Randleman tops Lexington as conference play begins

RANDLEMAN — Only one Randolph County high school football team has entered conference action through Week 6 of the 2026 season, so when the Randleman Tigers kicked off the Piedmont Athletic Conference season last Friday night, they were certainly ready.

The Tigers began league play with a 29-16 homecoming victory over Lexington last week and will head to Montgomery Central for another league contest this Friday with a 2-4 overall record.

An injury-riddled RHS team found a stout running attack and used that to control the game and never relinquish a lead it established in the first quarter. The Tigers rushed for 228 yards and four scores in the contest.

“We came in with a game plan, knowing we’re pretty banged up with being a small 4-A school, we don’t have much depth,” second-year RHS head coach David Diamont said. “We needed to be efficient from an energy expenditure standpoint. We established the run, started moving the chains and started wearing that clock down. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Kayden Saunders and Christian McNair took advantage of strong line play as Saunders recorded 149 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries and McNair added 67 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries.

“Our kids ran hard and the kids up front accepted the challenge,” Diamont said as his team took a 15-7 halftime advantage. “I’m very, very proud of our run game and the blocking of our receivers and line.”

Randleman has now won the past four meetings in the all-time series, which Lexington now leads 11-7. LHS won the first eight meetings of the series, which started in 1985.

Reid Herring scored on a 1-yard run and threw a two-point conversion pass to Tim Burgess and Jeremy Vasquez hit three PATs for the Tigers. Lincoln Lawson and Harold Trey Burnette each had three receptions.

The RHS defense was stout as well.

‘Our defense played extremely well,” Diamont said. “Executed the game plan, had a good game plan and guys stepped up in what might have been their second or third game starting at this level.”

The Tigers improved their RPI standing to 31 among 4-A teams.

“This is very different,” Diamont said of the second year in which playoff teams are determined solely with the RPI number without regard for how a team finishes in its conference. “I think back in my day, my approach as an assistant coach for years and years and years was that the conference season was like your second season. A conference champion, being a conference champion is a goal to strive for. When the conference season starts, the ultimate goal is to win the conference championship. Our kids are still very hungry for the potential of winning a conference championship. Let’s go put a banner in the gym.”