Vikings dominate Natchez from start to finish, win 52-0

Published 12:00 am Saturday, September 21, 2002

Henry Williams OF WARREN CENTRAL(5) breezes by Natchez’s Terrick Smith as he drives through the line for a first down during WC’s 52-0 win Friday night in Natchez. (The Vicksburg Post/ELAINE BUSCHMANN,)

[09/21/02]NATCHEZ Natchez High’s search for consistency on offense yielded a find just the wrong kind.

The Bulldogs had troubles moving the ball against a tough Warren Central defense from the start, and the Vikings sent the struggling Bulldogs to a 52-0 defeat Friday night in their 2002 home opener.

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Natchez finished the game with just six first downs and 93 yards of total offense. Add five turnovers to that, and what you had was an unpleasant night on the gridiron.

“I don’t know we weren’t in the right frame of mind to play football tonight,” said Natchez head coach James Denson, now 1-13 with the Bulldogs. “I’m sort of burned. I don’t really know what it’s going to take to get our players focused. We play one ball game like we’re ready to turn the corner, and we play another ball game where we take the corner. We’ve been getting kicked so much it’s an old shoe now.”

The Vikings gave the Bulldogs all they wanted defensively, and Natchez crossed midfield only twice in the first three quarters.

Two of the Bulldogs’ six first downs came from 15-yard WC penalties.

“With this kind of field, you want it to be a defensive game,” WC head coach Robert Morgan said. “We kept them on their side of the field, and that was a big plus for us. Our defense did a good job of holding them. Coach Denson is a good friend of mine. We coached all-star games together. I’m pulling for him to get his team together I really am.”

Will Clark’s 23-yard field goal gave WC a 3-0 lead in the first quarter, and Richmond Fields quickly added to the lead with a 61-yard touchdown run on the Vikings’ next possession.

The Vikings put together their biggest drive at the start of the second quarter after Chris Hemphill picked off a Leon Stewart pass. WC drove 80 yards on 13 plays with Henry Williams finishing it off with a 5-yard touchdown run with 6:20 left.

Larry King later returned a punt 55 yards for a touchdown two minutes later for a 24-0 WC lead.

“Really, we didn’t have our punt return team out there,” Morgan said. “We had our defense out there.”