Dinwiddies Dalton breaks Richmond’s career touchdown record

The Dinwiddie senior quarterback completed a long touchdown pass to Kaevon Wiggins in the first half against visiting Prince George, his 136th career touchdown. The record was previously held by Dinwiddie graduate Adam Morgan, who had 135 career touchdowns.

Dalton, a senior dual-threat QB committed to the University of Southern California, came into the game with 134 touchdowns (79 rushing, 54 passing, one receiving).

When asked last week if he knew how close Dalton was to the record, Generals coach Billy Mills chuckled.

“I think we all kind of have the same mindset (Dalton). “We all just keep our heads down and ponder and let it all run its course in the end,” Mills said.

“It’s not a show for Harry. He really doesn’t care about stats. It’s crazy, especially with kids these days. But usually it’s guys like that who break (records).

Dalton never cared much about pursuing the goal, Mills said. The coach added that his senior QB, who led the Generals to a Class 4 state championship in 2022, sets the standard and culture for his program.

“If you ask Harry what’s number one for him, he’ll say whether we win or lose. “He’s the consummate team player,” Mills said.

“He doesn’t concern himself with such things. And if you look at people who have broken records in the past, these are the people who do that. It just happens because of what they do, not because they hunt them.”

Mills’ first year in charge at Dinwiddie was 2005, Morgan’s first year. Morgan owns a healthcare management company in Richmond and still visits Dinwiddie from time to time.

He knew Dalton was getting close and said he was excited that it was going to another general with the same approach to football, a mentality that Morgan said came from Mills’ guidance.

When Morgan set the record in 2008, he was called to a ceremonial ball handover at halftime. But he had no idea what was going on.

“We always focused on team goals and not the individual things,” said Morgan, who led Dinwiddie to a berth in the state championship that year, where the Generals faced a strong Phoebus team led by future NFL player Taj Boyd lost.

“It’s about teamwork, team ethics, you’re only as strong as your weakest link. So for us it’s always been about focusing on your task and making sure you’re doing the right thing. The culture is 100% focused on that. We don’t flash records, we don’t flash stats or anything like that. These are not things we focus on. We are focused on the opponent we will always play against.”

Morgan was there for Dinwiddie’s 2022 state championship victory and came to the field at Liberty University to celebrate with Dalton and company.

“It was a phenomenal moment between two Dinwiddie quarterbacks,” said Morgan, who played his own college ball at VMI.

With additional playoff games added to the VHSL schedule compared to Morgan’s playing time, he is surprised the record lasted as long as it did.

But he’s elated that Dalton, a fellow general who embraces his own team-first mentality, was the one to break it.

“I’m really proud of him, he’s going to USC, it’s a great thing for the program, it’s a great thing for himself as a young man,” Morgan said.

“I couldn’t ask for it from a better person, he is an extreme leader, he knows exactly what to do on and off the field. I wish him much success. If someone breaks the record, I’m glad it’s another Dinwiddie quarterback.”

Dalton is also closing in on Morgan’s record for career yards receiving (10,817), but will need to put together a series of big plays over the course of a long playoff series to break it. Before the Prince George game, Dalton totaled 9,453 yards (4,536 rushing, 4,874 passing, 43 receiving).