It didn’t take long for the Hun School football team to pick up where it left off last year as it hosted Royal Imperial Collegiate of Canada in its 2017 opener on Saturday.

Coming off an 8-0 campaign and riding a 22-game winning streak, Hun jumped out to a 7-0 lead less than two minutes into the contest, opening the floodgates for a rout. By the end of the first quarter, the Raiders led 35-0 and never looked back on the way to a 63-6 victory over the Knights.

Hun junior linebacker/running back Malcolm Brunson and his teammates were fired up to get their 2017 season underway.

“Overall I am pretty happy with the way our team played,” said Brunson. “We came out hard in the first quarter and we didn’t let up the whole game. We played great on both sides of the ball. On defense, we were relentless in our pursuit. On offense, we were making plays happen. All in all, I think we played great.”

Brunson, for his part, enjoys getting the chance to help out on both defense and offense.

“I feel like I am the tone setter of the defense; I like to play fast and physical,” said the 6’1, 215-pound Brunson, who rushed for 45 yards and a touchdown on five carries and had an interception.

“That is what I did today; I felt like I played good but I could play much better. I am the power back of the team; I like to feel the contact. There is a lot I have to improve, especially running the ball. My cuts need to be better. I love playing both sides of the ball, it is very energizing.”

While the Raiders feel good about extending their winning streak, that is not their main focus.

“The streak is great but we are all about taking care of business each and every week,” said Brunson.

Hun head coach Todd Smith liked the way his team took care of business in the opener.

“We went in healthy, we went in ready to go, firing on all cylinders,” said Smith.

“I think we stubbed our toe a little bit in the beginning but we picked it up as the quarter went on. It was a good test for us today this early in the season. It is the kind of team we don’t mind seeing. The kids got to play hard. We came out healthy and we got to see a lot of different kids play. Overall, I thought it was a pretty successful week one.”

In Smith’s view, Brunson’s hard play on both sides of the ball helped make Hun successful.

“Malcolm is just one of the kids in our stable that we have got back there,” said Smith.

“Malcolm has really come into his own this year. He is really dominating at the linebacker position. He is our power back. We love him.”

Senior quarterback Patrick Holly and junior running back Josh Henderson helped Hun dominate the Knights. Harvard-bound Holly passed for 303 yards and three touchdowns while Henderson rushed for 125 yards and two touchdowns on five carries.

“I am really happy with Patrick, we left some meat on the bone but overall, I think he had a great day,” said Smith. “Josh Henderson had a great day as well.”

With Hun hosting Stellar Preparatory High School from Hayward, Calif. on September 16, Smith wants his team to keep its nose to the grindstone.

“We already told them this game is over, we will watch the film on Monday and we will learn from it and it is done,” said Smith.

“We move on to the next week and we get ready for them. We just take it one day at a time and one practice at a time and we try to get better each day.”

Brunson, for his part, is ready to move ahead. “We have to keep doing what we are doing and not let up and have a great week of practice,” said Brunson.

“We are playing a team from California next week so I am pretty sure they will be ready to get after us. Overall, we have to stay focused, keep working hard, and we will be alright.”