Tigers Top Garfield, Turn To Bulldogs
Benjamin Leads Rout As Massillon Hands Presidents 1st Loss
By CHARLIE POWELL
BEAT McKINLEY!
This phrase will be emoted by more Massillon people the next seven days than any other two words in the English language.
BEAT McKINLEY. You heard it before last night’s victory over heretofore undefeated Akron Garfield became official. The enthusiasm and that cry was whipped up in fine fashion after the final gun.
With the scoreboard clock showing a minute and 36 seconds remaining and the Tigers out front by 35-0, which was the way it ended, a big sign, strung from wires between the light standards at the north end of the stadium and reading BEAT McKINLEY was unfurled.
After action ceased a small but spirited group of Tiger fans staged a brief pep rally.
Tiger followers including adults broke out their small BEAT McKINLEY banners. In a few short words they praised the charges of Lee Tressel and staff for another job well
done – then it was BEAT McKINLEY.
* * *
THE BIG ONE, the one the Tigers have been pointing to since that narrow loss to Mansfield, comes off here next Saturday afternoon. All seats have been sold. The gates will open at 12 noon and there will be standing room only. In the events to follow the Orange and Black will be out to avenge last year’s setback by pinning the defeat label on the powerhouse from the city to the east.
If the Tigers do it they should hit the jackpot. What could keep them from regaining that state championship?
BEAT McKINLEY!
Against Garfield before close to 10,000 fans including 9,381 paid, the Orangemen weren’t “up.” Undoubtedly the circumstances prevented them from getting too “high” even though the Presidents had only a couple of ties marring an otherwise perfect mark.
But the locals had more than enough to put the damper on the Prexies. Sparked by twinkle-toed Ivory Benjamin who got great support from Bob Rinehart, Chuck Beiter, Chester Brown, Larry Washington and a host of others, the attack was just about as sharp as any time previously this season. The defense was crisp as the night air.
If you like scythe-like blocking and some teeth-jarring tackling put together with some fancy running, you were satisfied.
True, there were times when it looked like the Garfield ball carriers might have been grassed back of the line of scrimmage or with little yardage to show for their efforts. You can’t have everything, can you?
After all, the Tigers held the invaders to a total of 161 yards – only 23 through the air. And the Prexies had been averaging over six yards per rush.
Coach Tressel couldn’t find much fault with the offense although he agreed that it looked like his charges would “never get started.” Garfield was threatening three times in the opening period but it was completely shackled after that. The Tiger mentor, whose team now has won eight, the last three in a row, had some warm words for the line play, the running of Benjamin, Brown and Beiter, and the ball handling of Rinehart, who completed two of his four passes, one for a touchdown.
The Tigers zipped to a net of 381yards on the ground with Benjamin making 182 in 16 carries, Beiter 63 in eight and Brown 50 in seven. Washington, who started in place of Mike Hershberger, lugged seven times for 26 yards and Rinehart ran a keeper once for 13 yards as Benjamin waylaid three men with a crunching block.
* * *
OF COURSE ball carriers would get exactly nowhere without blocking from the boys up on the line. In this department the local youngsters appeared to be in peak form.
And all this came about with Hershberger and guard Bob Brown watching form the sidelines. Hershberger could have played but Tressel wasn’t about to take an unnecessary chances. “We’ll need them next week,” he said.
Dave Richardson, who booted five extra points, tackle Dick Whitfield and sub tackle John Halter were banged up a little but all will probably be ready for the Bulldogs, who were to meet Akron South this afternoon.
Richardson converted after Benjamin tallied three times, Beiter once and end Clyde Childers, who was on the receiving end of both Tiger pass completions, once.
Actually Garfield was never in the running after the initial panel. Probably because of a good scouting job and a bunch of kids who weren’t going to let another loss interfere with their plans.
In all fairness to the Presidents it must be emphasized that had a couple of first quarter aerials not gone awry they might have been able to make an issue of it as many expected them to do. On the second play the first time Garfield got possession its sterling halfback, Sterling Shephard, passed from the Tiger 49. The Tigers were apparently worrying about Manzie Winters, the President’s pass catching star, and let the other end, Don Gibson, get in the clear at the 20.
Shephard probably thought Gibson was going to cut to his right but he didn’t and a
sure-fire touchdown play went with the wind. Two plays later Garfield had to punt but got the pigskin right back as Benjamin fumbled at the Tiger 21. Shephard moved seven yards to the Orange 14 and after Chet Brown and Pete Heimann tossed Fullback Nick Arshinkoff for a one-yard deficit, Massillon gained possession again as Beiter intercepted Shephard’s spread play pass at the six.
Three plays later, after Benjamin got loose from a 30-yard scamper from his own eight to the 38, the locals lost the ball on another fumble. This time it was Garfield’s ball at the Massillon 44.
With the help of a twisting 17-yard run by Shephard, the Prexies advanced to the Tiger 17. But on fourth down linebacker Roger Reese barreled in and smacked Shephard down for an 11-yard loss to end the thrust.
Then the Tigers went ahead as two long runs, one by Brown and one by Benjamin, paved the way. Benjamin ran twice for 12 before Brown, stiff-arming one, veering away from three and getting blocks from Whitfield and Childers, galloped 29 to the Garfield 35. Washington picked up three and Benjamin sped to the left – with Dick Brenner springing him loose with a fine block at the 33 – and rambled all the way standing up. Three minutes 27 seconds were left in the quarter when Richardson converted his first time.
The Akron array bounced back but to no avail. From the 32 they made three first downs to the Tiger 22 as an 18-yard jaunt by halfback Frank Misker and a 13-yarder by Shephard provided the spark. Shephard tried two passes and sub Lindsey Humphrey two but none made connections.
* * *
ONCE WASHINGTON batted the ball down, once three Tigers outfought two Presidents, once Shephard dropped a Humphrey toss on the 10 and on fourth down the latter’s heave overshot the lanky Winters. Thus it was Massillon’s ball at its own 40.
On the last two running plays of the period Benjamin made nine and Brown four. A penalty against Garfield helped put the oval on the Massillon 40 as the second frame got underway. Benjamin netted 12 in two carries, Brown boomed through tackle for 14 and Beiter went up the middle for eight before the latter tallied on a 26-yard run. The hefty junior, who has been playing both fullback and righthalf, shot inside guard, and cut to his outside and was only 10 yards from pay dirt before most everybody in the stadium knew who had the ball.
This score came with 10:01 left and less than five minutes later the Orange had their third.
Beiter rushed Humphrey on a punt from the Garfield 31 and the ball sailed out of bounds at the 35. Beiter sandwiched eight and nine-yard gains around a three run pickup by Benjamin and from the 15 Irvory scooted the rest of the way on a double reverse that worked to near-perfection. Only one hand touched him and he twisted away from that lone defender.
The rest of the first half was meaningless. But things livened a bit for the home side at the outset of the third period as another bad punt by Humphrey led to the Tigers’ fourth TD.
Massillon had to move only 30 yards this time. Benjamin, Brown and Beiter carried to the 19 before Rinehart unwound. His pass hit Childers on the 10 and the big boy got away from the last would be tackler after Benjamin had thrown a key block. It was 28-0 with seven and a half minutes to go in that stanza.
* * *
THE ORANGEMEN made a strong bid before the quarter came to a close. From their own 37 they rolled to the one as a Rinehart-to-Childers pass clicked for 21 yards and Benjamin inserted a 20-yard sprint. However, an offside penalty set them back to the six and on last down Rinehart was three yards short on a sneak.
The Prexies were deep in their own territory as the final stanza began and from the seven sub Wayne McFarland kicked out of bounds at the Garfield 38.
On the first play Benjamin struck off the right side and streaked to pay dirt.
After that Tressel made use of his second stringers and twice Richardson, defensive safety, stymied the visitors by hauling in passes.
Looking Sharp
MASSILLON – 35
ENDS – Brenner, Elavsky, Mitchell, Wells, Snavely, Childers, Hagan, Williams, Mays.
TACKLES – Whitfield, Mercer, Ortiz, Slabaugh, Brownlee, Bixler, Halter.
GUARDS — Meldrum, Heine, Heimann, Cook.
CENTERS – Krier, Kiplinger.
QUARTERBACKS – Rinehart, Getz, Reese, Dutton.
HALFBACKS – Benjamin, Washington, Pledgure, Richardson, Bivings.
FULLBACKS – C. Brown, Beiter, Dean.
AKRON GARFIELD – 0
ENDS – Winters, Hubbard, Gibson.
TACKLES – Wiseman, Flanders, Hicks, Truza.
GUARDS – Balca, Rekettye, Phillips, Capatosta, McFarland.
CENTERS – Blouir, Smith, Sabatino.
QUARTERBACK – Rossi.
HALFBACKS – Shephard, Miskar, Humphrey, Rogers.
FULLBACKS – Arshinkoff, Vic Rich.
Scoring by quarters:
Massillon 7 14 7 7 35
Garfield 0 0 0 0 0
Massillon scoring:
Touchdowns – Benjamin (3, runs of 32, 15 and 28 yards); Beiter (run 26 yards); Childers (pass 19 yards).
Extra points – Richardson 5 (placements).
STATISTICS
Massillon Garfield
First downs, rushing 17 9
First downs, passing 2 1
First downs, penalties 1 1
Total first downs 20 11
Yards gained rushing 401 159
Yards lost rushing 20 21
Net yards gained rushing 381 138
Yards gained passing 42 23
Total yards gained 423 161
Passes attempted 4 18
Passes completed 2 4
Passes intercepted by 3 0
Times kicked off 6 1
Kickoff average (yards) 43 54
Kickoff returns 9yards) 12 92
Times punted 2 7
Punt average (yards) 32.2 19.7
Punt returns (yards) 16 0
Had punts blocked 0 0
Fumbles 2 1
Lost fumbled ball 2 0
Penalties 6 9
Yards penalized 50 85
