Photo by LARRY HILLIARD Gaffney running back Kenard Lipscomb finds some running room against Nation Ford in first-quarter action on Friday. The Gaffney Indians won their game at Nation Ford on Friday the way they have many times this season — riding the shoulders of junior quarterback DeEdward Burris and a stingy defense.

Burris rushed for 142 yards, including an electrifying 45-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter to put the Indians up 14-0. He also completed 7 of his 16 passes for 154 yards.

Nation Ford finally got on the scoreboard with 1:13 left in the game when Will Ford caught a short touchdown pass from Thomas Condron, who passed for 170 yards. But the Falcons couldn’t get their ground game going. They gained just 70 yards for the game, with nearly half of the yards coming on J.J. McCollough’s 32-yard run late in the second quarter.

“I thought our kids played pretty good,” said Gaffney coach Phil Strickland after his team’s 31-7 victory. “We are still making a number of mistakes that we have to polish up.”

Just as in several other games, the Indians should have been up by more but missed on several scoring opportunities.

“We should have put more points on the board,” the Gaffney coach said.

To make matters worse, the outmanned Falcons battled the flu bug this week. According to Nation Ford coach Rusty Jester as many as 14 players missed practice with flulike symptoms.

But the Falcons showed some fight, battling the Indians on even terms through a quarter. But the Indians took advantage of the first of cornerback Tommy Logan’s two interceptions, driving 65 yards on just six plays. Rodney Rogers did most of the work on the drive with a couple of first down runs and a 25-yarder that put the ball at the 1. Fittingly, he scored on the next play to put the Indians up 7-0 after Josh Harris’ extra point.

The Indians cashed in on good field position after stopping Nation Ford’s fake field goal attempt. After converting a fourth-and-1, Burris broke several tackles on his way for a 45-yard touchdown with 5:43 left in the second quarter.

The Indians regained possession with 2:03 left before halftime and marched 58 yards for a 21- 0 lead. Following a 14-yard gain by Burris, Rogers took a pitch and scored on a 26-yard run. Rogers, who had been nursing a sore groin, sprained his ankle on the play and was held out of the remainder of the game.

That touchdown appeared to sap the remaining energy out of the Falcons. He finished with 83 yards on eight carries.

The Indians took the opening possession of the third quarter and drove to the Falcon 17 before the drive stalled with Harris connecting on a 33-yard field goal for a 24-0 lead.

Early in the fourth quarter, Burris unleashed a picture-perfect pass that hit wideout Khris Brown in stride for a 65-yard TD to cap the Indians’ scoring.

Nation Ford averted a shutout with 1:13 left in the game.

Gaffney (6-2, 2-0) hosts Fort Mill on Friday on Homecoming.

Game notes ... Despite the lopsided score, time of possession was nearly even with the Indians holding a 60 second advantage. Both Burris and Rodgers averaged more than 10 yards a rush against the outmanned Nation Ford defense ... Harris is a perfect 4 for 4 in field goal attempts ... Brown has 23 receptions with nine going for touchdowns.