SALISBURY, N.C. – In 1,044 games of Newberry football spanning 106 seasons, nobody has ever had a day like
Chance Walker.
The previous single-game rushing record was 255 yards. He had 261.
The previous touchdown record was four. He had six.
The previous scoring record? Twenty-four points. He had 36.
And yet, despite all these milestones, Walker found it impossible to take any of the credit.
"I just want to thank God for putting me in position to have a day like that," Walker remarked. I want to thank my [offensive] line and my receivers and coaches for putting me in a position to do so."
Walker was the key cog in Newberry's explosive offensive day as the Wolves scored a 44-21 victory in the 83rd all-time meeting between Newberry and Catawba that left even head coach
Todd Knight a little speechless.
"I think we've had some great tailbacks here in the past like Romelo Doctor and Alex Haynes," said Knight. "That's kind of Newberry royalty, and for that kid to come out today and beat their records—I'm amazed, quite honestly."
Walked scored on a pair of 4-yard touchdown runs to put Newberry (3-4, 3-2 South Atlantic Conference) ahead 14-0 in the game's first eight minutes. After a Catawba (1-6, 0-4 SAC) touchdown, he capped a 12-play early second quarter drive that covered 75 yards with a 16-yard score.
The Catawba Indians drove into Newberry territory late in the second quarter attempting to cut into a 13-point lead, but
Anthony Blue hauled in his third career interception on a tipped pass that set up Walker's 68-yard touchdown run two plays later.
Newberry capped an eight-play, 53-yard drive with Walker's school-record breaking fifth touchdown, this time from 12 yards out, nearly 10 minutes into the third quarter to increase the margin back to three scores. The Wolves' defense forced a punt that was fair caught at the 22, setting up a career-long 78-yard touchdown run for Walker that made the score 41-14 with 1:49 left in the third.
The only intrigue remaining was whether Walker would accrue the final 13 yards he needed to break the school record. It took him three more carries to do so, capping one of the best individual efforts in school history.
Not bad for a guy who'd never had a 100-yard game or a rushing touchdown entering the game.
Walker's record total helped Newberry to a 432-yard day on the ground, the second-most prolific rushing output of the 21st century for the Wolves. The 9.1 yards per play and 589 yards of total offense were the third- and fifth-most of the last 20 years, respectively.
Colton Bailey had an incredibly efficient day captaining the Newberry offense, going 9-for-12 for 157 yards through the air and adding 109 yards on nine carries on the ground. He gave Newberry its first day with multiple 100-yard rushers in four years, save for the 2017 Mars Hill game when Newberry ran plays exclusively out of the wildcat formation with no healthy quarterbacks.
Bailey finished with 266 yards of total offense on 24 plays; his 11.1-yard average is the fifth-highest per play of the last 20 years.
Deshun Kitchings needed just three catches to reach 93 yards on the day, including a career-long 55-yard snag. It was one of four completions by Bailey, spread to three different receivers, that went for 20 yards or more
Lost in the win was the Newberry defense's balanced day. The Wolves gave up 21 points on 310 yards of offense and forced four punts, three turnovers on downs, a fumble, and an interception. Catawba had just two drives covering more than 36 yards.
Thirty Newberry players recorded a defensive statistic.
Marcus Chestnut and
Kardeem Hines tied for the team lead with five tackles apiece, while
Devante Gambrell and
Craig Barksdale paced the Wolves with two tackles for loss each. Newberry broke up four passes, including two by
Isaiah Appling, in addition to Blue's interception.
Newberry, winner of three of its last four games, travels to Carson-Newman for a SAC showdown next Saturday afternoon. Kickoff from Jefferson City, Tennessee is set for 3:00 p.m.
