Lewis County stayed within two points through halftime before Robert C. Byrd pulled away for a 29-6 victory in the Minutemen's 2026 football opener Friday night in Weston.
Robert C. Byrd took a 2-0 lead late in the first quarter after Lewis County had trouble with a snap in its own end zone. The Eagles extended the margin on a 20-yard touchdown pass from Isaiah Heflin to Junior Smith, but Lewis County answered before the half. Quarterback Zeke Brown found Isaac Pickens out of the backfield for a 13-yard touchdown, sending the teams to halftime with RCB ahead 8-6.
The second half belonged to the Eagles. Smith turned a short pass into a 70-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Jason Green added a 36-yard scoring run in the fourth, and Heflin connected with Sean Adams for the final 29-yard touchdown.
Lewis County finished with 99 yards of offense. Brown completed 5 of 12 passes for 55 yards and the touchdown, while Pickens led the Minutemen on the ground with 29 yards. Heflin completed 14 of 21 passes for 271 yards and three touchdowns for RCB, and Smith finished with six catches for 146 yards.
The Minutemen are 0-1 and remain at home to face Keyser next week. The Weston Democrat's game report includes a full scoring recap and postgame reaction.