CLINTON, S.C. — Clinton High School had the game in hand by halftime Friday night, piling up 462 yards in a 52-14 home rout of Landrum that lifted the Red Devils to 5-4 on the season.
The Region 2-2A win also locked up a spot in the state playoffs for Clinton, its second straight league victory.
Landrum moved the ball on its first possession, but Clinton took over from there. Senior quarterback Owen Glenn opened the Red Devils’ scoring with a 70-yard run in the first quarter, but Cardinals quarterback Ian Patterson answered right away with a 41-yard touchdown run. From there, Angelo Cromer and Rhett Gilliam each found the end zone. Camden Gregory pounced on a Landrum fumble, Bryland James scored, and Glenn hit Graydon Watkins on a 39-yard touchdown pass. Clinton went to the locker room ahead 40-6.
Clinton opened the second half with the ball and Cromer scored again after a drive that started near midfield. A missed extra point left the Red Devils one point shy of triggering a running clock, but Gilliam’s second touchdown made it 52-6 in the third quarter and started it. Landrum added its last score with 1:45 to play.
In all, five different Clinton running backs reached the end zone, and the offense averaged 11.9 yards every time it ran the ball. Cromer, chasing a 1,000-yard season, ran 8 times for 117 yards and two touchdowns, a week after the Laurens County Touchdown Club named him its top player for a 250-yard night against Mountain View Prep.
The numbers were lopsided across the board. Clinton needed only 38 plays for its 462 yards, while Landrum ran 46 plays for 221. Patterson finished with 127 yards on 23 carries for Landrum, which fell to 3-7 and 0-5 in the region. The Red Devils converted all five of their trips inside the red zone, added five two-point conversions and held Landrum to 2 of 10 on third down.
The blowout also gave Clinton’s junior varsity players extra snaps, since Landrum did not field a JV team for a Thursday game. Younger players in the Future Devils program ran onto the field with the varsity before kickoff.
Clinton will not win the region this year. Southside Christian clinched the Region 2-2A title Friday with a 58-21 win over Chesnee, ending the Red Devils’ run of four straight region championships.
Head coach Corey Fountain credited his staff’s adjustments after the slow start. Clinton is 2-2 in region play and finishes the regular season Friday, Oct. 30, at home against Woodruff on Senior Night at Wilder Stadium. The Wolverines are 4-5 and 1-3 in the region. Woodruff beat Clinton 21-13 in last season’s opener, and the two schools have met on the football field since the 1920s. Friday was only the third meeting between Clinton and Landrum.
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