Timmy Richmond and Carter Edwards played important roles in Lackawanna Trail\u2019s run to a District 2 Class 1A championship last season.<\/p>\n
But an athlete\u2019s future can change dramatically and without warning.<\/p>\n
In the PIAA quarterfinals, Richmond had two catches for 104 yards and scored the game\u2019s first touchdown, but he wasn\u2019t able to finish after tearing his ACL. The injury also put his senior season on hold.<\/p>\n
Edwards, a bruising fullback and tenacious linebacker, was eager to take over as a leader for the Lions in defense of their championship. He had only a few snaps in Week 1, before a hip injury put him out of action.<\/p>\n
Any injury can create challenges for a team like Lackawanna Trail, which traditionally has a small roster size. But add to the equation the fact that the Lions had graduated several all-state players and faced a daunting early season schedule, it was a recipe for rough start to this season.<\/p>\n
Without Richmond and Edwards it was even worse, as Lackawanna Trail lost its first four games.<\/p>\n
Richmond returned Sept. 25 and Edwards got back in action last week.<\/p>\n
Now, Lackawanna Trail, with two of its most dynamic players in the lineup, is looking to continue its improved play down the stretch. The Lions play Susquehanna on Saturday in a Lackawanna Football Conference Division III game at William Emminger Memorial Field at 1 p.m.<\/p>\n
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Fans will always remember Lackawanna Trail\u2019s 2025 season for the record-setting play of Isaac Ryon, the state Class 1A player of the year.<\/p>\n
The Lions were dominant, winning 12 games with a lineup that featured several All-Region players and LFC Division III all-stars.<\/p>\n
Richmond contributed 27 tackles. He also had 181 receiving yards and two touchdowns. With Ryon sitting out the first quarter of the PIAA quarterfinal game against Belmont Charter with an injury, Richmond struck with a 49-yard touchdown reception early in the second quarter.<\/p>\n
In the first half, the speedster also ran for 104 yards on kickoff returns before suffering his knee injury.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was fired up that night,\u201d Richmond said. \u201cI knew that Isaac was injured, and coach Jervis told me to step up. During that first kickoff return, when I got the ball, I felt extremely pumped up. \u2026 Then it happened. It was so tough. I thought my career was done. It scared me. Mentally, it really scared me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Recovering from an ACL surgery takes a toll physically and mentally on a teenager. The protocol requires discipline and commitment. There are long hours with little or no progress, and days when feeling strong that you must proceed with caution.<\/p>\n
There were trying days when Richmond feared his playing days were over.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did a lot of debating with myself,\u201d Richmond said. \u201cThe doctors cleared me in June, but I wasn\u2019t running right. I took some extra time to make sure that I was fully ready. I did a lot of weightlifting and drills.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was really hesitant about tearing it again. It was a noncontact injury, so I was concerned when making cuts, and it could be gone, and everything would be over.\u201d<\/p>\n
Still, Richmond followed the instructions of Lackawanna Trail\u2019s trainer Jackie Hickok. Her program and words of encouragement inspired him.<\/p>\n
\u201cTimmy, with an ACL, that is a long recovery,\u201d Hickok said. \u201cAfter his surgery, I said, \u2018We had a lot of work to do.\u201d He was hesitant and nervous at first, but I knew that if I motivated him, he would be back. He came back in the summer, and he worked with me all summer. I wanted him to know that football season was possible. He had to put in the work.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the proudest moment that I have had with a student-athlete in my career. He put in a tremendous amount of effort.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Week 5, Richmond received the all-clear to get back on the field in a game.<\/p>\n
Lackawanna Trail head coach Steve Jervis gave Richmond a carry early in the game. The 10 months of work were worth every day.<\/p>\n
\u201cCoach Jervis told me that he was calling a sweep to me,\u201d Richmond said. \u201cI got the ball, and I spun out of one tackle and stiff-armed another and got the ball down the field. It felt great. Even getting hit was amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Edwards also faced adversity dealing with a stress fracture early in 2025. He overcame that setback and was a factor running between the tackles and as a defensive ballhawk.<\/p>\n
He ran for 100 yards and a touchdown in a win over Old Forge and had six tackles in a PIAA first-round playoff win over Line Mountain.<\/p>\n
A contributor on one of Lackawanna Trail\u2019s most successful teams, Edwards wanted to assume a leadership role in his junior season.<\/p>\n
Then, while preparing to open the season against Western Wayne, he felt discomfort in his hip. He attempted to play through it, but the pain was too much. Edwards\u2019 season took a detour due to an avulsion fracture, which happens when a muscle contracts with so much force it pulls away a small piece of bone at the muscle\u2019s attachment point.<\/p>\n
There was no hesitation for Edwards. The timetable, however, and steady pain became frustrating, especially on game nights.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt like a lot of the younger guys looked up to me, and then for them to watch me go down, I felt that they could lose some confidence in me,\u201d Edwards said. \u201cIt really stunk.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce we figured out that it was a fracture, big shout-out to Jackie. She does an amazing job. She worked with me every day. You can\u2019t stretch the hip, but you can build back the strength of the muscles.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like Richmond, Edwards went to the trainer\u2019s room determined to get back. But his return date kept getting pushed back. He wanted to play, but had to take it slow.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is an overuse injury,\u201d Hickok said. \u201cSo, it was a waiting game for him. There were a lot of conservative treatments and mobility exercises. He came every single day and did everything I asked of him with the treatments. I told him to tell me when he was ready, then we started light running.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lackawanna Trail was 0-5 when the LFC Division III part of the schedule started last week. Edwards felt more than good enough and took the field against rival Old Forge.<\/p>\n
With the teams scoreless, Edwards got Lackawanna Trail on the board with a 16-yard run with 3 minutes left in the second quarter. The Lions carried the momentum to a 21-0 lead midway through the fourth, and they held on for a 21-14 win.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt great getting back out there,\u201d Edwards said. \u201cI didn\u2019t really know what it was going to feel like, if it was going to feel right. After the first few drives, I was only playing on defense, and I felt awesome. The coaches asked me how I felt, and I told them that I felt great. So they put me on offense. On the first play, the line opened a huge hole, and I scored. I am so grateful for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
So was Hickock.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe scored a touchdown last week, and I told him, \u2018Carter, you are back.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n
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Lackawanna Trail is a proud program.<\/p>\n
The Lions have won four straight District 2 championships and three consecutive LFC Division III titles.<\/p>\n
Both Richmond and Edwards have conquered adversity far worse than losing football games. They are healthy and appreciate the opportunities to play a sport they have enjoyed for a long time.<\/p>\n
They are determined to turn the team\u2019s fortunes around and reignite the excitement they have experienced at Lions Pride Stadium.<\/p>\n
More importantly, they are treasuring every moment, knowing how fleeting they can be in the sport.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust being able to wear this uniform is great,\u201d Richmond said. \u201cThis is one of my favorite things to do. I have been waiting a long time to experience it again.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Timmy Richmond and Carter Edwards played important roles in Lackawanna Trail\u2019s run to a District 2 Class 1A…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":303203,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[4855,305,178,180,179,726],"class_list":["post-303202","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-scranton","tag-gameface","tag-high-school-sports","tag-scranton","tag-scranton-headlines","tag-scranton-news","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=303202"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303202\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/303203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=303202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=303202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=303202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}