Charlie Clewis, Woodgrove rev up the run game ahead of a road game against Sherando

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/highschools/charlie-clewis-woodgrove-rev-up-the-run-game-ahead-of-a-road-game-against-sherando/2015/11/16/0f776754-8c72-11e5-acff-673ae92ddd2b_story.html

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Woodgrove’s three-hour bus ride to its second-round playoff game in 2014 was long. The return trip felt considerably longer after a double-digit halftime lead vanished in a 38-28 loss to Salem outside of Blacksburg. The memory of the road back to Purcellville has fueled this year’s Wolverines in their quest to reach the state semifinals and beyond.

“It’s hard to sit on a bus for three hours and get off and play a football game,” senior running back Charlie Clewis said. “It’s horrible to sit there on the way back. We thought about that one a lot since last year.”

Clewis ran the ball 33 times for 256 yards and five touchdowns in a 40-13 win over Heritage at home Friday night in a 4A West region first-round game. This Friday, the region’s No. 5 seed is back on the road, but it will travel less than an hour to face Sherando in Frederick County. Still, the No. 4 seed represents an unfamiliar challenge.

“I’ve never played Sherando. It’s different playing a school you’ve never seen before. We get comfortable playing the schools we see every regular season, but now we have to adjust to somebody else,” Clewis said. “But we’re comfortable in our ability to do what we’ve done all year, and that’s run the ball.”

Clewis is second among area running backs with 28 touchdowns this fall and ranks in the top 10 with 1,555 yards on 227 carries. In last year’s playoff loss, a sprained ankle limited Clewis to seven yards on two carries – a stat line Woodgrove aims to improve upon on its first possession.

“It’s not the time of the year to change anything up — we’re going to run downhill,” Clewis said. “My offensive line is so good at opening up huge running lanes. I think I get too much credit. They deserve just as much credit.”

Clewis and Woodgrove hope that the return trip on Friday night will be a more festive occasion.

“I like the away atmosphere,” Clewis said. “We have to go to another person’s house in a hostile atmosphere and get a big win.”

Fresh off a first-round bye in the 4A West, No. 2 seed Champe (10-0) will host George Washington-Danville (10-1) in a Friday quarterfinal in Aldie.

“We rested up and just focused on what we do best. It felt good to have time off because we had some guys that were a little banged up,” said senior quarterback Zach Burdick. “We’re going to prepare for GW like we would prepare for the next team on our schedule, and hopefully we’ll get the same result.” . . .

A first-round loss to Woodgrove was a disappointing end to a successful season for Heritage. The Pride’s six wins matched its combined total from the previous two seasons.

“We’re the bridge builders. We laid the bricks for the bridge for this program to cross over to the next level,” said senior wide receiver Cole Miller, who caught 32 passes for 675 yards and 11 touchdown this fall. “I’m excited for the future at Heritage. People used to never want to come here, but after a winning season, that has changed.”