Blog Posts

Posts

Massillon Tigers Letter Logo News

Booster Club Report – Week 14

Scores from last week:

  • Varsity defeated Wadsworth, 41-19

This week’s schedule:

  • Friday – Varsity vs. Cincinnati Winton Woods (12-1) at Gahanna Lincoln Stadium, 7:00 pm

Massillon is 13-0 for the first time in their long history, owing to a convincing 41-19 playoff victory over previously undefeated Wadsworth.  The total also ties the all-time record held by the 2005 team, which lost in the Division I state finals that year and finished 13-2.  This week the Tigers have a chance to set a new total wins record when they face Cincinnati Winton Woods, a team they lost to a year ago in the Division II state semifinals.  Massillon is currently ranked No. 41 in the country by calpreps.com and No. 8 in the Midwest by USA Today.

Aidan Longwell (quarterback) and Dean Clark (defensive back / wide receiver) were the guest players.  Longwell addressed the Booster Club attendees and remarked that Wadsworth loaded the box defensively to stop the Massillon run.  “Last week they gave us good passing looks.  So we took what they gave.”  The result for Longwell was his best game passing of the year and second best during his two years as a starting quarterback.  Against Wadsworth Aidan completed 17  of 25 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns.

Then it was Clark’s turn.  “It was a good team win,” he said, turning his attention then to this week’s opponent and their stellar running back.  “If we want to win we need to wrap him up and tackle better,” he said.  “On the offensive side, we need to make plays.”

Jason Jarvis (cornerbacks / special teams) was the guest coach. “They (Wadsworth) tried to play ball control and keep it away from our offense,” he said.  “We didn’t tackle well.  This has to change.”  Wadsworth was mostly effective in doing this, rushing 56 times for 244 yards, the second most by an opponent this year behind East St. Louis.  Coupled with 150 yards of passing (3rd most), the Grizzlies racked up 394 yards (2nd most).  Welcome to playoff football.

Head Coach Nate Moore showed films of both Wadsworth and Winton Woods and said the Cincinnati team is very skilled, very fast and athletic.

The Warriorss operate almost entirely out of the spread offense, with an occasional tight, Perry-like wing-T look, often referred to as “flex bone.”  But it all revolves around junior  running back Miyan Williams (5′-10″, 210 lbs.), who this year has rushed 238 times for 2,742 yards, averages of 11.5 yards per carry and 211 yards per game.  Although he will not be the fastest player on the field, he is big and hard to tackle once he gets going, and his speed is actually pretty good.  Sophomore quarterback Mi’chale Wingfield (5′-9″, 178 lbs.) runs the zone read option and gives the ball to Williams about 70% of the time .  But when he keeps, Wingfield is pretty effective.  To date he has 95 carries for 683 yards, 7.2 yards per carry.  Considered a fair passer, he has completed 52% of his tosses for 871 yards.  Wingfield did not play in the season-opening 13-3 loss to Trotwood Madison.  The offensive line (ave. 5′-11″, 262 lbs.) has suffered through some injuries and has used some new players late in the season.  But they are a good group and very physical.  The kicker most often sends his boots into the end zone.

Defensively Winton Woods will utilize a base 3-4 box (similar to Massillon) with a single high safety and receivers in man-to-man coverage.  They don’t blitz a lot, but probably don’t need to since the strength of the defense is the line (ave. 6′-2″, 280 lbs.).  According to Moore, they are very active and pretty good at getting to the quarterback.  All of the secondary defenders return from last year.

The Warriors’ signature wins this year include:

  • Upper Arlington (5-5) 52-45
  • Indianapolis Bishop Chatard (8-2) 49-35
  • Cincinnati Elder (8-5) 28-10
  • Cincinnati Moeller (6-5) 21-17

Playoff scores:

  • Olentangy (5-6) 49-42
  • Little Miami (9-3) 38-12
  • Cincinnati Anderson (9-4) 52-20

 

History

2018: Massillon 41, Wadsworth 19

Kickoff return keys Massillon’s return to the state semifinals
Nov 16, 2018 10:39 PM
Chris Easterling

NORTH CANTON Massillon was looking for something to help it get a little separation.

Almost two full quarters into Friday night’s Division II Region 7 championship game against Wadsworth, the Tigers were locked in a tie game. Every time they would seem to grab a bit of momentum, the Grizzlies had the answer.

That is, until the final three-plus minutes of the first half. That’s when Massillon grabbed the separation it needed to send it to its second consecutive regional championship with 41-19 victory in front of a capacity crowd at North Canton Memorial Stadium.

“I knew it was a big key in the game,” said senior Kyshad Mack, whose 82-yard kickoff return with 3:12 remaining in the first half gave the Tigers the lead for good at 17-10. “I went out and made a play for my brothers.”

Mack’s kickoff return was one of two Tiger touchdowns in the final 3:12 of the half. The other was a 12-yard Aidan Longwell-to-Jamir Thomas’ scoring pass with 17 seconds remaining, giving Massillon a 24-10 halftime lead.

The Grizzlies, who bow out at 12-1, would get no closer than 12 the remainder of the game. The Tigers, meanwhile, would use Mack’s return to key a 31-9 game-ending burst.

“The kickoff return was huge,” said Massillon coach Nate Moore, whose team now has the best start in school history at 13-0. “Then, to drive down the field and get a score there to push it to two scores there was big.”

Massillon’s state-semifinal matchup won’t be official until the Ohio High School Athletic Association announces it on Sunday afternoon. However, based upon the results of Friday’s Division II regional finals, it sets up the extreme likelihood of two rematches from a year ago in the final four, with the Tigers facing Winton Woods and three-time state champion Hoban meeting Avon.

Moore, whose team tied the 2005 state runner-up team for most wins in school history, wasn’t prepared to focus too much on the next opponent.

“I have a feeling how it’s going to go,” said Moore, whose team lost to the Warriors in last year’s state semifinals. “I think we’re going to have to wait and see what the OHSAA decides.”

With just under four minutes left in the first half on Friday, Massillon couldn’t afford to look ahead to the state semifinals. At that point in time, it was just trying to shake a very good Wadsworth team.

Massillon took leads of 7-0 and 10-7 in the first half thanks to a 53-yard Longwell-to-Jayden Ballard touchdown pass and a 32-yard Alex Bauer field goal. Wadsworth, though, would get a Trey Shaffer-to-Tyler Montgomery 20-yard pass and a 25-yard Blake Turano field goal to twice square the game.

Wadsworth finished the game with 394 total yards, the second-highest total of the season against Massillon. That included 244 rushing yards, 109 of those by Dom Loparo.

Brock Snowball added 91 yards on the ground for the Grizzlies.

Wadsworth, though, couldn’t get the game tied for a third time. After Mack’s return, the Tigers tried a pooch kick which they recovered, but were called for illegal touching to give Wadsworth the ball at the Massillon 46.

Four plays later, the Grizzlies faced a fourth-and-6 from the Tiger 9 and attempted a field goal. The kick fell short, giving Massillon the football back at its 20.

Ten plays later, the Tigers – who had 403 total yards – had the two-score lead it wouldn’t relinquish. Compounding the issue for Wadsworth was the fact its first second-half possession was stopped on downs at the Massillon 1.

“That was the plan,” Wadsworth coach Justin Todd said of making it a one-score game out of the half. “That’s what we needed to do. We needed to come out in the second half and we had to score. Unfortunately, we didn’t punch it in.”

The Grizzlies would get a safety on the subsequent play after the goal-line stand to pull within 24-12. However, their next drive was snuffed out by a Dean Clark interception at the Massillon 22.

The Tigers would turn their next two possessions into points, essentially removing all doubt. They would get a 33-yard Bauer field goal for a 27-12 lead, followed by a 24-yard Longwell-to-Clark pass for a 34-12 edge.

Longwell, who missed the last three quarters of the regional-semifinal win over Whitehall-Yearling with an injury to his non-throwing shoulder, showed no ill effects. The junior was 17-of-25 for a career-high 306 yards with four touchdowns.

“He played pretty well,” Moore said of Longwell. “He made a lot of good decisions out there and threw a lot of good balls. I’m proud of him.

GAME STATS

Reach Chris at 330-775-1128 or chris.easterling@indeonline.com.

On Twitter: @ceasterlingINDE

Obie Logo (Large) News

Jamir Thomas Named Northeast Inland District Offensive Player of…

The awards keep mounting for Massillon running back Jamir Thomas.  He was recently named by the Associated Press as the Offensive Player of the Year for the Northeast Inland District.  The 6′-1″, 211 lb. senior ball carrier has led his team to a 12-0 record and a spot in this weekend’s regional finals against Wadsworth.  For the year Thomas has rushed 233 times for 1,738 yards and 22 touchdowns, an average of 7.5 yards per carry.  He is just 238 yards shy of breaking Travis McGuire’s single-season rushing total of 1,978 yards.  He already holds career marks for yards rushing, rushing attempts, rushing touchdowns and total touchdowns.  And he is within reach of the career records for all-purpose yards and total points scored.

Tiger Head Coach Nate Moore was named District Coach of the Year.

Other Massillon players receiving awards include:

First Team

  • Dean Clark – defensive back
  • Kyshad Mack – linebacker
  • Tre’von Morgan – wide receiver
  • Max Turner – defensive back
  • Deon Williams – offensive line

Second Team

  • Justin Gaddis – offensive line
  • Aidan Longwell – quarterback
  • Kameron Simpson – linebacker
  • Hunter Wantz – defensive line

Honorable Mention

  • Jayden Ballard – wide receiver
  • Tyree Broyles – defensive back
  • Benjamin Krichbaum – linebacker
  • Jory Mattox – offensive line

Congratulations to all of these deserving Tigers.

Massillon Tigers Letter Logo History

Booster Club Report – Week 13

Scores from last week:

  • Varsity defeated Columbus Whitehall-Yearling, 35-17

This week’s schedule:

  • Friday – Varsity vs. Wadsworth (12-0) at North Canton Hoover Stadium, 7:00 pm

For the first time since 1982 the Tigers have fashioned a 12-0 record and are now tied for second place for all-time wins.  A victory this week would tie the 13-win seasion posted by the 2005 team.  Both the 1982 and 2005 teams played for the state title.  This week Massillon is aiming to win back-to-back regional championships.  This feat has never before been accomplished by the Tigers.

The guest players were Aidan Longwell (quarterback) and Dean Clark (defensive back / wide receiver).  Asked about the performance of the backup quarterback in last Friday’s game, Longwell said, “Zach Controne really stepped it up.  We had a great game.  The defense played really well.”  “It was a great team win,” added Clark.  “Defensively we can play better.”  He said that the defense’s goal this week is to not allow any points.

Massillon head coach Nate Moore reviewed the film from the Whitehall game and then quickly turned his attention to this week’s opponent, undefeated Wadsworth.  The Grizzlies have won 24 of their last 25 games and were champions this year of the Suburban League large school division, beating such teams as 3-7 Hudson (35-13), 9-1 Nordonia (35-25) and 5-5 Stow (48-21).  They also own a pair of wins over playoff participant Wooster, 37-31 in the regular season and 42-38 in the post season.  Last week they beat a very good defensive team in Tri-Valley 13-3, overcoming a 3-0 halftime deficit.  The Grizzlies average 39 points per game and give up 16.  Six of their opponents were held to a touchdown or less.  “This is a good football team,” said Moore.

Defensively, Wadsworth is similar to Canton GlenOak in that both align in a 3-3 odd stack.  Of course, the Grizzlies appear on film to play it much better.  The secondary alignment will vary throughout the game.  They are not a great blitzing team, but will bring it at times.  They play very aggressively.  Linebackers senior Mason McMillen (6′-0″, 210 lbs.) and junior Jack Grice (6′-0″, 215 lbs.) are their best players on this side of the ball.  McMillon has 139 tackles including 22 for loss, 9 sacks and an interception.  Grice has 104 tackles with 17.5 for loss, 6.5 sacks and a pair of interceptions.  Senior safety Jake Herbert (5′-10″, 166 lbs.) has 10 interceptions.  The defensive line, anchored by 303 lbs. nose tackle Cole Lamp, averages 6′-0″, 243 lbs. “It’s a tall task for us,” said Moore.

Guest coach Craig McConnell addressed the Wadsworth offense.  With a 70:30 run/pass ratio, watch for lots of formations to spring open a pair of really good running backs.  Senior Brock Snowball (6′-2″, 211 lbs.) has 1,116 yards (6.4 yds/carry) with 11 touchdowns and junior Dominic Loparo (5′-9″, 175 lbs.) has 1,075 yards (8.3 yds/carry) with 16 touchdowns.  Both are downhill, hard-running, physical players that have a knack for finding open holes.  Junior quarterback Trey Shaffer (6′-1″, 181 lbs.) has passed for 2,236 yards with a 71% completion percentage and makes good decisions according to McConnell.  He has 21 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.  While not considered a dominant runner, he is allusive in the backfield and knows when to throw the ball away to avoid a sack.  The receivers are good, but not great.  However, McConnell says they catch the ball well and know how to find the holes in zone defenses.  The offensive line goes 6′-0″, 250 lbs.

There are no full-time 2-way players.

Go Tigers.

 

History

2018: Massillon 35, Columbus Whitehall-Yearling 17

Massillon overcomes injury, Whitehall-Yearling, to reach regional final
Nov 09, 2018 10:38 PM
Chris Easterling

MANSFIELD If it could go wrong for Massillon, it went wrong on Friday night.

An injury to starting quarterback Aidan Longwell. Multiple turnovers. Flags galore.

Yet, when it was all over, the Tigers’ state-championship dreams remained intact, as they held off Whitehall-Yearling 35-17 in a Division II Region 7 semifinal at Mansfield’s Arlin Field.

“All through the offseason, our coaches preached coming through adversity,” said Massillon senior Dean Clark, who will join his teammates in a regional final against Wadsworth next Friday at a site to be announced this weekend. “We’ve been going through adversity this whole season, the whole year. We were prepared for it.”

The adversity started on the next-to-last play of the first quarter, when Longwell – who had given Massillon a 7-0 lead on its first play, a 70-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Ballard – suffered an injury while attempting to score from the Ram 1. To add a certain insult to the injury, the official ruled an inadvertent whistle on the play, negating what possibly could’ve been a 99-yard fumble return by Whitehall for a score.

Enter sophomore Zach Catrone, who would lead the Tigers through the final three quarter. Catrone finished 16-of-24 for 177 yards with three touchdown passes and an interception.

“(Catrone’s) done a great job all year,” said Massillon coach Nate Moore, whose team matched the 1982 team for best start to a season at 12-0. “He led our JV team to an undefeated record. We have a lot confidence with him going in. We’re real proud of his performance.”

That performance included a 15-yard touchdown pass to Tre’Von Morgan right before halftime to give Massillon a 17-9 lead. Catrone also hit Ballard for a 55-yard touchdown with 5:07 remaining in the third quarter to give the Tigers the lead for good at 23-17.

Catrone would hit Morgan for a 9-yard strike with 42 seconds left to provide the final margin. The officials would call the game after that score when Whitehall was flagged for multiple unsportsmanlike penalties on the subsequent point-after try.

The entire Ram bench emptied onto the field after the play. After a lengthy conference, the officials ended the game, which was marred by multiple personal fouls on both sides.

“We came out and played hard,” Moore said. “We certainly weren’t perfect, none of us. Just played hard and got the win.”

Massillon would be flagged 12 times total in the game for 104 penalty yards. Whitehall was hit with seven flags for 63 yards.

It was Tiger turnover, though, which helped open the door for the Rams. Massillon had three giveaways on the night, compared to just one takeaway, a Luke Murphy interception with just over two minutes remaining.

The biggest of those Tiger turnovers came on the second play of the second half. A bad snap was picked up by Whitehall’s Sir-Blake Singleton and returned for a touchdown.

Raymell Byrd’s two-point conversion run would help the Rams, who never led in the game, pull even at 17-17.

That would be the only time Whitehall was able to get the game even after Massillon took the lead on its first play from scrimmage. The Rams would pull within 10-9 on Christian Gordon’s 64-yard catch-and-run off a Byrd pass, but the tying conversion failed due to a bad snap.

Whitehall would finish with 191 yards, 101 of those through the air. Byrd, the Rams’ leading rusher, finished with 52 yards on 11 carries.

Massillon would put the game away by bowing up on defense and running the football in the fourth quarter. The Tigers twice kept Whitehall from scoring over the final 12 minutes despite reaching their side of the 50.

Meanwhile, Massillon would run the ball on 15 of its final 16 plays. That included a 15-yard touchdown run by Jamir Thomas with 5:45 remaining to put the Tigers up 29-17.

“It was huge, huge,” Moore said. “It pushed it to a two-score game. That was huge, especially after the blocked extra point.”

Thomas finished with 136 yards on 16 carries for Massillon.

GAME STATS

Reach Chris at 330-775-1128 or chris.easterling@indeonline.com.

On Twitter: @ceasterlingINDE

Massillon Tigers Letter Logo News

Booster Club Report – Week 12

Scores from last week:

  • Varsity defeated Columbus Walnut Ridge, 45-14

This week’s schedule:

  • Friday – Varsity vs. Columbus Whitehall-Yearling (10-1) at Mansfield Arlin Field, 7:00 pm

Seven Massillon players have been named WHBC All-County, including Jamir Thomas (running back), Aidan Longwell (quarterback), Tre’von Morgan (wide receiver), Dean Clark (defensive back), Deon Williams (offensive lineman), Kyshad Mack (linebacker) and Justin Gaddis (most valuable player).  The honorees were selected by the area coaches and will be officially announced at the WHBC banquet scheduled for November 15.

Terrance Roddy was the guest coach.  Guest players were Jamir Thomas and Tre’von Morgan.  All commented on the sluggish start in last Friday’s win over Walnut Ridge.  “We came out slow,” said Thomas.  “Week 11 (following the emotional McKinley game) is always the hardest week.”  But the Tigers came out after the band show ready to play and outscored Walnut Ridge 28-7.  “We came out in the second half and did what we needed to do,” said Morgan.

Massillon head coach Nate Moore said that Walnut Ridge had some great college-bound players, but he expected to have better success early in the game.  Only, the opponent stacked the box with seven or eight players at a time, nearly negating the vaunted Tiger running attack.  In fact, it was the only time this year that all-time rushing leader Jamir Thomas was held under 100 yards.  Moore said it was more guys than they could block.  With little success on ground, the Tigers went to the air starting in the second quarter and had much better success moving the ball.

Moore also recognizes that the week after the McKinley game has always been one of the toughest for his team.  The players are coming off the biggest game in the state and prone to an emotional letdown.  Plus there is one less day to prepare, since the game is played on a Saturday.  Then there is the playoff game itself.  The coach said it just has a different feel to it than a normal home game.  There is no pregame music, no tunnel, no fireworks and the crowd is significantly smaller.  All of this just leads to a lack of energy. “It almost feels like a JV game,” said Moore.  “It might feel better if we played on the road.”   It took a full half to get over the funk, but the Tigers came away the winner and are alive for Round 2.

Columbus Whitehall-Yearling is the next opponent for the Tigers and enters the fray on the heels of a 38-31 victory over Dover (8-3).  With a current mark of 10-1, they have recorded significant wins over Columbus Northland (8-2), 31-28, Grandview Heights (7-4), 46-13 and London (10-1), 34-15.  The lone loss was 19-6 to Ohio Capital Conference member Westerville Central (5-6) in Week 1.  During the regular season they averaged 40 points a game and gave up 14 against a schedule that is dominated by Division 4 and 5 teams.  But they have beaten those teams handily.  Whitehall is not an inner-city school, rather more like the demographics found in Canton.

The Rams are led by speedy senior quarterback Raymell Byrd (6′-1″, 175 lbs.), who makes a living with his legs, having rushed for 1,562 yards and 23 touchdowns (Jamir Thomas numbers).  A fair passer, he has thrown for 906 yards and five TDs, mostly to senior Christian Gordon (5′-7″, 140 lbs.), who has 31 catches for 500 yards and 6 touchdowns.  Gordon also has great speed.  Byrd is the principle return man on special teams.

Offensively, they operate out of the spread and most running plays are quarterback keepers.  They like to throw the tag screens, but have a wealth of trick plays in their book.  So the Tigers will need to be prepared for anything.  The fullback, Wayne Blackshear (6′-0″, 230 lbs.), is used mostly as a blocker.  The line has good size and averages 6′-0″, 257 lbs.

On defense, expect the Rams to stack the box and send the linebackers on nearly every play, similar to Walnut Ridge.  The secondary will most often play man-to-man on the receivers with a single safety on top.  The defensive line is smallish, averaging 6′-0″, 194 lbs., while the three linebackers go 5′-11, 195 lbs.  So it will almost be akin to playing against seven linebackers.  The defense is led by seniors Keon Freeman (6′-0″, 220 lbs.) and Isaiah Oney (5′-10″, 190 lbs.).  Freeman has 85 tackles, including 20 for loss.  Oney has 70 tackles, including seven for loss.  Both double as running backs and are the only 2-way players for Whitehall.

Go Tigers!

Obie Logo (Large) History

Seven Tiger Players Named WHBC All-County

WHBC will hold their annual awards banquet on Thursday, November 15, at which time their Stark County All-Star team will be announced.  Unlike most all-star teams, this one is voted on by the area coaches.  This year’s honorees from Massillon include Jamir Thomas, Tre’von Morgan, Dean Clark, Aidan Longwell, Deon Williams, Kyshad Mack and Justin Gaddis.  There are certainly others off of this year’s undefeated team deserving of the award, but I guess you can’t select the whole group.  The county MVP and coach of the year will be announced at the banquet.

Jamir Thomas – Running Back.  It was a record-setting year for Thomas as he eclipsed Art Hastings’ mark for total career yards and Bob Glass’ mark for career touchdowns, and he continues to add to his record for career carries.  Through eleven games, Jamir has rushed 207 times for 1,602 yards, an average of 7.7 yards per carry.  In ten of those contests he rushed for 100+ yards.  But the 6′-1″, 215 lbs. Thomas is not limited to just offense, as he also sees time at linebacker.  On that side of the ball, Jamir has recorded 9 solo tackles and 5 assists, and has put great pressure on opposing quarterbacks with his blitzing, including a key 4th quarter stop against East St. Louis, IL.  Thomas has several D1 offers.

Tre’von Morgan – Wide Receiver.  Morgan has had a breakout year at his position with 27 receptions for 502 yards and nine touchdowns.  His longest catch was 72 yards, coming against Sun Valley, PA.  Tre’von also returns punts and is a member of the kickoff team.  Occasionally he finds himself at outside linebacker, where he has eight tackles and a pair of assists.  The 6′-6″ Morgan has several D1 offers.

Dean Clark – Defensive Back.  A Kent State commit, Clark is the quarterback of the Tigers’ outstanding defensive secondary, calling the alignments based on the many different offensive receiver formations.  Through eleven games, Dean is fourth on the team in tackles with 27 solos and 20 assists.  He also has one pass interception, nine pass breakups and eight passes defended.  With spot duty at receiver, Clark has caught three passes for 45 yards and a touchdown.

Aidan Longwell – Quarterback.  Big things were expected from Longwell, this being his second year as a starter and he certainly has produced.  Aidan has completed 116 of 188 passes for 25 TDs with just eight interceptions.  He is also one of the most efficient quarterbacks to ever play for the Tigers, with a rating this  year of 179.7, second highest in the record book.  Aidan has rushed for three touchdowns, including a key score in the first round playoff game against Columbus Walnut Ridge.  Possessed with a rocket arm, the junior currently holds a scholarship from Kent State to play pitcher on the baseball team.

Deon Williams – Offensive Lineman.  Williams is a 3-year starter and has played regularly on both sides of the ball.  On offense he is a key blocker, opening up gaping holes for the running backs, while protecting the quarterback from edge blitzes.  On defense he has also been a stalwart, recording nine tackles and 16 assists.  Expect 261 lb. Williams, who has a scholarship offer from Malone University, to play somewhere at the next level.

Kyshad Mack – LInebacker.  Mack uses his outstanding speed and football prowess to own the wide side of any offense.  Through eleven games, he has recorded 12 solo tackles and 15 assists.  He also leads the team with four pass interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns.  Mack holds a scholarship offer from Malone University.

Justin Gaddis – Team Most Valuable Player.  Gaddis anchors a stellar offensive line that has propelled the team to an explosive running attack, while providing great protection for the quarterback.  To date, the offense has rushed for 240.1 yards per game at 6.6 yards per carry.  On many of these plays, while paying at the center position, Justin has called many of the blocking schemes.

Congratulations to all of these worthy Tigers.

Massillon Tigers Letter Logo News

2018 OHSAA Playoffs: Division 2 Region 7 Semi-Final

Massillon Playoff Ticket Information:

The next playoff game will be Friday, November 9th, 2018 at 7:00 PM at Mansfield Arlin Field

All tickets will be general admission @ $8.00 for adults and students.

CASH ONLY/NO PHONE ORDERS/NO ONLINE SALES – ALL SALES WILL BE AT THE WHS TICKET OFFICE.

Tuesday, November 6th: SALES AT WHS TICKET OFFICE FROM 7:30 AM – 4:00 PM FOR SEASON TICKET HOLDERS & TEAM/BAND/CHEERLEADER PARENTS ONLY – SEASON TICKET HOLDERS MUST PRESENT ORANGE PLAYOFF CARD – ONE CARD PER PERSON

Wednesday, November 7th: PUBLIC SALES AT WHS TICKET OFFICE FROM 7:30 AM – 1:30 PM

Thursday, November 8th: PUBLIC SALES AT THE WHS TICKET OFFICE FROM 7:30 AM – 1:30 PM

Friday, November 9th: PUBLIC SALES AT THE WHS TICKET OFFICE FROM 7:30 AM – 1:30 PM

Directions to Mansfield Arlin Field – DIRECTIONS 

Division 2 Region 7 Playoff Bracket

Division 2 Regional Semi-Final Breakdown

Division II – Games at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 9

Region 5
1 Akr. Archbishop Hoban (11-0) vs. 5 Garfield Hts. (11-0) at Hudson Memorial Stadium
2 Maple Heights (11-0) vs. 6 Painesville Riverside (9-2) at Mayfield Wildcat Stadium

Region 6
1 Tol. Central Catholic (11-0) vs. 4 Avon Lake (10-1) at Sandusky Perkins Firelands Regional Medical Center Stadium
2 Whitehouse Anthony Wayne (11-0) vs. 3 Avon (10-1) at Clyde  Robert J. Bishop Jr. Stadium

Region 7
1 Massillon Washington (11-0) vs. 5 Whitehall-Yearling (10-1) at Mansfield Arlin Stadium
7 Dresden Tri-Valley (10-1) vs. 3 Wadsworth (11-0) at Dover Crater Stadium

Region 8
1 Cin. Winton Woods (10-1) vs. 5 Morrow Little Miami (9-2) at Hamilton Virgil M. Schwarm Stadium
7 Cin. Anderson (8-3) vs. 3 Troy (10-1) at Miamisburg Holland Field

History

2018: Massillon 45, Columbus Walnut Ridge 14

Massillon pulls away in fourth to bury Walnut Ridge
Nov 02, 2018 10:35 PM

MASSILLON Kameron Simpson took the pass out of the air and took off running. By the time the senior linebacker crossed the goal line, he and his Massillon teammates were well on their way to Week 12.

That doesn’t mean Week 11 was as easy as Simpson’s 45-yard, game-sealing interception return for a touchdown on Friday. Yet, because of the Tigers’ ability to dominate the fourth quarter, they were able to pull away for a 45-14 Division II Region 7 quarterfinal win over Columbus Walnut Ridge at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

“They say Week 11 is the toughest bump,” said Simpson, whose pick-6 with 19 seconds left assured Massillon its seventh running-clock finish in 11 games. “So, to go out here and grind it out with my brothers, and for all of us to do our jobs and keep it going, it’s a great feeling. Four more weeks until Week 15. We plan on winning it all.”

The Tigers, who are 11-0 for the first time since 1982, will continue their quest to “win it all” in a regional semifinal contest next week against No. 5-seeded Columbus Whitehall-Yearling at a site to be announced by the Ohio High School Athletic Association on Sunday. The Rams, 10-1 on the season, upset No. 4-seeded Dover 38-31 in another opening-round game on Friday.

Massillon, the region’s No. 1 seed, made sure it wasn’t a third top-four seed in the Region 7 to suffer a setback thanks to a 28-0 run over the final 16:24 of the game. That includes a 21-0 fourth-quarter burst which started with an Aidan Longwell 2-yard run on the first play of the quarter, and ended with Simspon’s touchdown return on its next-to-last play.

The Tigers only held a 112-90 edge in fourth-quarter yards, as they finished with 351 total yards to the Scots’ 256. However, Massillon’s 3-0 edge in scores was more than enough.

“We found a way to get the win,” Tigers coach Nate Moore said. “I’m proud of the guys for grinding it out. It wasn’t pretty, but we’ll certainly take it.”

Massillon won on a night where its vaunted running game was held to 134 yards on 34 rushing attempts, the second-fewest yards in a game this season (Louisville, 123 yards). Leading rushing Jamir Thomas was held to just 40 yards on 17 carries, although it was his 1-yard run with 4:24 remaining in the third quarter which started the Tigers’ game-ending run.

Zion Phifer led Massillon, which was held to a 3-0 lead in the first quarter, with 85 yards on 13 carries. Phifer gave the Tigers the lead for good at 10-7 on an 8-yard run with 6:03 left in the second quarter.

“You have to give credit to those guys,” Moore said of Walnut Ridge, which led 7-3 early in the second quarter on a blocked punt it recovered in the end zone. “They’re fired up on defense. They were playing really, really hard. They were giving us some shifts and some overloads and what-not.”

Massillon’s passing game came through to pick up the slack for the running game. Longwell completed 21-of-33 passes for 216 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Ballard with 2:47 remaining for a 38-14 lead.

The gaps were filled in by the Tiger defense, which held Walnut Ridge to just 27 rushing yards, which was 194 yards below its season average. The Scots did throw for 229 yards, 56 of those on a Isaiah Murphy-to-Qian Magwood touchdown which pulled them to within 17-14 with 9:04 left in the third.

Massillon, though, countered Walnut Ridge’s one touchdown pass with two interception returns for touchdowns. Kyshad Mack gave the Tigers a 17-7 lead with 5:48 left in the first half on a 36-yard pick-6.

“The defense played well,” Moore said. “We put them in some bad spots. They bowed up and got some stops. I’m really proud of them for that.”

GAME STATS

Reach Chris at 330-775-1128 or chris.easterling@indeonline.com.

On Twitter: @ceasterlingINDE

Massillon Tigers Letter Logo News

Booster Club Report – Week 11

Scores from last week:

  • Varsity defeated Canton McKinley, 24-17
  • Freshmen defeated Canton McKinley, 28-13.  Final record: 6-4

This week’s schedule:

  • Friday – Varsity vs. Columbus Walnut Ridge (9-1) at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, 7:00 pm

Last Saturday was a tremendous day for the Massillon football program in more ways than one. Not only did the Tigers defeat the Bulldogs, but Massillon also won the blood battle, the food drive and the pull-up challenge.  More than 2500 out-of-town fans paid $5.00 each to watch the game live on the internet, covering some 29 states and two foreign countries.

The effort to feature the tiger head blowup tunnel at each school during the week was a resounding success.  The kids were thrilled and many parents turned out to take photos.  Even the teachers got into the action.

This week’s first round playoff game against Columbus Walnut Ridge will start at 7:00 pm.  Parking passes for the west lot will be honored.  Tickets are available on Tuesday for season ticket holders and Wednesday through Friday for the general public.  Hours are 7:00 pm to 5:30 pm, although the office may close early on Friday.

Justin Gaddis (center) and Dean Clark (defensive back) were the guest players.  Over 25,000 social media followers watched the replay of Clark’s thrilling pancake of the McKinley running back.

The guest coach was J.P. Simon.  Simon said that the team trained in the off-season to maintain their intensity over a 4-quarter game and a 15-week season.  He noted that it was the main factor in defeating the Bulldogs.  Statistics-wise, McKinley ran just four plays and a punt in the fourth quarter to the Tigers’ 24.  “Physicality and toughness are our core values,” said Simon.  When asked about the sledge hammer he carries around during pre-game warmup, Simon said it was trophy that the linemen won during a summer camp at the University of Pittsburgh.  Called the “Big Man Challenge,” each of the 60+ teams competed in five events, including a tug-of-war at the end.  Not only did Massillon finish on top of the field, they won each of the five events.  “It was kind of cool to win that award,” he said.

Head Coach Nate Moore reviewed film of several plays from last Saturday’s game then turned his attention to Walnut Ridge.

General notes:

  • The Scots play in the Columbus City League
  • Their regular season record was 9-1, the loss being 26-20 to Eastmoor
  • They average 48 points a game and give up 8
  • Five times they scored over 50 points
  • Only two teams have scored more than once (Eastmoor and Marion Franklin)
  • Ten players go both ways
  • The quarterback and two wide receivers have received college offers (Valparaiso, Kentucky and Cincinnati)

Offense

  • The quarterback (6′-4″, 200 lbs.) has has thrown for 1,756 yards and 28 touchdowns.  He will run some, but not effectively.
  • The running back (5′-9″, 185 lbs.) is a sophomore.  He has rushed for 1,048 yards and 14 touchdowns.
  • The top wide receivers are both over 6-foot.
  • The offensive line averages 6′-2″, 238 lbs.  Two of the players are on the smaller size.
  • They operate out of the spread offense, with some jet sweep.  Run-pass ratio is 60:40.

Defense

  • 3-4 alignment
  • All three defensive linemen go both ways
  • The line averages 6′-4″, 225 lbs.
  • The Sam linebacker (who also plays receiver) is being recruited by Kentucky.

Go Tigers!