The final chapter: ‘a massacre’ Everything works as Tigers pound shell-shocked Warren 54‑2
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
In this, the 50th anniversary of The House that Brown Built, there has been occasion to reflect on many wondrous moments.
One occurred 30 years ago, 17 years before Paul Brown’s name was added to Tiger Stadium.
What, pray tell, did the Tigers’ 90‑0 victory over Barberton the eighth week of the season look like?
Program Cover
Those too young to remember received some clues Friday night in the eighth week of the 1989 campaign ‑ in graphic display via a 54‑2 victory against shellshocked Warren Harding before 9,125 onlookers.
Had the Tigers been bent on making it 90‑0 (some wondered if they might be in light of a bitter 1988 loss at Warren) they probably could have done it.
As it was, Massillon’s first unit scored the first five times it had the ball. The No. 2 offense scored on its first three possessions. Alas, the No. 3 offense, unlike the third string that beat the bejabbers out of Barberton back when, could not score.
But who’s going to get picky about winning by 52 points in a game that may have clinched a playoff berth?
How bad was it?
In the words of one Warren writer, “It was the Massillon Massacre on Friday the 13th, the final chapter.”
This was, in part, reference to the end of the 68‑year‑old football series between the schools.
Tiger coach Lee Owens called a halt to it after he thought his team was ripped off by officials in a 25‑22 loss at Warren last year. This year’s game was played to honor a previously signed contract.
A decision to consolidate Harding and Western Reserve into one Warren high school next year was made after Owens’ pronouncement.
Any way you slice it, it’s over between Washington and Harding.
Any hard feelings?
Harding head coach Frank Thomas who spent five years in Tigertown as a varsity assistant, gave Owens the brush after Friday ‘s game.
The coach concedes, however, that it will probably take only 120 points to make the playoffs, and that his team is a cinch to surpass that barrier even if it loses to St. Joseph and the following week against McKinley.
The Tigers aren’t looking like or talking like a team that will lose.
“We put it together on offense and defense,” said Hurst, who completed nine of 11 passes for 184 yards and four touchdowns. “We clicked.”
“We’ve come a long way since we lost to Moeller,” said senior linebacker Joe Pierce, who helped the Tigers limit Harding to 8 first‑half yards while the Massillon offense was amassing 308.
“We prepared for their defense as if it was stronger than it really was,” added Rameir Martin, who caught four passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns. “We just took what was there and did what we had to do.”
“They were clogging up the middle and it was pretty easy to get outside,” said sophomore running back Falando Ashcraft, who rushed 13 times for 90 yards while pinchhitting for season team rushing leader Ryan Sparkman. Sparkman was resting a hamstring injury and is expected to play against St. Joseph.
Speaking of injuries, the Tigers didn’t pull one key man in the late going and it cost them. Kick returner Donnie Blake whose 94‑yard return of the third‑quarter kickoff turned around last week’s Indianapolis North Central game, was injured while bringing back a punt in the fourth quarter.
It is feared Blake suffered a leg fracture when he was tackled near the Tiger bench. X‑rays were to have been taken this morning.
“Most of the first‑string players were out at that point because an injury is exactly what you don’t want to happen,” Owens said. “It was a freak thing with Donnie. The Warren player made a real late hit and kind of rolled up his leg. We’re not sure what Donnie’s injury is. It may just be a muscle between his knee and ankle. It may be something more than that.”
Pressed to explain what was said when they crossed paths amid the postgame interteam mingle, Owens said:
“I went to shake Frank’s hand, and he said, ‘No, I don’t want to shake your hand.’ I didn’t realize he felt that way.”
Was Thomas upset because the Tigers “ran up the score?” He shouldn’t have been. The final series of the first half was directed by backup Massillon quarterback Barry Shertzer. Massillon’s firststring offense and first‑string defense each played one series in the third quarter, then called it a night.
Owens said he received word from a messenger that “a Warren athletic official” was upset that the Tigers continued to pass in the second half. The Tigers tried 11 passes in the first half, after which they led 41‑0, and threw seven more in the second half.
“I developed a reputation in some corners in past years for running up some scores,” said Owens. “With our offense, it’s hard to just stop throwing the football. Our intention tonight was certainly not to run up the score. We could have scored a lot more points if that’s what we’d wanted to do.”
Thomas steered clear of controversy.
“Just say they’re a good football team and I wish them luck … congratulations. That’s about all I have to say,” he said as he walked off the field.
The Tigers emerged with a 7‑1 record and their fourth straight victory. The victory, coupled with wins by previously conquered opponents GlenOak, Fitch, St. Vincent‑St. Mary and Indianapolis North Central, left them with approximately 115 computer points, good for the lead in Region 3 of Division I.
“The way we’ll sell next week’s game against Cleveland St. Joseph is that we need it to wrap up a playoff spot,” Owens said.
Also hurting after the game was Tiger defensive starter Mark McGeorge.
Meanwhile, the Tigers not only dominated the game. They practically dominated every play.
Everything seemed to go right. An example was a spectacular 33‑yard TD catch by Desmond Carpenter on a pass from Shertzer eight seconds before halftime.
One of the few things that didn’t go right was a diving try for a 21‑yard yard TD catch by Martin in the third quarter. Martin, who accumulated all of his yardage in the first half, would have broke Curtis Strawder’s single‑game record for receiving yardage by one yard with a catch.
Here’s the blow‑by‑blow description of each possession:
WH ‑ Start on own 24 with opening kick. Three plays, punt.
MAS ‑ Start on own 31, drive 69 yards in four play, including 20 pass to Martin and 36‑yard TD run by Lamonte Dixon on sprint counter draw. P.A.T. kick wide right at 7:54 of first quarter.
Massillon 6, Harding 0
WH ‑ Start on own 12, punt from own 23.
MAS ‑ Start on Harding 46, score on first play on deep pass from Hurst to Martin. Hurst to Doug Harig conversion pass good at 4:22 of first quarter.
Massillon 14, Harding 0
WH ‑ Start on own 23, three plays and punt.
MAS ‑ Start on Harding 48, score in seven plays, including 16‑yard Kevin McCue to Pierce pass on fake punt. Hurst hits Harig for 11‑yard TD. Miller kick good at 1:30 of first quarter.
Tigers 21, Harding 0
WH ‑ Start on own 20. Pierce intercepts Chauncey Coleman pass on first play.
MAS ‑ Start on Harding 32. Score on third play, 26‑yard Hurst‑to‑Martin pass. Kick wide at 10:03 of second quarter. Tigers 27, Harding 0
WH ‑ Start on own 20. Three plays and punt.
MAS ‑ Start on own 38. Drive 62 yards in six plays for TD, 11‑yard run by Ashcraft. March includes 21‑yard catches by Troy Manion and Martin. Miller kick good at 5:31 of second quarter.
Massillon 34, Harding 0
WH ‑ Start on own 17. Punt from own 16.
MAS ‑ Start on Harding 46. Drive for TD in five plays, capped by 33‑yard Shertzer to Ashcraft play. Ryan John kick good at 0:08 of first half.
Massillon 41, Harding 0
MAS ‑ Start on own 27 with third‑quarter kickoff. Drive 73 yards for TD in 10 plays, capped by 21‑yard Hurst‑to‑Harig TD. Kick wide at 7:40 of third quarter.
Massillon 47, Harding 0
WH ‑ Start on own 20. Mike Martin sack causes fumble recovered by Craig Turkalj
MAS ‑ Start on Harding 12, Ashcraft scores on first play. Miller kick good at 5:46 of third quarter.
Massillon 54, Harding 0
WH ‑ Start on own 27. Three plays and punt.
MAS ‑ Start on own 43. Lose yardage on penalties to 19. Ball snapped over punter’s head and recovered by punter in end zone at 0:28 of third quarter to conclude scoring.
Massillon 54, Harding 2
MASSILLON 54 WARREN HARDING 2
M WH First downs rushing 7 4 First downs passing 11 0 First downs by penalty 2 0 Totals first downs 20 4 Yards gained rushing 194 74 Yards lost rushing 27 44 Net yards rushing 167 30 Net yards passing 268 0 Total yards gained 435 30 Passes attempted 18 5 Passes completed 14 0 Passes int. by 0 1 Times kicked off 9 1 Kickoff average 56.3 35.0 Kickoff return yards 0 113 Punts 1 8 Punting average 25.0 39.3 Punt return yards 52 0 Fumbles 0 2 Fumbles lost 0 1 Penalties 5 2 Yards penalized 50 10 Number of plays 53 41 Time of possession 23:10 24:50 Attendance 9,125
Receiving (Mas) Martin 4‑113, Carpenter 2‑40, Pierce 1‑16, Harig 2‑32, Manion 2‑32, Slicker 1‑8, Brown 1‑31.
Harding 0 0 2 0 2 Massillon 14 27 13 0 54
M ‑ Dixon 36 run (kick failed) M ‑ Martin 46 pass from Hurst (Harig pass from Hurst) M ‑ Harig 11 pass from Hurst (Miller kick) M ‑ Martin 26 pass from Hurst (kick failed) M ‑ Ashcraft 11 run (Miller kick) M ‑ Carpenter 33 pass from Shertzer (John kick) M ‑ Harig 21 pass from Hurst (run failed), M ‑ Ashcraft 12 run (Miller kick) WH – Safety
Tigers rack up points Beating Indiana team enhances playoff chances
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
Coach George Pappas went back to Indiana with stars in his eyes.
His countenance was downright peaceful Saturday night despite his Indianapolis North Central team’s 37-14 loss to the Massillon Tigers.
Most of the 9,179 spectators had cleared the dust bowl/parking lot outside Paul Brown Tiger Stadium when Pappas swung by the Massillon locker room to thank – yes, thank – Tiger head coach Lee Owens.
“You have something great here,” said Pappas, who started at guard for the Purdue Boilermakers in 1964. “We’d love to come back. We’ll come back any time. Call me.”
Program Cover
Pappas told Owens of the great football that was played back when he was a schoolboy in the Chicago area.
“This was like the old days,” he said. “It took me back.”
The victory put some Tiger fans in mind of the old days, for that matter.
At 6-1, the Tigers moved closer to their first regular-season finish of 8-2 or better since 1983, when the team went 9-1.
It also put them in a spot where they can probably clinch their first playoff berth since 1982 by beating Warren Harding Friday night and Cleveland St. Joseph the following week.
Beating North Central (5-2), combined with victories for previously conquered Massillon opponents Youngstown East, Middletown and Austintown-Fitch, provided a whopping 25-5 computer playoff points, bringing the season total to 90.7.
Beating Harding on Friday would probably swell the total beyond 115. Knocking off Cleveland St. Joseph the following week would send the sum into the 140 range with the McKinley game still left to play.
The Tigers are one of 36 teams trying to earn on of four playoff spots in Division I, Region 3. Last year’s top four were Westerville North (163.0), Warren Western Reserve (145.5), Upper Arlington (134.5) and Groveport Madison (133.0). The moral of the story – 140 points should be plenty.
Cincinnati Princeton led Ohio last year with 180.5 playoff points. If the Tigers win their last three games, there is a good chance they would exceed that sum.
For the moment, McKinley will retain the No. 1 spot in Region 3 following its 21-7 win over GlenOak on Saturday. Projected standings, with approximate point totals, in Region 3 this week are McKinley 95, Massillon 90, Walsh Jesuit 73, Gahanna Lincoln 67 and Upper Arlington 64.
We’re in good shape in the playoff race,” Owens said. “A win this week would take us past McKinley and into first place, since McKinley is playing a winless team (Youngstown South).
“But while it’s a big goal of ours to make the playoffs, we still have to focus on winning each week.”
The Tigers won Saturday after trailing 14-7 at half time.
The terror of trailing was over 15 seconds into the second half, thanks to Don Blake’s 94-yard kickoff return.
Blake estimates he has come close to breaking six returns for touchdowns this season. He couldn’t have picked a better time to finally do it.
The Tigers got more than the usual pep talk at half time. Spirited would be one way to describe a speech delivered by assistant coach Gary Wells to buttress Owens’ talk.
What was running through Blake’s mind at the time?
“I was thinkin’ about bringin’ me one back,” he said.
Owens discounted the impact of the half time lectures. He said the first-half deficit hadn’t been a matter of the Tigers underestimating North Central, but the result of improper execution.
“Everyone seems to be crediting the half time talks,” Owens said. “I give more credit to the kickoff return team.”
Blake said he got a key block from Don Relford before cutting to the left sideline and blowing by 6-foot-6 kicker Kirby Bradford, who had seemed to have a good tackling angle.
Other members of the unit were Doug Harig, Lou LoCoco, Steve Brown, Duane Scott, Jim Goff, Tom Menches, Gary Miller, Scott Slicker and Falando Ashcraft.
The crowd came to life and the Tigers poured it on.
On the ensuing kickoff, North Central return man William Nelson slipped inside the 1-yard line. On the next play, sophomore linebacker Eric Wright penetrated a pile of bodies and wrestled down quarterback John Hale for a safety.
The Tigers started at their own 39 after a free kick and marched 61 yards for a touchdown. Playing like a man possessed was senior running back Ryan Sparkman, who carried four times for 40 yards and caught a pass for 25 yards on the drive. His 2-yard TD run and Gary Miller’s PAT boot made it 23-14, Tigers, with just 3:38 gone in the second half.
Sparkman later was injured during a run on a fake punt. It was the first fake punt the Tigers failed to convert into a first down after six successful tries during Owens’ two years in Massillon.
“It’s a slight muscle strain,” Owens said this morning. “We expect Ryan to be 100 percent for Friday’s game against Warren.”
Sparkman was replaced by sophomore Falando Ashcraft, who carried four times for 30 yards on a subsequent touchdown drive, including five yards for the score.
North Central’s lead was based on a near-interception by Massillon’s Chad Buckland that wound up as a tip to the Panthers’ Harvey Kelley, who turned it into a 68-yard TD play with 29 seconds left in the half. Early in the second half, Buckland intercepted a similar throw.
The Tigers were out-gained 233-112 in the first-half yardage.
“They came out in a gimmick defense we hadn’t seen before,” said Tiger offensive tackle Ray Kovacsiss. “We recognized what we had to do after making the adjustments, and we did it.”
“They were twisting their big guys around on defense,” added Tiger tight end Doug Harig. “We went back to our basic offense and we were successful.”
Harig said he was “confident the Tigers could come back while resting in the locker room at intermission.”
“But I felt a lot better after Blake brought back that kick,” he said.
Wright had a big game from his line-backing spot. At one point, he made a sack on one play and an interception on the next.
“It was probably the best game of the season for two of our linebackers, Eric Wright and Joe Pierce,” Owend\s said.
Tiger-Panther Grid lineups Here are the probable starting lineups for Saturday’s game between the Massillon Tigers and the Indianapolis North Central Panthers. Kickoff time is 8 p.m. in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium
TIGER OFFENSE Quarterback – No .15, Lee Hurst, 6-3, 180, Sr. A-back – No. 44, Lamonte Dixon, 5-9, 185, Sr. B-back – No 34, Ryan Sparkman, 5-8, 175, Sr. Flanker – No 8, Troy Manion, 6-0, 180, Sr. Wide receiver – No. 21, Rameir Martin, 6-4, 170, Sr. Tight end – No. 83, Dough Harig, 6-2, 195, Sr.; No. 87, Steve Brown, 6-5, 195, Jr. Center – No. 57, Nick Hill, 5-10, 165, Sr. Guards – No. 65, Mike Silverthorn, 6-1, 230, Sr.; No. 60, Jim Goff, 6-0, 180, Sr.; No. 77 Brent Bach, 6-1, 225, Jr. Tackles – No. 74, Ray Kovacsiss, 6-4, 265, Sr.; No. 66, Tom Menches 6-0, 240, Sr.
TIGER DEFENSE Tackles – No. 55, Mark McGeorge, 5-8, 205, Jr.; No. 54, Scott Sirgo, 5-9, 185. Sr. Ends – No. 94, Jeff Perry, 6-1, 180, Jr.; No. 95, Mike Martin, 6-1, 185, Jr. Inside linebackers – No. 37, Craig Turkalj, 6-2, 206, Sr.; No. 45, Eric Wright, 5-9, 185. So. Outside linebackers – No. 9, Joe Pierce, 6-2, 190, Sr.; No. 22, Kevin McCue, 6-3, 167, Sr. Backs – No. 20, Keith Rabbitt, 6-4, 170, Sr.; No 5, Chad Buckland, 6-0, 185, Jr.; Eddie Williams, Sr.; No. 23, Don Blake, 6-1, 165, Jr.
**** PANTHER OFFENSE Quarterback – No. 12, John Hale, 6-1, 185, Sr. Running backs – No. 47, Kevin Wood, 5-10, 175, Sr.; No. 40, Tony Nibbs, 6-1, 185, Jr. Center – No. 51, David Cavorsi, 6-1, 220, Sr. Guards – No. 54, Ryan Bruce, 6-1, 235, Jr.; No. 61, John Reed, 5-10, 175, Sr. Tackles – No. 77, Mark Tarowsky, 6-3, 220, Jr.; No. 72, Tony Henderson, 6-2, 280, Sr. Tight end – No. 87, John Conway, 6-1, 180, Jr. Split end – No. 23, Harvey Kelly, 6-1, 165, Sr.
PANTHER DEFENSE Nose guard – No. 72, Henderson. Tackles – No. 54, Ryan; No. 74, Charles Hill, 6-0, 236, Jr. Ends – No. 1, James Reynolds, 5-8, 170, Sr.; No. 92 Bobby Keith, 6-0, 191, Jr. Linebackers – No. 58, Woodrow Palk, 6-0, 190, Jr.; No. 56, Brandon Jones, 6-1, 204, Sr. Backs – No. 4, Williams Nelson, 6-1, 155, Sr.; No. 16, Jason Venturi, 5-10, 172, Jr.; No. 10, Greg Black, 5-11, 170, Jr.; No. 8 Walter Nelson, 6-0, 158, Sr.
Here’s a look at each possession in Saturday’s game.
INC – Start with opening kickoff on own 14. Three plays and punt. MAS – Start on own 48. Three plays and punt. Troy Manion recovers North Central fumble on 19. Three more plays, 36-yard field goal attempt wide. INC – Start on own 20. Five plays to own 38 and punt. MAS – Start on own 22. March 78 yards in 14 plays capped by Lamonte Dixon’s 8-yard run on sprint counter draw-play. Big play, 22-yard Lee Hurst to Rameir Martin pass. Gary Miller’s P.A.T. kick comes at 1:37 of first quarter
Tigers 7, North Central 0 INC – Start on own 20 after kickoff. Lose a yard, then score on 81-yard bomb from Hale to Monte Bailey. Josh Nelson’s kick good at 0:19 of first quarter.
Tigers 7, North Central 7 MAS – Start on own 36 after kickoff. Three plays and punt. INC – Start on own 21. Drive to Tiger 21. Hale throws interception to Wright. MAS – Start on own 22. Lose ball on Greg Black interception. INC – Start on own 28. Score on fourth play, 68-yard Hale to Kelley pass. Nelson’s kick good at 0:29 of first half.
North Central 14, Tigers 7 MAS – Blake returns second-half kickoff 94 yards for TD. Miller kick good at 11:45 of third quarter.
Tigers 14, North Central 14 INC – Start on own 1 after kickoff. Eric Wright Hale in end zone for safety on first play.
Tigers 16, North Central 14 MAS – Start on own 39 after free kick. Drive 61 yards in nine plays, scoring on Sparkman’s 2-yard run. Miller’s Kick good at 8:22 of third quarter.
Tigers 23, North Central 14 INC – Start on Tiger 48 after kickoff. Buckland intercepts Hale’s bomb on second play. MAS – Start on own 9. Ten plays to INC 31, lose ball on downs. INC – Start on own 31. Five plays to 42, punt. MAS – Start on own 19. Fall on fake punt attempt on fourth down. INC – Start on Tiger 47. Fail to make first down on four plays. MAS – Start on INC 46. Score on 10th play. Ashcraft’s 5-yard run. Miller’s kick good at 3:26 of fourth quarter. INC – Fumble at 7 shortly after ensuing kickoff. Tigers’ Mark Murphy recovers. MAS – Drive 7 yards for touchdown. Scott Slicker goes in from 4 yards out. Miller’s kick good at 1:15 of fourth quarter.
MASSILLON 37 N. CENTRAL INDY 14
STATISTICS M INC First downs rushing 15 2 First downs passing 4 9 First downs by penalty 1 0 Totals first downs 20 11 Yards gained rushing 264 39 Yards lost rushing 15 43 Net yards rushing 249 -4 Net yards passing 80 295 Total yards gained 329 291 Passes attempted 18 24 Passes completed 6 14 Passes int. by 1 2 Times kicked off 6 3 Kickoff average 57.5 51.0 Kickoff return yards 142 92 Punts 2 3 Punting average 35.5 41.3 Punt return yards 0 2 Fumbles 0 2 Fumbles lost 0 2 Penalties 6 8 Yards penalized 50 61 Number of plays 67 47 Time of possession 25:09 22:51
Passing (Mas) Hurst 6-18-1, 80 (NC) Hale 14-24-2, 295.
Receiving (Mas) Harig 1-3, Martin 2-36, Manion 2-15, Sparkman 1-26. (NC) Bailey 3-119, Kelly 3-84, Mayes 1-19, Minor 1-6, Nelson 3-64, Nibbs 1-6, Woods 2-minus 3.
N. CENTRAL 7 7 0 0 14 MASSILLON 7 0 16 14 37
Mas – Dixon 8 run (Miller kick) NCI – Bailey 81 pass from Hale (Nelson kick) NCI – Kelly 67 pass from Hale (Nelson kick) Mas – Blake 94 kickoff return (Miller kick) Mas – Safety (Hale tackled in end zone) Mas – Sparkman 2 run (Miller kick) Mas – Ashcraft 5 run (Miller run) Mas – Slicker 4 run (Miller kick)
Tigers zip back to triumph 37-14
By MARK CRAIG Repository sports writer
MASSILLON – Not to be outdone by their opponents from Indianapolis, the Massillon Washington High School football team scored 16 points in the opening 3:38 of the third quarter Saturday night to beat North Central High School 37-14 in front of 9,179 fans at Paul Brown Tigers Stadium.
North Central got the Tigers all riled up by taking a 14-7 half time lead on John Hale touchdown passes of 81 yards to Monte Bailey and 68 yards to Harvey Kelley.
However, after one of Lee Owens’ more heated half time chats, Massillon junior Don Blake quickly erased whatever momentum the Panthers had when he took the second half kickoff and raced 95 yards for a touchdown.
“Coach said we needed a spark, and I knew it was time I take one back,” Blake said. “I’ve been close so many times this year. I just knew I’d get the TD tonight.”
The Tigers didn’t have to wait long for their next score. On the kickoff following Blake’s TD return. North Central’s deep man slipped and downed the ball inside the Panther 1.
On the first play from scrimmage. Hale tried to dive forward for some breathing room, but was smothered in the end zone by the entire interior line of the Tigers.
After receiving the punt following the safety. Massillon drove 61 yards in seven plays and scored with 8:22 left in the third. Ryan Sparkman, who led all rushers with 123 yards on 20 carries, went the final two yards, and Gary Miller tacked on the extra point.
Massillon added two more scores in the fourth quarter to complete the rout. Meanwhile, the defense, as junior defensive end Mike Martin phrased it, played like “controlled maniacs” in the second half. It limited the Panthers to 68 total yards offense in the second half, after giving up 233 in the first half.
“The way we played that entire second half seemed to be sparked by Don’s runback on the kickoff,” said Owens, whose team is 6-1. “We were so down at the half that I yelled as loud at the half as I have in a long, long time. I said things in there that can’t be printed in a family newspaper.”
Owens should have screamed at the beginning of the game.
After Massillon scored the first TD of the game on an eight-yard run by Lamonte Dixon (62 yards on 15 carries), North Central (5-2) quickly answered with Hale’s bomb to Bailey.
The Tiger defense was caught napping, which allowed Bailey to slip by the defenders, catch the ball at the Panther 40 and run untouched the rest of the way. With less than a minute left in the half, the Panthers struck again on Hale’s bomb to Kelley. Three plays after Massillon quarterback Lee Hurst threw an interception, Hale launched a pass to Kelley that was tipped by Massillon defensive back Chad Buckland.
While Buckland was bobbling the ball at mid field, Kelley raced in, grabbed the ball and ran the rest of the way untouched for a TD with 29 seconds left in the half.
That, however, is where Massillon’s defense stopped getting hammered.
“We really didn’t do anything differently technique-wise in the second half,” said Massillon defensive coordinator Dan Boarman. “We just went after them a little bit more.”
Massillon’s defense held the Panthers to minus-4 yards rushing. Hale finished with six completions in 12 attempts for 295 yards.
Offensively, Massillon gained 329 yards total offense. The Tigers rushed the ball 48 times in 249 yards. Hurst completed 6-of-18 passes for 80 yards. Rameir Martin caught two passes for 36 yards.
North Central 7 7 0 0 14 Massillon 7 0 16 14 37
M – Dixon 8 run (Miller kick) N – Bailey 81 pass from Hale (Josh Nelson kick) N – Kelley 68 pass from Hale (Josh Nelson kick) M – Blake 95 kickoff return (Miller kick) M – Safety, Hale tackled in end zone. M – Sparkman 2 run (Miller kick) M – Ashcraft 3 run (Miller kick) M – Slicker 4 run (Miller kick)
Massillon runs over North Central, 37-14
By MARK SCHNEIDER STAR STAFF WRITER The Indianapolis Star
Massillon, Ohio – They take their football seriously in Ohio, particularly in Massillon, a town of about 35,000, located 50 miles south of Cleveland.
A crowd of 9,179 spectators showed up Saturday night at 20,000-seat Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, named after Massillon’s former coach and most-famous alumnus, the Cincinnati Bengals owner.
The football-crazy people of Ohio were curious to see the 5-1 and eighth-ranked North Central Panthers from Indianapolis.
And Coach George Pappas’ boys showed the Buckeye folks some fancy football, Hoosier-style.
That is, before the Tigers kicked the door in for a 37-14 victory.
Massillon, a Division I (big school) team, blitzed North Central with a 16-point third quarter and added 14 more in the fourth period to improve its record to 6-1.
Massillon kicked in the door on the Panthers at the outset of the second half.
Don Blake ignited the Tigers’ 16-point third-quarter scoring blitz with a 94-yard return for a touchdown of the opening kickoff.
Then, on Massillon’s subsequent kickoff, North Central’s Greg Black fielded the ball inside the 1 – and slipped down to his knee on the artificial surface before he could go anywhere.
On North Central’s first play from scrimmage inside the 1, quarterback John Hale failed to get out of the end zone for a Massillon safety.
Suddenly, North Central was staring at a 16-14 deficit and Massillon fans were literally rocking and rolling I nthe stands to the tune of the pop rock song, “Shout.”
“That momentum shift was just tremendous,” acknowledged Pappas. “A momentum shift like that was just insurmountable.”
“It’s been an enjoyable trip over here, but to come out on the short end of a 37-14 score is not really too enjoyable.”
“Massillon is a great team and program. I mean, during the momentum shift the crowd reaction from down on the field was just tremendous…phenomenal.”
But that wasn’t the end of the misery for North Central. At 8:22 of the third period, Ryan Sparkman capped a 61-yard Massillon drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to make it 23-14.
In the fourth quarter the Tigers struck twice more – Falando Ashcraft’s 3-yard run at 5:12 and Scott Slicker’s 4-yard trot at 3:26.
Massillon’s initial score came on Lamonte Dixon’s 8-yard touchdown run at 1:37 of the first quarter.
But North Central was not without its shining moments. As a matter of fact, the Panthers, now 5-2, led at half time 14-7.
Senior quarterback John Hale helped provide the fireworks for the Panthers, hitting Monte Bailey with an 81-yard scoring dart at :19 of the first quarter, and then Harvey Kelley with a 69-yarder with just :29 left before half time.
Hale finished the game on 14-of-24 passing for 295 yards.
Bailey topped North Central receivers with three catches for 119 yards and a touchdown.
Kelley and Tony Henderson had brilliant efforts for the Panthers.
All in all, it was a real eye-opener for the North Central program.
“All things considered, I think the kids played well,” praised Pappas. “I mean, we left Indianapolis at 5 a.m., got here at noon and practiced.”
“We were beaten by an excellent football team. But the kids will benefit from it all. And I think we came out a better football team because of it.”
North Central 7 7 0 0 14 Massillon 7 0 16 14 37
M – Dixon 8 run (Miller kick) NC – Bailey 81 pass from Hale (J. Nelson kick) NC – Kelley 67 pass from Hale (J. Nelson kick) M – Blake 94 kickoff return (Miller kick) M – Massillon safety (Hale tackled in end zone) M – Sparkman 2 run (Miller kick) M – Ashcraft 3 run (Miller kick) M – Slicker 4 run (Miller kick)
Time stands still as Tigers run by Irish 28-21 in OT
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
The clock quit. The Massillon Tigers didn’t
They’ll fix the clock at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. Or replace it.
The Tigers don’t need fixed. Their 28-21 overtime victory over Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary in front of 10,822 fans at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium left them looking like they’d just had an oil change, tune-up and wax job.
And the fans certainly don’t want to replace them. They’re taking a shine to this group that now seems to be streaming toward the playoffs, so far with a 5-1 record.
Program Cover
The clock started acting quirkly in the first half, despite a Thursday visit by a repair crew that spent hours tinkering with it.
They didn’t even bother to turn it on for the second half, when time was kept on the field.
In the end, they didn’t even need stopwatches, because the game went to overtime tied at 21-all.
In overtime, each team gets a turn with the ball 20 yards away from the end zone. The team that scores more points on its possession wins. If neither team outscores the other the first time this is done, they do it again; in fact, high school overtime could go on endlessly in theory, since there are no ties in Ohio high school football.
This brief explanation of overtime is necessary, since the Tigers have played only one other overtime contest, last year’s 10-7 victory over McKinley.
In fact, one Tiger player spent the joyous aftermath yelling “McKinley flashbacks” to teammates.
This one went to overtime only after some scary Fitch flashbacks.
Last year, Austintown-Fitch beat the Tigers 20-19 on a game-ending 43-yard field goal. With 30 seconds left in regulation last night, St. Vincent’s Jerry Arney, who had kicked several extra points to kingdom come, lined up for a 43-yard field goal try aimed at breaking a 21-all tie.
“I didn’t think this kick was going to make it,” Massillon coach Lee Owens said. “Their kicker had struggled with extra points coming into this game. For some reason, he was booming the extra points tonight, but this was a lot longer than an extra point.”
Tiger fans didn’t have to hold their breath for long. Arney’s kick never had a chance. It duck-tailed to the left, crashing into the TV-25 banner on the fence behind the end zone.
So it went to overtime.
Massillon senior Desmond Carpenter, who earlier recovered a teammate’s fumble in the end zone for a touchdown, said he sensed the right stuff among his teammates.
“I saw a lot of pride out there,” he said. “We got down in the second half. We had the lead (21-7) but they caught us. Then it came down to heart and determination.”
And maybe some good play-calling.
The Irish won the overtime-coin flip and elected to give Massillon the ball first.
“That way you get to see what the other team does, and you know exactly what you have to do on your possession,” said Irish coach John Cistone.
Cistone didn’t like what he saw on first down. Massillon quarterback Lee Hurst, who had been effective keeping the ball on bootleg runs through most of the night, made as if he was bootlegging one more time. The ball, meanwhile, had been given to running back Lamonte Dixon, who sprinted left while Hurst disappeared right.
“The bootleg had been working pretty well and they had to pay attention to it,” Owens said.
Dixon, who had carried only 10 times to that point, dashed to the 6 for a 14-yard gain. On first-and-goal, Ryan Sparkman churned to the 4.
“That put them in a position where they had to respect the inside run,” Owens said.
On second down, while the Irish were respecting just that, Hurst was bootlegging again – 4 yards for a touchdown around left end.
Gary Miller’s PAT kick made it 28-21.
The crowd began chanting, “defense!” as loudly as you will hear it at Tiger Stadium. On fourth-and-one from the 11, though, Irish quarterback Phil Lenz penetrated the defense to the 5, and the visitors were back in business.
But not for long. They never penetrated the 5. Lenz lost a half-yard on first down and running back David Vincent was stopped for no gain on second down. On third down, inside linebacker Craig Turkalj shot through a gap to stuff Vincent for a 1½ hard loss.
“For some reason, the Packers-Cowboys championship game from the 1960s popped into my mind,” Turkalj said. “that was the ice bowl game. Those two teams just lined up down by the goal line and went at it.”
“Our goal-line down linemen (Tom Menches, Mark McGeorge, Scott Sirgo and Brent Bach) made it happen. They knocked everybody out of the way and I had a clean shot to the ball carrier.”
McGeorge said it was a matter of “everybody selling out.”
“I was just thinking ‘root hog.’ You crawl through the offensive linemen’s legs and create a big pile.”
It was fourth-and-goal from the seven. It wasn’t over. Cistone called a pass play. Lenz had a man open near the right corner of the end zone.
“They caught us,” Turkalj said. “It was a good call.”
But the pass fell incomplete. The game was over. The Tigers moved to next week’s game against Indianapolis North Central with a 5-1 mark. The Irish went into next week’s game against Youngtown Cardinal Mooney with a 3-2 record.
“With the schedule we play,” Owens said, ‘we’re going to be in some tight games. The great teams and the ones that find a way to win at the end of games like this one.”
“St. Vincent-St. Mary is a great team, too. It’s too bad somebody had to lose.”
Cistone certainly agreed with that. He spent a long time after the game muttering to himself and to other coaches that this one shouldn’t have gotten away.
But in the end he told his team, “You played a helluva game. That’s all I can tell you. I couldn’t ask for any more.”
Hurst figured in three of the Tigers four touchdowns, passing for one and running for two. The senior signal caller passed for 148 yards, giving him 984 on the season. He is on course to challenge the single-season Massillon passing record of 1,604 yards by Brian Dewitz in 1983 – and Dewitz needed 13 games to reach that figure.
Rameir Martin, who caught the touchdown pass on a 10-yard play in the first quarter, had another big night. The 6-foot-4 senior end caught six passes for 54 yards. He has caught 356 yards worth of aerials this year, putting him within striking distance of Marty Guzzetta’s single-season team record of 706 (11 games) set in 1979.
MASSILLON 28 ST. VINCENT 21
STATISTICS M St. V First downs rushing 8 8 First downs passing 7 4 First downs by penalty 0 0 Totals first downs 15 12 Yards gained rushing 148 195 Yards lost rushing 18 13 Net yards rushing 130 182 Net yards passing 148 72 Total yards gained 278 254 Passes attempted 28 18 Passes completed 13 8 Passes int. by 2 0 Times kicked off 4 4 Kickoff average 56.3 44.3 Kickoff return yards 36 34 Punts 7 6 Punting average 35.6 41.2 Punt return yards 16 98 Fumbles 2 6 Fumbles lost 1 3 Penalties 2 3 Yards penalized 10 28 Number of plays 63 61 Time of possession 23:23 24:37 Attendance 10,822
M – Martin 10 pass from Hurst (Miller kick) St. V – Vincent 1 run (Arney kick) M – Hurst 14 run (kick failed) M – Carpenter fumble recovery in end zone (Harig pass from Hurst) St. V – Campbell 19 pass from Lenz (Arney kick) St. V – Lenz 8 run (Arney kick) M – Hurst 4 run (Miller kick)
Tigers’ QB takes game in own hands
By MARK CRAIG Repository sports writer
MASSILLON – Massillon Washington High School quarterback Lee Hurst couldn’t think of a better person to get the ball on second-and-goal from the 4 in overtime of Friday night’s game against Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary.
Hurst, who was intercepted by Joseph Adolph at the Irish 13 as the Tigers were driving for the winning touchdown midway through the fourth quarter, said he was the man for the job.
Hurst got his opportunity and carried the ball untouched around left end after faking a handoff to the right. Hurst’s TD, which came three plays into the overtime, and Gary Miller’s third PAT of the evening gave the Tigers a 28-21 lead.
Massillon’s defense turned the lead into the Tigers’ fourth victory of the season when it held the Irish on fourth-and-goal at the 7. Massillon is 4-1, while St. Vincent-St. Mary dropped to 3-2.
After gaining 15 yards to the Massillon 5 on three plays in their overtime possession, the Irish were pushed back two yards. On fourth-and-goal, Irish quarterback Phil Lenz’ pass to the goal line was overthrown, sending most of the 10,822 fans in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium into a frenzy.
“We had no doubt we’d stop them,” said Massillon outside linebacker Joe Pierce. “When it gets down to a situation where we have to hold them in OT, we know we can get the job done.”
Hurst certainly got the job done when it counted. After a 14-yard gain by Lamonte Dixon and a two-yard gain by Ryan Sparkman in overtime, Hurst knew it was time for him to win the game.
“That’s the play I was hoping for,” said Hurst, who rushed for 31 yards and completed 13-of-28 pases for 148 yards, one TD and two interceptions. “It had worked a couple times earlier in the game, and I knew me and the line could make it work again.”
Hurst almost didn’t have the opportunity to make up for his two interceptions. With 38 seconds left in regulation, St. Vincent-St. Mary place-kicker Jerry Arney had a chance to win the game with a 48-yard field goal.
His kick was long enough, but wide left.
“We played a heckuva game, but it’s hard to be satisfied with just that,” said St. Vincent-St. Mary head coach John Cistone. “We should have won the game. Arney has the leg to make that field goal.”
Massillon head coach Lee Owens was somewhat concerned with the way the Tigers couldn’t put the Irish away after going on top 21-7 seven plays into the third quarter. He also is a little concerned with the way the Irish’s wishbone backfield effectively ran the counter play on offense while piling up 182 yards rushing.
Owens, however, wasn’t worrying about all that Friday night.
“When it came eight down to winning the ball game, the kids came through,” Owens said. “Lee showed the type of leader he is, and then the defense held on to give us the win. You can’t ask for much more than that.”
Massillon opened the scoring after Eddie Williams recovered one of the three fumbles St. Vincent-St. Mary lost. The Tigers took the ball from the St. Vincent-St. Mary 32 and drove 10 plays in 6:40.
Hurst, who gained six yards rushing on a fourth-and-5 play during the drive, capped the drive with an 11-yard TD pass to Rameir Martin. The pass was one of six passes Martin caught for 54 yards.
Punt returner Don Blake set up Massillon’s second score by returning a punt seven yards to the Irish 37 with 5:01 left in the first half. Four plays later, Hurst faked a handoff left and went around right end for a 14-yard TD run. Miller missed the PAT, and Massillon led 13-7.
Hurst also had the key plays in the Tigers’ third TD drive. After the second-half kickoff, Hurst led the Tigers down field by completing an eight-yard pass to Martin and a 33-yarder to tight end Doug Harig.
Sparkman, who led the Tigers with 53 yards rushing, carried the ball to the goal line; but was hit and fumbled into the end zone. Desmond Carpenter recovered in the end zone for the Tigers TD.
St. Vincent-St. Mary 0 7 7 7 0 21 Massillon 7 6 8 0 7 28
M – Martin 10 pass from Hurst (Miller kick) S – Vincent 1 run (Arney kick) M – Hurst 14 run (Kick failed) M – Carpenter fumble recovery in end zone (Harig pass from Hurst) S – Campbell 19 pass from Lenz (Arney kick) S – Lenz 8 run (Arney kick) M – Hurst 4 run (Miller kick)
Tiger offensive line keys win over Fitch Massillon 4-1 after wild night
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
On second thought, don’t bring back those lazy, crazy days of summer.
The Massillon Tigers’ 23-13 football victory over Austintown Fitch Friday replaced lazy and hazy with wild and woolly, and when the crazy thing was over, the home team had turned its season around on the first day of autumn.
The Tigers had spent the week with a 41-7 gorilla of a loss to Cincinnati Moeller riding on their backs. They spend today savoring a win over the state’s fourth-ranked team and carrying a 4-1 record and a mess of computer points into the second half of the season.
Tiger running back Ryan Sparkman, who rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns, was driven by, among other things, last year’s 20-19 loss at Fitch on a last-play field goal, and last week’s loss to Moeller.
Program Cover
“All I was thinking was strictly paybacks,” Sparkman said.
Well, maybe not all.
“We wanted to show people, show our fans, how much pride we have,” he said.
Considering the weather – Hurricane Hugo shipped RainStorm Baby Huey to Ohio – there were an awful lot of fans to show.
As a scout named Phil from Warren Western Reserve (Fitch’s opponent week nine) said, “Great crowd in this stuff.” The count was 9,886 in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, including a fine following from Fitch.
Most of them came having heard all about this monster offensive line Fitch was supposed to have – and did have.
But Massillon’s offensive line was at least as good on this night.
“Our players showed more emotion than they’ve shown in a long time,” Tiger head coach Lee Owens said. “You could see it in our running backs…and our offensive line.”
“Our line improved drastically.”
Sparkman ran with tremendous heart in the game; yet, he was annoyed when approached by a reporter because he thought he was going to be questioned about his great game. But when a question about the line came up, he smiled broadly.
“All I have to say about how good our line is is that you saw the proof on the field tonight,” he said.
Added quarterback Lee Hurst, “The line executed well. I had a lot of time to throw and a lot of room to run.”
Chimed in running back Lamonte Dixon, “The line ran near perfect.”
They saw it the way Fitch, head coach David Hartman did when he said, “The key to the game was their offensive line controlling the line of scrimmage.”
Tiger tackle Mike Silverthorn said he kept hearing that Fitch had a better offensive line than Moeller.
“We wanted to show that we were as good as them,” Silverthorn said.
“We just had to play better and we did. Fitch had a strong defensive line, equal to if not better than Moeller’s. It was a tough game.”
The Tigers won it by bouncing back from a 6-0 deficit, hanging on for a 9-6 half time lead, and taking control by scoring on the first possession of the second quarter.
Along the way, crazy things kept happening. Among them:
<Trailing 6-0 and facing fourth-and-10 from the Fitch 39, the Tigers lined up to punt. A fake was called from the bench, and center Scott Karrenbauer zipped a short snap to Sparkman, who weaved 18 yards for a first down. That set up Gary Miller’s 25-yard field goal.
The Tigers are five-for-five in fake punt situations during Owens’ two years here.
<Sparkman gave the Tigers an apparent lead with a 19-yard touchdown run, but the play was waved off by a clipping penalty. It came down to fourth-and-15. Owens had the play for such dire straights – a tricky handoff-pass – but not the right guy. The Tigers practice the play with flanker Troy Manion, but Desmond Carpenter wound up on the field. Carpenter came through, though, taking a short pitch from Lee Hurst, who went out for a pass. Carpenter dumped the ball to Hurst, who dragged a tackler to the 9 for a first down. Sparkman scored three plays later.
<Trailing 9-6, Fitch faced fourth down from the Tiger 7-yard line with nine seconds left in the half. The Falcons played Chinese checkers with the line, lining up far to the left of place-kicker Jeff Wilkins, then shuffling en masse back to normal position as the Tiger defense scrambled to cover all bases. Wilkins, the man who kicked the game-winning 43-yard field goal against the Tigers last year, also happens to be this year’s Fitch quarterback. The fake was on. Instead of trying a field goal, Wilkins rolled right and passed incomplete to diving Jim Toto in the end zone. The Tigers had dodged the proverbial bullet.
<Massillon drove to the Fitch 25 after taking the second-half kickoff and faced fourth-and-10. They went for it – and made it on a 13-yard Hurst-to-Manion pass, setting up the TD that led to a 16-6 Tiger lead.
<Wilkins scored less than two minutes later on a 49-yard run – after almost being sacked – to make it 16-13.
<Leading by just three points and facing second-and-long after a penalty, the Tigers were in jeopardy of giving the ball back to Fitch’s potent offense. The situation got worse for a split second as Hurst threw a rocket to Manion, who slipped and fell on the rain-soaked sand turf. Manion kept his eye on the ball, though, and made a sensational catch from a prone position for a first down at the Fitch 16. Hurst scored on a 5-yard bootleg run five plays later and the Tigers led 23-13.
<Massillon ball. Less than five minutes left in the game. Fourth down on the Fitch 6. Kick the field goal and swell the lead to 13? Tiger coaches debated – and decided to keep doing what they have done most of the year, go for it on fourth down. The call is a pass to the left corner of the end zone. It is intercepted by Wilkins, now playing defensive back. Wilkins runs a marathon for an apparent touchdown.
Moments earlier, an apparent 21-yard TD pass from Hurst to Sparkman was canceled by a penalty. Now it is Fitch’s turn. Wilkins’ return is wiped out by an illegal use of hands penalty.
“We made a lot of good calls tonight,” Owens says later, adding, “and one bad one. I’ll take the responsibility for that.”
Somebody remembers Wilkins’ field goal last year and asks of the interception return, “How long was that nightmare?”
It went 99 yards and, had it stood and been accompanied by a two-point conversion, would have put Fitch within a field goal of a one-point win.
<Wilkins wasn’t finished. On fourth-and-12, 88 yards from the end zone, he scrambled and completed a 36-yard pass. Fitch finally died on the Massillon 15-yard line. The Tigers’ only punt of the night became the game’s final play.
Fitch, 4-1 this season, still leads the Massillon series 3-2. This was the only game not decided in the fourth quarter, although, like the others, it left nobody bored in the final period.
Weather conditions were similar to the ’86 game at Fitch when the Tigers lost in heavy mud when Leo Hawkins scored on the final play from scrimmage.
With such games in mind, Owens said, “thank goodness for sand turf and all the people in the community who made it possible to get it installed for this season. It was sand turf that allowed us to play on a good field despite the rain.”
Owens said there was another factor helping the Tigers.
“Our fans cheered louder than they have all season and came out in this kind of weather,” he said.
“Thank you, fans.”
As the fans headed for the exits and awaited next week’s invasion by Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, they seemed in a mood to reply, “You’re welcome.”
***** Here’s a review of the teams’ possessions: Fitch – Start with opening kickoff on Tiger 23. Drive 77 yards in 11 plays. Big plays, 19-yard Wilkins-to-Mrakovich dump pass followed by 20-yard run by Torno. Wilkins scores on 7-yard bootleg run. Wilkins’ kick fails at 6:29 of first quarter.
Fitch 6, Massillon 0 Tigers – Blake returns kickoff to 31. Drive 61 yards in 13 plays to Fitch 8. Big plays, 16-yard Hurst-to-Harig pass; 18-yard Sparkman run on faked punt. Miller kicks 25-yard field goal.
Fitch 6, Massillon 3 Fitch – Touchback on kickoff. Drive from own 20 to Tiger 36 before third-down sack on third play of second quarter goes for ninus-6 and forces punt. Tigers – Start on own 36. Drive 64 yards in 13 plays for touchdown. Big plays, 17 run by Dixon; 10-yard Hurst-to-Martin pass on third down; 19 TD run by Sparkman wiped out by penalty; 16-yard halfback pass from Carpenter to Hurst on fourth-and-15 goes to the 9. Sparkman scores on a 2-yard run. PAT kick wide right at 5:20 of second quarter.
Tigers 9, Fitch 6 Fitch – Start on own 34 after kickoff; move to 49 on 12-men- on-field penalty. Drive 44 yards in 10 plays to 7. Set up for fake field goal attempt on fourth down with nine seconds left in half. Wilkins’ pass to Toto incomplete in end zone.
End of first half
Tigers – Blake returns second-half kickoff to 34. Drive 66 yards in 14 plays for touchdown. Big plays, 15-yard Hurst-to-Martin pass; 13-yard Hurst- to-Manion pass on fourth-and 10; fourth-down, 1-yard run by Sparkman to 3 on fourth down. Sparkman scores from less than a yard out. Miller kick good at 7:49 of third quarter.
Tigers 16, Fitch 6 Fitch – Start on own 49 after kick return and facemask penalty. Drive 51 yards in three plays. Wilkins scores on 49-yard run. Wilkins kick good at 5:57 of third quarter. Tigers 16, Fitch 13 Tigers – Start on own 26 after kickoff. Drive 74 yards in 11 plays for touchdown. Big plays, sliding 13-yard catch by Manion at Fitch 16 on second-and-15; Sparkman’s fourth-down run of 1 yard for first down to the 5. Hurst scores on a 5-yard bootleg run. Miller kick good at 0:47 of third quarter.
Tigers 23, Fitch 13 Fitch – Start on own 28 after kickoff. Drive to Tiger 41. Lose ball on McCue interception.
Tigers – Start on own 36. Drive 60 yards in 12 plays to Fitch 6. Big plays, 26-yard Sparkman run; 21-yard Hurst-to-Sparkman TD pass-canceled by penalty; 14-yard Dixon run. Lose ball on interception by Wilkins. Wilkins’ 99-yard return for TD canceled by illegal use of hands penalty during return.
Fitch – Start on own 11; drive 77 yards to Tiger 12. Big plays, 36-yard Wilkins’ completion on fourth-and-12 from the 9. Lose ball on downs.
Tigers – Run three plays and punt for first time in game. Game ends on Roth punt.
MASSILLON ……………… 23 FITCH ……………………… 13
STATISTICS M F First downs rushing 12 11 First downs passing 7 3 First downs by penalty 2 1 Totals first downs 21 15 Yards gained rushing 211 202 Yards lost rushing 17 15 Net yards rushing 194 187 Net yards passing 144 109 Total yards gained 338 296 Passes attempted 24 17 Passes completed 12 7 Passes int. by 1 1 Times kicked off 5 3 Kickoff average 53.8 59.0 Kickoff return yards 89 90 Punts 1 1 Punting average 40.0 45.0 Punt return yards 8 0 Fumbles 1 1 Fumbles lost 0 0 Penalties 6 8 Yards penalized 64 62 Number of plays 70 50 Time of possession 26:04 21:56 Attendance 9,886 — — — INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS Rushing (M) Sparkman 25-123, Dixon 10-56, Hurst 8-11, Ashcraft 2-4. (F) Mrakovich 10-63, Campbell 9-34, Torno 3-23, Wilins 10-64, Toto 1-3.
F – Wilkins 7 run (kick failed) M – FG Miller 25 M – Sparkman 2 run (kick failed) M – Sparkman 1 run (Miller kick) F – Wilkins 48 run (Wilkins kick) M – Hurst 5 run (Miller kick)
Tigers’ 7-year itch turns ouch vs. Mo Fitch next after 41-7 loss to Crusaders
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
Most of Ohio will only have seen the ugly numbers. Cincinnati Moeller 41, Massillon 7.
They won’t know that this was the first time in four trips the Tigers gave Mighty Mo a run at it deep into the fourth quarter.
In the end it looked worse than any of the previous Moeller victories over Massillon: 30-7 in 1980, 24-6 in 1981, 35-14 in 1982.
Yes, the last time these teams met was 1982. The Tigers had a chance to soothe their seven-year itch.
Alas, this wound up like a barefoot stroll through a poison-ivy farm.
Program Cover
As Massillon head coach Lee Owens put it after Saturday’s battle witnessed by 16,764 in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, Someone said the score was not indicative of the game. I totally disagree. They dominated us on both lines of scrimmage.”
That certainly was true, even as the fourth quarter began with the Tigers trailing 21-7.
Yet, the fact remained that Massillon linebacker Craig Turkalj recovered a Carlos Collins fumble at the Moeller 42-yard line with 11:24 left in the game.
And moments later, there was tight end Doug Harig rambling past the Moeller bench on a 13-yard gain on a Lee Hurst pass.
There was hope. There was time to make up the 14-point deficit.
Moments earlier, the Tigers had gambled on fourth-and-inches at mid-field by calling a pass instead of a run. Split end Rameir Martin broke into the clear, poised to score a relatively easy touchdown. Hurst’s arm was hit as he threw, though, and Moeller came up with an interception.
But now the Tigers had the ball back on the Moeller 27. They could make the score respectable, maybe even have a chance to win.
Hurst, however, suffered his fifth sack of the night on first down. The Tigers eventually lost the ball on downs with 6:45 left.
Up to that point, Collins, a junior tailback, was having a big night, with 187 rushing yards but with no gains longer than 14 yards.
That changed quickly. With six minutes left, he finished off a 52-yard touchdown sprint and it was 27-7. With 2:30 left, he broke loose for an 83-yard TD run and it was 34-7. With 1:19 left, after the Tigers fumbled deep in their own territory, Moeller inflicted the final pain with a 2-yard TD run.
The 6-foot-1, 187-pound Collins ,who says he runs 100 meters in 10.9 seconds (.3 slower than Euclid’s Robert “Mr. Football” Smith, who gained 358 yards against Jackson recently), finished with 35 carries for 322 yards.
“I thought it would be a very difficult game and as a matter of fact it was,” said Collins. “We just pulled away at the end.”
It wasn’t the way Tiger fans had hoped to prolong the 50th anniversary celebration of The House That Brown Built.
It was, in fact: <Massillon’s most lopsided home defeat since a 42-3 loss to Toledo Scott in 1920, when “home” was Agathon Park. <The worst Massillon defeat ever at Tiger Stadium. It tied the 34-point margin by which the Tigers fell 40-6 to Toledo Waite in 1946, three years before Tiger Stadium opened. <The Tigers’ most one-sided setback since 1962, when they bowed 46-0 at Alliance.
The outcome left Moeller with a 4-0 record and the Tigers with a 3-1 mark. Massillon will try to rebound Friday at home against Austintown-Fitch, 4-0 following a 46-12 win over Glenville Friday. Take note of the fact Glenville opened its season by defeating a Wooster team that is 3-0 since then.
“It doesn’t get any easier at all,” Owens said. “I believe Fitch is even more dominant on the offensive line than the Moeller team whose line dominated us tonight.”
“We have o put this game behind us as soon as we can. We’re going to find out how much resiliency we have.”
Moeller wound up with a 368-74 advantage over the Tigers in rushing yards and a 485-239 edge in total offense.
“We thought we’d line it up and run and see if they could stop us,” said Moeller coach Steve Klonne, who runs a one-back offense similar to the one GlenOak deployed against the Tigers recently, except GlenOak had nobody like Carlos Collins.
“Carlos doesn’t have the swivel-hipped style of the classic dominant back. He’s more of a loper…but all of a sudden, he’s in the secondary. I think we hit Massillon with more traps and counter plays than they’d seen us use.”
Collins said his job was easy.
I just followed the tackles all night,” he said.
Moeller’s lines are smaller than usual but the tackles – Paul Barkey (6-3, 270) and Keith Fulmer (6-2, 246) are big enough.
Moeller punted after three plays on its opening series but was unstoppable after that.
During one stretch of the first half, Collins had consecutive gains of 14,7, 8, 8, 2, 9, 4, 10, 6, 2, 3, 9 and 10 yards.
The one-back offense spread the Tiger defense and kept it spread because quarterback Adam Hyzdu was effective when he did pass. Hyzdu showed by far the strongest and most accurate arm of any quarterback the Tigers have seen – probably any they will see – in completing seven of 13 passes for 117 yards.
“I think Adam was the key to the whole game,” Klonne said.
The 6-foot-3 Hyzdu will attract major football scouts, Klonne said.
“He’s firmly committed to playing baseball,” Klonne said. “He won’t be playing college football.”
The Tigers counted on bating Moeller’s disciplined defense into biting on fake keys. It worked on shovel passes and draw plays until late in the game.
Running back Ryan Sparkman was credited with seven receptions for 62 yards, mostly on shovel passes flicked to behind the line of scrimmage by Hurst.
Leading 14-0, Moeller bit hard on fakes, allowing Lamonte Dixon to hit wide-open territory on a draw play that sent the ball to the 4. Sparkman scored from a yard out and the Tigers trailed 14-7 with 5:20 left in the first half.
Moeller regained control by taking the ensuing kickoff and driving inside the 10 before missing a 26-yard field goal attempt at the end of the half.
Owens said the Tigers threw the kitchen sink at Moeller in the way of stunts and blitzes and gambling with extra men on the line of scrimmage.
But whatever the Tigers did, Moeller kept blocking it.
“They were trying to mix us up,” said Moeller split end Matt Birrell, who caught four passes. “We just had it going tonight.”
It was going so well, in fact, that it’s hard to imagine anybody slowing Moeller down.
Tiger-Moeller grid lineups Here are the probable starting lineups for Saturday’s game between the Massillon Tigers and Cincinnati Moeller Fighting Crusaders. Kickoff time is 8 p.m. in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
TIGER OFFENSE Quarterback – No. 15, Lee Hurst, 6-3, 180, Sr. A-back – No 44, Lamonte Dixon, 5-9, 185, Sr. B-back – No. 34, Ryan Sparkman, 5-8, 175, Sr. Flanker – No. 8, Troy Manion, 6-0, 180, Sr. Wide receiver – No. 21, Rameir Martin, 6-4, 170, Sr. Tight end – No. 83, Doug Harig, 6-2, 195, Sr.; No. 87, Steve Brown, 6-5, 195, Jr. Center – No 57, Nick Hill, 5-10, 165, Sr. Guards – No. 65, Mike Silverthorn, 6-1, 230, Sr.; No. 60, Jim Goff, 6-0, 180, Sr. Tackles – No. 74, Ray Kovacsiss, 6-4, 265, Sr.; No 66, Tom Menches, 6-0, 240, Sr.
TIGER DEFENSE Tackles – No. 80, Chris Roth, 6-6, 225, Jr.; No. 77, Brent Bach, 6-1, 225, Jr. Ends – No. 94, Jeff Perry, 6-1, 180, Jr.; No. 95, Mike Martin, 6-1, 185, Jr. Inside linebackers – No. 37, Craig Turkalj, 6-2, 206, Sr.; No 55, Mark McGeorge, 5-8, 205, Jr.; No. 45, Eric Wright, 5-9, 185, So. Outside linebackers – No. 9, Joe Pierce, 6-2, 190, Sr.; No 22, Kevin McCue, 6-3, 167, Sr. Backs – No. 20, Keith Rabbitt, 6-4, 170, Sr.; No. 5, Chad Buckland, 6-0, 185, Jr.; Eddie Williams, Sr.; No. 23, Don Blake, 6-1, 165, Jr.
MOELLER OFFENSE Quarterback – No. 9, Adam Hyzdu, 6-3, 211, Sr. Running backs – No. 21, Carlos Collins, 6-1, 187, Jr.; No. 32, Jody Smith, 5-11, 201, Jr. Center – No. 76, Todd Shaffer, 6-2, 235, Sr. Guards – No. 66, Matt Baer, 6-1, 195, Sr.; No. 65, Rob Steltenpohl, 5-11, 217, Sr. Tackles – No. 77, Paul Barkey, 6-3, 272, Jr.; No. 63, Keith Fulmer, 6-2, 246, Sr. Tight ends – No. 87, Joe Currin, 6-5, 200, Sr.; No. 84, Chris Ashbrook, 6-4, 193, Sr. Split end – No. 18, Matt Birrell, 5-10, 170, Sr.
MOELLER DEFENSE Tackles – No. 90, Brad Hindersman, 6-0, 188, Sr.; No. 75, Chad Whitaker, 6-2, 230, Sr. Ends – No. 80, Todd Ille, 5-11, 160, Sr.; No. 98, Dan Buckley, 5-11, 165, Jr. Inside linebackers – No. 51, Jeff Poore, 6-0, 195, Sr.; No. 59, Jeff Crable, 6-3, 193, Sr. Outside linebackers – No. 56, Jason Knecht, 6-1, 175, Jr.; No. 33, Brian Zelina, 6-0, 195, Sr. Backs – No. 37, Ken Darby, 5-10, 147, Sr.; No. 34, Tony Walker, 5-10, 166, Sr.; No. 43, Chris Woycke, 5-10, 150, Sr.
CINCINNATI MOELLER 41 MASSILLON 7
STATISTICS M CM First downs rushing 5 15 First downs passing 9 6 First downs by penalty 1 0 Totals first downs 15 21 Yards gained rushing 118 374 Yards lost rushing 44 6 Net yards rushing 74 368 Net yards passing 165 117 Total yards gained 239 485 Passes attempted 30 13 Passes completed 14 7 Passes int. by 0 1 Times kicked off 2 7 Kickoff average 45.5 50.7 Kickoff return yards 139 29 Punts 3 2 Punting average 41.7 39.5 Punt return yards 0 19 Fumbles 2 1 Fumbles lost 2 1 Penalties 0 6 Yards penalized 0 66 Number of plays 57 63 Time of possession 19:11 29:49 Attendance 16,764
Receiving (Moe) Birrell 4-70, Collins 1-15, Valerius 2-32.
Moeller 7 7 7 20 41 Massillon 0 7 0 0 7
MO – Hyzdu 1 run (Hyzdu kick) MO – Smith 1 run (Hyzdu kick) MA – Sparkman 1 run (Miller kick) MO – Collins 12 run (Hyzdu kick) MO – Collins 52 run (kick failed) MO – Collins 83 run (Hyzdu kick) MO – Adkins 2 run (Knecht kick)
Massillon mauled
By MARK CRAIG Repository sports writer
MASSILLON – Massillon Washington High School, which knows just about everything there is to know about power football, learned a little more Saturday night.
No. Make that a lot.
The Tigers, playing host to the master of power football in Ohio, Cincinnati Moeller, were hammered by the Crusaders 41-7 in front of 16,764 fans at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. It was the worst beating a Massillon football team had rece3ived and the most points the Tigers have given up since Alliance beat the Tigers 46-0 in 1962.
If you like power football, then hang on for these stats.
Carlos Collins, a 6-foot-1, 187-pound junior All-Ohio candidate, broke two Moeller school records, rushing the ball 35 times for 322 of 368 yards rushing. He also scored on runs of 12, 52 and 83 yards in the second half as Moeller scored 27 unanswered second-half points in the rout.
“This is the greatest day “I’ve ever had running the ball,” said Collins, who also caught one pass for 15 yards and returned two punts for 28 more yards. “I never really seen anything in Massillon’s defense that made me think I could do this. It was just a matter of my linemen going out and kicking some butt.”
Moeller’s line certianly did kick some, especially guards Keith Fulmer and Rob Steltenpohl and center Todd Shaffer. They blasted the inside of the line wide open so Collins could run for 123 first-half yards to lead Moeller to a 14-7 lead.
“We were dominated on the line of scrimmage from start to finish,” said Masillon head coach Lee Owens, whose team is 3-1 and hosts Austintown Fitch next Friday. “I felt very lucky to be down 14-7 at the half. We’re a better team than we showed, but you have to give them credit for the way the handled the line of scrimmage.”
Overall, Moeller piled up 485 yards total offense while holding Massillon to 239. The Crusaders also had 21 first downs and held onto the ball for 29 of the game’s 48 minutes.
Moeller quarterback Adam Hyzdu completed 7-of-13 passes and ran the ball 10 times for 32 yards and one TD.
When Collins wasn’t running the ball, Hyzdu was throwing the ball to wide receiver Matt Birrell. Birrell caught four balls for 70 yards, with a long reception of 22.
“We originally planned to throw the ball a lot more than we did, but we got in here in front of this big crowd and got afraid of making a mistake,” said Moeller coach Steve Klonne, whose 4-0 team was ranked No. 3 in the Associated Press Division I poll, just ahead of the Tigers. “Then we started giving the ball to Carlos, and he was getting eight and nine yards a crack, so we let him run. That eventually opened up the passing.”
Moeller’s defense didn’t do badly either. The Crusaders sacked Hurst eight times for 35 yards. Hurst also had no time to throw the ball, leading to a 14-of-30 performance with one interception.
Hurst also didn’t get the ball much, especially in the first half when Moeller kept the ball 16 minutes. They scored twice, once going 72 yards in 10 plays and the other time going 64 yards in nine plays.
Moeller opened the scoring in the first quarter with a one-yard scoring run by Hyzdu. Hyzdu was held up by Joe Pierce and Keith Rabbitt at the goal line on third-and-inches, but Hyzdu, who stands 6-3 and weighs 215 pounds, still fought his way in for the score.
Moeller stretched its lead to 14-0 after holding the Tigers’ offense to three plays and a punt.
Taking the ball on their own 28, the Crusaders took 10 plays to go 72 yards in 7:08. Jody Smith walked the final yard untouched, and Hyzdu added the PAT.
Massillon refused to be embarrassed by the visitors, at least in the first half. The Tigers took the ensuing kickoff and drove 64 yards in nine plays to score a touchdown at the 5:20 mark.
Ryan Sparkman scored from the 1, and Gary Miller added the point after. The key plays in the drive were a 22-yard shuttle pass to Sparkman and a 26-yard draw play to Lamonte Dixon down to the Moeller 3.
MO – Hyzdu 1 run (Hyzdu kick) MO – Smith 1 run (Hyzdu kick) MA – Sparkman 1 run (Miller kick) MO – Collins 12 run (kick failed) MO – Collins 52 run (Hyzdu kick) MO – Collins 83 run (Hyzdu kick) MO – Adkins 2 run (Knecht kick)
Collins helps Moeller rush by Massillon 41-7
By Bill Lilley Beacon Journal staff writer
Cincinnati Moeller junior running back Carlos Collins left a lasting impression Saturday night on the crowd of 16,764 at Massillon’s Paul Brown Tiger Stadium as he rushed for a school-record 324 yards and scored three touchdowns.
But it was the Crusaders’ offensive and defensive lines that left a permanent dent in the Tigers’ pride – and unbeaten record – as Moeller dominated on both sides of the line.
The two factors were more than enough to lift the unbeaten Crusaders to a 41-7 victory over the Tigers.
Things didn’t start badly for Massillon as Moeller was forced to punt after three runs left the Crusaders 1 yard shy of a first down on their first possession.
The next two times, however, Moeller’s offensive line opened huge holes in the front wall of the Tigers’ 4-4 defense.
Collins took full advantage of the situation.
The 6-foot-1, 187-pounder used a combination of traps and counters to pick up 38 yards on the Crusaders’ next possession.
That sparked a 9-play, 63-yard drive that was culminated by quarterback Adam Hyzdu’s 1-inch sneak on third down. Hyzdu’s kick gave Moeller a 7-0 lead with 1:46 left in the first period.
The Crusaders went right back to Collins after they forced Massillon, which was held to 15 yards in the first quarter, to punt after three plays.
Collins netted 35 yards and Hyzdu hit senior Matt Birrell for gains of 14 and 20 to move the ball to the Tigers’ 1-yard line.
The Tigers figured Collins was an automatic to get his number called at this point.
Instead, Crusader coach Steve Klonne went from a 1-back to a 3-back offense and Collins, who gained 123 yards in the first half, was used as a decoy off left tackle.
The Tigers bit. That enabled senior Jody Smith to go off right tackle untouched into the end zone and up Moeller’s lead to 14-0 with 8:07 left in the first half.
The Massillon offense, on the other hand, showed very little sign of life in the first quarter.
Quarterback Lee Hurst was harried on his passing attempts by a ferocious rush. Running backs Lamonte Dixon and Ryan Sparkman were forced to run without the aid of progressive blocking – aka getting stuffed at the line.
Massillon offensive coordinator Tom Stacy went to a variety of misdirection, including shuffle passes, on the Tigers’ first possession of the second quarter.
Massillon, which had gained 15 yards in the first 16 minutes, used two shuffle passes to Sparkman for 29 yards and a 25-yard draw play to Dixon to drive 62 yards to the Crusaders’ 1.
Sparkman scored on second down and Gary Miller’s kick brought Massillon to 14-7 with 5:20 left in the half.
The Crusaders, who amassed 217 yards in the first half, drove to the Massillon 15, but Hyzdu’s 32-yard field goal attempt with 12 seconds left was wide to the left.
That spared the Tigers, but it was only temporary.
The Crusaders took the second-half kickoff and, again, used Collins’ running and Hyzdu’s passing to pierce the Tiger D. Collins finished off the 71-yard march with a 12-yard run.
Massillon had two chances early in the fourth quarter to cut into the 14-point deficit, but a fourth-down pass from mid-field was intercepted and a fourth-down pass from the Crusaders’ 30 fell incomplete.
Collins then put the game away for all practical purposes when he raced 52 yards for a touchdown that gave Moeller a 21-point margin with six minutes to play.
MIDDLETOWN – The Massillon Tigers spent Saturday night at the Holiday Inn, but first they went to the funhouse.
When the park closed they had a souvenir, a 17-7 high school football win over the Middletown Middies. That was very nice, since it put their record at 3-0, but it was almost incidental to the numerous sideshows that put nearby Kings Island to shame.
Among them:
The jungle beast – Massillon’s Ed Annen held one end of the leash as Obie XX, the live Tiger mascot, playfully wrapped his paws around the knee of those whistle-toting zebras.
The chopper – The game ball arrived in a TV news helicopter that buzzed Barnitz Stadium then touched down at the 20-yard line. Massillon head coach Lee Owens screamed (although no one could hear him) to get the bird back in the air because his players could not come out on the field.
“We’d hoped to have Paul Brown (the ex-Massillon coach now living in nearby Cincinnati) in the helicopter,” Middletown head coach Jim Place said. “Unfortunately, he was tied up with the Bengals.”
The roller coaster – On fourth and nine in the second quarter, Tiger quarterback Lee Hurst hurled a bomb toward the left corner of the end zone. Receiver Troy Manion maneuvered through two defenders, ran as fast as he could, reached as far as he could, and fingertip snagged the ball for a 31-yard touchdown and a 17-0 lead. On the next play from scrimmage, Middletown tailback Jeff Cothran raced 68 yards for a touchdown.
Zebras on parade – After Cothran’s run, the Tigers roared back. Ryan Sparkman’s strong run put the ball on the Middletown 30. But wait. Clipping! But wait again! Unsportsmanlike conduct for an editorial comment on the clipping. Fifteen more yards. Next play, holding, Tiger. Instead of a first down on the Middie 30. It’s third and 45 on the Tiger 15. You know any good plays?
The male cheerleader – Usually, only college football has them, but Middletown featured a strapping fellow dressed in purple pants, who after Cothran’s long TD run, leaped and bounded along the sideline, wildly gyrating as he exhorted the Middie faithful to stand up and cheer. The cheerleader was Place, the Middie coach.
“It’s that way every game down here,” Place said. “All of our games are wild and crazy.”
The light show – It was 83 degrees and sunny at kickoff time. By halftime, it was dark, except for streaks of lightning, and a fierce wind kicked up.
Something flashed behind the home grandstand. Two stands of lights went dark, one on each side of the field. Few among the 8,000 spectators noticed, but a transformer had caught on fire.
The great debate – Wait for the lights to come back on? Or keep playing under the four stands of lights still shining? The game stopped for 10 minutes as a debate raged. The verdict: Play on, but only on the half of the better lit field. Play resumed with 2:50 left in the half. The Tigers got the ball back and Ryan Sparkman rushed nine yards to midfield. Had he kept going, he’d have run into the dark side of the field. After the play, officials pointed the Tigers the other way, as if the quarter had changed.
“The situation was to our disadvantage,” Owens said later. “If we’re driving into the darkness, the wind is at our backs and that helps our passing game. But we have to drive into the light. Middletown is a running team, and it’s no big deal for them to have to drive into the wind, into the light.
“I didn’t want to go along with it. But I didn’t have much choice in the matter.”
Band on the run – With lightning came rain. It started shortly after band No 1, the one that plays Tiger Rag, strutted. It got wet and juicy at the end of the “Marching Middies” turn. It rained so hard that band No. 2 disdained decorum, running helter-skelter off the field.
The lock-up rooms – A regular in the Middletown press box eyed the lightning and shook his head.
“Two football players died in the country within the last couple of weeks because of lightning strikes,” he said.
“Football people are being awfully careful.” The Tigers were back on the field only seconds when Owens, having surveyed the skies, herded them back to the locker room. Halftime wound up lasting an hour. Massillon had nearly as many fans as Middletown at the start. Most Middletown rooters didn’t return for the second half, when Tiger fans outnumbered their hosts. They hadn’t driven 4 ½ hours to spend the second half at Taco Bell.
The scare – Ambulance lights flashed behind the Massillon grandstand throughout the intermission. The rumor mill went to work. Middletown radio station WPFB reported that two fans apparently had been struck by lightning. It was a false report. Paramedics actually were treating fans who had suffered heat exhaustion. Despite the fact the “fall sport” was into its third week, the temperature at kickoff was 83 degrees.
In the end, they got the lights fixed and played another half of football.
It was an uneventful second half, but all that transpired earlier made you wonder. The Barnitz fellow wose name is on the stadium. Is there a Barnitz and Bailey circus, too?
MASSILLON 17 MIDDLETOWN 7
STATISTICS MA MI First downs rushing 4 10 First downs passing 9 1 First downs by penalty 4 3 Totals first downs 17 14 Yards gained rushing 119 244 Yards lost rushing 20 16 Net yards rushing 99 228 Net yards passing 199 29 Total yards gained 298 249 Passes attempted 27 12 Passes completed 16 3 Passes int. by 0 1 Times kicked off 4 2 Kickoff average 50.0 47.5 Kickoff return yards 43 54 Punts 4 5 Punting average 38.0 28.6 Punt return yards 0 20 Fumbles 2 1 Fumbles lost 4 3 Penalties 10 10 Yards penalized 136 88 Number of plays 67 47 Time of possession 26:01 21:59 Attendance 8,000
Half a loaf was better than none for the Massillon Tigers Friday night.
Heck, half a loaf was better than butter compared to what Steubenville got last week.
The Massillon Tigers baked up a first half that was savory as could be en route to a 24-0 high school victory over Youngstown East in front of 10,458 fans at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
Program Cover
The second half left some of the Tiger coaches looking like they had just bit into burnt toast. The Tigers out-gained East just 75-65 in second half yardage after a first half in which the numbers were 204-71.
But what the heck. This was the same East that had made like yeast seven days earlier in stunning Steubenville (1988 Division II state runner-up) 12-7.
And, even though one coach said, “The teams that get to Columbus are the ones that put teams away,” isn’t week two maybe too early to be perfect.
If the first half wasn’t perfect, it was at least a 9.9 on the Bo Derek scale. The offense scored on all four of its possessions. The defense didn’t give East a sniff of the 50-yard line, much less the goal stripe.
The passing game clicked.
“Their defensive backs were playing really far off us and we took advantage,” said senior flanker Troy Manion, who seemed unfazed by a hyper-extended knee in catching four passes for 28 yards in the first half.
“I was a lot more relaxed tonight,” added senior wide receiver Rameir Martin, whose first-half numbers were three catches, 71 yards, and one touchdown. “I was pretty tense last week. It was my first game of my senior year.”
“We’d heard they had the best talent of anybody we play this year,” said quarterback Lee Hurst, whose first half included eight completions in 10 throws for 107 yards. “We just came out and we were ready for them.”
“The first week the offense tried too hard. All the captains felt we had to get everybody ready and we got too high ourselves.”
All three players agreed the Tigers lost their touch in the second half.
That’ll be the topic of locker room discussion throughout the coming week.
Meanwhile, next week’s game at Middletown looks less imposing than it once did in the wake of the Middies’ 34-6 loss Friday at Cincinnati Princeton.
But it’s safe to suppose perennially strong Middletown, whose home opener will be against the Tigers, will be jacked up for Massillon where Middie head coach Jim Place lived when he was playing football at Central Catholic High.
Like everyone else on the team Owens was disappointed in the second half.
“But the thing to do, I think, is to emphasize the positive things that happened in the first half,” he said.
Ownes was talking to the players at halftime when he said. “That’s got to be the best half of football I’ve seen the Tigers play. Then (tight end) Dough Harwig said, “Better than St. Joseph last year?” He had a point. Those two halves were close.”
The game plan called for the Tigers to run left and throw right. That combination kayoed East early, working to perfection on the game’s opening drive when Massillon used 11 plays to drive 62 yards. Pass plays netted 7, 6, 11 and 16 yards. Runs went for 5, 7, 10 and 2 yards.
The 2-yard run punched the ball to the 3, from where fullback Ryan Sparkman followed the blocks of Ray Kovacsiss, Mike Silverthorn and Lou LoCoco into the end zone. Gary Miller’s PAT kick made it 7-0.
East punted and the Tigers drove again, this time 72 yards in only seven plays. The big one came in one of the many formations the Tigers used to confuse the Bears. Three receivers flooded the right side with Hurst standing over an unbalanced line. Martin took off deep, but defensive back Elwen Freeman hung with him.
Hurst had plenty of time to loft a bomb to the right sideline. The 6-foot-3 Martin went up with the 5-8 Freeman, wrestling the ball away at the 11, spinning as Freeman fell, and racing into the end zone on a nifty 43-yard gain. Miller’s kick made it 14-0 with 2:27 left in the first quarter.
It was Hurst who was the extra-point kicker last year, but he has given up those duties. He remains, however, as the kickoff man (he was superb in that role Friday) and the guy who tires any long field goals. He got his first chance in the latter category and delivered a 42-yard field goal that soared high and sneaked over the crossbar to make it 17-0 with 7:55 left in the first half.
The first of two Keith Rabbit interceptions set up a 34-yard touchdown mini-march capped by Sparkman’s 1-yard blast with 2:10 left in the half.
Rabbitt had an amazing average of one interception a game in sophomore and junior varsity action. He is ahead of that pace as a varsity player with three thefts in two games.
The key to the shutout, though, was stopping the likes of East tailback Steve Woodberry.
“Our goal was to stop the running game and we did that,” Rabbit said. “We looked at them as a real strong team and it was nice to get a shutout against them.”
Woodberry was held to 18 yards in 14 carries. Several times, it looked as though the Tigers knew what the play would be as well as the East players did.
First-year East head coach Jerron Jenkins, the same age as Owens at 33, was puzzled about the first half.
“Tackling? There wasn’t any,” he said. “We did not come to play. They passed on us all night, even though we knew they were going to try to pass.”
“I don’t understand it. We pounded Steubenville from the start. I’ll tell you one thing, though. We’re going to find out what the problem is and do some serious work to fix it.”
Hel’’ have to work fast. The Bears face Austintown Fitch next week.
“We’ll find out how good East is next week,” Owens said.
As for the Tigers’ game at Middletown next week?
“Our team will have to be together,” Owens said. “We’ve got to make sure everything’s together.”
Meaning he wants the rest of that loaf.
A rundown of each drive Friday:
Mas – Start with opening kickoff on own 38; drive 62 yards in 11 plays; Sparkman 3-yard TD run; Miller kick. Big play, 16-yard Hurst-to-Martin pass on second-and-15. Tigers 7-0 East – Start on own 24; five plays, 15 yards, punt. Mas – Start on own 28; drive 72 yards in seven plays; Hurst 43-yard TD pass to Martin, Miller kick. Tigers 14-0 East – Start on own 23; six plays, 12 yards, punt. Mas – Start on own 34; drive 41 yards in seven plays; Hurst 42-yard field goal. Big play, 31-yard Sparkman run on fake punt. Tigers 17-0 East – Start on own 20; six plays, lose ball on interception by Rabbitt. Mas – Start on East 38; eight plays, 38 yards; Sparkman 1-yard TD run; Miller kick. Tigers 24, East 0. East – Start on own 20; six plays, 23 yards; end of first half.
▪ ▪ ▪ East – Start with second-half kickoff on own 25; eight plays, 43 yards ; lose ball on interception by Rabbitt. Mas – Start on own 15; four plays, 24 yards; punt. East – Start on own 41; eight plays, 28 yards; lose ball when quarterback Regal Reese is sacked for 11-yard loss. Mas – Start on own 31; seven plays, 25 yards; lose ball on interception by Aldrige Jones. East – Start on own 25; three plays, zero yards, punt. Mas – Start on own 38; three plays, 7 yards; fake punt on with Kevin McCue completing pass for first down to Joe Pierce; “illegal participation” penalty on East over-rides play; three more plays, punt. East – Take over on own 10; three plays, punt; Tigers run out clock.
MASSILLON 24 YOUNGSTOWN EAST 0
STATISTICS M E First downs rushing 7 5 First downs passing 6 3 First downs by penalty 2 1 Totals first downs 15 9 Yards gained rushing 149 98 Yards lost rushing 37 44 Net yards rushing 112 54 Net yards passing 167 82 Total yards gained 279 136 Passes attempted 16 16 Passes completed 12 6 Passes int. by 1 2 Times kicked off 5 1 Kickoff average 55.8 45.0 Kickoff return yards 23 51 Punts 2 4 Punting average 24.5 42.0 Punt return yards 30 0 Fumbles 1 2 Fumbles lost 0 0 Penalties 2 8 Yards penalized 20 56 Number of plays 57 45 Time of possession 23:13 24:47 Attendance 10,458
East 0 0 0 0 00 MASSILLON 14 10 0 0 24
M – Sparkman 3 run (Miller kick) M – Martin 43 pass from Hurst (Miller kick) M – FG Hurst 42 M – Sparkman 1 run (Miller kick)
Fired-Up Tiger defense stops GlenOak 16,359 see Massillon win
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
You didn’t read it here, but the Massillon Tigers heard it somewhere that their defense was a chunk of Swiss cheese headin’ for a raging kiln.
They took it personally.
When it got out that somebody was picking us to give up 34 points in our home opener, it fired us up,” said Massillon linebacker Craig Turkalj.
The defense was superb in a 16-6 victory over GlenOak before a Paul Brown Tiger Stadium mob of 16,359, which probably will stand as the best crowd in Ohio this opening weekend of the high school football season.
Program Cover
“We showed the people saying how bad we are that they’re wrong,” said Turkalj, whose team out-gained the Golden Eagles 331-123 in total offensive yards.
“They got one score, but it was a cheapie.”
GlenOak took a 6-0 lead after the Tigers fumbled on their first play from scrimmage, setting up a 15-yard Eagle scoring drive.
The point-after kick failed, allowing the Tigers to take a 7-6 lead with a touchdown midway through the second quarter.
Ryan Sparkman scored from a yard out, following a wall of blockers packed so tight it looked as if they were making sure no one would get left out of a photograph. Tiger fans, remembering last year’s troubles on conversion attempts, cheered loudly when Gary Miller connected to make it 7-6, Massillon, with 6:28 left in the first half.
A bone-jarring tackle by Tiger end Mike Martin created a safety and a 9-6 lead at 8:23 of the fourth quarter.
Tight end Doug Harig out-maneuvered a pack of defenders to catch a 17-yard touchdown pass from Lee Hurst in the corner of the end zone with 1:35 left.
“I made what Coach (Tom) Stacy calls a sight adjustment,” said Harig, who caught a touchdown pass in last year’s season-ending overtime win over McKinley. “Their guy jumped too soon and Lee put the ball in a perfect spot.”
Miller, who has a set of goalposts in his yard at home, connected again to close the scoring. GlenOak never got in the same zip code as the end zone after its first scoring, taking no drive further than the Massillon 41-yard line.
“We’ll have to see how good Massillon is going to be,” said GlenOak head coach Bob Commings, who was gridmaster at Massillon from 1969-73. “They looked awfully good to me tonight. Their defense played extremely well.”
The physical contest took a toll on the Eagles, who already have lost all-county tailback Kenne Boyd to grades but now face at least three weeks without Boyd’s heir as featured ball carrier, Brian Frenz, who suffered a separated shoulder in the first half.
Frenz rushed eight times for 38 yards before getting hurt.
Todd Dean, GlenOak’s best receiver, kept playing despite being noticeably slowed by a sprained ankle suffered during the game.
Dean’s replacement as the go-to ball carrier, 140-pound sophomore Reggie Brown, got a rude introduction to Division I varsity football. Tiger defenders left no room for Brown to get started in holding him to two yards in 10 carries.
The game was supposed by some to become a shoot-out between teams with talented, experienced offenses. It turned into a defensive struggle.
“I didn’t anticipate that we would have to play such great defense and that our offense would put us in such a hole because of turnovers and poor execution,” said Massillon head coach Lee Owens.
Owens said Tiger fans shouldn’t fret over the offense.
“It will get there,” he said. “I’m sure it will.”
The defense, riddled by All-Ohio Akron Buchtel back Rickey Powers in a scrimmage last Friday, was there when the bell rang against GlenOak.
“We said all week that the films of the Buchtel scrimmage looked better than the live action, and that there weren’t major causes for concern,” Owens said. “I think some people found out tonight that we have one of the quicker defenses around. That’s its strength. Quickness.”
“We weren’t worried about the Buchtel scrimmage,” Turkalj said. “We didn’t show our whole defense against them. Our guys were confident we could do the job. When Coach Commings said GlenOak has one of the area’s best passing offenses, we wanted to show we could stop it.”
Commings has been a “running coach” through most of his GlenOak career but notes he passed 50 percent of the time in the 1960s at Struthers.
On Friday, GlenOak tried 23 passes and 22 runs.
Quarterback John Vesley, a returning starter, completed nine of 22 passes for 82 yards. He also was victimized by two key second-half interceptions by Joe Pierce and Keith Rabbitt at times GlenOak was only a big play away from taking the lead.
Hurst connected on 11 of 18 passes.
MASSILLON…………16 GLENOAK……………. 6
Tiger-Eagle grid lineups Here are the probable starting lineups for tonight’s game between the Massillon Tigers and GlenOak Golden Eagles. Kickoff is at 8 p.m. in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
TIGER OFFENSE Quarterback – No. 15 Lee Hurt, 6-3, 180, Sr. A-back – No. 44, Lamonte Dixon, 5-9, 185, Sr. B-back – No. 34, Ryan Sparkman, 5-8, 175, Sr. Flanker – No. 8, Troy Manion, 6-0, 180, Sr. Wide receiver – No. 21, Rameir Martin, 6-4, 170, Sr. Tight end – No. 83, Doug Harig, 6-2, 195, Sr.; No. 87, Steve Brown, 6-5, 195, Jr. Center – No. 57, Nick Hill, 5-10, 165, Sr. Guards – No. 65, Mike Silverthorn, 6-1, 230, Sr.; No. 60, Jim Goff, 6-0, 180, Sr. Tackles – No. 74, Ray Kovacsiss, 6-4, 265, Sr.; No. 66, Tom Menches, 6-0, 240, Sr.
TIGER DEFENSE Tackles – No. 80, Chris Roth, 6-6, 225, Jr.; No. 77, Brent Bach, 6-1, 225, Jr. Ends – No. 94, Jeff Perry, 6-1, 180, Jr.; No. 95, Mike Martin, 6-1, 185, Jr.; Inside linebackers – No. 37, Craig Turkalj 6-2, 206, Sr.; No, 55, Mark McGeorge, 5-8, 205, Jr.; So. Eric Wright. Outside linebacks – No. 9, Joe Pierce, 6-2, 190, Sr.; No. 22, Kevin McCue, 6-3, 167, Sr. Backs – No. 20, Keith Rabbit, 6-4, 170, Sr.; No. 5, Chad Buckland, 6-0, 185, Jr.; Eddie Williams, Sr.; No. 23, Don Blake, 6-1, 165, Jr.
GLENOAK OFFENSE Quarterback – No. 14, John Vesley, 5-7, 155, Jr. Running backs – No. 40, Brian Frenz, 6-0, 205, Sr.; No. 44, Mike Williams, 5-11, 217, Sr. Split ends – No. 11, Mike Herman, 5-11, 165, Sr.; No. 13, Todd Dean, 5-9, 155, Sr.; No. 15, John McMullan, 5-10, 173, Sr. Tight end – No. 17, Cory Jackson, 6-3, 189, Jr.; No. 48, Glen Hartman, 5-11, 195, Sr. Center – No. 53, Brian Villono, 5-11, 230, Sr. Guards – No. 64, Dave Halter, 5-11, 190, Sr.; No. 67, Jeff Mathot, 6-1, 220, Sr. Tackles – No. 72, Scott Esporite, 6-3, 235, Sr.; No. 74, Tom Hawthorne, 6-3, 225, Sr.
STATISTICS M G First downs rushing 7 3 First downs passing 9 4 First downs by penalty 3 1 Total first downs 19 8 Yards gained rushing 177 53 Yards lost rushing 31 12 Net yards rushing 146 41 Net yards passing 185 82 Total yards gained 331 123 Passes attempted 19 23 Passes completed 12 9 Passes int. by 2 3 Times kick off 3 2 Kickoff average 48.7 44.0 Kickoff return yards 30 58 Punts 3 4 Punting average 32.7 34.3 Fumbles 3 0 Fumbles lost 2 0 Penalties 4 8 Yards penalized 36 42 Number of plays 64 46 Time of possession 25:03 22:57 Attendance 16.359
Glenoak 6 0 0 0 6 Massillon 0 7 0 9 16
G – Williams 1 run (kick failed) M – Sparkman 1 run (Miller kick) M – Safety (Vesley recovers fumble in end zone) M – Harig 17 pass from Hurst (Miller kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS Rushing (M) Dixon 15-60, Sparkman 23-107. (G) Frenz 8-38, Williams 3-0, Brown 10-2.
MASSILLON ‑ It looked like plain old mud wrestling, but Massillon defensive tackle Bob Dunwiddie said it had a name.
“It’s called our sci‑fi stomp,” he said after the Tigers’ dramatic 10‑7 overtime high school football victory over McKinley Saturday before 17,000 at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
Program Cover
After McKinley’s Akram Alzught missed a 38‑yard field goal on the last play of the game, Massillon’s players sprinted to the 50-yard line and began rolling around in the mud. They got up for a little dancing, and then it was back down in the muck for more celebrating.
But even the guy who has to wash the jerseys had to be smiling. The victory snapped a four‑game losing streak for the Tigers against McKinley, and some say it could even make the difference Tuesday when Massillon voters decide whether they want a new high school.
“I won a state championship (at Galion in 1985), but this is bigger, “ said Massillon coach Lee Owens. “This community has been down, and we needed it. This is just an unbelievable win.”
The deciding points came on a 23‑yard field goal by junior Lee Hurst on Massillon’s first series of overtime. It was Hurst’s first field goal of the season.
Game action vs. Canton McKinley 1988
As if the way he won it wasn’t spectacular enough, Hurst almost won the game in more dramatic fashion. With 2:07 left in regulation, his 47‑yard field goal attempt was wide right by about two feet.
“That was frustrating because I thought I had it, and it just went, wide,” said Hurst, who pounded the turf in agony after the kick. “But I was able to get it out of mind quickly.
McKinley (6‑4) won the overtime toss, and e!ected to let the Tigers (7‑3) have the first possession. Beginning at the McKinley 20, Massillon got one first down, but the drive stalled at the 7, and Hurst booted the go‑ahead field goal.
Game action vs. Canton McKinley 1988
In the first half, a driving rain and severe winds hampered the kicking game. But, fortunately for Hurst, there was no rain and little wind when the game was on the line.
On the second play of McKinley’s overtime possession, Bulldogs quarterback Ryan Henry threw the ball into the end zone to a wide‑open Alfred Hill, but the ball slipped through Hill’s hands.
“When I saw him wide open, my heart missed one full beat,” Owens said. “When I saw we were still alive, I said to myself, ‘Thank God, we finally got a break this season.”
Two plays later, Alzught squibbed his field‑goal attempt to the left, and pandemonium erupted.
Game action vs. Canton McKinley 1988
While it was one of the most dramatic endings in the 94‑year old rivalry (Massillon leads the series 51‑38‑5), much of the game matched every cliche uttered by the two coaches all week. It was hard‑hitting and intense. Nobody literally left their heart on the field, but some players came very close.
Both touchdowns were scored in the second quarter. With 7:40 left in the half, McKinley halfback Derrick Gordon, who gained 77 yards on 22 carries, scored on a one‑yard run, and Alzught added the extra point.
With 2:09 left before intermission, Jamie Slutz hit Doug Harig with a seven‑yard TD toss, and Hurst kicked the extra point. Slutz is the Tigers’ backup quarterback, but he was in the game thanks to the latest surprise from Owens.
Game action vs. Canton McKinley 1988
While the chains were being moved for a first down, Owens sneaked Slutz into the game as a running back. Before McKinley had a chance to react, quarterback Hurst had handed the ball off to Slutz, who flipped the ball to a wide‑open Harig.
“Coach put that in a couple of weeks ago, but we didn’t want to use it until then,” Slutz said. “We were saving it for McKinley.”
“I recognized it right away, and I was yelling to the players,” said McKinley coach Thom McDaniels. “But it’s hard when you’re 30 yards away and 17,000 people are screaming.
The story in the second half was defense. When McKinley got down to the Massillon 9 late in the third quarter linebacker David Lewell smashed Lamuel Flowers for a one‑yard loss on fourth‑and‑1.
Led by the running of Jason Stafford, who gained 123 yards on 21 carries, Massillon twice advanced inside the McKinley 40‑yard line. But twice McKinley’s defense forced fumbles.
By the fourth quarter, the Tigers’ defense was frustrating McKinley to such a degree that McDaniels felt he needed to take a huge gamble.
With 5:53 left and the Bulldogs facing fourth‑and‑2 at the 50, McKinley tried a fake punt. The ball was snapped to up‑back Darnell Clark, but he was stopped a half‑yard short of the first down.
McDaniels said he thought it was a “win or lose” gamble, but it was neither after Hurst’s 47‑yarder just missed on Massillon’s ensuing possession.
Tiger back: Defense ‘ ‘main factor’
Key plays in overtime hidden factors in victory vs. McKinley
MASSILLON 10 McKINLEY 7 MAS MCK Total first downs 13 11 Rushing attempts 42 43 Net yards rushing 197 138 Net yards passing 38 119 Total yards gained 235 257 Passes attempted 13 19 Passes completed 4 8 Passes Int. by 0 1 Punts 5 4 Punting average 33.0 32.8 Fumbles 3 2 Fumbles lost 1 2 Penalties 1 3 Yards penalized 10 19 Attendance 17,750
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing (Mas) Stafford 21‑123, Dixon 6-48, Hurst 10‑9, Dunwiddle 4‑18 (McK) Gordon 22‑77, Flowers 11‑42, Henry 2‑15, White 4‑7.
Receiving (Mas) Stafford 2‑24, D. Harig 1‑7, Spencer 1‑7. (McK) Flowers 3‑27, Hunter 3-52, Hedrick 1-15, White 1-13.
McKINLEY 0 7 0 0 0 7 MASSILLON 0 7 0 0 3 10
McK ‑ Gordon 1 run (Alzught kick) Mas ‑ D. Harig 7 pass from Slutz (Hurst Kick) Mas – FG Hurst 23
Key plays in overtime hidden factors in victory vs. McKinley
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
If they had a draft of Stark County’s high school football players Jason Stafford might be the first pick in the whole thing.
Stafford did his usual thing Saturday, rushing for 123 yards in the Massillon Tigers’ 10‑7 overtime victory over the McKinley Bulldogs.
Yet, Stafford’s view of the glorious day was that, if there was a draft of high school players and he was picking, he’d say, “I’ll start with defense … and I’ll take those Massillon guys.”
“The defense played great Stafford said in a mud‑caked locker room after the Tigers sealed a 7‑3 season and froze McKinley’s final ’88 mark at 6‑4.
“The defense,” Stafford said, “was the main factor in the game.”
Sure, it was Lee Hurst’s clutch 23‑yard overtime field goal that put the Tigers ahead 10‑7. And it was a missed 38‑yard field goal by McKinley’s Akram Alzught that ended the game.
But it was the defense that kept McKinley from winning the game in regulation.
And it was the defense that made it so Alzught’s final field goal attempt was 38 yards ‑ a mile by high school standards, especially on the muddy field the Paul Brown Tiger Stadium gridiron became as a result of Friday/Saturday cloudbursts.
“We came together when we had to come together,” said nose guard Steve Harlan, who played despite a torn shoulder. “They broke through a couple of times, but we sucked it up.”
Late in the third quarter, with McKinley driving toward what could have been a killing touchdown, the Bulldogs elected to go for a first down on fourth‑and‑one from the Tiger 10. Bulldog fullback Lamuel Flowers had been playing with fire all day, and the give went to him. Tiger linebacker David Ledwell also went to him, smashing Flowers into a standup position, The Tiger line drove him backward and Massillon got the ball on downs.
“They tried to run off tackle and we stuffed it,” said Tiger end Steve Snodgrass, who was in on the play.
Now the game was in overtime. Both teams got a chance to line up at the 20 and try to score.
The Tigers, losing the coin toss and having to go first, rammed inside the 10 before settling for Hurst’s field goal.
Hurst’s heart leaped when the snap was slightly off line, but Todd Porter managed to make a clean spot.
“I have to do it,” is what Hurst ,said he was thinking. He did, with his first field goal of the season.
Now McKinley had a chance to counter, getting the ball on first down at the 20.
Chad Buckland and Jason Relford slammed tailback Derrick Gordon for a yard loss. Then came the play that made 17,750 hearts jump. McKinley quarterback Ryan Henry rolled right and looked to the end zone. At the last minute he unleashed a bullet toward tight end Alfred Hill, wide open in the end zone. Hill didn’t get in front of the ball and it zipped by his fingers.
Most fans were locked in on the wide‑open Hill. Many missed the fact Henry was pummeled by Tiger tackle Trace Liggett as he threw. Without Liggett’s rush, Henry would have been able to case the ball to Hill. Instead, he had to fire a rocket shot that was ever so slightly off line. With the ball as slippery as it was, ever so slightly can be ever so much.
The Tigers survived. On the next play, senior defensive back Mike Pritchard made a superb play in knifing in front of Gordon and knocking away what could have been a critical completion at the 7.
Now McKinley had to try a long field goal. The attempt did not come close, being kicked on a low line far short of the uprights. The Massillon part of the crowd ‑ which was the vast majority ‑ erupted while the ball was in the air.
McKinley’s four‑game winning streak against Massillon was over. The Tigers had won.
The game was played on a roller coaster, both in terms of the action and the weather.
Rain that started during the previous night and gained momentum as the game approached left the field soaked. The contest started in a drizzle, but, in the second quarter, that turned to one of the heaviest downpours the series has seen.
First‑year head coach Lee Owens has brought a lot of good things to Tigertown. One, of them nobody knew about was PAM.
Tiger equipment manager Keith Herring said PAM ‑ a slick vegetable spray ‑ was used liberally on the bottoms of the Tigers’ spikes.
“It really helped keep the mud off our shoes,” said running back Lamont Dixon.
The Tigers mounted an outstanding ground attack late in the first half and through most of the second half.
The rain subsided by the third quarter and the sun actually broke through the clouds early in the fourth.
It was McKinley breaking through first on the scoreboard. The Bulldogs won the battle of field position early and, on their third possession, had to drive only 37 yards following a punt for a touchdown.
Henry’s fourth‑and‑three bootleg run worked to perfection and gave McKinley first and goal at the 8. On fourth down at the 1, McKinley called time out, then sent Gordon, who finished with 77 yards in 22 carries, over the left side for a touchdown. Alzught’s kick made it 7‑0 with 7:40 left in the first half.
A deflected pass and interception gave McKinley the ball back moments later, but the Pups lost a promising series when Tiger linebacker Tom Mattox pounced on a Flowers fumble at the Massillon 35. From there, Stafford and junior running back Lamont Dixon followed the Tiger line down the field.
Stafford gained 8 yards and Dixon stormed for 10. An 8‑yard bootleg run by Hurst put the ball on the McKinley 37, then Hurst connected with Stafford on a wide‑open screen pass for 30 yards to the 7.
Owens then sent in one of the secret plays the Tigers were saving for the McKinley game. Jamie Slutz, a senior who has performed well all year in the role of backup quarterback/trick play artist, sprinted into the game and lined up at “A‑back,” which usually is Dixon’s position.
“We’ve practiced that for three weeks,” Slutz said. “We were saving it for this game.”
McKinley’s defense didn’t have a chance to react to Bulldog coaches screaming from the sidelines. Slutz took a handoff from Hurst, backed up a step, and spotted junior Doug Harig breaking free in the end zone. Slutz gently lofted a perfect pass over the only McKinley defender in the neighborhood and Harig made an over‑the‑shoulder catch. Hurst’s kick made it 7‑7 with 2:07 left in the half.
Momentum had shifted.
“It was a 949 special,” Harig said. “The ball looked like a pea when it was coming to me. But I figured I’d better catch it, or just keeping running to the locker room.”
McKinley controlled much of the first half, but the Tigers dominated the second half after McKinley’s big third‑quarter drive was stopped at the 10.
A 19‑yard scramble by Hurst got Massillon out of the hole, and a 31-yard sideline scamper by Stafford put the Tigers in scoring position at the McKinley 34. Dixon made a nice run to the 22 but fumbled and the Bulldogs took over.
The Massillon defense forced a three‑and‑out series and the Tigers drove again, this time to the McKinley 38 before Hurst and Stafford missed a handoff and the Bulldogs recovered at the 41 midway through the fourth quarter.
McKinley gambled on fourth down on its resulting possession, when a run on a faked punt was stopped near midfield.
Hurst wound up trying a 47‑yard field goal with 2:07 left.
When it was over, Jeff Harig, Doug’s brother, wore a huge grin that shone through a face hidden by mud.
“They had a lot of people going both ways, and maybe we were a little fresher at the end,” said Jeff, who was on the field as a blocker, as was Doug, in the double tight end set the Tigers used to run the ball into position for Hurst in overtime.
“We won. That’s all that matters.
McKinley streak goes ‘poof’
Tiger tight end Harig says he was helped by a cream puff
By MIKE KEATING Independent Correspondent
Doug Harig enjoyed a post‑game hotdog moments after the Massillon Tigers devoured some ‘Dogs on the football field Saturday.
The tight end offered some food for thought on the significance of the Tigers’ 10‑7 overtime victory over arch‑rival Canton McKinley.
“We finally got our pride back,” said, Harig. “This win offsets our three losses.”
Sure, the setbacks to Austintown Fitch, Akron St. Vincent‑St. Mary and Warren Harding hurt. The last second defeats at Fitch and at Warren were especially heartbreaking. But a fifth consecutive loss to McKinley undoubtedly would have exceeded all those combined.
Backyard bragging rights were at stake Saturday afternoon and there hasn’t been anything for Tiger fans to hoot and holler about in this rivalry since the days of Chris Spielman, Brian Dewitz, Tom Gruno, Craig Johnson and Company.
Lee Owens understood. The first year Massillon head coach was extremely emotional after his team’s seventh and unquestionably most important victory of the season.
“This town has been hungry the last four years and this win was for the entire Massillon community,” he said.
No added incentive was needed for Massillon. But Harig said he had a personal one after a surprise package was delivered to his home earlier in the week.
“There was a cream puff in it with a note,” he explained. The note read: Dear Jeff, you’re the only cream puff bigger than this. Feed it to your brother too.
“We didn’t eat it. We don’t know who sent it, but whoever did, thank you. It fired us up.”
Jeff Harig, the senior tight end, was held without a pass reception Saturday. But he concluded the year with 26 catches for 259 yards, and three touchdowns – hardly cream puff kind of numbers.
His younger brother snagged a Jamie Slutz toss as easily as catching a cream puff in the second quarter. The seven‑yard touchdown catch whetted the Tigers’ appetite that set up the dramatic win.
Jeff finished his high school career at Massillon on a winning note. Doug, a 6‑1, 173‑pound junior, can’t wait for 1989.
“This win will carry over to next year and we need some momentum because we play Moeller and Middletown early,” he said .
Starting free safety Joe Pierce had a touchdown‑saving tackle in the fourth quarter. The 6‑0, 161pound junior echoed Harig’s sentiments.
“This is a big win for the juniors and will make it easier to work harder (in preparation) for next season,” said Pierce.
Of course, the victory also meant a lot to the seniors. It was their last McKinley game. Defensive tackle Trace Liggett couldn’t have asked for anything more.
“I don’t think I’ll ever play in as big a game, unless it’s the Super Bowl,” said Liggett, who is regarded as a major college prospect. “It was a great win and a great way to end the season.”
Last May 13, Owens was hired as the new football coach. Liggett attended the press conference where Owens was introduced. He was impressed with the youthful coach then and even more so after playing for him.
“He is an inspiration to us. He is a good teacher and made practice fun. The players wanted to work hard for him,” said Liggett.
“This win is a big springboard to next year,” said Owens. “I feel that we would have had to start all over (with the program) if we had lost.”
As it worked out, cream puffs ‑and victory ‑ never tasted better.
Expectations fulfilled
Hurst’s winning field goal puts finishing touch on Tigers’ year
By CHRIS TOMASSON Repository sports writer
MASSILLON ‑ When your quarterback’s passing percentage is better than your kicker’s extra point percentage, it usually means you’ve either got a great quarterback or a lousy kicker.
That is, except in Massillon. Tigers’ coach Lee Owens says he has a great quarterback and a great kicker.
Lee Hurst handles both jobs for the Tigers. He’s done an excellent job at quarterback all season. As far as his kicking performance is concerned, until Saturday, the less said about it the better.
But in Massillon’s 10‑7 overtime victory over McKinley at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, Hurst showed that Owens knows what he’s talking about.
Hurst, who had made only 11‑of-21 previous extra points and had not made a field goal all season. made his only extra‑point attempt and he kicked a 23‑yard field goal in overtime that gave the Tigers the win.
“I never lost confidence in Lee,” Owens said. “He’s been taking a lot of heat all season, but he did the job.”
Hurst’s most impressive kick was actually one that he missed. With 2:09 left in the game, Massillon faced fourth‑and‑13 from the McKinley 30. A field goal from there would have to travel 47 yards, one yard shorter than the Massillon record.
“I asked Lee if he could make a field goal from the distance, and he said, ‘I can make it,” Owens said. “He almost did.”
Hurst’s kick had plenty of distance, but it was wide right by about two feet.
After the game, while being hugged by most of the population of Massillon, Hurst dedicated the victory to the Tigers’ seniors.
“I’m only a junior, so next year will be my year, ” Hurst said. “But this year belongs to our seniors.”
The seniors are the players who have suffered the most at the hands of McKinley. The Bulldogs had defeated the Tigers four straight times, the most consecutive victories for a McKinley team since the early 1900s.
“This game meant everything to our season,” said senior running back Jason Stafford, who rushed for 123 yards on 21 carries. “I didn’t care if we started out the’ season 0‑9 as long as we beat McKinley.”
“This is just a great feeling,” said senior defensive tackle Trace Liggett, who spearheaded a Massillon defense that held the Bulldogs to 117 yards and no points in the second half and overtime. “I can’t even describe how I feel right now, To beat McKinley is what it’s all about.”
Interestingly, in 1983, the last time Massillon beat McKinley, Tigers’ defensive tackle Bob Dunwiddie was pulling for the Bulldogs.
“Sure, I was cheering for McKinley,” Dunwiddie said. “I lived in Canton and attended Souers Junior High through the seventh grade, Then in the eighth grade I moved to Massillon and became Tiger.”
Owens said beating the Bulldogs meant everything to the Tigers’ season.
“If we had lost it would have been just like starting over,” Owens said. “But winning means that we’ve achieved the type of season we wanted. It’s rubber stamped the season. And it’s also a building block for next year.”
The Tigers finished the year 7‑3, one game better than last season. Massillon lost its three games by a combined margin of nine points.
The Massillon Tigers have lost exactly two McKinley tuneups since 1932.
It was obvious by 8:15 p.m. Saturday that the 1988 get‑ready game Would follow the old pattern.
Program Cover
Informed of the Tigers’ amazing record in pre‑McKinley games, head coach Lee Owens smiled wryly and said, “That doesn’t have anything to do with scheduling, does it?” Well, it just might.
The Woodson High team from Washington, D.C., that fell to the Tigers 46‑12 was stocked with talented players.
“We could put eight or nine of them to good use,” one Massillon coach said on the sideline while watching the carnage.
Talent not withstanding, Woodson lacked numerous aspects of the Massillon machine that have made football here what it is ‑ which is pretty darned good, even if it’s not what it once was.
“I’ve been coaching for 26 years, and that’s probably one of the best teams I’ve ever seen,” Woodson head coach Bob Headen said.
The Tigers led 40‑6 at halftime, by which time junior running back Lamont Dixon had done most of his damage in a night that included 104 rushing yards in only seven carries, with touchdown runs of 10, 29 and 53 yards. Senior fullback Jason Stafford rushed 12 times for 97 yards, giving him 875 yards on the year. He scored two touchdowns.
Stafford said he is at “95 percent” in his recovery from a pulled hamstring.
Quarterbacks Lee Hurst and Jamie Slutz combined to complete 10 of 13 passes for 90 yards.
The Tiger defense almost could have passed for an offense, based on the amount of time it spent in the Woodson backfield. Warrior players were thrown for 56 yards in losses.
Both teams ran 46 plays. Therein the similarities ended.
The Tigers pronounced themselves fully tuned for Saturday’s 2 p.m. game against McKinley at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. The fans are ready, too. Hundreds of them were lined up outside the Tiger Stadium ticket office this morning at 7, 30 minutes before the window opened. Tickets were to be sold through 4 p.m. today.
The Tigers and Bulldogs both enter Saturday’s showdown (the Tigers lead the series that started in 1894 50‑38‑5) with identical 6‑3 records. This is the result of McKinley having been stunned 9‑6 Saturday night at Fawcett Stadium by Central Catholic.
Jeff Mayle, a lineman who helped open gaping holes for Dixon and Stafford Saturday, didn’t know and seemed not to care what impact McKinley’s loss would have on the Bulldogs.
“I wouldn’t say we ever root for McKinley,” Mayle said. “I just want to help us beat them. The key will be for us to block their speed. Their nose guard, (Lamuel) Flowers, is really quick.”
Mayle didn’t know that Flowers, who made the Stark County coaches’ all‑county team last year as a junior, missed Saturday’s game because of a disciplinary suspension. Whether he will play this week is uncertain, although fans and coaches from Massillon are presuming Flowers will suit up.
Tiger senior Shawn Ashcraft was surprised by the McKinley score.
“I was hoping we’d both win so we’d both come into the game on a bubble, and we could burst theirs,” he said.
Bob Dunwiddie, Massillon’s senior defensive tackle/bull offense running back, figures the Bulldogs can worry about themselves.
“I don’t think we could be any more ready after beating St. Joseph and killing these guys (Woodson),” he said.
The mood among the Massillon coaches was tense in the locker room after the Woodson game.
Everyone was laughing heartily the previous week, when the Tigers drilled Cleveland St. Joseph 33‑8. Now it was different. It was time to think about McKinley, which has defeated Massillon four straight times.
“There’s only one thought running through my mind,” Owens said. “There’s been only one thought running through my mind all week. I kept getting messed up in practice and I had to catch myself.”
The thought, of course, was beating McKinley.
“That thought has dominated since day one,” Owens said.
The 32‑year‑old, first‑year Massillon coach said he had hoped Woodson would give the Tigers a greater challenge in Game Nine.
On the plus side, Owens said, “We were able to play an opponent where it didn’t make as much a difference if we looked ahead. We were running things designed for McKinley all week.”
Anticipation for the game seems to be at the same level as it has been in past years when both teams entered with superior records.
Owens shares that impression, citing “McKinley’s streak, a new head coach in Massillon, and the fact both teams have been outstanding somewhere along the line this year.”
Behind the scenes is another factor. Owens and Thom McDaniels, the seventh‑year head coach at McKinley, are not the best of friends. McDaniels is miffed that Owens said during the pre‑season that he would not participate in a film exchange between the teams.
As for Massillon‑Woodson, it was not the best of games, although it did feature some entertaining moments before most of the fans began clearing out in the third quarter.
The Tigers drove 41 yards on six plays with their first possession, scoring on a 10‑yard counter play blocked so well Dixon could have jogged into the end zone.
A snap far over the Woodson punter’s head set up the Tigers at the 4‑yard line moments later. Stafford scored from 2 yards out and it was 13‑0.
Woodson quickly had to punt, and the Tigers quickly drove to score 57 yards in three plays, the last of which was a 29‑yard blast by Dixon.
It was 20‑6 after one quarter, the result of Woodson benefiting from a tipped ball that became a 40‑yard scoring pass.
The Tigers added touchdowns from Dixon (his 53‑yard explosion), Stafford (on a 4‑yard Hurst Pass), Hurst (on a 2‑yard run) and Desmond Carpenter (on a 3‑yard pass from Slutz).
Running back Kyen Hill was a bright spot for Woodson with 97 rushing yards in 20 carries. Hill, who says he runs a 4.3 40 and is strongly considering playing at Ohio State, enjoyed the trip to Tigertown.
“The hospitality of the people in town was fantastic,” he said. “We didn’t do well in the game, but they were just ready for us.
“I liked their players. No. 81 (Monte McGuire) … tell him I’d like to meet him again some day. I’d like to shake his hand.”
If they meet again, McGuire wants to be able to say, “Hey, Kyen, remember when we played you guys the week before we beat McKinley…”
M W First downs rushing 12 6 First downs passing 5 3 First downs by penalty 2 0 Totals first downs 19 9 Yards gained rushing 280 157 Yards lost rushing 11 56 Net yards rushing 269 101 Net yards passing 90 93 Total yards gained 359 194 Passes attempted 13 9 Passes completed 10 3 Passes Int. by 1 0 Times kicked off 8 3 Kickoff average 55.6 43.3 Kickoff return yards 65 83 Punts 0 5 Punting average 00.0 27.8 Punt return yards 0 0 Fumbles 2 1 Fumbles lost 1 0 Penalties 4 6 Yards penalized 31 60 Number of plays 46 46 Time of possession 21.07 26.53 Attendance 8,378
