Nansemond River opened their season with a trip to Norfolk to play Norview and came ready to play in the matchup of Class 5, Region A schools. Meanwhile, Norview showed they have a few more steps to take in the return of Dealton Cotton as the program's Head Coach.

When the contest was over, Nansemond River took the victory by a count of 44-12, marking the first win over the Pilots in the series since 1999. Yet, he story of this game is a little deeper than the final margin.

With second-year coach Justin Conyers and freshman quarterback Nolan James, Nansemond River racked up 32 points before Norview scored in the middle of the third quarter, whereas Norview came close, but kept being pushed back due to multiple penalties.

“We eliminated our mistakes,” Conyers said. “We had a lot of mistakes in our scrimmages, so our main focus was to eliminate mistakes and we did that here. We still need a little more from our 2’s. We gave up two big long touchdown passes with our backup corners, which is not good because they are the next men up. They are an injury away from starting.”

In the previous two encounter with Norview, the Warriors were bounced from the playoffs - 55-32 in 2016 and 19-7 in 2015. Knowing that both teams could be battling for a spot in the postseason come November, Conyers knew that getting this win was a critical start on their 2019 journey.

“Overall, I think we did a great job. We got the victory and that’s the most important thing Then we go back to the drawing board. Our goal is to win a district championship, then a regional championship and a state title, so we have to keep working,” Conyers exclaimed.

James, completed five of his nine passes, for 98 yards, and a touchdown but also threw two interceptions, both to Norview WR/DB Daylen Everette. Both were passes thrown across his body, something he had done in practice according to coaches, though they had advised him not to repeat that in the game.

“It [tonight] wasn’t my best, but I did what I can and we came out with the win,” James said. “It’s no different from what I’ve done my whole life. I’m just out here playing football.”

There's no lacking of confidence from the coaches in the ninth grader either.

“We have a great, young quarterback that is going to make this offense unstoppable," Conyer added. "We are going to spread the ball and we are going to throw the ball. That’s one of the things we wanted to change from last year."

Along with James, Nansemond River running back X’zavion Evans - a newcomer that previously suited up at Deep Creek - racked up 181 yards on the ground, along with three scores.

On the bright side for Norview, Marqeese Dietz showed how talented he is with the football. Being recruited for the next level as a wide receiver, Dietz threw for 157 yards and a TD while completing 8 of his 17 passes before being pulled in the third quarter. Norview WR Cam Wynder-Hill racked up three receptions for 185 yards and two touchdowns, a 70 yarder and a 98-yard score.

Nansemond River will have a bye week before taking on Western Branch - the alma mater of Coach Conyers - in their home opener on September 13th. Norview look to avoid dropping to 0-2 when they travel to Todd Stadium in Newport News on September 5th to take on Peninsula District contender Woodside.

Nansemond River 1-0

QB Nolan James: 5-9, 98 yards, 1 TD, 2 int

RB Joshua Knight: 7 rush, 52 yards

RB X'zavion Evans: 18 rush, 181 yards, 3 TD, 1 rec, 15 yards

WR Gequon Stringer: 1 rec, 54 yards, TD, 1 rush, 4 yards

WR Isaiah Green: 2 rec, 16 yards

Norview 0-1

QB Marqeese Dietz: 8-17, 157 yards, TD, 5 rush, 57 yards

WR Dion Davis 3 rec, 53 yards

WR Wynder-Hill: 3 rec, 185 yards, 2 TD

DB Daylen Everette: 2 int

Final Thoughts...

Norview will now look towards their game against Woodside on Thursday night at Todd Stadium in hopes of righting what went wrong in this game. If they want to contend, they will need to clean up the penalties to start. There is plenty of young talent on the roster, and this team could certainly pull an upset or two later in the season should they be able to establish more balance offensively and tighten the screws defensively.

Nansemond River has an off week before hosting Western Branch in what could be a trap game if the Warriors get ahead of themselves and look forward to their game at Indian River in week four. The backfield combo of Evans and Brent Stratton makes for a lethal combination with a strong offensive line paving the way in front of them.