Revenge of the Trojans

December 15, 2009 12:36 am

Essex rolls over Radford on its way to a football title.

THE POPULATION of Essex County is half that of the city of Fredericksburg, and it's so obscure that even those smart fifth-graders on the TV show probably don't know where it is. But the county's Division 2 high-school football squad, the Trojans, are gigantic on the gridiron, as they showed Saturday in becoming the only team in this region to win a championship.

This was no accident, although Essex's opponents, the Radford Bobcats, probably thought they had been involved in one. Essex's record during the past two seasons is 26-1. But the "1" was a haunting 55-50 loss to Gretna last year in the semifinals--a defeat that motivated the Trojans to come home with the gold cup. They did so, vexing Radford 30-0 in what effectively was the losing team's backyard to win their first title.

Congratulations, then, to coach Todd Jones, his players, Tappahannock, and all of Essex County. The Trojans are a dynasty in the making, and they will teach some geography to other teams in their grouping that will look at a map of the Middle Peninsula and see a king-size challenge.