Tigers race way to 2nd straight win
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
CHILLICOTHE — An army of Shermans couldn't even stop the McClain Tiger football team Friday night. For the seventh straight year, the Tigers defeated the Unioto Shermans, and this year they used their running game, while also converting turnovers into touchdowns.
The game began with the game ball brought in by helicopter, but it was the Tigers who kept the game on the ground, totaling 407 yards of rushing and 424 yards of total offense.
Tiger senior quarterback Thomas Schrader, a senior, was the leading rusher for MHS as he scrambled, maneuvered and raced his way for 190 yards (11.2 yards per carry). Fellow senior Dillon Hunick also totaled 100-plus yards on the ground, finishing with 134 yards on 15 carries, averaging 8.9 ypc.
Schrader finished with three touchdown runs of 66, 17 and 20 yards, respectively. Hunick had a 54-yard touchdown run, and junior Ryan Faulconer scored on a 23-yard rush as he totaled 52 yards total on eight carries.
"They are dynamic players," MHS head coach Randy Closson said of his three leading rushers. "Ryan is a big, strong kid and does a heck of a job. We are trying to spread out the workload a little bit and lessen the blows each kid takes.
"We have some depth there … Dillon is a home run hitter. He has the speed, and if you give him a gap, he can go. It is nice to be able to mix and match, move people around in there. We wanted to make sure we spread out the carries in our offense. We still have a long season ahead of us, and everyone was contributing in a positive way.
"As long as we can keep doing that, that is a good thing for us offensively."
The win puts MHS at 2-0 overall, as they defeated Adena last week.
"It's good to be here (2-0 overall) rather than the alternative," Closson said. "It continues to reinforce what we are doing, and it builds on the positives on where we are at.
"We just hope we can continue to build on that, get healthy and improve each week."
Early on, it was the Shermans who struck first with Nate Parker, who left the game in the second quarter with an injury, taking the opening kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown, ticking off just 11 seconds of game time for an eventual 7-0 lead by the hosts.
The seven-point lead lasted until the 6:26 mark of the first frame with Faulconer rushing his way through the middle of the Shermans' defense for a 23-yard score, capping off 65 yards that included a 24-yard rush by sophomore Adam Hollar.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Tigers recovered the ball after it bounced off a UHS player. After being unable to score points, the Tigers punted the ball and weren't on defense but for three plays as they forced a fumble and regained possession with 1:55 left in the first.
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That turnover turned into seven points with Schrader turning the corner and outrunning the Sherman defense for 66 yards with 1:09 left in the first frame for a 12-7 lead, as MHS, for the second time, failed to score on a two-point conversion attempt.
Hunick's score came on the Tigers' first possession of the second quarter, with the drive lasting one play and going for 54 yards as the speedy back scored a touchdown with 11:30 left in the second quarter.
McClain's lead went to 25-7 with 9:17 left in the second on a four-play drive which ended in a 17-yard run by Schrader. The play before, Schrader had a rush of 18 yards. The PAT by Faulconer was good.
With 3:04 left in the second, following a 20-minute injury delay earlier in the second, the Shermans scored their second touchdown of the game, with junior Dillon Binegar scoring on a 60-yard rush to bring UHS within 12 points of tying the score at 25-13. Binegar finished with 134 yards on 13 carries for a 10.3 ypc.
For the game, the MHS defense held UHS to 167 yards of offense.
In the fourth, the Tigers scored their final touchdown with Schrader racing 20 yards for the score with 10:28 left on the clock, as he reached the end zone untouched on second down.
The final TD came as time expired, as UHS freshman Ryan Simmons scored on a 10-yard run for the 31-19 score.
MHS will travel to Zane Trace next Friday to face the Pioneers (0-2) in Week 3 non-league action.
GAME NOTES: Shawn Haddox returned on defense for the Tigers, making multiple tackles for loss … Logan Rhonemus had two fumble recoveries, Chris Sellman had one fumble recovery and Hollar had an interception … MHS led 25-13 at halftime … UHS senior Kyle Lindsey had a fumble recovery … MHS defensive lineman Dylan Wheaton had multiple stops at defensive line … Hollar had a punt return for a TD called back following a block in the back call.
The game began with the game ball brought in by helicopter, but it was the Tigers who kept the game on the ground, totaling 407 yards of rushing and 424 yards of total offense.
Tiger senior quarterback Thomas Schrader, a senior, was the leading rusher for MHS as he scrambled, maneuvered and raced his way for 190 yards (11.2 yards per carry). Fellow senior Dillon Hunick also totaled 100-plus yards on the ground, finishing with 134 yards on 15 carries, averaging 8.9 ypc.
Schrader finished with three touchdown runs of 66, 17 and 20 yards, respectively. Hunick had a 54-yard touchdown run, and junior Ryan Faulconer scored on a 23-yard rush as he totaled 52 yards total on eight carries.
"They are dynamic players," MHS head coach Randy Closson said of his three leading rushers. "Ryan is a big, strong kid and does a heck of a job. We are trying to spread out the workload a little bit and lessen the blows each kid takes.
"We have some depth there … Dillon is a home run hitter. He has the speed, and if you give him a gap, he can go. It is nice to be able to mix and match, move people around in there. We wanted to make sure we spread out the carries in our offense. We still have a long season ahead of us, and everyone was contributing in a positive way.
"As long as we can keep doing that, that is a good thing for us offensively."
The win puts MHS at 2-0 overall, as they defeated Adena last week.
"It's good to be here (2-0 overall) rather than the alternative," Closson said. "It continues to reinforce what we are doing, and it builds on the positives on where we are at.
"We just hope we can continue to build on that, get healthy and improve each week."
Early on, it was the Shermans who struck first with Nate Parker, who left the game in the second quarter with an injury, taking the opening kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown, ticking off just 11 seconds of game time for an eventual 7-0 lead by the hosts.
The seven-point lead lasted until the 6:26 mark of the first frame with Faulconer rushing his way through the middle of the Shermans' defense for a 23-yard score, capping off 65 yards that included a 24-yard rush by sophomore Adam Hollar.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Tigers recovered the ball after it bounced off a UHS player. After being unable to score points, the Tigers punted the ball and weren't on defense but for three plays as they forced a fumble and regained possession with 1:55 left in the first.
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That turnover turned into seven points with Schrader turning the corner and outrunning the Sherman defense for 66 yards with 1:09 left in the first frame for a 12-7 lead, as MHS, for the second time, failed to score on a two-point conversion attempt.
Hunick's score came on the Tigers' first possession of the second quarter, with the drive lasting one play and going for 54 yards as the speedy back scored a touchdown with 11:30 left in the second quarter.
McClain's lead went to 25-7 with 9:17 left in the second on a four-play drive which ended in a 17-yard run by Schrader. The play before, Schrader had a rush of 18 yards. The PAT by Faulconer was good.
With 3:04 left in the second, following a 20-minute injury delay earlier in the second, the Shermans scored their second touchdown of the game, with junior Dillon Binegar scoring on a 60-yard rush to bring UHS within 12 points of tying the score at 25-13. Binegar finished with 134 yards on 13 carries for a 10.3 ypc.
For the game, the MHS defense held UHS to 167 yards of offense.
In the fourth, the Tigers scored their final touchdown with Schrader racing 20 yards for the score with 10:28 left on the clock, as he reached the end zone untouched on second down.
The final TD came as time expired, as UHS freshman Ryan Simmons scored on a 10-yard run for the 31-19 score.
MHS will travel to Zane Trace next Friday to face the Pioneers (0-2) in Week 3 non-league action.
GAME NOTES: Shawn Haddox returned on defense for the Tigers, making multiple tackles for loss … Logan Rhonemus had two fumble recoveries, Chris Sellman had one fumble recovery and Hollar had an interception … MHS led 25-13 at halftime … UHS senior Kyle Lindsey had a fumble recovery … MHS defensive lineman Dylan Wheaton had multiple stops at defensive line … Hollar had a punt return for a TD called back following a block in the back call.