Varina Denies Dinwiddie, Dominates 34-0!
We all knew Region 4B would be tough coming into the season. Consensus was we would see some variation Dinwiddie, Varina, Huguenot and Louisa in the final four. Well that played out as we thought. What we did not think was that Dinwiddie would be dominated in the manner that they were Friday night at their home, the ‘Pit’.
Navy Nation had been seething to have another crack at the Blue Devils after Varina denied them in the Region Finals last season. They got their chance and this time the game failed to live up to the hype.
The hype and atmosphere delivered more than the game itself. Varina dominated Dinwiddie from start to finish in a fashion I have not seen a team do in my now 13th year covering the region.
The Blue Devil defense to 173 yards of offense! There have been games in which QB Zion Boisseau accounted for more than that himself. Dinwiddie failed to convert third and fourth downs, 0-14! That speaks to just how suffocating this defense was on the Generals offense.
As the offense struggled, so too did the defense. The Blue Devils gameplan on offense was spot on. Dominate the ground game with Kaleb Wyche and Michael Farley seeing to that. QB & RB dominated the ground game with 294 total yards & 2 TD’s. The Blue Devils ground assault was methodical and allowed them to set the tone controlling the clock by doubling the Dinwiddie time, 46-22 minutes.
With that kind of ground assault the Blue Devils not just controlled the clock but tired the defense. With the offense ineffective the Generals defense was on the field at a faster pace than they are used to.
To the Generals credit, they never game up but it was clear on this night who the better team was.
1st Quarter Highs & Lows
Varina had the ball twice in the first quarter with 137 yards to show for compared to that of 16 yards for Dinwiddie.
The Blue Devils opening drive stretched 61 yards but fell short of the end zone by 19 yards. Credit of course goes to the Dinwiddie defense with keeping Kaleb Wyche in check on a fourth down run that was two yards short of a first down.
The second drive for Varina went the distance of 76 yards and saw Wyche escape tackles on 2nd down for a pickup of 8 yards. Wyche accounted for 47 yards between a pass of 11 yards and 36 yards on a total of 5 carries including a 6-yard touchdown.
2nd Quarter Highs & Lows
For Varina it was mostly good with just a hint of bad in the second stage of the game.
Braylon Hood caught a pass which I can honestly say I’ve seen the Blue Devils three times this season, this game included and never saw that previously.
There was the fumble that Kaleb Wyche was able to scramble, recover from and get off Trevon Rogers for a pickup of 17 yards. You had to see it to believe it.
Their third possession of the second quarter was a 68-yard drive through the ‘Pit’ that ended with a 17-yard TD when DaMari Carter made his presence felt just as he did last year at Dinwiddie. A 17-yard TD catch made it 14-0 in Varina of Varina.
The hint of bad was a JayC McDowell pass breakup. A declined penalty against Varina that forced a turnover on downs. The worst was a T’Mari Buford interception that sparked the Generals.
As previously mentioned… the good of Dinwiddie was on the defensive side of the ball. JayC McDowell brokeup a pass and T-Mari Buford intercepted Kaleb Wyche.
On offense there was not much to brag about as there were two 3 & outs for the Generals. The only real positive on offense came via a pass interference against the Blue Devils.
Varina’s defense did not make it any easier on the Generals. Johaan Peyton had a pass breakup of his own and Jayden Walker continue to bring pressure rushing Zion Boisseau. DaMari Carter did have an INT late in the second half but it was ruled out of bounds.
3rd Quarter Highs & Lows
The high for Dinwiddie was a 26-yard drive to start the second half highlighted by a 12-yard pass to T’Mari Buford and brought down by Burton Robinson. That’s #12 for Dinwiddie tackled by #12 for a 12 yard game if you are into numerology.
Kaevon Wiggins who was somewhat quiet on offense did breakup a pass on defense. The Generals had the ball twice more but none as well put together as the first. An 8-play 23-yard drive started with promise with 40 yards off 3 different Zion Boisseau passes but a Raymond Hudson sack cost them them 17 yards.
The final Generals possession of the third quarter ended with just 9 yards to show for. On that drive A’Mari Bowers broke up a pass for Dinwiddie.
Varina continued to have no problem moving the ball with 2 drives in excess of 83 yards sparked by big plays. On a 5-play, 94-yard drive Michael Farley chugged ahead for 68 yards. That drive ended with Kaleb Wyche in the end zone from 15 yards out.
A 3-play, 83 yard drive culminated in a 68-yard hookup along the Generals sideline that ended with DaMari Carter in the end zone for a second time.
4th Quarter Highs & Lows
For Varina the fourth began with a high and more less ended with a high. The Blue Devils final touchdown drive of the night covered 58 yards in 7 plays with Kaleb Wyche taking the biggest chunk with 21 yards. Jabri Pearson put the finishing touches on the drive with two runs totaling 11 yards. He was the only Blue Devil not named Wyche or Carter to tag the end zone on this night.
Varina would have the ball twice more on offense with not much to show for as the second string would enter the game at this point on offense.
Dinwiddie’s struggles continued on offense. Their last possession of the night was beginning to feel as though it might end in breaking the shutout. The Generals put together a 5-play, 42-yard drive with 18 of those yards on the ground and 24 in the air. Zion Boisseau connected with T’Mari Buford with 2 passes for 15 yards then hitting Joshua Adams with 2 passes for 9 yards. Just as things were looking up for the Generals to end the game on a high note, DaMari Carter denied the Generals picking off Boisseau.
The pick evened the score in the turnover battle on this night for these two teams. Varina would be run a few plays, run out the clock and be able to run back to Route 5 knowing they have a date this Saturday in the region finals.
Varina 34, Dinwiddie 0 – Scoring Chart
| Play | Score | Time |
| 6-yard run from Kaleb Wyche. PAT blocked. | 6-0 – Varina | 1:51 (1Q) |
| 16-yard pass from Kaleb Wyche to DaMari Carter. Trevon Rogers-DaMari Carter 2pt conversion. | 14-0 – Varina | 4:37 (2Q) |
| 15-yard run from Kaleb Wyche. PAT good. | 21-0 – Varina | 7:56 (3Q) |
| 68-yard pass from Kaleb Wyche to DaMari Carter. PAT no good. | 27-0 – Varina | 3:08 (3Q) |
| 6-yard run from Jabri Pearson. PAT good. | 34-0 – Varina | 9:53 (4Q) |
Coach Speak
Varina Blue Devil Gamers
Michael Farley (2026 RB) had a sneaky good game without ever getting to tag the end zone himself. The first-year Blue Devil chugged 17 carries for 167 yards, an average of 9.8 yards per carry. He alongside his QB dominated the ground game.
That QB would be none other than Kaleb Wyche (2027 QB/DB) who did tag the end zone twice on the ground with 127 yards of his own. Wyche had 16 carries to his credit and was the epitome of dual threat. Kaleb completed 9 of his 13 passes for 195 yards & 2 TD’s.
How about Braylon Hood (2026 LB/FB/TE) who not only racked up 10 tackles but also made a splash on offense on the receiving end of a Wyche pass.
Jayden Walker (2026 LB/WR/TE) had a typical game with multiple tackles and not one but two quarterback hurries.
Post-Game Nuggets
This was just Varina’s 9th shutout in playoff history and third in the last two seasons.
This would be the first time Varina has ever shutout Dinwiddie.
Varina is now 5-0 all-time at the ‘Pit’ aka Dinwiddie’s home field.
Not only was Dinwiddie shutout for the first time since 2018 but it was also their first shutout in the playoffs since 1987.
The last two seasons Dinwiddie is 13-2 at home with their only losses to Varina.