Richland football handed first loss of season by Denton Ryan in blowout fashion

The Royals 6-game win streak to open the season came to an abrupt end after losing 44-19 to the Denton Ryan Raiders on Oct. 11 at the Collins Complex.

Richland got a Ryan team hungry for a win after losing to Aledo 42-27 last week, despite being up 27-8 with a couple of minutes left in the first half.

“We lost to one of the best teams in the state. They’re really good and we can’t give them mistakes,” said Richland head coach Ged Kates. “We gave them several and, like a good team, they capitalized on them.”

The Raiders were also dealing with the loss of their defensive coordinator, who recently died.

“We had a lead against Aledo, and they came back and got us, and we had to turn around and play a really good team in Richland and then deal with some adversity off the field,” said Ryan head coach Dave Henigan. “For our kids to bounce back the way they did was a testament to them and our coaching staff.”

The Richland defense had trouble controlling the run game from the Raiders, whose senior running back Nemo Warmate rushed for 156 yards and three touchdowns.

“He’s been very reliable,” said Henigan on Warmate. “Him and Tre’Vaughn [Reynolds] both, we lean on those guys. When he gets his opportunities, he’s a tough, physical runner.”

Reynolds finished the game with 32 yards rushing.

Richland’s red zone defense had plenty of opportunities. It gave up four touchdowns, but also limited the Raiders to four field goals. The problem was allowing big plays for Ryan to reach the red zone.

The Raiders reached the end zone first—and they didn’t waste any time. On the second play of the drive, junior quarterback Quin Henigan connected with senior receiver Lorenzo Hill for a 61-yard passing touchdown.

After forcing Richland to punt, Ryan scored on a 21-yard field goal from senior kicker Daniel Rodriguez.

Richland responded on their drive with senior quarterback Drew Kates connecting with senior receiver Xavier Johnson for a 53-yard passing touchdown, cutting the deficit to three with 5:37 left in the first quarter.

Johnson had a few other opportunities to reach the end zone, but the throws were just off the mark.

“We were really close to clicking, offensively,” said Kates. “That had a big part to do with their great defensive line. Our offensive line was good and tough, but their defensive line got to the backfield quick and messed up our timing.”

Kates emphasized the pressure on timing, saying one half or quarter-inch could be the difference between a passing being completed or not.

A couple of field goals from each team’s kickers and a 1-yard rushing touchdown from Warmate put Ryan up 20-10 with four minutes left in the first half.

Henigan credited one of the biggest plays of the night to senior defensive back Mun’terrius Ellis, who intercepted a Richland pass and returned it for a touchdown from the 25-yard line, making it a 17-point game going into halftime.

“That was huge,” said Henigan. “Right before halftime we had a big play and fumbled on the 1-yard line, but our defense stepped up and turned the momentum right before half, which is critical.”

Richland got a 2-yard rushing touchdown from senior running back Hunter Moreno on the first drive of the second half, but it wasn’t enough to start a comeback. The Royals would only add a field goal for the rest of the game.

Ryan scored a pair of touchdowns via Warmate and capped the night with a 24-yard field goal from sophomore Haylen Keese to make it 44-19.

Both teams were down significant pieces. Richland’s four-star running back Mike Turner sustained a season-ending injury in week two. Ryan’s wide receiver, Hill, exited the game against Richland with a leg injury and had to be carted off the field early in the third quarter.

Kates said the loss to Ryan doesn’t take away the 6-0 start to the season, and they aren’t too worried about the streak.

“Our number one goal is to play as long as we can,” he said. “We wanted to win this one, but we will face some good teams down the road, and you never know.”

Richland will host Granbury on Oct. 18 at 7 p.m.

Ryan will travel to play another undefeated team in Azle next week at 7 p.m. Azle took down Fossil Ridge 54-43 to improve to 6-0.