks’ running back. He expected to play a role in Columbia’s prolific Wing-T offense with Jordan Woodard and others, but it didn’t happen when he suffered a torn meniscus that derailed his season.
So Saturday’s performance meant a lot to the back.
Grice scored the go-ahead rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, and Kavion Lewis punched it in to complete a successful two-point conversion to help the Roughnecks claim their first win of the season, 36-35, against Randle.
“It’s all glory to God, man,” Grice said. “Last year was heartbreaking because I had to watch my friends playing and having fun. Now it is like, God made me come back, and it is all glory to him.”
Saturday’s game — moved up because of Randle’s homecoming — was played in 90-degree temperatures and saw the ’Necks grind out a win that featured two turnovers and two 13-point deficits.
“It shows you the heart of this team,” Roughnecks coach Brent Mascheck said. “We lost two tough games, but they battled back (today) despite those early struggles and dumb penalties. Grice ran his butt off — all of the back ran their butts off — but credit to the offensive line, they did a great job.
“This is a program-winning game. We talk about tough people winning — it was hot, we had things going against us and we could have crumbled, but we found a way to win.”
Columbia forced a turnover on downs trailing 35-28 with 6:34 remaining on its 18-yard line.
Lewis started the drive runs of 10 and 8 yards to get the ball to the 36-yard line.
Grice then carried the ball four of the next five plays.
The senior started with a 16-yard gain, followed by 25 yards to get the ’Necks to the Randle 28. Grice's 8-yard run put the ’Necks in the red zone, and Lewis ran for 13 to make it first and goal. Grice then took the misdirection to the right side and lunged into the end zone with 3:32 remaining.
“It’s all glory to God. I had to do it for my dead grandma and grandpa,” Grice said.
Instead of going for the tie, Mascheck wanted to go for the win on the road.
“No doubt,” he said. “And that goes back to the confidence I have in these kids. I was saying that at the 50 when I was talking to them, I said, ‘We are going to go for two when we make it,’ because I had confidence in these guys.”
He used Grice as a decoy and fed Lewis to the left side as he cashed in to complete the two-point conversion to give the ’Necks a 36-35 lead.
There was still plenty of time for the Lions to mount a go-ahead drive of their own, but the ’Necks' defense had none of it.
Jaquin Parker opened the Lions’ drive with a 13-yard gain to the Randle 43, but that was all the Lions could muster. Pressure forced Leo Garza to commit an intentional grounding penalty, and an incomplete pass made it third and 20. Garza completed a pass, but a false start on the next play set fourth and 12 from their 46-yard line. Garza’s final attempt was knocked away by Jamarcus Higgins, and the ’Necks ran out the clock for their first victory of the season.
Grice’s day included 103 rushing yards on 11 carries and three scores. Lewis had his best game in his young varsity career with 14 carries for 131 yards and a touchdown. Kai Castile rushed for 150 yards on 13 carries and a score.
It was the best offensive production the Roughnecks had had this season with their revamped backfield.
“We have been rotating those running backs, and today, they had some great runs,” Mascheck said. “We will continue to mix it up. The only people who could stop us were ourselves.”
Like their previous two losses, turnovers put the Roughnecks in an early hole Saturday morning.
Columbia received the ball first and marched down to Randle’s 18-yard line following Grice’s 43-yard run.
Randle, however, got on the broad first when Curtis John-Miller scooped the ball up on a Roughneck fumbled and took it 82 yards for the score.
Columbia responded on its next drive beginning with Lewis’ 20-yard run to propel the ’Necks to their 40-yard line. Tate Thrasher then found Parker Kingrea for a 20-yard pass, and Castile ran it for 12 yards to get inside the Randle 30-yard line.
After a false start and a few short runs, Castile broke a 24-yarder to get down to the 7 and the senior punched it in two plays later. The two-point conversion by Lewis gave Columbia an 8-7 lead with 6:13 left in the opening quarter.
Penalties on three consecutive plays by the Roughnecks’ on Randle’s ensuing possession led to the Lions regaining the lead.
The ’Necks defense sacked Garza but were called for unnecessary roughness to help keep the Lions’ drive alive. That followed with a facemask, and an offsides call to get the ball inside the red zone. That’s where Cortney Brown scored on a 1-yard run for a 14-8 Lions’ lead with 1:48 remaining in the opening quarter.
Turnovers struck again in Columbia’s next drive.
Thrasher connected with Gage Raley for a 62-yard reception, but the Lions gobbled up another fumble on the next play to thwart Columbia’s possession.
A few plays later, Garza hit Brown, who escaped Daxton Newell’s grasp for a 54-yard touchdown pass and a 21-8 lead with 11:15 remaining in the half.
The ’Necks were able to keep Randle in reach when Grice scored his first touchdown of the day on a 4-yard run, but the Lions put the score back to 13 points on a Garza-to-Marc St. Fort 18-yard touchdown pass that made it 28-15, with 5:46 remaining in the half.
Following Randle’s latest touchdown, the ’Necks kept doing what they had been doing all day — move the ball. Castile’s 11-yard run got the ’Necks in Lions' territory at the 39, and Lewis did the rest with a 39-yard score on a misdirection run with a blocker in front of him the entire way to close the gap to 28-21 — which was also the halftime score.
Columbia forced a pair of three-and-outs on Randle’s first two drives of the second half, and after a turnover on downs on their first possession of the third quarter, the Roughnecks tied the game at 28 on their next drive.
The ’Necks started with good field position at their 43-yard line with 4:41 left in the quarter. Thrasher completed a pass to Blake Osteen to get into Lions’ territory at the 44. Castile did the bulk of the work with a 36-yard run down the left sideline to set up Grice with his second touchdown run — an 8-yard power run — to knot the game at 28 with 3:25 remaining in the quarter.
Randle wasted little time regaining the lead for the last time despite being stopped on third down. The Roughnecks were called for unsportsmanlike conduct following the stop, and two plays later, Garza hit Jaydon Osbourne with 1:11 left.
It was the lone score the Lions got in the second half as the Roughnecks outscored the home team 15-7. The Lions had two three-and-outs and two turnovers on downs in their five second-half possessions.
“We gave up big plays, but we found ways in the second to make some big stops,” Mascheck said.
Zach White and Casey Webb both recorded a team-high 12 tackles, three tackles for a loss and a sack. Columbia racked up six sacks, and eight quarterback hurries on the day.
The Columbia Roughnecks defeated Randle, 26-35, during a non-district football Saturday at Guy K. Traylor Memorial Stadium in Richmond.
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