Category: <span>History</span>

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2005: Massillon 35, Cincinnati Elder 31

TIGERS SIGNATURE WIN COMES AT PRICE

By JOE SHAHEEN
Joe.Shaheen@IndeOnline.Com

When the Massillon Tigers return to the gridiron Friday against the Mansfield Tygers, they will do so with a 2-0 record, the knowledge they have knocked off one of the very best big school programs in the state and – in all likelihood – without the services of starting defensive end Dirk Dickerhoof and starting outside linebacker Quentin Paulik.

Dickerhoof and Paulik, both seniors, suffered injuries to the shoulder/collarbone area in the Tigers’ 35-31 upset of Cincinnati Elder on Saturday at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati. Both had their arms in a sling in the second half of the game, though head coach Tom Stacy did not immediately know the extent of their injuries. It is feared Dickerhoof may have a separated shoulder.

While the loss of two of the Tigers’ top defenders did not put a damper on Massillon’s stunning performance in the third game of the Prep Classic, the way the game went after the locals took a 35-7 lead into the fourth quarter nearly gave Stacy and his coaching staff a group coronary.

Elder scored three touchdowns in the final stanza – two within a span of 40 seconds – to make what appeared to be a Tiger blowout victory into a nailbiter that went down to the final play.

“We’ve got to finish,” Stacy said shaking his head. “We didn’t finish last week and we didn’t finish this week. Now, we got two wins and that’s the positive part. But when you continue to play good teams like we play down the road and you get in this situation, we better learn to finish it off.”

Leading 35-14 midway through the fourth quarter, the Tigers were knocking on the door but failed to score from point blank range.

“The fact we didn’t finish it off is the offense’s fault,” Stacy said. “We get down there on the one-foot line, we’ve got to stick it in and finish the game off and we didn’t do that. It darn near cost us. That’s on the offense. That’s on me as the offensive coach. We’ve got to get that corrected.”

Compounding the Tigers’ failure to find the end zone one final time was an unsportsmanlike conduct call against them after they were stopped by the Elder defense.

“We lost our composure,” Stacy said. “You can’t lose your composure. It’s something we’ve been trying to work on during camp, during two-a-days. We have to continue to work on it. We can’t lose our composure.

“Our kids are really, really competitive and they play really hard. There’s a lot of pressure on them to win at Massillon. But that doesn’t give them an excuse to lose their composure. We’ve got to get that corrected as a coaching staff.”

Even senior cornerback Troy Ellis, who set a Massillon Tiger single game record with five – that’s right, five – interceptions, was disconsolate about how the game nearly got away from the Tigers.

“When Elder recovered the first onside kick, it was like a heart job,” he said. “It was scary but we pulled it out.

“This win is real big. The last two years we started 0-2 and 1-1. Now we’re 2-0 and it gives the team a lot of confidence.”

As for his thievery, which included a fumble recovery and 20-yard return for a touchdown to open the scoring on the afternoon, Ellis admitted he had no premonition he was going to have the game of his life on such a grand stage.

“I had no clue this was going to happen. No clue,” he said. “The coaches put me in a position to make plays. They gave me great coverage calls and I was just back there playing the ball. It was fun throughout the whole game. It was fun all the way around.”

Ellis was voted the game’s Most Valuable Player for the media.

Tiger junior tailback Brian Gamble must have been a close second in the voting after rushing for 173 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. His first score of the afternoon came in the first minute of the second half on an off tackle run that appeared to be bottled up. But Gamble turned to his right, found the Elder defense out of position and bolted 60 yards to the end zone to put the Tigers up 21-0.

“That was a great run,” Stacy said. “It was just a power off tackle play and Brian Gamble broke it.”

Gamble refused to take any credit for his heroics.

“It’s not me,” Gamble said. “Our line has been blocking excellent and we’ve got Lanale Robinson running the football, too.”

Now, Gamble says, people around Ohio are going to sit up and take notice of the Massillon Tigers once again.

“That put us on the map,” he said. “It will get us a lot of respect. People were underestimating us and I think we came out here and proved what we had to prove.

“The way it ended teaches us a great lesson. Come playoff time or big games we have to learn to finish, to suck it up. Hopefully we’ll do a better job next time.”

After Ellis’ fumble return put the Tigers up 7-0 at 5:57 of the first quarter, the Elder offense was unable to get anything going and was forced to punt.

A 37-yard Gamble burst on the second play of the drive moved the ball to the Elder 33. Six plays later, junior quarterback Bobby Huth ran the bootleg keeper around the left end and galloped into the end zone. Steve Schott’s point after made it 14-0 Massillon at 1:18 of the first quarter, leaving the purple-clad Elder throng in stunned silence.

Elder marched from its 28 to the Massillon 22 on its next possession and appeared to have regained the momentum. But on second-and-two, Ellis made his first interception of the day at the 4-yard line, then returned it to the 17 to give the Tigers some breathing room.

On Elder’s next possession, following a Tiger punt, the Panthers drove from their 35 to the Massillon 5. But the Tiger defense stiffened and Elder turned the ball over on downs late in the second quarter.

Massillon then drove to the Elder five before time ran out in the first half.

Gamble opened the second half with his long touchdown run.

After a Massillon offside penalty on a punt gave Elder a new set of downs, Ellis made his second interception of the afternoon and ran the ball back to the Elder 12. Junior fullback Quentin Nicholsen went over left tackle on first down and found the end zone to break it open at 10:13 of the third quarter. Schott tacked on the point and Massillon was running away at 28-0.

Massillon’s final touchdown was set up by yet another Ellis pickoff. Six plays later, Gamble went in from the two and Schott’s conversion closed the Tigers’ scoring … but not the excitement.

GAME STATS

Antonio James
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2005: Massillon 34, Dover 0

TIGERS FIGURE TO GET A BETTER TEST NEXT WEEK

By JOE SHAHEEN

There was a lot to like for Massillon Tiger partisans in the season-opening demolition of the Dover Tornadoes.

But it was Tornado head coach Dan Ifft who sounded a note of caution.

Program Cover

“I don’t know that we were an indicator for them,” Ifft said after his team trudged off the field at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium on the short end of a 34-0 tally.

A better indicator will come one week from today when the Tigers journey south to the Queen City to take on Cincinnati Elder in the third game of the Prep Classic at Paul Brown Stadium.

“We’re going to play a better team next week,” Tiger coach Tom Stacy said moments after his head coaching debut in Massillon. “Dover is a good football team but Cincinnati Elder will be a much tougher test for us.

“It was a great way to start but let’s take it from here.”

Clearly the Tigers have the makings of a dominating defense. They possess size, speed and athleticism on that side of the football and have a fine coordinator in Steve Kovacs and an another unheralded but highly thought-of assistant in Mike Babics to mentor the defense.

That said, there were one or two opening game breakdowns, especially in the secondary. Fortunately there were also a couple of inaccurate passes when the Tornado receivers did find a seam, and a big-time play by Andrew Dailey, stripping the football away from a Dover wideout after a 30-yard catch and run.

Against Elder, the Tigers won’t have the overwhelming size advantage they enjoyed against Dover. Massillon will have to stop the running game first, and that will be quite a test of their manhood by a program that has back-to-back state championships to its credit this decade.

But you had to like the fact Massillon did nothing to hurt itself on Thursday night.

Penalties were kept to a minimum, with five overall but only one in the first half when the starters were on the field.

Even more important, the Tigers did not have a turnover in the first half with their frontline players.

“That’s pretty good coaching,” Ifft observed. “For the short amount of time Tom has had them, they appear to be very disciplined.”

For all of their success during the previous seven years – and let’s not forget the Tigers reached the state semifinals twice under Rick Shepas – they were a penalty-prone football team most of the time and one that turned the ball over more often than you’d like.

They were able to overcome those shortcomings most of the time but – for whatever reason – never seemed inclined to address the problem, especially the flurry of penalty flags that seemed to follow them from game to game.

The good news is the Tigers have an extra day to prepare for Elder – call it a going away present from Shepas, who scheduled the Thursday night opener – and they may need it as they venture into enemy territory to take on a worthy foe.

One thing is for sure, if the Tigers are anywhere near as successful in Week Two as they were in Week One, people around the state of Ohio will sit up and take notice that Massillon football is back and in a big way.

GAME STATS

Antonio James
Massillon vs. McK - Throwback (Large)

2004: Massillon 7, Canton McKinley 20

Tigers put up a fight but can’t stop MCK

By JOE SHAHEEN
Joe.Shaheen @ IndeOnline.com

The record books will show the Massillon Tigers lost to the McKinley Bulldogs 20‑7 in the 112th Massillon‑Canton game on a sun drenched, wind‑swept Saturday afternoon at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium to complete their second consecutive 4‑6 campaign.

Program Cover

Still, Tiger coach Rick Shepas believes the season ended on a positive note with the way his team battled Warren Harding into double overtime in Week Nine and came within a couple of poor decisions in the passing game of topping playoff‑bound McKinley on Saturday.

“The last three or four weeks of practice have been great,” Shepas said. “The attitude of our kids has been great. The way they’ve responded. The way they’ve worked. They’ve come out with focus. They’ve had fun. Within the locker room those things are all good.

“Many positive lessons were learned. I don’t second guess anything we’ve done as a coaching staff throughout the year. Our goal is to do everything we possible can do for our kids. And that’s where you leave it.”

Mistakes, as has been the case all season, kept Massillon from pulling the upset. Two interceptions by the Bulldogs in the end zone were too much for the Tigers to overcome.

“Our guys played hard,” said Shepas, who then addressed the Tigers’ 2004 schedule. “I think there’s something to be said for keeping our guys in a good frame of mind and preparing them with losing a few tough games.

“There’s no moral victories in playing well against the good teams and not winning.”

The Tigers’ lone score came with 10:08 to play in the game when senior running back Caleb White, who had become something of a forgotten man in Massillon’s running back rotation, dashed around right end for 77 yards and a touchdown.

Shepas spoke emotionally about the play afterward. “This thing is all about lessons that we learn,” he said. “It’s about something that takes place in a football locker room between players and coaches. When you talk about victories and lessons learned, you talk about Caleb White’s run. That for me was the story of this McKinley game.

“It comes down to the lesson that both Caleb White and I learned throughout the course of this season. And that run that he had … I’ll tell you what, it was great. It speaks of some strengths and I’m glad that happened for him today.”

McKinley marched 71 yards in 11 plays the first time it touched the football. Ryan Brinson carried the ball on seven of those snaps, finally punching it in from a yard out. Beach Campbell’s point after made it 7‑0 Pups at 4:16 of the first quarter.

The wind played havoc with a McKinley punt the second time the Pups had the ball, giving Massillon possession at the Bulldog 37. But the Tiger offense couldn’t convert a first down and McKinley took over at its own 32.

On first down Mike Shaffer handed off to Brinson, who broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage, burst into the clear and didn’t stop until he found the end zone 68 yards later. The point after failed but the Bulldogs were up 13-0 at 8:57 of the second quarter.

Massillon’s next two possessions ended in punts but the Tigers got something going just before halftime with Shawn Weisend taking over for an injured Quentin Paulik at quarterback. He completed three straight passes to Eric Smith and a McKinley personal foul moved the ball to the Pups’ 24. After a screen pass to Ramon Kelly picked up two yards, the Tigers tried a little razzle dazzle in the form of a flanker pass. But the throw into a crowd in the end zone was picked off by Brinson.

“We felt it was a good down and distance for a play like that,” Shepas said of the second‑and‑8 call. “We were in a time out. We called two plays in the time out. And we said ‘If it isn’t there, don’t force it.’

“If we would have executed it would have been a great call. If he’d have just thrown it away it wouldn’t have been a significant play. That’s the sad thing. That’s the lesson some of our guys have to learn. That’s the way it goes.”

McKinley put together a nine‑play, 80‑yard drive to open the second half with Brinson doing the honors from two yards out to make it 20‑0 with most of the third quarter remaining.

After an exchange of punts, Massillon took over at midfield with 3:34 left in the third quarter. Weisend hit Brett Huffman over the middle for 36 yards to the McKinley 17, then took a hard hit in picking up eight more to the 9 on a bootleg keeper.

McKinley cornerback Kellen Showes intercepted a pass on the next snap and the Tiger threat was quelled.

“Shawn took that hit on the run and he was fuzzy,” Shepas said. “We didn’t know that on that play.”

Massillon would finally get on the scoreboard on White’s long run but the Tigers simply could not sustain anything offensively the entire game.

“Our defensive staff had a great game plan,” said McKinley coach Brian Cross. “People don’t talk about our defense enough. We held these guys to seven points. We only gave up one long touchdown run, that was the only long touchdown run we’ve given up this season. I’m extremely happy with the way our defense played.

We were stunned a little bit that they scored. Still, at 20‑7, we felt pretty good. We knew we had to still move the football, and that’s something we didn’t do well in the second half. The reason we didn’t do it is because they were giving us a nine‑man front and making us throw the football. We tried to throw the football, and we had people open, we just didn’t complete them.”

“It’s about something that takes place in a locker room between players and coaches. When you talk about victories and lessons learned, you talk about Caleb White’s run. That for me was the story of this McKinley game.”
Rick Shepas,
Massillon coach

McKinley 20
Massillon 7

McKinley 07 06 07 00 20
Massillon 00 00 00 07 07

SCORING

McK ‑ Ryan Brinson 1 run (Zach Campbell kick)
McK ‑ Brinson 68 run (Kick failed)
McK ‑ Brinson 2 run (Campbell kick)
M ‑Caleb White 77 run (Steve Schott kick)

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing

Massillon: Caleb White 2‑81 1 TD;
Ramon Kelly 9‑41;
Jermaine Moncrief 6‑13;
Lanale Robinson 3‑6;
Robert Morris 2‑4;
Quentin Paulik 3‑4.

McKinley: Ryan Brinson 34‑203 3 TDs;
Theo Goodright 6‑58;
Mike Shaffer 3‑6;
Mark Jackson 3‑4;
Mike Kirksey 1‑2.

Passing

Massillon: Shawn Welsend 6‑10‑69 1 INT,
Quentin Paulik 3‑6‑11;
Troy Ellis 0‑1‑0 1 INT;
Wayne Gates 0‑1‑0.

McKinley: Mike Shaffer 1‑7‑8;
Ryan Brinson 0‑1‑0 1 INT.

Receiving

Massillon: Eric Smith 3‑26;
Robert Morris 2‑6;
Brett Huffman 1‑37;
Kurt Jarvis 1‑5;
Wayne Gates 1‑5; Ramon Kelly 1‑2.

McKinley: Mark Jackson 1‑8.l

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2004: Massillon 12, Warren Harding 15

Tigers turning focus to Brinson, Bulldogs

Massillon playing for .500 season against rival after familiar nemesis dashes its playoff hopes

INDE STAFF REPORT

In their stirring 15-12 double overtime loss to Warren Harding at Mollenkopf Stadium on Saturday, the Massillon Tigers got a large dose of stellar Raider playmaker Mario Manningham, who scored both Warren touchdowns.

The Tigers, 4-5 on the season and with no chance to reach the playoffs, now have to brace for another of Ohio’s best all-purpose players in Ryan Brinson when the McKinley Bulldogs invade Paul Brown Tiger Stadium this coming Saturday for a 2 p.m. kickoff.

Manningham and Brinson are two different players with similar but not identical skill sets. However, Warren and McKinley each utilize their respective superstar at a variety of positions, and get the football in their hands in a variety of ways.

The Tiger defense, which was outstanding in limiting Warren to 223 yards of total offense and holding Manningham to 89 all-purpose yards, saw the Raiders use the 6-foot 178-pound senior as a kick and punt returner, as a wide receiver, on the halfback option pass and, finally, as a running back.

It was in the latter role that the University of Michigan-bound All-Ohioan ultimately did the Tigers in, scoring on a 20-yard off-tackle touchdown scamper on Warren’s first snap of the second overtime after MassilIon had taken a 12-9 lead on Steve Schott’s 21 yard field goal. McKinley was just as dependent on Brinson in defeating North Canton on Saturday night at Fawcett Stadium. The Bulldog senior scored on runs of 29 and 9 yards, and caught touchdown passes of 51 and 29 yards, finishing with 244 all-purpose yards against the Viking defense.

Brinson is within striking distance of McKinley’s single-season rushing record and would like nothing more than to achieve that mark against rival Massillon.

The Tigers, on the other hand, were stung by some of Brinson’s post-game comments following last year’s humbling season-ending setback at the hands of the Bulldogs and will likely make him the object of their displeasure when the teams meet for the 112th time on Saturday.

Massillon came oh so close to carrying a two-game winning streak and immeasurable momentum into the McKinley game, jumping out to a 6-0 lead over Warren and carrying a three-point advantage into the fourth quarter on a drizzly autumn evening.

The Tigers dominated first-half play, and scored on their third possession of the game when Quentin Paulik hit Wayne Gates with a six yard touchdown pass in the waning moments of the first quarter.

The score was set up by a clutch 11-yard pass reception by Brett Huffman on a third-and-10 play.

An interception gave Warren the short field late in the half and the Raiders tallied on a 25-yard Omar Omar field goal with less than 90 seconds to play in the second quarter to make it 6-3 at halftime.

Massillon forced Warren to punt on its first two possessions of the second half but the Raiders got something going on their third try, marching from their 27 to the Tiger 5 on six plays. On second and goal, Warren’s Roger Matlock lofted a pass into the end zone and Manningham (who else?) outfought tight coverage for the catch and a 9-6 Warren lead at 11:05 of the fourth quarter.

Massillon then sustained a 13-play drive, eating up half of the fourth quarter clock in the process. But an illegal procedure penalty after a time out transformed a third- and-5 into third-and-10, and when the Tigers failed to convert, Schott tied the game up at 9-9 with a 32-yard field goal.

Despite a questionable penalty that gave Warren new life near midfield, Massillon would not relent in the game’s final minutes, blocking the Raiders’ 30-yard field goal attempt with two seconds to play in regulation.

Both teams missed field goals in the first overtime before Manningham’s heroics closed out the Tigers.

Statistics can be deceiving but in this case the numbers reflect the close game. Massillon out gained Warren in total offense 226-223 and in rushing yardage 108-90. The Raiders had a 133-118 yardage edge in the passing game.

Tiger special teams held Manningham and his cohorts in check as Warren managed just 26 return yards.

But Warren got all the better of it. when the yellow flags began to fly. The Tigers compiled 77 penalty yards to their hosts’ 26.

Warren 15,

Massillon 12

Massillon 6 0 0 3 0 3 – 12

Warren 0 3 0 6 0 6 – 15

SCORING

M – Gates 6 pass from Paulik (Kick failed)

H – Omar 25 field goal

H – Manningham 5 pass from Matlock (Kick failed)

M – Schott 32 field goal

M – Schott 21 field goal

H – Manningham 20 run

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing

Massillon: Morris 11-55, Robinson 11-43, Kelly 11 -33.

Warren: Herron 14-47, Richardson 6-15, Matlock 4-15. Manningham 7-13.

Passing

Massillon: Paulik 14-24-118 1 TD, 1 INT.

Warren: Matlock 11-21-118 1 TD, Manningham 1-1-15.

Receiving

Massillon: Vanryzin 3-27, Kelly 3-23, Huffman 3-23, Jarvis 2-19, Robinson 1 – 11, Gamble 1-9, Gates 1-6.

Warren: Manningham 7-61, Richardson 2-47, Herron 2-10, Rucker 1-15.

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2004: Massillon 72, Friendship Edison Collegiate Academy (Washington DC)…

Tigers set for playoff push

By JOE SHAHEEN
Joe.Shaheen@IndeOnfine.com

Rick Shepas is happy with where his Massillon Tigers are at with two weeks left in the regular season ‑ now 4‑4 and in control of their own destiny with regards to the playoffs.

Massillon, with victories this Saturday at Warren Harding and the following Saturday at home against McKinley, are in the post‑season for the fifth time in Shepas’ seven seasons as head coach.

Program Cover

The Tigers got back to 4‑4 and put the playoffs in their sights with a 72‑6 domination of Washington D.C. Friendship Edison Collegiate Academy last Saturday night at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

While it was evident from the beginning that Edison was out‑manned by the Tigers, that cannot diminish the performances Lanale Robinson and Robert Morris, each of whom scored three touchdowns as Massillon accumulated 374 yards of total offense.

Robinson, a promising 5 foot 10, 184 pound junior tallied less than two minutes into the game on a 37 yard run, and then again less than two minutes later on a 62 yard kick return that followed a safety. He capped off his first half scoring blitz with a 27 yard touchdown dash midway through the opening quarter, and finished with 133 yards. rushing in 15 carries as starter Ramon Kelly, rested his injured knee.

“We backed off contact this week of practice and the kids responded, “Shepas said. “We came out ready to play a physical game, The wind and rain meant we needed to get, the ground game going, we’re going to continue in that vein.

“Lanale ran hard. He showed heart and passion for his job last night. We still have to fix some things in where he runs on specific plays and his understanding of setting up his blocking better”

Morris, a 5‑10, 200‑pound linebacker turned fullback, found the end zone on a 1-yard run midway through the second quarter, on a 12 yard pass reception from Quentin Paulik to open the second half scoring. and on an 18‑yard run with under four minutes to play.

“Where Morris had been defense with his speed, his ability and run hard makes him a natural at fullback position, “Shepas said.

Still, look for Kelly to return to the starting line as the Tigers primary ball carrier this week against Warren Harding.

“Ramon was ready to play ,both mentally and physically but we didn’t want to rush him with the week that is coming up,” Shepas “Ramon will be back in that mix this week.”

“I thought ouir offensive line limited their mistakes. We had very few breakdowns even though we didn’t prepare much for (Edison)”

Massillon also went back to Paulik as its starting quarterback after Shawn Weisend got a start the week before against Lakewood St. Edward. He completed 10 of his 18 throws for 135 yards and two touchdowns. A third scoring toss was dropped but the Tigers also had an interception.

It seems Shepas is committed to Paulik for the final two all‑important games.

“Yeah, I would say so,” said, Shepas. “I’ve said all along he’s a guy, who makes great checks at the line. He really does a lot of things very well. We have struggled in the passing game with our reads and that’s just going to take time.”

Time is one element the Tigers don’t have. They have to play their best two games of the season over the next 14 days in order to secure an improbable playoff berth.

But this do‑or‑die scenario is just what Massillon’s meat grinder schedule was designed for.

“There has been a lot about debate about the schedule we play,” Shepas said. “I think the schedule does prepare us. These kids have shown toughness with the schedule we’ve played. Plus we’re handing some of the tougher mental things. With as much a adversity as this team has had to deal with on regular basis, I think we’ve shown some resolve. Some of our guys are really starting to find themselves.”

Massillon 72
Friendship Edison 6

Massillon 30 12 21 7 72
Friendship Edison 0 0 8 0 6

SCORING

M ‑ Robinson 37 run (Schott kick)
M ‑ Safety
M ‑ Robinson 62 kick return (Scott kick)
M ‑ Barnes 7 run (Schott kick)
M ‑ Robinson 27 run (Schott kick)
FE ‑ Proctor 31 no (kick blocked)
M ‑ Barnes 1 run (Schott kick)
M ‑ Morris I run (Schott kick)
M ‑ Dahlquist 51 interception return (Scott Kick)
M ‑ Gates 27 pass from Paulik (Schott kick)
M ‑ Morris 18 run (Schott kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing

Edison: Proctor 12‑50 Butler 4‑9,
Massillon: Robinson 15‑133, Morris 11‑68, Barnes 7‑47,

Passing

Edison: Proctor 5‑17‑54 2 INTs.
Massillon: Paulik 10‑18‑135 1 INT

Receiving

Edison: Kates 3‑38 Gillis 1‑16,
Massillon: Morris 3‑28, Robinson 2‑39 Gates 2-34, Huffman 1‑5.

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2004: Massillon 7, Lakewood St. Edward 37

By WILLIAM R. SANDERSON
William.Sanderson@IndeOnline.com

There are three games left for this year’s Massillon football team. If the defense plays like it did at Lakewood St. Edward on Saturday, the Tigers have a shot of finishing on an up-swing.

Tiger coach Rick Shepas wanted to emphasize the positive after Saturday’s 37-7 loss to St. Edward. Don’t be fooled by the final score either. The defense was definitely a positive.

Not only did the defense keep it close until the final quarter, the defense also scored Massillon ’s only points of the game.

“Our defense played their tails off,” Shepas said. “They were tough. They were physical. I think we had a game plan that was very solid.”

Massillon falls to 3-4 on the season and will have to sweep the rest of its slate to finish with a winning record. That begins on Saturday with a visit from Friendship Edison of Washington D.C. Then comes a trip to Warren Harding and a visit by archrival McKinley.

After having to forfeit four earlier victories because of an ineligible player, St. Edward is 3-4 on the season.

On the season, the Eagles had averaged 45 points per game. Limiting the high-flying Eagles to under their average had Shepas pleased with his defenders.

“What we wanted to do was get down on the ground and make piles to use our best tacklers to get over the top,” Shepas said.

Massillon scored the first points of the game on a big defensive play. With St. Edward’s Paxton Rose fighting his way toward the end zone, the ball was stripped by the Tigers and Massillon ’s Alex Dahlquist came up with it. He burst from the pack and ran 98 yards for a touchdown. Steve Schott’s kick made the score 7-0 Massillon with 2:09 left in the first quarter.

“Alex Dahlquist made a great play to score the touchdown,” Shepas said. “There is no question. That’s why he’s a captain. He really responded today. This is the best he’s played. That’s what we need out of a guy like that at this point.”

Dahlquist also intercepted a pass in the third quarter. Cornerback Zack Vanryzin also had an interception for the Tigers, who came up with three takeaways.

Massillon ’s defense held St. Edward to consecutive three-and-outs after the score, but a special teams gaffe let the Eagles get a foot in the door.

A St. Edward punt was permitted to bounce inside the 20. It took a nice Eagle bounce and was downed at the Tiger 1. Two plays later, the St. Edward got into the Massillon backfield and caused a fumble which Kurt Jarvis alertly jumped on for the safety instead of allowing the Eagles to recover for the touchdown.

St. Edward took advantage of the field position on the ensuing free kick and promptly scored on a 37-yard pass play from Anthony Gardner to Alex Spooner to give St. Ed’s a 9-7 lead with 8:10 on the second-quarter clock.

The Eagles scored two more touchdowns before halftime on a 65-yard run by Rose and a 15-yard pass from Gardner to Greg Miranda.

Massillon ’s defense held St. Edward off the scoreboard in the third quarter. St. Edward scored a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns thanks in part to a fumble recovered at the Tiger 25 and a 15-yard interception return by Kevin Reese.

For its part, Massillon ’s offense managed a collective 146 yards, including a net rushing total of 36 yards.

“We’ve got to get things going on offensive and that’s all that we can say about that right now,” Shepas said. “We’ve had instability at the running back position. It’s been hard to establish the running game and that puts a little more pressure on the quarterback. We’re still getting better. I think we got better this week. It’s a process.”

Junior quarterback Shawn Weisend made his first career start, but was replaced by junior Quentin Paulik following the first-half safety.

Weisend completed six of nine throws for 34 yards and an interception. Paulik was 12 of 30 for 76 yards with two interceptions.

“(Weisend) didn’t get injured,” Shepas said. “He checked himself out of the game. He had some stomach pain. It really wasn’t the issue.”

Lanale Robinson led the Tiger rushers with 18 yards on eight carries. Jarvis was the team’s top receiver with five catches for 35 yards.

“We’d love to be 10-0 right now, but we’re not,” Shepas said. “There are other teams that are in the same situation as us. You just work through that. You saw wood and you work through it.”

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis

2004: Massillon 13, Cleveland St. Ignatius 38

By JOE SHAHEEN
Joe.Shaheen@IndeOnline.com

The new season of network television programs has just begun but Rick Shepas had to feel like he was stuck watching reruns on Saturday night when Cleveland St. Ignatius turned a huge mistake on Massillon’s first possession of the ball game into a quick touchdown.

It was exactly the way last year’s Massillon-St. Ignatius game began and the end result was eerily similar, a 38-13 victory for the Wildcats. Now the question is, can the 3-3 Tigers somehow post three wins over their last four games – starting with this Saturday’s visit to Lakewood St. Edward – just to finish at 6-4 and have a shot at qualifying for the playoffs.

For that to happen, Massillon will have to either beat No. 2-rated St. Edward this week or No. 7-rated Warren Harding in Week Nine – both on the road no less – and still count on victories over Friendship Edison of Washington D.C. a week from this Saturday and archrival Canton McKinley in Week Ten.
It’s a tall order indeed, especially if the Tigers continue to shoot themselves in the foot before the crowd is even settled into their seats. Massillon was penalized for holding on the opening kickoff, then fumbled on
its first two plays from scrimmage, losing the second bobble to St. Ignatius on the Tiger 10-yard line. Three snaps later it was 6-0 Wildcats on a Rudy Kirbus to Collin Meador 3-yard touchdown toss. The point after made it 7-0 at 10:02 of the first quarter.

“It all came down to execution for us and we did not execute,” Shepas observed. “There’s no question that when you play in a football game like this you want to protect the football. Obviously in the first two snaps of the game we had the quarterback run into the running back on play number one. We had a fumble on play two. We put our defense against the wall. “Our problem tonight was execution as it has always been against Ignatius.”

Unlike last year’s Ignatius tilt, the Tigers bounced back after the initial touchdown, putting together a 10-play drive that finally stalled on the Wildcat 30-yard line. Then the visitors bore a gift for Massillon, fumbling the football to Tiger free safety Alex Dahlquist at the Ignatius 11.

Massillon pushed it to the 3-yard line, but a fourth-and-2 running play was snuffed out for no gain, giving the ball back to St. Ignatius on downs. “We got the fumble early and we took it in,” said St. Ignatius coach Chuck Kyle. “They got a fumble and they had to make a decision. Field goal or . what do you do?”

The Tigers opted to go for it and came away empty. “Obviously it did hurt,” said Shepas. “Our kids wanted to go for it in that situation. They were fired up but we just didn’t get it in.”

The Massillon defense stood tall the rest of the first half. St. Ignatius only other score came when Kirbus scrambled away from the Tiger pass rush, found a seam and sprinted 40 yards to the end zone late in the half. “It helps the offensive line so much when the quarterback can do that,” Kyle said. “If you have a seam go ahead. Go ahead. It does cool the jets of the pass rush. Maybe you didn’t call a quarterback draw but if it turns into that, that’s fine because now the defensive line has to keep an eye on you.”

The backbreaker, as far as the Tigers were concerned, came when Kirbus hooked up with Robby Parris for a 34-yard touchdown pass to cap off a nine-play, second-half opening drive. Massillon had St. Ignatius in a third-and-19 situation but couldn’t defuse the bomb and the Wildcats led 21-0 midway
through the third period.

Kirbus and Parris repeated their act from near mid-field just over two minutes later to make it 28-0 and the stands began to empty at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

“St. Ignatius came out and executed the game plan we practiced for all week,” Shepas said. “There was not one surprise that they came up with during the course of the game.

“When they have the lead at halftime, that opening drive of the second half is important. And in typical Ignatius fashion they take the ball and drive the football and burn a lot of clock and then score that touchdown. It does affect your momentum to a degree but we still had a lot to play for.”

Massillon did put together a couple of late scores with Shawn Weisend under center after Quentin Paulik was sidelined by a late helmet-to-helmet hit out of bounds. But Kyle said afterward he had his reserves in when the Tigers tallied.

“I thought we matched up well against Ignatius and I still believe that,” Shepas continued. “I think we match up well with a few of the next teams we play. Regardless of what people want to say, we play an exciting brand of football here. We have an attack defense. We have an exciting offense. We play the
top teams. This is a great place to watch a high school football game. Now we’ve just got to get ready to play. These are things people have to learn from. For me it’s not a problem. I was raised in this fashion. It’s another great week of football. A great opponent coming up and we’ll just get ready for them.”

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2004: Massillon 52, Calvin Coolidge (Washington D.C.) 8

By JOE SHAHEEN
Joe.Shaheen@IndeOnline.com

You could probably take Massillon’s last three opponents, roll them all into one, and you still wouldn’t have as good a team as the one the Tigers will face this Saturday when Cleveland St. Ignatius comes a calling at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. But the Tigers don’t look at it that way. Head coach Rick Shepas won’t let them. Shepas and his coaching staff want the 3-2 Tigers to prepare for a faceless opponent this week, not one that this proud football program has never defeated. They want the Tigers to get ready for St. Ignatius in much the same fashion as they got ready for Mansfield, Findlay or Calvin Coolidge High of Washington D.C, a 52-8 victim of a rejuvenated Massillon team last Saturday night in the house that Paul Brown built.

Program Cover

“We’re not going to change anything,” said Tiger co-captain Jason Reinmann when asked about preparations for St. Ignatius. “We’re going to work hard. We have faceless opponents so nothing is going to change at all. “We’re going to work all week and at the end of the week we’re going to go out there and get our paycheck.”

St. Ignatius is 4-1 after suffering a 29-13 loss to Athol Springs (N.Y.) St. Francis on Saturday. Tiger co-captain D’angelo McClendon admits the team’s mindset going into the annual St. Ignatius tilt may have been a problem in past years. “Most definitely,” McClendon said. “Last year and all the way back I think so. This year, we keep it in our heads that we’re just going to come out and let it all hang out basically. That’s the influence our coaches give us as well. That’s what they’ve been telling us all year long.” We’re going to attack every game the same way. We don’t care if it’s St. Ignatius or a scrap team, we’re just going to come out and just go hard for four quarters.” That approach paid dividends against Coolidge as Massillon scored six of the first seven times it had the football on offense to race to a 49-0 halftime lead. With Ramon Kelly and Caleb White sharing the ball carrying chores, the Tigers capitalized on field position provided by Kelly’s 48-yard opening kickoff return and moved 46 yards in five plays to jump out 7-0 against the Colts. Kelly scored the first of his three touchdowns on a 2-yard burst over right tackle and Steve Schott tacked on the extra point at 10:23 of the first quarter. “I think we’re getting a little bit better,” Shepas said. “Our offensive line is starting to understand what we expect and we’re starting to communicate better. We can tell from the plays we were calling and the assignments that they are blocking that we’re getting better. We’re getting a better running game.”

The Tigers turned the ball over on an interception on their second possession. It was about the only thing they did wrong on Saturday. “In a lot of ways our quarterback play is improving and it has improved with the checks at the line of scrimmage,” Shepas said. “I like the way Quentin Paulik has been managing the game. But there’s still some things to work on. He’s still staring down some throws but we’re just going to continue to get better. I love to practice and you take care of a lot of that at practice.” Massillon got that interception right back when free safety Alex Dahlquist swooped in and picked off Coolidge’s Andre Glanville at the Tiger 30. Dahlquist, who led the team in tackles a week ago against Findlay, then raced 70 yards to pay dirt for Massillon’s second score of the evening at 6:43 of the first quarter. “Alex (Dahlquist) started out the year that way last year,” Shepas said. “He didn’t finish the year like that.” If he started out slow (this season), I’d rather him get to the point where he is now where he’s going to finish the season stronger.”

Paulik dropped a high arcing 40-yard bomb into Kurt Jarvis’ waiting hands on a well-executed fly pattern to give the Tigers a 21-0 lead at 3:33 of the first quarter and the rout was on.White would add a 16-yard touchdown run, cutting inside of Mike Morningstar’s fine block on the right side of the line, and Kelly tallied his second and third scores of the night on short runs about three minutes apart on the second quarter game clock.White closed the first-half scoring with a two-yard burst into the end zone after Brian Gamble gave the Tigers the short field by tackling the Coolidge punter before he could get off the kick. The third and fourth quarters were shortened from 12 to eight minutes and a running clock was employed at times to keep things from getting out of hand. “Confidence was a factor for this team early on and I think we’re gaining in that,” Shepas said. “We’re starting to take care of the ball a little bit better. We’re starting to develop some balance with a better running game.

All those things are factors. “We’re going after this thing all the way. All of our goals are still on the board. We didn’t start the way we wanted to but maybe we wouldn’t be where we are if we hadn’t started the way we did.”

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2004: Massillon 36, Findlay 16

By William R. Sanderson
William.Sanderson@IndeOnline.com

Massillon wanted to establish a ground game at Findlay. It’s safe to say they did just that after Ramon Kelly ran all over the Trojans for a 36-16 Tiger victory at Donnell Stadium on Friday night.Kelly, a 5-foot-8, 175-pound senior, ran for 288 yards and two touchdowns on only 24 carries. Caleb White added 82 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries to help the Tigers improve to 2-2 on the season. Findlay drops to 0-4.

The success the Tigers had running the ball came in an odd-looking package – a tight, I-formation set. “In this case we were trying to build off the running game we had last week,” Massillon coach Rick Shepas said. “We are a similar offense to Findlay. We both line up in the spread. I know we like playing against other spread teams because we see it so much in practice. So, I wanted to see how the guys would respond when we packed it in.”The Tigers responded pretty well. They established a 9-0 lead in the first
half and then maintained the advantage in the second half.Kelly showcased tremendous speed on several carries. He would appear destined to be stopped behind the line but would simply outrun the defenders to the corner. “There is no question about it,” Shepas said, “Ramon has a great burst.” While he didn’t get the same gaudy numbers as Kelly, Shepas praised his other running back – Caleb White, a 5-11, 178-pound senior. “Both our backs really ran the ball hard,” Shepas said. “Ramon ran the ball hard and Caleb did too. He broke some tackles.”

On the other side of the ball the Tiger defense had Findlay under control for the majority of the contest.Findlay struggled to muster 53 yards in the first half and 120 yards for the game. Wide reciever Zach Kraus started at quarterback for Findlay after one quarterback had been benched and another was injured last week. That forced Findlay into a largely ground-oriented attack.Massillon’s ground game kicked into high gear from the very start of the game, but a couple of mistakes kept the halftime score from being any larger than 9-0 Tigers.On the opening possesion, Kelly and White took turns gouging yards. Massillon got as far as the Findlay 2 before a fumbled snap forced the Tigers to settle for a 24-yard Steve Schott field goal to make it 3-0 with 8:21 on the clock.Schott had another chance in the opening minute of the second quarter, but just missed a 47-yard opportunity wide right. The defense would share credit for Massillon’s next score when Alex Dahlquist intercepted a Findlay pass and gave the Tigers the ball on the Findlay 22. A few plays later White ran in for a two-yard touchdown. A bad snap cost Massillon the extra point and the score was 9-0 with 7:08 to go in the second quarter.Massillon came five yards away from adding to its lead at the end of the first half. With under a minute to go, Massillon advanced to the Findlay 5 when Findlay’s Andrew Leddy and Jason Inbody brought down Tiger quarterback Quentin Paulik for a big loss. A screen pass from Paulick to Kelly brought the ball back to the five and the Tigers spiked to ball to stop the clock with :14 left. On
fourth-and-four, the Trojan defenders held fast.

“We had some opportunities we didn’t take advantage of,” Shepas said of the first half. “Still our defense played fantastic and we had the advantage going in the second half.” That Massillon defense came up big again in the third quarter when Lorenzo Grizzard jumped on a fumbled pitch. A little while later Paulik threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Brett Huffman. The extra point was blocked to make the score 15-0 at the 7:57 mark of the third quarter.For a brief moment, Findlay looked like it might make the finish an exciting one when Greg Mills broke a return 95 yards for a score on the ensuing kickoff, but Massillon answered promptly with touchdown runs by White and Kelly to make the score 29-10 before the end of the third quarter.The Findlay offense finally had some measure of success in the fourth quarter with the matter essentially decided. Mills and Kraus both ran the ball to set up a 10-yard Andre Strzempka touchdown catch from Jeff Foltz. The kick made it 29-16 with 4:53 remaining.Kelly had one final score for good measure when he broke a 38-yard jaunt for a touchdown at the 2:38 mark. Schott’s kick made it 35-16.Massillon will go into next Saturday’s game with Washington D.C. Coolidge with a 2-2 record, not that Shepas places a whole lot of importance on the .500 mark. “It doesn’t matter,” he said. “We take it one game at a time.”

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

2004: Massillon 58, Mansfield Senior 20

By JOE SHAHEEN
Joe.Shaheen@IndeOnline.com

The seven-game losing streak that dated back to last year and the 0-2 start to the 2004 season are distant memories for the Massillon Tigers, who devastated the winless Mansfield Tygers 58-20 to right the ship in front of an estimated 7,500 fans at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, Friday night. The Tigers did it with a two-pronged running game that featured Caleb White and Ramon Kelly, and a passing game triggered by quarterback Quentin Paulik that accounted for 208 yards and two touchdowns in the first half alone.

Program Cover

The Massillon defense did its part as well, limiting the Mansfield offense to one first down and minus-6 yards rushing in the first half. The swarming Tiger defense caused six first-half fumbles and recovered four, repeatedly giving the offense a short field with which to work.”These are great kids and we’ve been struggling with injuries,” said Tiger coach Rick Shepas. “I think a lot of guys came out tonight and played motivated football. We got that from Caleb White and Ramon Kelly.

They bothran very hard and our offensive line got a little bit better.” Quentin Paulik really showed his toughness today. He made some great throws. He managed the team really well.”While Shepas sang the praises of an offense that racked up 372 total yards, he acknowledged the tone of the game was established by the Tiger defense, which limited Mansfield’s offense to 2.5 yards per snap.”We came out tonight and really hit people,” Shepas said. “It’s a good shot in the arm for our confidence. We’re going to get one week better and just go one week at a time.” No Tiger team had ever began the season at 0-3, but that’s what Massillon faced had it not tamed the Tygers.”The way we played against Buchtel and Benedictine was uncharacteristic for the type of kids that we have,” Shepas said. “You saw that when they came out tonight and played so aggressively.”

Can they build on the win with their first road trip of the season set for next Friday at Findlay? “We’ll see,” Shepas responded. “We have a long way to go but it’s up to them.” Massillon’s first two touchdowns of the night were set up by the defense. Junior middle linebacker Robert Morris recovered a Tyger bobble on Mansfield’s second possession of the game at the Mansfield 9. Two plays later, Kelly went over right tackle for a one-yard touchdown at 6:02 of the first quarter. Steve Schott’s point after made it 7-0 Massillon. Not to be outdone, Tiger sophomore Andrew Dailey recovered another fumble at the Mansfield 33 on the visitors’ very next possession. Five plays later, on third-and-two from the 10, Kelly went over right tackle, bowled over a Tyger defensive back at the 5, and rolled into the end zone for Massillon’s second score of the night. Schott’s kick made it 14-0 at 2:47 of the first quarter.The Tigers got excellent field position to begin the second quarter following a Mansfield punt and Troy Ellis’ nifty return. On second-and-three from the Tyger 31, Paulik threaded a pass between two defensive backs and into the waiting arms of Dustin Jarvis, who needed just one stride to reach paydirt. Schott’s kick made it 21-0 Massillon at 11:04 of the second quarter. On Mansfield’s next possession, Tiger linebacker Paul Pribich stripped away the football from a Tyger ball carrier and Massillon was in business at the visitors’ 29.

On third-and-10 from there, Paulik rolled left and hooked up with Dailey inside the 5-yard line and the sophomore turned and carried it into the end zone. Schott’s kick made it 28-0 Massillon.A 40-yard Paulik to Wayne Gates pass and run set up the Tigers’ fifth first half touchdown, a two-yard Kelly run at 6:53 of the second quarter. Schott’s boot made it 35-0.An 11-play Massillon drive, extended by a fake punt that turned into a 21-yard Gates to Ellis pass play, was capped by Schott’s 29-yard field goal to close the first half scoring at 38-0 with less than a minute remaining until the band show.It only took the Tigers two plays to open the second half scoring after Massillon defensive tackle Ladrekus Burford recovered yet another Mansfield fumble. Kelly’s 11-yard run set up White’s first touchdown of the game on a pitch play around left end that covered two yards. Schott’s PAT made it 45-0 at 10:32 of the third quarter.Alex Dahlquist blocked a Mansfield punt on the Tygers subsequent possession and Dirk Dickerhoof fell on the loose ball in the end zone for the touchdown. Schott made it 52-0 at 8:25 of the third quarter.It was mop-up time after that as most Massillon starters went to the bench in favor of their backups.

GAME STATS


Kurt Jarvis