Parkersburg quarterback Alex Greer (24) looks to pass during Thursday’s game against Morgantown. (Photo by Ben Powell/The Dominion Post)

MORGANTOWN — The beginning of every new football season brings nerves for every single player taking the field for the first time that year.

After shaking off the jitters in the opening five minutes of the game, the Morgantown High School football team dug its heels into the turf. It refused to be stopped on the way to a 44-7 victory over Parkersburg on Thursday night at Pony Lewis Field in the annual WVSSAC Kickoff Game presented by the West Virginia National Guard.

Morgantown (1-0) gained 536 yards of total offense in the contest, nearly earning the same amount of yards on the ground (266) and they did through the air (270), averaging 13.4 yards each play.

MHS sophomore quarterback Maddox Twigg led his team with 240 yards in the air on 12 completions (16 attempts) and two touchdowns. He also rushed six times for 81 yards and another score, which came on a 67-yard touchdown tote that opened the scoring in the first quarter.

Sylas Cheuvront led Parkersburg (0-1) with 42 yards on eight carries and the lone touchdown scored by the visitors. Quarterbacks Alex Greer and Tyler Cameron each completed seven passes. Greer started the game and earned 87 yards, but threw an interception, while Cameron totaled 68. Brady Thorn caught four passes for 56 yards.

Parkersburg head coach Matt Kimes celebrates with players after a big play during Thursday’s game against Morgantown. (Photo by Ben Powell/The Dominion Post)

“We definitely had some nerves coming into a big game with all the media here and the cameras everywhere and the great atmosphere, but I thought we settled in and I was proud of our guys’ performance,” MHS head coach Sean Biser said. “We came out and had an early pick, but our defense dug in, and that’s just what you have to have. It’s not about if adversity will hit; it’s about when, and it showed up early tonight, but we handled it well.”

The interception mentioned by Biser came on just the second play of the game as Twigg’s first pass hit Cheuvront in the numbers. But the Mohigans’ defense lifted their offense up with a stop on fourth-and-one on the MHS 17.

The MHS offense returned, and after two consecutive completions to Carter Cooper, Twigg took the ball 67 yards for the opening score of the game, weaving in and out of defenders on his way to the endzone.

That gave the Mohigans the boost they needed on both sides of the ball as the defense got another fourth-down stop. Three plays later for the Mohigans’ offense, Twigg connected with Jayden Smalls for a 70-yard strike that doubled the lead, 14-0. MHS added its third score of the opening 12 minutes when Cooper scampered 78 yards on the ground as time expired in the first.

“Once we got that first touchdown, I thought our energy started going up,” Twigg said. “We really started clicking as the game went on. Our receivers have some great hands, and they’re fast guys. They’re a huge part of our game and success, and I love throwing to all of them.”

Parkersburg’s Sylas Cheuvront (2) carries the ball during Thursday’s game against Morgantown. (Photo by Brian Cox Photography)

Both teams punted to open the second quarter, but on Parkersburg’s second drive, MHS senior Zaiden Lockett intercepted a pass by Greer. Thompson then ran 42 yards to the house to put MHS ahead 27-0. The Mohigans added three more before the half on a 31-yard field goal by Clifton Shreeves to take a 30-0 lead into the half.

“Last year we relied a lot on AJ Thomas and got the ball in his hands a lot, this year, with the tweaks we’ve made, we are spreading the ball around,” Biser said. “And we have some guys who can really do some impressive things on the field when the have the ball.”

MHS capped its scoring in the third. Twigg found Cooper for a 53-yard passing touchdown before Thompson punched home from a yard away on the following drive.

Parkersburg secured its only points of the game as Cheuvront scampered home from 13 yards out late in the fourth with a running clock, trailing 44-0.

MHS will enjoy an extra day this week before heading to the Eastern Panhandle for a visit with Jefferson next Friday. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. at Jefferson High School.