Hillsboro Indians overcome adversity to defeat McClain in Rotary Bowl
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
HILLSBORO — The 2020 Rotary Bowl was a little different in Week 6 on Friday night at Richards Memorial Field. The annual rivalry game between the Hillsboro Indians and McClain Tigers included big plays through the air, big-time runs, a blocked punt for a touchdown, a game-changing personal foul call and even a field goal.
Once all of the dust settled between the two Highland County rivals, it was the Hillsboro Indians standing tall, ringing the victory bell and hoisting up the Rotary Bowl trophy for the fifth consecutive year, with a 21-16 win over the visiting Tigers.
With the win, Hillsboro now leads the all-time Rotary Bowl series against McClain, 24-12.
The 36th annual Rotary Bowl had many twists and turns for the Indians as this was their first win of the season, improving them to 1-5 overall (1-4 FAC), while the Tigers fell to 0-6 overall (0-5 FAC). Both teams have also opted to play in the OHSAA Division IV Playoffs next Saturday, but on Friday night, both teams left all they had on the field against their county foe.
“We made a lot of mistakes, but we were somehow able to overcome it tonight, so it feels good. But we could have been a lot better, and should have been a lot better,” Hillsboro head coach Jack O’Rourke said. “I don’t know how many fumbles we had, but they cost us dearly, and there was a blocked punt. All of those things happened, but it is great to win.
“We need to keep getting better. We have a big game next weekend against Unioto, and we have to do better than that next weekend.”
Coach O’Rourke talked about his team overcoming all the adversity they faced Friday night.
“We talked before the game that we have to have each other’s back and we had stay composed, and I think they did,” O’Rourke said.
The Rotary Bowl began with the Indians receiving the football, and after a lengthy return by Canaan Griffith in the Frontier Athletic Conference game, the Tribe began the first drive of the game on their own 49-yard line. As the Indians chipped away at the McClain defense — with short, well-time gains by Bryce Parsons, Chris Stout, Jayse Middleton and Travis Ross, plus a delay of game — the Indians ended up on the McClain 28-yard line with a fourth-and-9 situation.
The Indians didn’t sweat the pressure situation, as Stout found Griffith for a clutch 13-yard reception, giving the Indians a first down on the Tigers’ 15-yard line.
In this situation, the McClain defense bent, but they did not break because they had a tackle for loss by Landen Eubanks, followed by a fourth-and-three stop at the 7-yard line, with pressure from Justin Kegley forcing an incompletion and a turnover on downs.
The offense of McClain was held to a three-and-out, and when the Indians regained possession of the football, this time they reached the end zone on a 40-yard drive in five plays.
The first scoring drive of the game began with a rush of 32 yards by Parsons, followed by six more yards by the running back, taking the ball to the 2-yard line. There was no gain on third down, and on fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line, Parsons broke through the MHS defense for six points and a touchdown with 1:28 left in the first quarter. The PAT by Nick Turner was good, giving HHS a 7-0 lead.
Both teams forced their opponent into multiple punts, but McClain came back strong on a drive in the second quarter that began on their own 43-yard line. On first down, the Tigers saw quarterback Braden Wright (returning for the first time since a Week 1 injury) passing for a 5-yard gain to Max Eikenberry.
On second down, the Tigers gained 14 yards on a run by Trevor Stonerock, and later in the drive, Andrew Potts rushed for a 6-yard gain. On third-and-4 from the HHS 30-yard line, Wright showed no signs of rust with a 30-yard rush to the end zone for a touchdown with 3:19 left in the second frame. Braeden Bergstrom converted the PAT for a 7-7 tied score.
The celebration for the Tigers was short-lived, but they began a whole new celebration on the next drive by Hillsboro. After forcing the Indians to punt the ball from their own 35-yard line, McClain’s Cade Sponcil blocked the punt and picked up the loose football, then raced 33 yards for a touchdown with 2:55 left in the second quarter. HHS then blocked the PAT when Parsons showcased his skills on special teams, leaving the Tigers ahead, 13-7.
HHS began the ensuing drive by having a very good return on the kickoff by Ross, all the way to the McClain 42-yard line. On third down, the Indians went for it all and completed their goal as Stout found Griffith in the air for a 31-yard score, with Griffith beating man coverage for the touchdown catch with 57.5 seconds left on the scoreboard. The PAT by Turner was good again for a 14-13 HHS lead at halftime.
At the start of the second half, the Tigers didn’t fare well, and on third down, the drive was forced to a punting scenario after a sack by Zach Burns for a loss of eight yards. Two possessions later, it was McClain’s Stonerock forcing an HHS turnover as he ripped the ball away from the Hillsboro ball carrier, then recovered the loose football with 5:29 left in the third quarter.
McClain was later forced to punt, as were the Indians, but the next time the Tigers had the football, they turned the possession into points.
Starting the drive with 2:02 left in the third frame, a pass from Wright to Alexander Snyder resulted in a 14-yard gain. Next was a 5-yard carry by Wright, and later on third down, Hillsboro’s Burns had a tackle for loss, setting up fourth down on the HHS 20-yard line. The Tigers sent Bergstrom onto the field, and he put the Tigers in front with a 30-plus yard field goal for a 16-14 lead with around 20 seconds left in the third.
The Indians tried to answer with a long drive that took up nearly five minutes of game time, but a fumble on a run by the Indians was recovered by McClain’s Kegley on the 13-yard line with 8:25 left in the fourth quarter.
After the Tigers punted, and the Indians recovered their own fumble on the punt, HHS then fumbled on the first play from scrimmage, but Stout regained possession of the ball for Hillsboro to keep the drive alive.
That recovery wasn’t the only second chance the Indians had in the drive. The McClain defense forced a third-and-15 and held HHS to an incompletion, but on the play, a personal foul of roughing the quarterback was called on McClain, giving the Indians 15 yards and a automatic first down on the 30-yard line of McClain.
The Indians took advantage of this second chance on the very next play, as Parsons went through the defense of McClain, broke a couple tackle attempts and raced to the end zone for a 30-yard score with 6:09 left in the fourth quarter. The PAT by Turner was good, leaving the Indians ahead by what was the final score of 21-16.
Unofficially, Parsons finished with 152 yards rushing.
“That was just one of our base play, and we broke through,” O’Rourke said of the touchdown. “(McClain) was selling the blitz, and when we broke through the line of scrimmage, there wasn’t anyone left.”
McClain punted on the next possession, and the Indians were able to seal the win on a 26-yard run around the corner by Stout all the way to the 8-yard line, eventually running out the clock for the win.
Once all of the dust settled between the two Highland County rivals, it was the Hillsboro Indians standing tall, ringing the victory bell and hoisting up the Rotary Bowl trophy for the fifth consecutive year, with a 21-16 win over the visiting Tigers.
With the win, Hillsboro now leads the all-time Rotary Bowl series against McClain, 24-12.
The 36th annual Rotary Bowl had many twists and turns for the Indians as this was their first win of the season, improving them to 1-5 overall (1-4 FAC), while the Tigers fell to 0-6 overall (0-5 FAC). Both teams have also opted to play in the OHSAA Division IV Playoffs next Saturday, but on Friday night, both teams left all they had on the field against their county foe.
“We made a lot of mistakes, but we were somehow able to overcome it tonight, so it feels good. But we could have been a lot better, and should have been a lot better,” Hillsboro head coach Jack O’Rourke said. “I don’t know how many fumbles we had, but they cost us dearly, and there was a blocked punt. All of those things happened, but it is great to win.
“We need to keep getting better. We have a big game next weekend against Unioto, and we have to do better than that next weekend.”
Coach O’Rourke talked about his team overcoming all the adversity they faced Friday night.
“We talked before the game that we have to have each other’s back and we had stay composed, and I think they did,” O’Rourke said.
The Rotary Bowl began with the Indians receiving the football, and after a lengthy return by Canaan Griffith in the Frontier Athletic Conference game, the Tribe began the first drive of the game on their own 49-yard line. As the Indians chipped away at the McClain defense — with short, well-time gains by Bryce Parsons, Chris Stout, Jayse Middleton and Travis Ross, plus a delay of game — the Indians ended up on the McClain 28-yard line with a fourth-and-9 situation.
The Indians didn’t sweat the pressure situation, as Stout found Griffith for a clutch 13-yard reception, giving the Indians a first down on the Tigers’ 15-yard line.
In this situation, the McClain defense bent, but they did not break because they had a tackle for loss by Landen Eubanks, followed by a fourth-and-three stop at the 7-yard line, with pressure from Justin Kegley forcing an incompletion and a turnover on downs.
The offense of McClain was held to a three-and-out, and when the Indians regained possession of the football, this time they reached the end zone on a 40-yard drive in five plays.
The first scoring drive of the game began with a rush of 32 yards by Parsons, followed by six more yards by the running back, taking the ball to the 2-yard line. There was no gain on third down, and on fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line, Parsons broke through the MHS defense for six points and a touchdown with 1:28 left in the first quarter. The PAT by Nick Turner was good, giving HHS a 7-0 lead.
Both teams forced their opponent into multiple punts, but McClain came back strong on a drive in the second quarter that began on their own 43-yard line. On first down, the Tigers saw quarterback Braden Wright (returning for the first time since a Week 1 injury) passing for a 5-yard gain to Max Eikenberry.
On second down, the Tigers gained 14 yards on a run by Trevor Stonerock, and later in the drive, Andrew Potts rushed for a 6-yard gain. On third-and-4 from the HHS 30-yard line, Wright showed no signs of rust with a 30-yard rush to the end zone for a touchdown with 3:19 left in the second frame. Braeden Bergstrom converted the PAT for a 7-7 tied score.
The celebration for the Tigers was short-lived, but they began a whole new celebration on the next drive by Hillsboro. After forcing the Indians to punt the ball from their own 35-yard line, McClain’s Cade Sponcil blocked the punt and picked up the loose football, then raced 33 yards for a touchdown with 2:55 left in the second quarter. HHS then blocked the PAT when Parsons showcased his skills on special teams, leaving the Tigers ahead, 13-7.
HHS began the ensuing drive by having a very good return on the kickoff by Ross, all the way to the McClain 42-yard line. On third down, the Indians went for it all and completed their goal as Stout found Griffith in the air for a 31-yard score, with Griffith beating man coverage for the touchdown catch with 57.5 seconds left on the scoreboard. The PAT by Turner was good again for a 14-13 HHS lead at halftime.
At the start of the second half, the Tigers didn’t fare well, and on third down, the drive was forced to a punting scenario after a sack by Zach Burns for a loss of eight yards. Two possessions later, it was McClain’s Stonerock forcing an HHS turnover as he ripped the ball away from the Hillsboro ball carrier, then recovered the loose football with 5:29 left in the third quarter.
McClain was later forced to punt, as were the Indians, but the next time the Tigers had the football, they turned the possession into points.
Starting the drive with 2:02 left in the third frame, a pass from Wright to Alexander Snyder resulted in a 14-yard gain. Next was a 5-yard carry by Wright, and later on third down, Hillsboro’s Burns had a tackle for loss, setting up fourth down on the HHS 20-yard line. The Tigers sent Bergstrom onto the field, and he put the Tigers in front with a 30-plus yard field goal for a 16-14 lead with around 20 seconds left in the third.
The Indians tried to answer with a long drive that took up nearly five minutes of game time, but a fumble on a run by the Indians was recovered by McClain’s Kegley on the 13-yard line with 8:25 left in the fourth quarter.
After the Tigers punted, and the Indians recovered their own fumble on the punt, HHS then fumbled on the first play from scrimmage, but Stout regained possession of the ball for Hillsboro to keep the drive alive.
That recovery wasn’t the only second chance the Indians had in the drive. The McClain defense forced a third-and-15 and held HHS to an incompletion, but on the play, a personal foul of roughing the quarterback was called on McClain, giving the Indians 15 yards and a automatic first down on the 30-yard line of McClain.
The Indians took advantage of this second chance on the very next play, as Parsons went through the defense of McClain, broke a couple tackle attempts and raced to the end zone for a 30-yard score with 6:09 left in the fourth quarter. The PAT by Turner was good, leaving the Indians ahead by what was the final score of 21-16.
Unofficially, Parsons finished with 152 yards rushing.
“That was just one of our base play, and we broke through,” O’Rourke said of the touchdown. “(McClain) was selling the blitz, and when we broke through the line of scrimmage, there wasn’t anyone left.”
McClain punted on the next possession, and the Indians were able to seal the win on a 26-yard run around the corner by Stout all the way to the 8-yard line, eventually running out the clock for the win.