First-year Edinburgh head coach Derrick Ball was hoping the Lancers would gain some momentum heading into the sectional.
Instead, the Lancers suffered a 60-14 home loss against Southside Homeschool in Friday night’s regular-season finale.
The game was called in the final minutes of the fourth quarter after the Lancers’ freshman quarterback Bryce Burton was hit hard and taken off the field on a stretcher to Columbus Regional Hospital.
Burton was released from the hospital after being evaluated for a concussion and treated for a shoulder strain, Edinburgh athletics director David Walden said.
For the game, Edinburgh (2-7) struggled on offense and defense.
Aided by two Edinburgh fumbles, Southside Homeschool scored on its first three possessions to power the Crimson Knights first win in four tries over the Lancers.
Edinburgh had trouble keeping up with who had the ball thanks to the Knights’ wing-T and wildcat offensive formations.
Speed also helped as the Knights (8-1) quickness hurt Edinburgh.
In the first quarter alone, five Knights runners amassed 140 of their 331 total of rushing yards. By the time Edinburgh had figured out the offense, the score was already out of reach.
“They had an unconventional offense,” Ball said. “We had a hard time getting penetration and make the tackles.”
Adding to the misery was the Knights’ passing attack, as quarterback Logan Rhodes completed a perfect night, completing all four of his passes for 133 yards and three touchdowns.
The Lancers couldn’t move the ball effectively at times but hurt themselves with two early fumbles, an interception and a holding penalty which nullified a touchdown pass.
“We made too many mistakes,” Ball said. “We did fight hard in the second half.”
Edinburgh got on the board in the first half when quarterback Jentry Lange hit sophomore Jacob Atha for a 40-yard touchdown pass. A Shane Smith conversion run made the score 22-8.
Southside scored on six of its seven first-half possessions, three on the ground and three in the air. The Knights led 46-8 at halftime.
Southside continued to roll in the second half, scoring twice, though mostly with its reserve squad.
Edinburgh got its second touchdown when Burton hit Atha for a 17-yard touchdown pass.
That was it though for the Lancers, and then Burton went down.
Edinburgh hosts Oldenburg Academy on Friday in a Class A sectional opener.
