Banks makes history as Eastside runs past Blue Ridge, 54-40
Eastside running back Kalvin Banks made history against Blue Ridge Friday night. His 420 yards and six rushing touchdowns both set new program records.
On a night when Eastside football history was made, the Eagles collected their second win of the season by defeating Blue Ridge, 54-40.
“I’m a defensive-minded head coach,” said Eastside head coach Andre Woolcock. “I hate to admit it, but it was definitely a shoot-out.”
The Eagles found themselves in a 14-6 hole at the end of the first quarter and down 21-20 at the half. For the second straight week, Woolcock’s team dug deep and found a will to win, even with the cards stacked against them.
Eastside outscored Blue Ridge 34-19 in the second half to come away with the victory.
“These kids are buying into the vision,” said Woolcock. “We have a group of kids who are leaders in the locker room, who circled the troops at halftime and made sure some points were made.”
Friday night’s headline wasn’t the final score or Eastside’s resiliency, however.
The pervading storyline of the evening was the performance of star Eastside senior running back Kalvin Banks.
Banks ran the ball 24 times for an absurd 420 yards and six rushing touchdowns. Both the yardage and his six scores set Eastside school records.
“I didn’t realize until I got the stats the next morning just how well I played,” said Banks. “I knew I had a few long runs, but I didn’t realize I was popping off like that.”
Banks had touchdown runs of 75, 68, 53 (twice), 22 and nine yards.
“There was a point early in the game when we were down by one,” said Banks. “We threw an interception and I got blocked in the back. I got up and told the dude about it, and emotions are high, so he’s just like ‘I don’t care’ or whatever.
“It ticked me off. It made me mad. I looked on their sideline, and I told them they had messed up. Then I went off.”
CLOSE TO HOME
When new records are set, that means old records are broken.
For Kalvin Banks, his 420 rushing yards in a game shattered the previous Eastside school record of 304. His six rushing scores eclipsed the old record of five.
Banks doesn’t have to go far to find the man whose records he topped. In fact, he sees him almost every day.
Ern Mills, Eastisde running back coach and former Eagles star, held both previous records. He’s worked with Banks since his eighth-grade year.
“I met Kalvin when he played on our D-team,” said Mills. “One year later, he was on the varsity team as a backup running back. Our starting back at the time blew his knee in the first game of the season, so I looked down the sidelines and saw Kalvin was the only replacement I had.
“The rest is history.”
“My relationship with Coach Mills runs deep,” said Banks. “He’s not only my coach, but I consider him and his family my family.”
From the start of Banks’ career, Mills loved what he saw. He admired Banks’ ability so much, in fact, that Mills knew he’d be the one to shatter his statistical bests.
Banks has never been shy about wanting to do so, either.
“Kalvin knows my history at Eastside, so when he found out about my records, he told me ‘I’m going to have all those by the time I’m done.’”said Mills. “And he will. He’s going to do it and blow them out of the water.”
“It’s cool to break his records,” said Banks. “And surprisingly, he loves to watch me do it.”
MUTUAL RESPECT
During one of Banks’ big third-quarter runs, Blue Ridge running back KB Henderson couldn’t help himself.
“I’ve got a bad habit,” said Henderson. “Sometimes, when I see a really good running back, I’ll accidentally be like ‘Go, go, go!’ even if they’re on the other team. And Kalvin just kept breaking them off all game.”
With the kind of performance Banks put on Friday night, it was hard to blame Henderson, who’d met Banks before when the pair competed against one another in track and field.
“I’ve got to give Kalvin respect,” said Henderson. “I really like his game.”
It felt like deja vu for Henderson, who last year watched from afar as Banks dominated the Tigers at Jim Howard Stadium. Henderson was restricted to the sidelines while he recovered from a broken hand.
This time around, Henderson got to shine, too.
Drive after drive, he and Banks traded blows and lit up the scoreboard. Neither defense had answers for them. By the time the clock hit zero, Henderson himself had rounded up arguably the best game of his career, as well.
The Tigers’ star ball carrier finished the night with 25 carries for 296 yards and four touchdowns.
Blue Ridge running back KB Henderson had a day himself, rushing for 296 yards and four touchdowns.
“[KB]’s a great teammate. He wants to do everything the right way,” said Blue Ridge head coach John Boggs. “He loves to compete and loves to make plays. So it was good to see him have the game he had.”
Henderson also gained some new fans after the game.
“That KB kid, he’s a dang dawg,” said Woolcock. “That kid is special, man. Shout out to him. I hope colleges are paying attention. 5-foot-10, 195 [pounds], runs like a deer. High-character kid. Some school better jump after that kid, because he can play.”
“[KB]’s got a lot of heart. He runs hard out there,” said Banks. “We were hitting him pretty hard, and it started to take a toll on his body, but he never came out. He just doesn’t stop.”
UP NEXT
Eastside (2-2) welcomes Travelers Rest for a rematch of last year’s 35-28 Devildog victory, while the Tigers (0-4) will square off at home against Wade Hampton in hopes of collecting their first win of the season. Both games are set to kick off Friday at 7:30 p.m.