Tigers rush Tanks out of Greenfield
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
GREENFIELD — Don't tell this group of McClain Tigers they don't have great speed, or they don't have a large team, or even that they aren't as big as other teams they will face. If you do say it, they won't listen, as the group of "blue collar" Tigers gained their second straight win to start the 2012 season, defeating the Unioto Sherman-Tanks, 31-12.
This is the fifth consecutive year the Tigers have defeated UHS in the second week of the season.
"I thought we played really well," McClain head coach Randy Closson said. "I was still disappointed with turnovers. The guys, you know, they are fighting for us. They are fighting for McClain ... they have a lot of pride, and they are playing really good football."
The Friday night, which was their '12 home opener, not only proved that they still have momentum from last week, but they can learn from their miscues as the Tigers (2-0) cut down their penalties, and that alone helped them sustain drives which, in turn, helped their defense keep the visiting Shermans scoreless for nearly 36 minutes, gaining a lead of 24-0 with 2:33 left in the third quarter. The Tiger defense allowed just 145 total offensive yards.
Getting to that point for the Tigers wasn't magic, but it came from a grind-it-out running game that totaled 242 yards (301 total offensive yards) with Jordan Goble leading the way on three carries for 86 yards (along with 31 yards receiving), including a 58-yard rush in the second quarter by the senior all-purpose player, as he maneuvered his way through traffic to the right, then switched left, turned the corner and went on his way up the sideline of Unioto for what was then an 8-0 lead by MHS.
Where did the other two points come from, you ask? Those two points came in the opening frame from the stingy Tiger defense that started with Unioto (1-1) on their own 11-yard line and two plays later slammed the Tanks into the ground in their own end zone, as the duo of Roscoe East and Shawn Haddox gained the safety with 7:50 left in the opening quarter.
Showing they can score on a sustained drive, the Tigers' third score was a seven-play mixture of the pass and run as the host Tigers took yardage in bits and pieces, ending with a 16-0 lead when Thomas Schrader ran to the pylon in the end zone and scored on a slight leap, past the defense, for six points with 40.4 left in the first half. For good measure, MHS added two more points in the conversion attempt when Schrader found Ryan Faulconer in the middle of the end zone on a line drive pass.
Schrader finished with 79 yards of total offense, including 59 yards in the air.
[[In-content Ad]]In the second half, the Tigers continued to outdo their previous way of reaching the end zone as they built a 13-play drive totaling 64 yards as East began the drive with four straight runs totaling 22 yards and on the sixth play of the drive went 18 yards, earning every yard as he literally dragged defensive players until he was brought down at the UHS 20-yard line. East finished with 81 yards rushing on 17 carries.
From there, Schrader and Chris Sellman totaled 19 yards on runs, and it ended with Faulconer plowing his way for 1 yard to pay dirt with 2:33 left in the third quarter. A two-point passing play from Schrader to Isaac Savage gave MHS a 24-0 advantage.
Credit UHS, they didn't quit as John Vanderpool tried to bring his team back into the game, scoring on a 14-yard reception (he switched to running back midway through the game) off a pass from Hudson North with 28.3 left on the third-quarter clock.
Vanderpool, again, ended up in the end zone, this time on a 53-yard interception return with 9:55 left in regulation.
"Defensively, we played strong all night," Closson said. "We knew Vanderpool was their guy, and we knew we had to contain him. We knew if they were going to get anything explosive, it was going to be through him."
Vanderpool finished with 79 yards rushing and 14 yards receiving.
As the Tanks tried to rally more, it was the MHS defense that stepped up for the second straight week as Brandon Davis made some big stops for negative yardage throughout the game, and a big-time sack off the corner from Logan Rhonemus then resulted in a 10-yard loss for UHS on third-and-25 deep in their own territory. That stop resulted in the final MHS score.
MHS put an end to the potential rally of UHS when Goble raced to the end zone for the second time, this time for a 22-yard dash with 2:35 left before the lights were turned out, giving the Tigers a 19-point advantage after Sellman kicked the ball through the uprights on a PAT.
"I'm just proud of the kids and how they've started the season," Closson said. "We just have to keep working on our mistakes and prepare for next week."
The Tigers return to defend their home field next week as they will host their third consecutive SVC opponent in as many weeks as Zane Trace visits McClain Field at 7:30 p.m. On Friday, ZT fell to Amanda Clearcreek, 31-13.
GAME NOTES:
McClain's Caleb Rayburn recovered a fumble in the opening quarter with 9:47 on the clock … Vanderpool had two interceptions … In the second quarter, Sellman had a 16-yard run on first down … Goble had a 46-yard punt return … MHS committed three turnovers … MHS was 50 percent on two-point conversion attempts (2-for-4) … Alex Hollar rushed for 21 yards on two carries ... Sellman finished with 23 yards rushing ... Haddox had 28 yards receiving on three catches.
This is the fifth consecutive year the Tigers have defeated UHS in the second week of the season.
"I thought we played really well," McClain head coach Randy Closson said. "I was still disappointed with turnovers. The guys, you know, they are fighting for us. They are fighting for McClain ... they have a lot of pride, and they are playing really good football."
The Friday night, which was their '12 home opener, not only proved that they still have momentum from last week, but they can learn from their miscues as the Tigers (2-0) cut down their penalties, and that alone helped them sustain drives which, in turn, helped their defense keep the visiting Shermans scoreless for nearly 36 minutes, gaining a lead of 24-0 with 2:33 left in the third quarter. The Tiger defense allowed just 145 total offensive yards.
Getting to that point for the Tigers wasn't magic, but it came from a grind-it-out running game that totaled 242 yards (301 total offensive yards) with Jordan Goble leading the way on three carries for 86 yards (along with 31 yards receiving), including a 58-yard rush in the second quarter by the senior all-purpose player, as he maneuvered his way through traffic to the right, then switched left, turned the corner and went on his way up the sideline of Unioto for what was then an 8-0 lead by MHS.
Where did the other two points come from, you ask? Those two points came in the opening frame from the stingy Tiger defense that started with Unioto (1-1) on their own 11-yard line and two plays later slammed the Tanks into the ground in their own end zone, as the duo of Roscoe East and Shawn Haddox gained the safety with 7:50 left in the opening quarter.
Showing they can score on a sustained drive, the Tigers' third score was a seven-play mixture of the pass and run as the host Tigers took yardage in bits and pieces, ending with a 16-0 lead when Thomas Schrader ran to the pylon in the end zone and scored on a slight leap, past the defense, for six points with 40.4 left in the first half. For good measure, MHS added two more points in the conversion attempt when Schrader found Ryan Faulconer in the middle of the end zone on a line drive pass.
Schrader finished with 79 yards of total offense, including 59 yards in the air.
[[In-content Ad]]In the second half, the Tigers continued to outdo their previous way of reaching the end zone as they built a 13-play drive totaling 64 yards as East began the drive with four straight runs totaling 22 yards and on the sixth play of the drive went 18 yards, earning every yard as he literally dragged defensive players until he was brought down at the UHS 20-yard line. East finished with 81 yards rushing on 17 carries.
From there, Schrader and Chris Sellman totaled 19 yards on runs, and it ended with Faulconer plowing his way for 1 yard to pay dirt with 2:33 left in the third quarter. A two-point passing play from Schrader to Isaac Savage gave MHS a 24-0 advantage.
Credit UHS, they didn't quit as John Vanderpool tried to bring his team back into the game, scoring on a 14-yard reception (he switched to running back midway through the game) off a pass from Hudson North with 28.3 left on the third-quarter clock.
Vanderpool, again, ended up in the end zone, this time on a 53-yard interception return with 9:55 left in regulation.
"Defensively, we played strong all night," Closson said. "We knew Vanderpool was their guy, and we knew we had to contain him. We knew if they were going to get anything explosive, it was going to be through him."
Vanderpool finished with 79 yards rushing and 14 yards receiving.
As the Tanks tried to rally more, it was the MHS defense that stepped up for the second straight week as Brandon Davis made some big stops for negative yardage throughout the game, and a big-time sack off the corner from Logan Rhonemus then resulted in a 10-yard loss for UHS on third-and-25 deep in their own territory. That stop resulted in the final MHS score.
MHS put an end to the potential rally of UHS when Goble raced to the end zone for the second time, this time for a 22-yard dash with 2:35 left before the lights were turned out, giving the Tigers a 19-point advantage after Sellman kicked the ball through the uprights on a PAT.
"I'm just proud of the kids and how they've started the season," Closson said. "We just have to keep working on our mistakes and prepare for next week."
The Tigers return to defend their home field next week as they will host their third consecutive SVC opponent in as many weeks as Zane Trace visits McClain Field at 7:30 p.m. On Friday, ZT fell to Amanda Clearcreek, 31-13.
GAME NOTES:
McClain's Caleb Rayburn recovered a fumble in the opening quarter with 9:47 on the clock … Vanderpool had two interceptions … In the second quarter, Sellman had a 16-yard run on first down … Goble had a 46-yard punt return … MHS committed three turnovers … MHS was 50 percent on two-point conversion attempts (2-for-4) … Alex Hollar rushed for 21 yards on two carries ... Sellman finished with 23 yards rushing ... Haddox had 28 yards receiving on three catches.