By MONTE DUTTON

BLACKSBURG — Clinton’s 48-7 victory on Friday night was impressive but not as explosive as the previous week’s 56-14 win at home against Landrum.

Nitro glycerine is not as explosive as the Landrum game. Five hundred thirty-three yards rushing, in a game in which the clock ran continuously in the second half, or when a single player, Javen Cook, gained 334 yards, and scored 34 points himself, do not happen every week.

Come to think of it, all those numbers have occurred only once in the entire history of Red Devil football.

Friday night in Blacksburg was sort of a sequel that was not quite as good. It was like trying to make another Citizen Kane. This one was great, just not as great. The first one was the classic.

The final regular-season game was efficient and workmanlike for Clinton (7-3, 4-0 Region 1-2A), which was playing Blacksburg (1-8, 1-2) in front of a crowd that was less than half the size of any other this season. It’s kind of a haul up there, particularly with the near certitude of a massive triumph.

This time Javen Cook settled for a mere 142 yards, this time in all of 10 carries, and three touchdowns, not four or five. The touchdowns were 10, 45 and yards, not 52, 58, seven, 79 and 81.

“We’ve just got to keep him healthy,” said head coach Corey Fountain of Cook, “keep him running the rock. He runs like his head’s on fire. He blocks. He does all facets of the game well.”

This team is turning the town into mathematicians, or, more likely, getting them to use the calculator on their phones.

The Red Devils are ready for the playoffs. They may not win the state championship again – it’s a herculean task — but Corey Fountain and staff have been making a fine wine. The scores of Clinton’s five straight victories were 60-0, 49-6, 50-29, 56-14 and 48-7. Average score: 56-11.

Two Fridays from now the Red Devils are going to open the playoffs at home against another Class 2A team they are likely to clobber. That’s what happens when a No. 1 seed opens. They won’t know the opponent until all teams that don’t have a bye finish off their regular seasons this Friday.

Last year Clinton opened with Pelion and won 56-0. About 20 junior-varsity players have seen considerable second-half action in the past two weeks because neither Landrum nor Blacksburg fielded a JV squad. Bryson James’ younger brother, Bryland, score the final touchdown with 4:17 to play against the Wildcats.

This time the Red Devils rushed for 352 yards. This time they averaged 9.8. Both numbers are better than average for the season.

K.J. Vance scored the game’s first touchdown and rushed for 95 yards in seven tries. Quarterback Owen Glenn found Maison Tinley, who also intercepted a pass, for a 63-yard bomb. Glenn was 4/6 for 94 yards and scored a rushing touchdown from four yards out.

“We were well-rounded,” Fountain said. “We were vanilla in a lot of ways, but our guys executed well. We played physical all night long, and our guys did a good job of blocking.

“We’ve got to carry this momentum into the playoffs.”

The whole affair was remarkable, only less extraordinary than the game before. Sometimes a game’s got to be finite.

Fountain won his 60^th game in his seventh year, which is two more than he won in five seasons at Lamar, where he won two state titles and played for three more. The Red Devils have won 18 straight region games and four straight titles.

The head coach doesn’t think his charges are a finished product.

“I think we need to get better in all phases of the game,” he said, “like special teams. We’ve got to fix our placekicking game. We’ve got to be able to block for PATs and field goals.

“I’m proud of our kids. It was awesome to be able to get everybody in the game.”

This week, Fountain said, is business as usual, all except for the absence of a game.

“We’ll practice the way we always do on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and then Thursday. Then we’ll take Friday off, of course, and by then we’ll know who we’re playing. We’ll be ready to prepare on that Sunday,” he said.

Jonathon Phillips scored the only Blacksburg touchdown with 6:40 remaining, catching a 12-yard pass from Trevon Clark, who led the Wildcats in rushing with 66 yards in 24 carries.

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