Titans Earn First Win Of Season

T.C. Williams football coach Dennis Randolph got some of the pieces of his defense back on the field Saturday afternoon, and the results were downright scary.

Led by linebacker Deontre Sanders, the Titans defense assaulted Mount Vernon's quarterbacks all game in a convincing 45-14 win over the Majors at Parker Gray Memorial Stadium.

The defense accounted for the Titans' final two touchdowns—an interception return for a touchdown by Deomonte Rice and a fumble recovery run back for a score by Benton Damien.

"We got a couple players back, Deontre being one of them," Randolph said. "He's a heck of a player, as you can see. We didn't have that spark last week and guys just didn't get in there and make plays and make things happen. That's what you have to do on defense, and Deontre is a big part of that."

Sanders routinely got in the face of Mt. Vernon quarterbacks Robert Decardi-Nelson and Tre Cook, who were limited to just three completions between the two of them through three quarters.

Sanders suffered a concussion early in training camp. The senior was held out of action longer than the mandatory 10 days as a precaution, but still participated in parts of practice to get himself ready. His return allowed the Titans (1-1) to get down to business.

"Our game plan was to stay in (the quarterback's) face the whole game," Randolph said. "We want to do that on everybody."

Titans quarterback Doug Murphy set the tone for the Titans on offense, hitting Will Rossi for an 83-yard touchdown on the game's first play from scrimmage.

"We saw (Mount Vernon's game) last week and they played a similar offense to ours, and they put their safeties up," Murphy said. "So, the first play of the game we just went right by them and scored a touchdown."

Murphy finished the game 8-for-14 for 211 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

The senior signal-caller's production helped make up for a somewhat struggling ground game. Mohamed Sesay fumbled a handoff on the Titans' second possession that Majors linebacker Julien Randolph returned for a score in the first quarter to tie the game at 7-7.

Sophomore Dealo Roberson did score his first varsity touchdown for the Titans late in the first, but the team was never able to get any consistent production from its running backs.

Randolph says a lot of his team's running woes can be attributed to the absence of three starters on the offensive line, including standout tackle Jay Whitmire, who remained out of action Saturday because of a sprained ankle suffered in a preseason scrimmage.

But once all the pieces are back in place, the Titans might just be a force.

"We have a lot of weapons, which is why we run the spread," Randolph said. "We just want to put the ball in the hands of the guys who can do things. We have several of them. Up front, we have to have those three guys back. By next week, most of them will be back."

The Titans return to action on Thursday when they travel to play Oakton at 7:30 p.m.