OSAGE BEACH - Blair Oaks knew it had to maximize its points Friday night with a potent School of the Osage offense on the other side.
It seems 71 is the max.
The Falcons reached that mark for the third time this season in a 71-43 defeat of the Indians in the regular-season finale.
Blair Oaks scored a touchdown on 10 of its 12 possessions, while capitalizing on two fumble recoveries at the start of each half and reaching the end zone after each of Osage's two punts.
"We're not wanting to punt," Blair Oaks coach Ted LePage said. "We need to score on every possession, we know that."
Usually sporting a balanced offensive attack, the Falcons relied heavily on running the ball against the
Indians.
Quarterback Dylan Hair broke the Blair Oaks single-season rushing touchdown record on the team's first possession of the second half when he ran in for a 4-yard touchdown. It was his third of six rushing scores in the game.
Hair reached 29 rushing scores for the season Friday, surpassing Derek Otto's mark of 25 rushing scores in 2012.
"All the records, all the accolades, all the things that come with it, Dylan wants to win," LePage said. " He's become more and more of a leader every day."
Blair Oaks took 1:30 to score the first points on a 13-yard Hair run.
After Osage fumbled on its first offensive play, Zach Herigon caught a quick pass from Hair and scored a 6-yard touchdown. Nolan Laughlin booted the extra point for a 15-0 lead.
By halftime, the Falcons led 41-28 thanks to touchdown runs of 1 and 2 yards from Cadon Garber, a 2-yard run from Hair and a kickoff return touchdown for Herigon.
Osage found success on the ground as well with a 4-yard score from Derek Bradley, rushing scores of 57 and 66 yards from quarterback Brockton McLaughlin plus a a tough 2-yard score from Jackson Funderburk in the first half.
The Indians finished with more than 300 yards on the ground led by the shifty McLaughlin, who had 156 yards on 10 attempts.
Hair carried more of a load for the Falcons, running it 26 times for 192 yards and six touchdowns.
A fumble on the first play of the second half put the ball back into the Falcons' hands, leading to a 4-yard touchdown run for Hair.
A 2-point conversion pass from Hair to Herigon made it 49-28 less than a minute into the half.
Osage answered with a 70-yard drive, capping it with McLaughlin rolling to his right, reversing back to the left and throwing the ball to a wide-open Hunter Graber for a 2-yard scoring toss.
A 2-point conversion got the Indians within 49-36 at the 4:27 mark of the third quarter.
Derek Bradley scored the final touchdown for the Indians, breaking a tackle on his way for an 8-yard score with just 14 seconds left in the third quarter.
Zac Green made the extra point, making the score 57-43.
On the ensuing drive, Garber had runs of 24, 4 and 12 yards before Hair finished it off from a yard out for a 64-32 lead with 11:02 left.
"Cadon Garber had a big night for us," LePage said. "He was busting the ball in and out of things."
Hair scored the final touchdown of the game by keeping it up the middle, making a quick cut to the left and another to the right on his way to a 39-yard touchdown with 8:32 left.
Blair Oaks finishes the regular season 7-2, 5-2 in the Tri-County Conference.
Osage is 3-6 overall and 1-6 in the Tri-County.
The Falcons and Indians will meet again next Friday night as they begin Class 3 District 5 play in Wardsville.