By John RittenhouseThe Adrian Dragons ran their football record to 3-0 after thumping Russell-Tyler-Ruthton 43-24 in Adrian Friday.AHS senior quarterback Levi Bullerman tossed for three touchdown passes in the first half and senior tailback Billy Anderson ran for 103 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Dragons to a 19-point win over an injury-plagued Knights squad.R-T-R, the defending Red Rock Conference champions, entered the game at an offensive disadvantage. With the starting quarterback, fullback and wide receiver on the sidelines with injuries, it was a bad time for the Knights to face a fired-up AHS squad."They were dinged up," said Dragon coach Randy Strand. "They were missing some kids who could have made some plays for them."Injuries aside, R-T-R would have been hard-pressed to stop Adrian’s impressive offensive performance Friday. The Dragons racked up 432 total yards in the game and scored 22 points in the first 9:51 of play.Bullerman, who completed 11 of 14 passes for 18 yards in the game, did most of his damage in the first quarter. Bullerman threw two touchdown passes in the first quarter and set up another score with a long pass when the Dragons opened a 22-0 lead they would never relinquish."We felt that we could get at them through the air early," Strand said. "Actually, our entire game plan worked pretty well. We were able to pass the ball, and we did a good job of holding down Minett (Kyle, R-T-R’s standout running back). Minett ran for 300 yards against us last year, and we held him to 110 yards this time. We did a good job of getting him on the ground."Three explosive plays left the Dragons sporting a 6-0 lead 36 seconds into the game.After Bullerman returned the opening kickoff 43 yards into R-T-R territory, he tossed a 33-yard pass to Clint Metz and moved the ball to the Knights’ six-yard line on the first play from scrimmage. Anderson scored on a six-yard run during the next play, giving the Dragons their six-point advantage at the 11:24 mark of the opening period.The Dragons came up with another key play when R-T-R was forced to punt as the first period progressed.A bad snap from center led to the R-T-R punter being tackled at the AHS 20-yard line. On the first play of the possession, Bullerman tossed a 20-yard touchdown pass to Brent Tjepkes at the 5:35 mark of the opening period. Anderson carried in the two-point conversion to make it a 14-0 game.Adrian received another key special-teams play when R-T-R fumbled the ball during the kickoff return following Tjepkes’ touchdown. Anderson recovered the fumble on the R-T-R 47, setting up a seven-play drive that ended with Bullerman throwing a 17-yard touchdown pass to Tjepkes. Bullerman then threw a successful conversion pass to Brett Block, giving the Dragons a 22-0 lead at the 2:09 mark of the first period.The score remained 22-0 until the final minute of the first half, when both teams managed to register one touchdown.R-T-R trimmed the difference to 16 points (22-16) at the end of a 16-play, 77-yard drive that ended with Minett scored on a three-yard run with 40 seconds left in the second period.The Dragons marched 55 yards during the next possession, which ended with Bullerman throwing a 30-yard touchdown pass to Block as time expired. Bullerman added the extra point to make it a 29-6 game at halftime.Adrian turned its first possession of the first half into a 36-6 advantage. The Dragons marched 59 yards in six plays, with Tony Sauer scoring on a 10-yard run at the 8:17 mark of the third quarter. Bullerman booted the extra point to make it a 30-point difference.R-T-R countered with a 12-play, 70-yard drive that ended with Minett scoring on a three-yard run with 3:12 left in the third stanza. A pass for the two-point conversion failed, leaving the Dragons with a 36-12 lead.Minett scored his third touchdown of the game on a one-yard run early in the fourth quarter, but the Dragons answered with an eight-play, 57-yard drive capped by a three-yard touchdown run by Anderson. Bullerman’s extra point gave AHS a 43-18 lead.R-T-R capped the scoring when Brandon Johnson threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Drew Mikelsen with 3:31 left in the game.The Dragons will play RRC unbeaten Fulda in Fulda Friday.Team statisticsAdrian: 252 rushing yards, 180 passing yards, 432 total yards, 17 first downs, six penalties for 57 yards, zero turnovers.R-T-R: 140 rushing yards, 110 passing yards, 250 total yards, eight first downs, two penalties for 10 yards, one turnover.Individual statisticsRushing: Anderson 19-103, Sauer 6-41, Bullerman 7-53, Metz 2-7, Brandon Biekmann 2-19, Tyler Vaske 2-21, Glen Kruger 1-6, Reid Strand 1-2.Passing: Bullerman 11-14 for 180 yards.Receiving: Metz 1-33, Tjepkes 3-54, Block 3-36, Reverts 1-15, Anderson 2-34, Sauer 1-8.Defense: Bullerman 14 tackles, Metz 14 tackles, Sauer 13 tackles, Casey Knips 12 tackles and one deflected pass, Anderson one fumble recovery.