Determined
Tigers beaten back
by Bulldogs
By STEVE DUNGJEN
Independent Sports Editor
MASSILLON
‑ Decals, magic potion and a lucky penny weren't enough.
McKinley's
Bulldogs were simply too much for Massillon Saturday afternoon before 17,926 fans
at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
Not
even record setting performances by Massillon's Bruce Spicer and Mike Scott
were enough to stave off a determined bunch of "Mad Dogs."
When
the final gun went off the scoreboard read: McKinley 17, Massillon 6.
And
it wasn't a game that could've gone either way. Massillon's lone score occurred
with a scant 32 seconds remaining, the Tigers' fate already sealed.
Although
the Bulldogs (7‑3) finished with a slight 296‑284 edge in net
yards, the Tigers (6‑4) led in just about every other statistical
category.
Statistics,
though, are among the greatest half‑truths in the universe.
Massillon
held a 20‑12 edge in first downs. The Tigers possessed the ball longer,
and ran off a whopping 21 more offensive plays.
But
the Bulldogs led in the two area, that counted the most ‑ big plays and
total points. In both categories the Tigers lacked.
"That's
what wins big games for you," Massillon defensive tackle John Kroah said.
"We couldn't stop theirs, and they didn't make any mistakes. Maybe we just
underestimated them.
"Personally,
don't think there was the same kind of intensity that we had for the Perry
game."
The
strike‑it‑rich‑quick preference by the Bulldogs paid off
handsomely to the tune of 17 points. Here's the reasons why:
‑
Flanker Jeff Smith catches a 28‑yard touchdown pass with less than a
minute left in the first half;
‑
Smith, also a safety, intercepts a Scott pass in the endzone to thwart a
Massillon score;
- Tailback
Chris Clax bursts 80 yards for a TD 36 seconds into the second half;
- Sophomore Mark Smith, with the wind at his
back, drills home a 45‑yard fourth‑quarter field goal at the 7:55
mark to give the Dogs a 17‑0 lead.
Truly,
McKinley was a rags to riches story this season. They were 1‑3 at one
point. They unearthed their biggest treasure with Saturday's win.
After
a scoreless first quarter, the Tigers had a chance to draw first blood. But
Todd Manion's wind-aided 54‑yard field goal attempt fell well short of
the intended mark.
Before
setting up for the three-point try the Tigers used two time outs. That would
come back to haunt them later in the period.
Taking
over at their own 20, the Bulldogs went 80 yards in eight plays behind the
throwing of junior quarterback Brian Chaney.
Chaney
hit six of seven passes in the drive for 78 yards, the finale being a 28‑yard
strike to Smith over the middle. Smith's point‑after was good, and
McKinley held a 7-0 lead with 59 seconds remaining in the half.
Massillon,
with no time outs left, promptly took the ball from its own 34 following the
kickoff and marched to McKinley's 9‑yard line behind Scott's pin‑point
passing, Scott hit Derrick Newman for 19 yards, Cornell Jackson for 23 and
Spicer for 14 more.
Faced
with a first down from the Bulldog 9, Scott sought Newman in the end zone. The
pass was intercepted by Smith instead.
Mr.
Momentum remained in the Bulldog locker room at halftime, joining the team
minutes later on the field of play when Clax burst 80 yards to paydirt just 36
seconds into the half.
In
the span of 95 seconds, the Bulldogs had pulled off three big plays. Three more
than the Tigers had all game.
Twice
in the third period the Tigers, who had pour field position for the bulk of the
game, were within striking distance. Both times, though, they were denied entry
into the end zone.
Massillon
had the ball once at its own 45, but had to punt three plays later. The same
fate befell them on their next possession, taking the ball at McKinley's 47 and
punting three plays later again.
McKinley
threatened to break the ballgame wide open on its ensuing set of downs, driving
to the Tiger 27 where they were faced with a fourth‑and‑2. Clax
took off with the ball to his right, but Massillon defensive end Chris Slinger
put the stopper to him short of the yard stick.
With
the distinct possibility of being shut out for the first time in the series
since 1973, the Tigers got the ball back for the final time at their own 13
with 3:19 remaining.
Scott,
who had a sterling first half, was off to a retched second‑half showing,
completing just four‑of‑19 passes before the final drive.
But
the senior dug down and went work. He hit Spicer for a pair of 11‑yard
gains. Irwin Hastings for nine more, and Spicer again for eight. Wes
Siegenthaler then caught a pass for 12 yards and Spicer another eight yarder.
Hastings
was found open once again, this time for a 14‑yard gain to McKinley's 14.
Two straight passes then fell incomplete when Scott connected with Siegenthaler
for a first down at the Bulldog 2.
On
the ensuing play, Hastings swept the left side for a long‑awaited but way
too little TD. Only 32 seconds showed, and the subsequent onside kick attempt
was recovered by the red and black.
On
this sunny day not even the decals that equipment manager Keith Herring
purchased and then applied to the front of each player's helmet worked.
Not
even the "win potion" of assistant
coach Butch Hose could do it’s thing.
And
not even the "lucky penny" assistant coach Keith Dewitz found outside
the coach's door nine days earlier could come through.
It
just wasn't meant to be.
It’s back to
the
drawing board
for Currence,
staff
By STEVE DUNGJEN
Independent Sports Editor
MASSILLON There will be no grace period for Mike Currence
this year. Canton McKinley saw to that Saturday afternoon.
In
front of 17,926 spectators at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, the Bulldogs gave Thom
McDaniels his first win in three outings against Massillon with a 17‑6
decision.
"I
won't be celebrating (this) week," Currence, Massillon's head coach of
nine years, said. "I'll be working. We'll start a week early on next
year's game."
"The
big run killed us," Currence said of Chris Clax's 80‑yard run to
paydirt on the first play from scrimmage to open the second half. "That
put us down two, and now we really had to start playing catch up.
"I
don't know how many they had," he said of the Bulldogs' big plays,
"three, four, five, six, seven or eight. They made a lot of them, and we
didn't get any big plays.
"I
think we were up, but I don't think we played as well as we could've. We had
them several times, but we just didn't cash them in.
"We
used a few different formations and alignments, but it didn't bother them. The
formations and plays didn't stop them from winning."
Currence
admitted his club aired the ball much more than they wanted to against
McKinley's seasoned secondary. The Tigers put the ball in the air a team record
49 times.
Although
the Tigers dropped to 6‑4 with the loss, Currence wasn't totally
dismayed.
“We
started out with a very young team," he noted. "We have a lot to be
proud of. We certainly aren't proud of losing the last one, though.
"The
senior never gave up, and I'm certainly proud of them."
Massillon
got off to one of its worst starts, saddled with a 1‑3 record after just
four weeks. Then the Tigers started to put things together, stringing five
consecutive wins before Saturday's swan song.
And
how does McKinley rate with Massillon’s other nine opponents this season?
“I
think they are the best team we've played," Currence said.
But
there will be little time for reflection.
On
Friday, the head coach received some bad news. His father-in‑law had
passed away. Today Currence and his wife Joan are in Maryland, where funeral
arrangements were taking place.
Tiger‑Bulldog gridstick
MCKINLEY 00
MASSILLON 00
McK M
First downs rushing 5 4
First downs passing 7 15
First downs by penalty 0 1
Totals first downs 12 20
Yards gained rushing 213 63
Yards lost tasting 18 29
Net yards rushing 195 34
Net yards passing 101 250
Total yards gained 296 284
Passes attempted 14 49
Passes completed 8 23
Passes int. by 2 0
Times kicked off 4 2
Kickoff average 46.5 32.2
Kickoff return yards 16 1
Punts 4 6
Punting average 30.3 32.2
Punt return yards 23 15
Punts blocked by 0 0
Fumbles 1 0
Fumbles lost 0 0
Penalties 1 2
Yards penalized 13 20
Touchdowns rushing 1 1
Touchdowns passing 1 0
Miscellaneous touchdowns 0 0
Number of plays 51 72
Time of possession 23:31 24:29
Attendance 17,926
MCKINLEY 0 7 7 3 17
MASSILLON 0 0 0 6 6
Mck
‑ Jeff Smith 28 pass from Brian Chancy (Mark Smith kick)
Mck
‑ Chris Clax 80 run (M. Smith kick)
Mck
‑ M. Smith 45 FG
M
‑ Irwin Hastings 2 run (pass failed)
Scott, Spicer
stand out
For Tigers
in face of
defeat
By STEVE DUNGJEN
Independent Sports Editor
MASSILLON ‑ Personal accomplishments lose their shine in the face of
defeat.
Bruce
Spicer and Mike Scott know that all too well.
In
the aftermath of Saturday's disheartening 17‑6 loss to Canton McKinley at
Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, Massillon's S & S combination was, needless to
say, distraught.
Spicer,
a senior wide receiver, set three Tiger pass receiving records. Scott, a senior
quarterback, established two passing standards.
Entering
the McKinley game, Spicer already owned the single game receiving mark with
nine. He bettered that by two with his 11 receptions for 104 yards.
On
the first play from scrimmage, Spicer caught a 10-yard pass that gave him the
regular‑season reception mark with 46. Marty Guzzetta had held the record
with 45.
Guzzetta's
all‑time single season record of 50 catches was knocked down a notch.
Spicer finished the year with 56 receptions.
In
his career Spicer caught 66 passes, which rank him third on the all time list
behind Curtis Strawder (68) and Guzzetta (69).
Those
56 catches by Spicer netted him 583 Yards, putting him in second place behind
Guzzetta's 706 total in 11 games.
"I
got a pretty good end, don't I?" Tiger head coach Mike Currence said of
Spicer.
"The
records didn't mean a lot because we didn’t win the game,” a subdued Spicer
said. “I think we hurt ourselves. We made a lot of mistakes and had a lot of
letdowns here and there.
"The
win over McKinley is what everybody wanted."
Spicer
said the 80‑yard touchdown run by McKinley's Chris Clax to open the
second half took the wind out of the Tigers' sail.
"It
was like the bottom fell out," he said. "It was something that
happened that you didn't think could happen."
Scott
bounced back from a preseason back injury to certify himself as one of the all‑time
top Tiger passers.
Despite
missing nearly four full games, Scott pushed his name into third place in the single-season
attempts chart. His 178 throws this year trailed only Brian DeWitz (181) and
Brent Offenbecher (182).
Scott
also ranks fourth on the career most attempts list with 190. His 1,208 passing
yards this year rank him sixth on the all‑time career chart, and his 244
yards passing against McKinley put him fourth in the single‑game books.
Against
McKinley, Scott heaved a yeoman‑like 48 passes to surpass his own record
of 32 set earlier this year against Stow. The senior signal caller also
completed 23 attempts to better his standard of 19, also set against Stow.
"I
knew we had to get the ball down there some way and score, but I didn't do
it," Scott said about his abundance of aerial attempts. "After a big
score like that (Clax's 80‑ yard run) everybody is down on themselves and
we knew we'd have to come back and score.
"We
were trying to get a good (big play) touchdown for ourselves in order to get
back in the game. They were jumping most of our primary receivers and we had to
go to our secondaries."
There
was nothing secondary about the performances turned in by the S & S duo.
Though it will take some time for their deeds to sink in, they can hold their
heads high.
Mike
Scott and Bruce Spicer will long be remembered as two of Massillon's finest.