WINTHROP – Carter Rivers. Cody Cobb.

It didn’t matter which of the two-headed rushing threat of the Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale football team had the ball on Friday night, big gains were going to follow.

Rivers had 145 yards on 19 carries, while Cobb had 96 yards on 15 carries, along with three touchdowns, to lead the Ramblers to a 35-6 victory over Freeport in a Class D South game at Charlie’s Field.

“It’s a great feeling,” said Cobb, a senior running back. “We kind of shot ourselves in the foot in the third quarter, but we’re just happy to be 3-0 and moving on to the next game.”

Winthrop (3-0) accounted for 346 offensive yards, 318 of which were on the ground. The Ramblers’ first touchdown of the night, however, was through the air, when senior quarterback Braden Branagan hit a wide open Brody Adams on a 28-yard strike. Gabe Robinson’s extra point gave Winthrop a 7-0 lead.

From there, Winthrop pounded the Falcons (1-2) with its run game, either with a dive up the middle with Cobb, or a toss to the outside with Rivers. Cobb scored the next two touchdowns for the Ramblers, first on a 13-yard run, followed shortly thereafter by a 30-yard return off a blocked punt to give Winthrop an early 21-0 lead.

“I have to give (all the credit) to our (offensive) line,” said Rivers, a senior running back. “Without our line, nothing would happen. They make holes where I go untouched for a solid 5 yards. It’s all our line, really. They’re really the best line in the state.”

“I’m a huge downhill runner guy,” said Ramblers head coach Joel Stoneton. “I’m extremely happy (with the run game)… Carter is amazing. Some of the cutbacks that he makes are unbelievable. But he’ll tell you, he has 5 yards to read the field. That’s pretty awesome.”

Freeport answered midway through the second quarter, when senior quarterback Teddy Peters hit senior receiver David Ulrickson on a crossing pattern for an 89-yard touchdown, cutting Winthrop’s lead to 21-6. Winthrop responded with a 58-yard drive, capped by a 1-yard scoring run by Branagan, giving the Ramblers a 28-6 halftime lead.

Winthrop’s final score came late in the third quarter on a 10-yard touchdown run by Cobb.

The Ramblers’ defense was also impressive, forcing four turnovers, including three fumbles, out of Freeport.

“Our defensive line is so dominant,” Rivers said. “(Freeport) is a pass-heavy team. They only have a solid two seconds before our line gets in there. They’re (forced) to make a quick decision and that’s a hard thing to do.”

The only downside for Winthrop on the evening was penalties, as two potential touchdowns were called back.

“I’m very frustrated with the second half, not being able to sustain drives and through penalties,” Stoneton said. “We talk all week about details. I can handle holding calls. I can’t handle some stuff we do after the plays and I really struggle with procedural (penalties). We’ve got to clean some stuff up. I wanted to play a cleaner game, and so did the boys.”

Though outmanned, Peters hung tough in the pocket all evening, completing 5 of 20 passes for 152 yards. He also had 50 yards rushing on eight carries. Ulrickson had 121 yards on three receptions.

Sophomore running back Carter Rand had 43 rushing yards on four carries in mop-up duty for the Ramblers.