Varina wins 1st state football championship 28-21 over Broad Run

LYNCHUBURG, Va. -- The Varina Blue Devils topped the Broad Run Spartans to win the Class 4 state championship game in Lynchburg Saturday.

The 28-21 win at Liberty University’s Williams Stadium is the school's first state football title.

Back in the late 90s, Varina had two shots at a state football championship with quarterback and future Super Bowl champ Michael Robinson. But they were turned away both times by C.D. Hylton.

One of Robins' teammates was Marcus Lewis, who got the Blue Devils back to the state title game Saturday with a chance to finally bring it back to Route 5.

The first-ever meeting between Verona and Broad Run was 7-0 Blue Devils at the second quarter.

Anthony Fisher threw it back to quarterback Miles Derricott, who got 20 yards on the touchdown and Varina had a 14-0 lead.

"At the half of the Class 4 State Final, leads 14-7," Sean Robertson wrote. "Blue Devils have excelled in games decided by one possession this season."

The team extended the lead in the second half with Derricott's 63 yard touchdown pass to Kaveion Keys and the game was 21-7.

Later Josiah Minor had a one-yard touchdown run and the game was 28-7. But Broad Run came back and Brett Griffis had a three-yard touchdown run gets them 28-21.

Broad Run had one last shot, but a pass intercepted by Fisher sealed it for Spartans 28-21.

Head Coach Marcus Lewis, who played on the 1999 Blue Devils team that lost to C.D. Hylton in the title game, said the win felt amazing.

"I mean, we've been waiting so long, man," Lewis said. "And everybody doubted us all year, man. But these kids just kept fighting. I'm just so proud right now."

Fisher said the win was incredible.

"I can't complain," Fisher said. "Coach kept talk about being Varina guys, about being the first people to do something in the world, in our school history. And it feels great."

Derricott said the win "feels good."

"It was Coach Marcus' second year here.," Derricott said. "We finished what no other team did before us. It can only be one — and we're the one."

Lewis said now that the team won the championship he can sit back and reflect on the season.

"I'm just so proud of our kids and our coaching staff and this Varina family," Lewis said.

If there was a common thread of Varina winning this year's state championship, it was winning the close games, Sean Robertson noted.

"Their final seven games, six of them were decided by one possession," Robertson said. "Varina won five of them, including the last three en route to a state championship."