WEST UNION, W.Va. — Josiah DeMoss didn’t enter Wednesday’s SSAC Kickoff Game with any individual goals in mind.
Rather, the St. Marys senior was hoping to do his part to help lead the Class A No. 9 Blue Devils start the season in the fashion they desired at No. 5 Doddridge County.
DeMoss did that and then some, returning his first of three interceptions 75 yards for a touchdown to put the Blue Devils in front for good in the second quarter. St. Marys carried that momentum into the second half, where it put together a dominant final two quarters to get by the Bulldogs, 34-14, at Cline Stansberry Stadium.
“I wasn’t really thinking of picks,” DeMoss said. “Just wanted to do my job and help the team win.”
With the game tied at 6 late in the first half, DeMoss stepped in front of a Brysen Dixon pass and picked it off, before racing three-quarters of the field to give the Blue Devils a six-point halftime lead.
“That was a big momentum shift, but still, you’re only down a score,” Doddridge head coach Bobby Burnside said. “You saw our inexperience and we made some key mistakes at key moments.”
The Bulldogs had opened the scoring five plays into the second quarter on Dixon’s 18-yard touchdown pass to Jerod Trent.
However, St. Marys’ Ashton Boron broke off a 49-yard run on the first play of the Blue Devils’ ensuing series, and it led to Logan Eddy’s 17-yard touchdown run two plays later that tied the game at 6.
The score stayed that way until DeMoss’ pivotal pick six, but the Blue Devils took advantage of receiving the second-half kickoff to gain the first two-possession lead of the contest.
SMHS put together an 11 play, 77-yard drive to start the third quarter that included rushes on its first 10 plays, before Ryan Kent tossed a 23-yard TD pass to Boron.
Kent completed a two-point pass to Shane Moran, leaving the Blue Devils with a 20-6 advantage at the 5:49 mark of the third quarter.
“Coming out in the second half and starting with the ball, we felt we had to get something going offensively,” Blue Devils’ head coach Jodi Mote said.
The Bulldogs answered with their best drive of the night and benefited from Seth Cass’ 10-yard reception on fourth-and-7, which preceded Kendall Huffman’s 1-yard touchdown run.
Dixon’s two-point pass to Landon Thomas brought DCHS to within 20-14 with 6 seconds to play in the third.
But the Blue Devils produced just the response they hoped to and picked up a pair of first downs. Soon after, Kent broke free for a 24-yard touchdown run.
Although the two-point pass play was unsuccessful, SMHS held a 12-point lead with 9:28 remaining.
SMHS consistently operated from under center over the final two quarters after discovering success with it in the first half as opposed to its shotgun sets.
“We weren’t for sure that was going to be there because they’re huge up front. We were able to make the adjustment with our offensive package and that helped us at least gain yardage,” Mote said. “Maybe not putting it in the end zone every time, but it allowed us to help our defense and special teams out.”
DeMoss intercepted Dixon on Doddridge’s next two possessions and effectively sealed the win with the latter one. It positioned the Blue Devils at the Bulldogs’ 9-yard line and led to Boron’s rushing touchdown that covered that distance with 4:51 to play.
“You have to do everything in your power to minimize your turnovers and exploit theirs,” Mote said. “Thankfully, our guys stepped up and we had several guys make big plays, and obviously Josiah was one of them on the defensive side.”
Kent’s two-point pass to Brodrick Rice wrapped up the scoring.
St. Marys has defeated Doddridge County 11 consecutive times and leaves the Bulldogs with a losing record for the first time since 2017.
“We played hard and we had opportunities, but missed some key opportunities in the first half that could’ve really swung the momentum in our favor,” Burnside said. “In the second half, we let it slip away. We turned the ball over, made some mistakes and they capitalized. You work to improve, clean things up and check on your injuries.”
Boron led the Blue Devils’ 232-yard rushing attack with 148 yards.
St. Marys limited Doddridge to 199 total yards, including 97 on the ground.
“Like coach Mote said, we’ll never get this opportunity again unless we’re in the Super Six, which that’s our goal this year,” DeMoss said. “Beating the fifth-ranked team is great as well.”