The bitter imagery of a season-opening loss from a year ago had been replayed many times for the Warrenton football players, both in their minds and on film during the past 12 months.But it didn’t take long for senior quarterback Brenden Smith and his teammates to realize the outcome would be very different last Friday night. The Warriors put the hammer down early, cruising to 1-0 start with a 49-21 victory over Liberty.“It made it a lot easier that we had control of the game from the first possession,” said Smith.Much like in the previous meeting, it was discipline and turnovers that dictated the flow of the game. Only this time the Warriors established control early and remained in authority by taking advantage of their opponent’s mistakes.“When you go against an option-style offense, you’ve got to be very disciplined, and we did our job tonight,” said Head Coach Steve McDowell.The Eagles coughed up the ball five times, with Warrenton snagging three interceptions and recovering a pair of fumbles.Senior Caleb Strauss was responsible for two of those possession swings, recovering a fumble deep and picking off a pass, both deep in Eagles’ territory.“Their penalties helped out, because most of the time we were starting our drives in good field position,” said Smith. “The defense got stops, and it gave our team more momentum, but I also give our offense credit for not turning the ball over so the defense didn’t have to go right back out there.”Warrenton wasted no time advancing down the field to move ahead 14-0 less than two minutes into the game. Sophomore running back Logan Dowd broke loose on a 54-yard touchdown run to open the game as part of a 100-yard rushing effort on 10 carries.“It was definitely a good feeling to be able to come out right away and help my team,” said Dowd, who led the Warriors’ ground game in his starting varsity debut in the backfield.Liberty fumbled the ball on the ensuing drive and Strauss swallowed it up. Moments later Smith scampered into the end zone on a five-yard run.“The hogs up front were flying off the ball every play, allowing our offense to create space and get the ball to the guys on the edge,” said Smith. “The line really controlled the outcome.”Smith finished 9 of 10 passing with 190 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 46 yards on 17 carries and three scores.Liberty advanced into Warriors’ territory midway through the first quarter but turned over the ball for a second time, with senior lineman Chris Vogt recovering.“It felt great to start the season on a winning note,” said Vogt. “Last year starting 0-2 really hurt our morale and we had to fight to gain it back. By starting with a win we can play a little more relaxed.”The Eagles closed the gap to 14-7 momentarily late in the first quarter, as Wesley Hines evaded multiple tacklers to dance 27 yards down the sidelines.But Warrenton was quick to respond and never again let the outcome be in question. Smith ran in from six yards out to open the second quarter and connected with Sam Smith on a 38-yard reception moments later to account for the sophomore’s first varsity touchdown. Smith led the Warriors with 103 yards on three catches.Liberty committed a multitude of penalties on its ensuing drives, rewarding the Warriors’ favorable field position on their way to a 42-7 halftime lead.“Energy is always a huge key for us, and we came out with a lot of it against Liberty,” said Dowd.Smith found senior Brandon Molinari on a 14-yard touchdown strike in the third quarter to cap off the Warriors’ scoring, as the reserves began to filter onto the field for much of the second half.Liberty scored twice in the fourth quarter on runs of 34 and 50 yards by Donovan Arrington.Dowd, Molinari and Strauss all hauled in a pair of catches for the Warriors to round out a balanced offensive effort.Warrenton will travel to Troy Friday for a 7 p.m. kickoff.

GETTING OUTSIDE — Logan owd escapes a tackle during last week's 49-21 win over Liberty. Derrick Forsythe photo.

GETTING OUTSIDE — Logan Dowd escapes a tackle during last week's 49-21 win over Liberty. Derrick Forsythe photo.