SMITHSBURG, Md. – Every successful product needs a pitchman.
You know, that someone who presents a memorable image.
These days, the Smithsburg football team is trying to solidify an identity. And the man for the job – at least for right now – is Nicolas Roncone.
On Friday, Roncone was everything Smithsburg is trying to sell in the 2026 season with a physical running style, especially in the second half, as the Leopards wore down and ran the Brunswick Railroaders off the tracks in a 28-6 victory.
Roncone scored two touchdowns, the second with a physical four-yard run near the beginning of the fourth quarter, that finished the sales pitch.
“We’ve got to stand for something, and that’s what I want the identity of the team to be,” said Smithsburg coach David Lawrence. “We got to be able to run the ball and be able to finish with the ball.”
The Leopards, who are 4-0 for the first time since 2008, turned the ground game into their calling card.
Smithsburg protected a 14-6 halftime lead by keeping 30 of the 31 second-half offensive plays on the ground. The only pass came on a fourth-and-14 play in an attempt to get a first down.
Roncone ran 14 of those plays for 68 yards and the score that put the Leopards up by two scores with 9:12 remaining.
It all came after hitting the reset button at the half.
“My coach told me just to hit the hole hard,” Roncone said. “So, I started running faster into the hole, get the yards I had, and then after that, start breaking tackles. And my line was doing good.
“(The Railroaders) were doing a wide zone. They kept biting over top, so I cut back through and then was able to break through tackles to dive into the end zone.”
Sounded simple, but the four-yard touchdown was a good one to hang an “identity” on.
Roncone carried the ball into the right side of Smithsburg’s line and got stopped. He kept his feet and did a slight stutter step in the middle of the traffic around him, giving his line a second chance.
He found the new opening and lunged to get the ball over the goal line for the touchdown.
“We talked to him at the half. He seemed a little hesitant at times,” Lawrence said. “He’s got a unique skill set. He’s got excellent vision. He’s got excellent patience. And he’s very shifty. He’s just a unique runner.
“Whereas, some of our other guys are more like bulls in the China shop, Nicolas kind of feels it out, sees creases and does things really well.”
Roncone’s runs helped open doors for the rest of the Leopards as Brunswick began to send defenders after him on almost every play, especially on Smithsburg’s final score of the game.
Zach Linn busted through the left side from the 5 for the clinching touchdown with 3:45 remaining. On the play, Roncone ran a sweep to the right with two Railroaders in pursuit to help open the hole.
Walker Clark connected on his fourth extra point, completing Smithsburg’s 28-point outburst and 14-0 second half.
“We were just taking what we had,” Roncone said. “We weren’t getting negatives (yardage on plays) and we’re trying to run out the clock.”
Each team started the game trying to figure out anything that would work to move the ball.
Smithsburg found the left side of Brunswick’s defense to their liking on the fifth play of its second possession.
Noah Hegbe took a handoff to the left, bounced off a tackle and broke free for a 52-yard touchdown run to give the Leopards a 7-0 lead at the 6:19 mark of the first quarter.
Smithsburg moved to a 14-0 lead when Roncone bulled through the middle of the Railroaders’ line for a six-yard touchdown with 9:35 remaining in the half to cap an eight-play, 46-yard drive that bridged over from the first quarter.
Brunswick answered with a 36-yard drive, which started on a short field because of a Smithsburg unsportsmanlike conduct penalty before the kickoff.
The Railroaders needed nine plays to score on a fourth-down swing pass from Cole Hoffman to Jacob Marker for the six-yard score. Smithsburg blocked the extra point to keep the score at 14-6 for the final 5:34 of the half.
After that, the Leopards played keep-away from the Railroaders with their running game.
“We’ve done it two weeks in a row, and that’s a credit to the offensive coaches, the kids, the offensive line,” Lawrence said. “We had a couple hiccups in the first half, but it seemed like they got focused. Brunswick maybe got a little tired. If we got the football and we can run the clock, it’s just smart football.”
Washington County scores
North Hagerstown 28, Central (Va.) 21
North Hagerstown got its offense rolling in the second half, to score 21 unanswered points to collect a road win.
Michael Stewart, who scored five times last week, posted the deciding touchdown on a four-yard run with 7:10 remaining to break a 21-21 tie. Chase Garver kicked his fourth extra point to cap the comeback win.
Central stuffed North’s offense in the first half, scoring three times and holding the Hubs to a 76-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Donald Rivers for their only score to be down 21-7 at the half.
North shut out Central in the second half.
Ronnie Savage ran for a nine-yard score in the third quarter to cut the deficit to seven before hitting Ryder Fox on a 10-yard scoring pass at the 9:19 mark of the fourth quarter to tie the game.
South Hagerstown 19, Thomas Johnson 16
Percell Clay III pulled in a 12-yard touchdown pass from Lucas Semler with 51 seconds remaining to lead the Rebels to their first win of the season.
Semler also scored on a one-yard run, while Jeffery Garcon had a 10-yard score.
Boonsboro 55, Catoctin 7
Williamsport 21, Northeast 6
Southern Garrett 41, Clear Spring 6
