The Eleanor Roosevelt Raiders (Greenbelt, MD) started the season off with a serious statement September 1, putting a beating on the Norview Pilots (Norfolk, VA) 36-14.

The raiders return to a winning form after exiting the playoffs last year losing to the Charles H. Flowers Jaguars (Springdale, MD) in a do-or-die playoff match. This year’s team returns no starters from last year, as they lost a huge senior class after finishing the regular season 10-0 in 2011.

Quarterback James Warren, new-found running back and Laurel High School transfer Mike Mofor, and running back and return man Darius Major look to lead this 2012 team to a state championship appearance. They have a tough schedule, with powerhouses Suitland and Wise near the end of the season.

Junior running back Elijah Liverette expressed confidence that the progress the team has made in practice will translate into a state championship on the field.

“During tryouts, we weren’t really a team… Now we know what kind of team we have and the potential…” He says he wants to have “won the state championship and [gone] undefeated.”

The Raiders opened conference play Saturday at the Bowie Bulldogs, where they took a 22-21 win in the midst of a tornado. The storm came in the middle of the fourth quarter, and play was stopped for about an hour with 4:33 left. After play resumed, the Raiders prevailed, preventing Bowie from scoring for the remainder of the game.

The Raiders play Henry Wise this Saturday at 2 p.m., and Oxon Hill for their homecoming game September 22.