Written By Rowan Ellis

(Burnsville, NC) — It was a beautiful evening for football as the Swain County Maroon Devils headed out to Burnsville to take on the Mountain Heritage Cougars in a scrimmage which opened the season for both schools. Both teams struggled to find their offense early, while on the other hand, the defenses did not disappoint. Swain lineman Nse Uffort led the game with 2 sacks and 10 total tackles, two of which came on the first drive of the game.

This momentum by Swain led to a touchdown on the offensive side from Quarterback Reese Winchester who found Josiah Glaspie for the first score of the night. The Cougars however came back the following drive as Junior running back Lawson Higgins led them down the field, but Mountain Heritage ultimately came up short of the endzone. While the Cougars’ offense wasn’t working, the defense became persistent, as two sophomore linebackers came up with big stops to hold the Devils from scoring.

After the half Swain’s Backup Quarterback, Andruw Cody, enters the game and quickly finds starting QB Reese Winchester for a 35 yard pass to add to the Devils lead. Answering back and trusting the run game the Cougars got down inside of the opposing 10 yard line and took a risk on 4th down to try to get the game within 1 score, but got stuffed by the Devils defensive line.

Swain’s running game appeared later in the game as their secondary back, James Stroman, sparked a 30 yard run to put the Devils near the red zone. This however wouldn’t last long as Mountain Heritage forced and recovered a fumble. As time was beginning to expire for the Cougars, the Devils came down with an interception to seal the game. Swain leaves with a win, 14-3. 

Look Ahead: Both teams begin with a home opener, looking to start their seasons off on a win. Charlotte Day will be Heading to Swain, while Chase will be arriving at Mountain Heritage this upcoming Friday Night. Stay tuned to FYNSports socials as intern Rowan Ellis will be providing updates on the Maroon Devils season.