SCOL Sports History: McClain beats Trace for first time since 1967
By
Bob Patton-
As the member schools in the South Central Ohio League prepared to open the 1980 football season, the league coaches were predicting a four-team race for the title. Miami Trace, Hillsboro, Circleville and Washington C.H. were expected to slug it out for the big trophy.
Miami Trace, under Coach Doug James in his second year at the helm, had lost a lot of people through graduation. But the Panthers still had quite a number of skilled players in the fold, and should be a tough game for any of the league schools.
Coach Larry Cook was in his ninth year at Circleville. The Tigers were ranked as high as fourth in the state in the 1979 season, but were defeated on the road by both Miami Trace and Teays Valley, and dropped completely out of the picture. This year, Coach Cook had three all-leaguers coming back, including quarterback Brad Fisher and fullback Stuart Payne. They also had a number of very big linemen coming up to replace the ones they lost through graduation. They figured to be in the thick of the race in 1980.
Jim “Tate” Taylor did an outstanding job with the Hillsboro Indians in his first year at the helm in 1979. But the Indians suffered heavy losses through graduation, and would be replacing virtually their entire squad this season. Only three of 22 starters were returning.
The Indians’ only returning starter on offense was quarterback Brian Price, a fierce competitor for his size. The Tribe would have little depth and a lot of players would have to play both offense and defense. If they could avoid suffering too many injuries, they could be in the middle of the scramble.
Teays Valley also suffered heavy graduation losses. Fullback Matt Miller and tailback John Sanders both graduated, leaving some big shoes to fill for the Vikings. Starting quarterback Rusty Sturgill, the league’s fourth leading passer last year was back, giving Coach Bob Crable something to build around.
The Wilmington Hurricane had their third head coach in the last four years. Bob White, a former first team All-American fullback at Ohio State, had been called upon to resurrect the Wilmington program which had produced a 3-17 record over the past two years.
Quarterback Randy Ramseyer, who led the SCOL in intercepted passes last season, and Roger Wilt, who had been moved to fullback, were the chief returning starters, although there were a couple of others. Most of the league coaches agreed that Wilmington would be improved.
Madison-Plains had a new coach, Mike Michaels, who replaced Eric France. Michaels had been defensive coordinator for two years, so he wasn’t new to the MP program. The Golden Eagles had also been hard hit by graduation. Pat Blackburn, a wide receiver (and a defensive back) an All-SCOL performer on both offense and defense, had graduated, along with three year starting quarterback Chris Emrich and running back Dan Richardson, the Eagles’ leading scorer and rusher. Emrich had led the SCOL passers in his junior year and was second last season. This trio would not be easy to replace. MP would be a young team, and Michaels expected this to be a rebuilding year.
Fourteen lettermen were returning at Greenfield McClain. The Tigers would feature experience and talent at the skill positions. Coach Larry Fouch felt that the Tigers would be very balanced between the running game and passing game. This year, the Tigers would be using the winged T, which Fouch hoped would highlight the running game. He expected the McClain club to be much more competitive.
Washington C.H. was on everybody’s list to be a serious contender for the league football crown. Coach Paul Ondrus, who was in his fifth year, had never had a team finish above .500. The Lions had their entire offensive backfield returning and had lost only a few starters through graduation.
Quarterback Jon Thomas led the SCOL in passing last year, and was throwing the ball well this season. Several good receivers were back, as well, led by All-Leaguer Todd Herman, Jackie Persinger and Ted Oesterle. Offensive tackle Victor Cales, 6’6” and 260 lbs would anchor the line for WCH.
The first three weeks of the season featured non-league contests, which don’t tell the observer much because so much depends upon the quality of the opposition.
Circleville was the only SCOL team to make it through the non-league season with a 3-0 mark, defeating Hamilton Twp., Chillicothe and Athens.
Miami Trace, who had won six consecutive SCOL crowns, was 1-2 in non-league games, beating Dayton Dunbar but losing to West Carrolton and Columbus South. Wilmington and Madison-Plains were also 1-2, but Wilmington lost to Xenia which was nearly an annual event. Washington, McClain and Hillsboro were all 2-1, and Teays Valley was 0-2-1. Washington had beaten Chillicothe and Hamilton Twp. But lost to West Jefferson. Hillsboro had beaten Frankfort Adena and lost to New Richmond.
On the first night of the SCOL season, McClain proved that they were for real by walloping Miami Trace, 22-8. It was the first time since 1967 that McClain had beaten the Panthers in football.
Teays Valley, playing at Hillsboro, gave the Indians all they wanted, and the game ended in a 14-14 tie.
At Circleville, the Tigers won the battle of statistics, but Washington scored the points and the Blue Lions came out on top, 12-8.
Wilmington traveled to Madison-Plains, where they dumped the Golden Eagles, 26 – 0. So, McClain, Washington and Wilmington were all 1-0, Hillsboro and Teays Valley were 0-0-1, and Madison-Plains, Circleville and Miami Trace were 0-1.
The following Friday night, saw Washington C.H. hand Miami Trace its second consecutive league loss by trouncing the Panthers, 42-12. This was Coach Paul Ondrus’ first win over MT and he was in his fifth year as coach of the Blue Lions.
Elsewhere, Wilmington spoiled Teays Valley’s Homecoming festivities by walloping the Vikings 27-0 on the TV field and, in Circleville, the Tigers and the visiting Hillsboro Indians staged a terrific, hard-fought game in which Circleville came out on top, 22-21, when Hillsboro’s 37-yard field goal attempt fell short on the last play of the game.
At Greenfield, the McClain Tigers won their Homecoming game over Madison-Plains, 24-0. In an impressive ceremony prior to the game, attractive MHS senior Krista Clouser was crowned 1980 Homecoming Queen. Her court included queen’s attendant Wanda Scheeler, senior attendant Tammy Edgington, junior attendant Pam Scheeler, sophomore attendant Jeri Knisley and freshman attendant Noelle Warfield.
Only two games into the SCOL season, McClain, Washington and Wilmington were 2-0. Circleville was 1-1, Hillsboro and Teays Valley were 0-1 with one tie, and Madison-Plains and Miami Trace were both 0-2.
On Friday night, Oct. 3, Washington visited Hillsboro. The Blue Lions dominated the Indians in this one, particularly defensively. The Indians were only able to accumulate 55 yards of offense, compared to 334 yards by the blue and white. The final score was WCH 28, HHS 0. The Indians completed only four passes for a total of 14 yards.
Meanwhile, at Wilmington, the Hurricane scored a fourth quarter touchdown to edge McClain, 7-3. Neither team was very impressive with their offensive efforts but both played very tough defense. McClain was hurt by several holding penalties.
(Continued next week.)
Bob Patton is a Highland County sports historian and a contributing writer to The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]
Miami Trace, under Coach Doug James in his second year at the helm, had lost a lot of people through graduation. But the Panthers still had quite a number of skilled players in the fold, and should be a tough game for any of the league schools.
Coach Larry Cook was in his ninth year at Circleville. The Tigers were ranked as high as fourth in the state in the 1979 season, but were defeated on the road by both Miami Trace and Teays Valley, and dropped completely out of the picture. This year, Coach Cook had three all-leaguers coming back, including quarterback Brad Fisher and fullback Stuart Payne. They also had a number of very big linemen coming up to replace the ones they lost through graduation. They figured to be in the thick of the race in 1980.
Jim “Tate” Taylor did an outstanding job with the Hillsboro Indians in his first year at the helm in 1979. But the Indians suffered heavy losses through graduation, and would be replacing virtually their entire squad this season. Only three of 22 starters were returning.
The Indians’ only returning starter on offense was quarterback Brian Price, a fierce competitor for his size. The Tribe would have little depth and a lot of players would have to play both offense and defense. If they could avoid suffering too many injuries, they could be in the middle of the scramble.
Teays Valley also suffered heavy graduation losses. Fullback Matt Miller and tailback John Sanders both graduated, leaving some big shoes to fill for the Vikings. Starting quarterback Rusty Sturgill, the league’s fourth leading passer last year was back, giving Coach Bob Crable something to build around.
The Wilmington Hurricane had their third head coach in the last four years. Bob White, a former first team All-American fullback at Ohio State, had been called upon to resurrect the Wilmington program which had produced a 3-17 record over the past two years.
Quarterback Randy Ramseyer, who led the SCOL in intercepted passes last season, and Roger Wilt, who had been moved to fullback, were the chief returning starters, although there were a couple of others. Most of the league coaches agreed that Wilmington would be improved.
Madison-Plains had a new coach, Mike Michaels, who replaced Eric France. Michaels had been defensive coordinator for two years, so he wasn’t new to the MP program. The Golden Eagles had also been hard hit by graduation. Pat Blackburn, a wide receiver (and a defensive back) an All-SCOL performer on both offense and defense, had graduated, along with three year starting quarterback Chris Emrich and running back Dan Richardson, the Eagles’ leading scorer and rusher. Emrich had led the SCOL passers in his junior year and was second last season. This trio would not be easy to replace. MP would be a young team, and Michaels expected this to be a rebuilding year.
Fourteen lettermen were returning at Greenfield McClain. The Tigers would feature experience and talent at the skill positions. Coach Larry Fouch felt that the Tigers would be very balanced between the running game and passing game. This year, the Tigers would be using the winged T, which Fouch hoped would highlight the running game. He expected the McClain club to be much more competitive.
Washington C.H. was on everybody’s list to be a serious contender for the league football crown. Coach Paul Ondrus, who was in his fifth year, had never had a team finish above .500. The Lions had their entire offensive backfield returning and had lost only a few starters through graduation.
Quarterback Jon Thomas led the SCOL in passing last year, and was throwing the ball well this season. Several good receivers were back, as well, led by All-Leaguer Todd Herman, Jackie Persinger and Ted Oesterle. Offensive tackle Victor Cales, 6’6” and 260 lbs would anchor the line for WCH.
The first three weeks of the season featured non-league contests, which don’t tell the observer much because so much depends upon the quality of the opposition.
Circleville was the only SCOL team to make it through the non-league season with a 3-0 mark, defeating Hamilton Twp., Chillicothe and Athens.
Miami Trace, who had won six consecutive SCOL crowns, was 1-2 in non-league games, beating Dayton Dunbar but losing to West Carrolton and Columbus South. Wilmington and Madison-Plains were also 1-2, but Wilmington lost to Xenia which was nearly an annual event. Washington, McClain and Hillsboro were all 2-1, and Teays Valley was 0-2-1. Washington had beaten Chillicothe and Hamilton Twp. But lost to West Jefferson. Hillsboro had beaten Frankfort Adena and lost to New Richmond.
On the first night of the SCOL season, McClain proved that they were for real by walloping Miami Trace, 22-8. It was the first time since 1967 that McClain had beaten the Panthers in football.
Teays Valley, playing at Hillsboro, gave the Indians all they wanted, and the game ended in a 14-14 tie.
At Circleville, the Tigers won the battle of statistics, but Washington scored the points and the Blue Lions came out on top, 12-8.
Wilmington traveled to Madison-Plains, where they dumped the Golden Eagles, 26 – 0. So, McClain, Washington and Wilmington were all 1-0, Hillsboro and Teays Valley were 0-0-1, and Madison-Plains, Circleville and Miami Trace were 0-1.
The following Friday night, saw Washington C.H. hand Miami Trace its second consecutive league loss by trouncing the Panthers, 42-12. This was Coach Paul Ondrus’ first win over MT and he was in his fifth year as coach of the Blue Lions.
Elsewhere, Wilmington spoiled Teays Valley’s Homecoming festivities by walloping the Vikings 27-0 on the TV field and, in Circleville, the Tigers and the visiting Hillsboro Indians staged a terrific, hard-fought game in which Circleville came out on top, 22-21, when Hillsboro’s 37-yard field goal attempt fell short on the last play of the game.
At Greenfield, the McClain Tigers won their Homecoming game over Madison-Plains, 24-0. In an impressive ceremony prior to the game, attractive MHS senior Krista Clouser was crowned 1980 Homecoming Queen. Her court included queen’s attendant Wanda Scheeler, senior attendant Tammy Edgington, junior attendant Pam Scheeler, sophomore attendant Jeri Knisley and freshman attendant Noelle Warfield.
Only two games into the SCOL season, McClain, Washington and Wilmington were 2-0. Circleville was 1-1, Hillsboro and Teays Valley were 0-1 with one tie, and Madison-Plains and Miami Trace were both 0-2.
On Friday night, Oct. 3, Washington visited Hillsboro. The Blue Lions dominated the Indians in this one, particularly defensively. The Indians were only able to accumulate 55 yards of offense, compared to 334 yards by the blue and white. The final score was WCH 28, HHS 0. The Indians completed only four passes for a total of 14 yards.
Meanwhile, at Wilmington, the Hurricane scored a fourth quarter touchdown to edge McClain, 7-3. Neither team was very impressive with their offensive efforts but both played very tough defense. McClain was hurt by several holding penalties.
(Continued next week.)
Bob Patton is a Highland County sports historian and a contributing writer to The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]