Blog Posts

Posts

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

2013: Massillon 27, Austintown Fitch 30

SOOOO CLOSE
Tigers battle back, but run out of time

AUSTINTOWN In the end, there just wasn’t enough time for Massillon to complete the comeback.

Facing the largest deficit of the season and on the road against the state’s No. 4-ranked Division I team, the Tigers came close to pull ing out a memorable win on Friday night at Austintown Fitch. Instead, the time literally ran out on Massillon as it fell 30-27 to the Falcons in front of about 8,000 at Falcon Stadium.

“We’re extremely proud of the kids for the effort,” Massillon coach Jason Hall said after his team fell to 6-1. “They handled a lot of adversity in the game. With five minutes to go in the game, it just started clicking for us. We started doing some of the things we know we can do.”

The Tigers trailed 30-14 with 4:45 remaining after Fitch quarterback Antwan Harris scored his third touchdown of the game, a 1-yard plunge. But two Danny Clark-to-Reggie Rogers touchdown passes – an 80-yarder with 4:30 remaining and a 72-yarder with 2:41 left – pulled Massillon to within three points.

After forcing a three-and-out, the Tigers got the ball back with 1:06 remaining at their 35. Six
plays later, they were at the Fitch 10, then the 5 after a penalty on the Falcons.
On second-and-goal from there, Clark hit Whitfield on a pretty strike just over the goal line for
what appeared to be the go-ahead touchdown with 14 seconds remaining. But a illegal
formation flag wiped that out, moving the ball back to the 10
.
“Danny’s the reason we got back in this game,” Hall said of Clark, who was 16-of-23 for 358
yards on the night. “He’s a 15-year-old kid who brought the Tigers back with five minutes in
the game. He really made one of the best throws I’ve seen any quarterback I’ve ever had make
(on the Whitfield touchdown that was nullified).”

An incompletion made it third down with 10 seconds remaining. On the next play, though, the Falcon defense forced a scramble, which they tackled inbounds to close the game out.

“They got their money’s worth tonight,” Fitch coach Phil Annarella said after his team improved to 7-0. “My hat’s off to Massillon. What a great comeback. They didn’t quit. ”

Just to get to that point took quite an effort from the Tigers, who spent much of the game playing from behind. In fact, five plays into the contest, they were down 7-0 after Harris — the Fitch quarterback — took off for a 60-yard touchdown run.

The last time the Tigers would even the score up came on their subsequent drive, when Lyron Wilson capped the nine-play march with a 5-yard touchdown to make it 7-7 with 5:53 remaining. By the time Massillon would score again, on J.D. Crabtree’s 38-yard on the fourth play of the second half, it was in a hole it could never completely climb out of.

Massillon set up Fitch’s second score when it failed to convert on a fake punt attempt on fourth down from the Tiger 31. It was compounded by a late hit penalty on Massillon on the Falcons’ subsequent possession, which moved the ball to the Tiger 12, where it was fourth-and-1.

“They typically bring a lot of pressure all the time,” Hall said of the fake punt. “So we tried to bring two people from inside-out down the hashes, and they did a good job covering it. … We got them stopped (then) on third-and-long, it’s going to be fourth and at least 10, and we get a personal foul. It becomes fourth-and-1, and they get a touchdown on that.”

Harris picked up that and more, ripping off a 12-yard touchdown run to make it 14-7 Falcons with 8:36 remaining in the half. The junior quarterback, who was injured on the Falcons’ final offensive play of the game, rushed for 147 yards on 27 carries, including 102 yards in the first half.

The Fitch passing game, which has been called inconsistent by Annarella this week, provided the next score. Harris hit Joey Harrington for a 34-yard touchdown catch-and-run to make it 21-7 with 5:26 remaining in the half.

Massillon tried to cut into that before the half, reaching the Fitch 28. But a 45-yard field goal was blocked, leaving the Falcons ahead by 14 points.

Crabtree’s scoring run to open the second half pulled Massillon to 21-14. But there would be no scoring until the Fitch defense recorded a safety against the Tigers with 10:20 remaining to make it 23-14.

GAME STATS

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

2013: Massillon 28, Akron Firestone 14

A WIN IS A WIN
Tigers struggle, but top Falcons to keep unbeaten season intact

By CHRIS EASTERLING
Independent sports editor

MASSILLON Jason Hall has experienced his share of tough, kick-in-the-gut-type of wins in his time at Massillon. And even after the roughest of losses, he has found plenty to say about what transpired in the 48 minutes of football.

But after Hall’s Tigers improved to 6-0 on Friday night with a lackluster 28-14 win over winless Firestone at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, the sixth-year coach found himself at a loss of words.

“I want to say this the right way,” Hall said, choosing each word carefully. “I expect great senior leadership out of the team. I didn’t think we had that tonight. I’m a guy who’s a very honest evaluator. I’m not happy with our staff; I’m not happy with our seniors. Firestone came in and their kids played hard, but if we play like that (next Friday), we might as well not drive to Fitch.”

The Tigers came into the game off of an emotional win at Steubenville, the program’s first win there since 1977. And all week, the state’s No. 1-ranked Division II team had heard about how Friday’s game with Firestone was merely a warm-up act for next week’s showdown at undefeated Austintown Fitch, the No. 4-ranked Division I team.

But Massillon, despite opening up a 28-0 halftime lead thanks to a three-touchdown second quarter, spent much of the night shooting itself in the foot with various mistakes and sloppy play. One week after a 14-penalty performance at Steubenville, the Tigers were flagged 10 times for 105 yards, including two penalties that were marked off on the kickoff following touchdowns.

Hall wouldn’t say if his players had come into the game overlooking a Firestone team that hadn’t scored more than 12 points in any game this season.

“I don’t know, because that’s not how I act,” Hall said. “I don’t know how people like that act.

You’d have to ask them. I don’t act like that. … Winners practice. I was just telling my daughter this the other night, winners don’t practice because they like to practice. Winners practice because they like to win. That’s the message our kids need to get.”

Friday’s game, though, followed a script that the previous four meetings between the two teams had followed. Firestone hangs around early before Massillon catches fire long enough to open up a multi-score lead.

In this instance, the Tigers led 7-0 after the first quarter behind a 14-yard Marcus Whitfield run on their first possession of the game. Whitfield’s 65-yard catch-and-run from quarterback Danny Clark helped give Massillon a two-score lead at 14-0 with 7:53 left in the first half.

Devon Ingram picked up a Firestone fumble a returned it 55 yards for a score with 4:48 left in the half to make it 21-0. After another Falcon fumble, the Tigers made it 28-0 when Clark found Malik Dudley with 40 seconds remaining before the intermission for a 14-yard touchdown.

“We love coming down here,” Firestone coach Tim Flossie said after his team fell to 0-6. “Our big problem is we don’t catch the ball. We dropped five or six balls tonight. We fumble the ball for a touchdown. Massillon’s good, and you don’t do that against a good team.”

But Flossie’s team continued to be a difficult out in the second half. The Falcons intercepted a pass on the first play of the fourth quarter, one play before they broke up the shutout with a 7-yard touchdown run by Brennan Williams.

Firestone added a 55-yard Louis Christian touchdown run with 1:03 remaining.

The Falcons, who had scored just 14 points in the previous four games combined, outgained Massillon 267-252.

The Tigers went to their reserve offensive players on the last series of the third quarter, which ended with them holding a 241-146 yards edge.

“We actually got some offense going,” Flossie said. “It could’ve been more if we had caught the ball. I was happy with that. We’ll be OK.”

GAME STATS

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

2013: Massillon 37, Steubenville 21

STILL PERFECT
Tigers handle adversity to escape Death Valley

By CHRIS EASTERLING
Independent sports editor

STEUBENVILLE Massillon had plenty of reason to feel like things weren’t going to go its way in Friday’s visit to Steubenville’s Harding Stadium.

The Tigers battled turnovers. They battled a rugged Big Red team. They fought the flags.

Yet, when push came to shove, Massillon shoved the hardest. And that’s why the Tigers picked up their first win at Steubenville since 1977 – with a 29-year hiatus in there – with a 37-21 win over Big Red to improve to 5-0 on the season.

“It’s crazy; it’s a beautiful thing,” Massillon running back Lyron Wilson said. “We’re the first team to beat them in how long? … It was a great game for us.”

And that great game for the Tigers was in large part because of Wilson’s running. The senior rushed for 234 yards on 24 carries, and scored three times, the last with 3:54 remaining after a crazy a sequence.

“We handled adversity,” said Wilson, who also credited fellow running back J.D. Crabtree, who ran for 55 yards and a score on eight carries. “We scored down there three times, and they called all but one of the touchdowns back. We just fought and kept running; the line blocked their tail off. I just ran for everything.”

That third score came after the Tigers had two other scores or near scores called back by penalty. After the second, it sent head coach Jason Hall into near-hysterics on the sideline, as he rushed at the officials.

Hall’s frustration arose from a night where the Tigers had 14 penalties for 92 yards. Five of those came on that final scoring drive.

“I just told our kids to keep playing,” Hall said. “We had to handle some adversity. They just kept playing. I may have lost my cool a little bit.”

The Tigers found themselves in a dogfight until the fourth quarter because of those flags, which self-destructed several drives. They also turned the ball over three times. Massillon only led 16-14 at halftime, and just 23-21 entering the fourth quarter.

Steubenville also helped, with three turnovers of its own. Both teams also gave the other team good field position with bad punt snaps.

Massillon, which had first-half leads of 2-0, 9-0 and 16-7 before a late first-half score by Steubenville, took control of the game on the first play of the fourth quarter. Facing fourth-and 1 from the Big Red 4, freshman Danny Clark play-faked and then spun around to the left and hit Beau Huffman for a four-yard touchdown and a 30-21 lead.

The Tigers scored on three of its four meaningful second-half possessions, prior to three kneeldowns at the end of the game. Crabtree had a 5-yard scoring run on the first drive of the second half for a 23-14 lead, a five-play, 45-yard march that was all runs by the Tiger running back.

“That’s just how we do it,” Wilson said. “That’s how we do it. That’s exactly how we do it.”

Steubenville, which scored on a 1-yard Robert Hayden run and a 10-yard Mandela Lawrence Burke to Kair McClurg pass in the first half, scored its final touchdown on a 10-yard Dimitri Collaros-to-Lucas Herrington pass to make it 23-21 with just over four minutes remaining in the third quarter.

GAME STATS

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

2013: Massillon 35, Mentor Lake Catholic 6

Runaway Tigers
All phases clicking in blowout victory

By CHRIS EASTERLING
Independent sports editor

MASSILLON Massillon scored on the ground. It scored through the air. And it scored on defense.

And when it was all said and done Friday night at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, the Tigers had scored a 35-6 knockout of visiting Lake Catholic to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 2009.

“I think both our offense and defense came out with a great focus tonight, especially after our defense struggled for a few series last week,” said Tiger cornerback Reed Fichter, whose second-quarter interception return for a touchdown helped break the game open. “We came out and made a statement tonight. We’ve got momentum going into next week. We’ve just got to keep our heads on straight and keep getting better each week.”

That’s especially true next Friday night, when Massillon heads to Steubenville, a place that has been a house of horrors. The Tigers are 0-2 since the series was renewed in 2009. But on this Friday night, Massillon made sure to keep its eyes on task at hand against Lake Catholic.

“We came out of Warren (last week) and still feel like we haven’t put together a full four quarter game: special teams, offense and defense all working off each other,” Tiger lineman Nathaniel Devers said. “So we wanted to practice and make sure we could come out and execute. … We’re not looking past anybody. This was a tough team.”

Massillon’s offense wasn’t quite the picture of four-quarter efficiency against the Cougars, as it had been the week before at Warren Harding. Still, the Tigers were good enough, showing at times the diversity of run and pass that can make them a handful for opposing defenses.

On this night, Lake Catholic was forced to choose to deal with the two-headed rushing monster than is Lyron Wilson and J.D. Crabtree. Or, it could try to take away the deep passing game from quarterback Danny Clark.

Turns out, the Cougars had enough problems with both to make it a long night. Massillon finished with 316 total yards, with 172 coming on the ground and another 144 coming through the air.

Most of that damage was done in the first half, which ended with the Tigers in front 35-0.

Massillon went into the locker room with 228 total yards, 117 of those in the air and anotherin the air.

“They were a blitzing team and we were kind of just going with the flow of the game,” Massillon coach Jason Hall said. “We ran at it, and had success running at it. I thought we threw a couple of good balls.”

The Tigers scored on their second and third possessions to take the lead for good at 13-0. The first score came on a 3-yard run by Crabtree, while Clark hit Beau Huffman for a 17-yard scoring strike for the second.

Wilson also got into the scoring act, rushing for a 15-yard touchdown late in the first half. He finished with 97 yards on 14 carries, while Crabtree rushed for 78 on 13 attempts.

The defense took over the scoring from there. Fichter picked off a pass and return it 62 yards for a touchdown and a 20-0 second-quarter lead.

Two Cougar possessions later, Saive Isles – who had earlier set up a score with an interception – hauled in an overthrown pass and returned it 34 yards for a touchdown. Fichter hit Malik Dudley for a two-point conversion and a 28-0 lead.

“As a whole team, we feed off each other,” Huffman said. “No matter, whether it’s defense feeding off the offense or offense feeding off the defense. Tonight, it was the offense feeding off the defense. That was just huge.”

When the Massillon defense wasn’t scoring points, it was doing its best to keep Lake Catholic from so much as getting a first downs. In fact, the Cougars didn’t cross the 50 through three quarters, with just three first downs and 80 total yards in the first 36 minutes of the game.

They finished with 126 total yards, 106 of those on the ground.

The first time Lake Catholic snapped on the Tiger side of midfield came with 10:39 remaining after Massillon botched a punt snap and the Cougars took over 1 yard from the goal line. On the next play, Justin Sanders scored to break up the shutout.

By that time, though, it was 35-6 and Massillon could start thinking about being 4-0 … and Steubenville.

GAME STATS

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

2013: Massillon 35, Warren Harding 14

Quick strike gives Massillon momentum to down Harding

By CHRIS EASTERLING
Independent sports editor

WARREN Massillon had seen a two-touchdown lead completely disappear in the second quarter of its first road game of the season on Friday night at Warren Harding.

But instead of allowing the momentum to continue to move away from them, the Tigers took all of one play to swing it back in their favor. Buoyed by the late first-half score, the Tigers put their foot on the accelerator coming out of the half to run away from Warren 35-14 at Mollenkopf Stadium.

The Tigers, who were tied with the Raiders 14-14 with 3:41 remaining in the half, scored just 10 seconds after Warren had tied the game on a 32-yard Danny Clark to Reggie Rogers touchdown pass. They then scored on their first two second-half possessions to pull away to improve to 3-0 on the season.

“I knew right away that I wanted to come right back after they had a good little drive there and tied it up,” Massillon coach Jason Hall said. “We got that good return (by Marcus Whitfield). It was definitely a chance to come out and take the home-run shot to Reggie. … It was a good play.”

Clark, making his second start of his career, finished the game 8-of-13 for 145 yards with the one score. He didn’t attempt a pass in the fourth quarter after the Tigers took the 21-point lead.

After the touchdown pass, Warren — which was playing as the “Panthers” on this night in honor of the former Warren Harding teams — only threatened one other time, reaching the Massillon 1 midway through the fourth quarter. But by that point, the game was all but decided.

Warren, now 1-2, was also hurt by a pair of second-half turnovers, including a Mike Smith interception at the Warren 43 that turned into the Tigers’ final touchdown, a 7-yard run by J.D.

Crabtree with 5:21 remaining in the third. Lyron Wilson also had a 16-yard scoring run in the quarter.

“We got that 14-0 lead in the beginning, and they came back,” said Crabtree, who scored three times on the night. “We made a few mistakes. We came in at halftime and we really made some adjustments and came out and we were ready.”

Massillon came out of the chute determined to take command of the line of scrimmage. And that’s just what the Tigers did on their first drive, marching 62 yards in eight plays to take a 7-0 lead when Crabtree powered in from a yard out with 8:56 left in the first quarter.

The third Massillon drive ended the exact same way, with Crabtree going in from a yard out to close out a four-play, 30-yard possession. The second Andrew David point-after kick gave the Tigers a 14-0 lead with 2:38 remaining in the half.

“They (the coaches) were really rough on them the whole week,” Crabtree said of the Massillon line, which helped the Tigers rush for 147 yards on 29 carries. “They were in full pads. I have all the respect in the world for them. We couldn’t make plays without them.”

Keemari Murry got loose to get Warren back into it, scampering for a 34-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter. Murry, a sophomore tailback, had 82 second-quarter rushing yards and 107 yards on the ground in the first half.

Murry finished the game with 193 yards on 34 carries with the one score.

“You have to take your hat off to them,” Hall said. “They ground and pound it a little bit in there.”

Warren tied the game up at 14-14 by showing just how valuable the return of Lamar Carmichael at quarterback is to the offense. Carmichael, hampered by a foot injury the first two games, eluded the Tiger pass rush and found Nate Walls for a 16-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-6 with 3:41 remaining in the half.

That led to Whitfield’s big kick return to the Warren 32, which led to the touchdown pass that gave Massillon the lead for good.

GAME STATS

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

2013: Massillon 23, Canton Glenoak 20

Triple OT
Massillon outlasts GlenOak for second victory

“Take your hat off to GlenOak; they had a great defensive game plan. They just brought the house at us all night.” MASSILLON COACH JASON HALL

BY CHRIS EASTERLING
Independent sports editor,

MASSILLON Massillon’s season opener against Perry last week had its share of miscues, penalties and turnovers. But the Tigers were able to overcome those to still run away with the win.

The second time Massillon took the field this season was filled with more of the same as it welcomed nemesis GlenOak to Paul Brown Tiger Stadium on Thursday night. And once again, the Tigers were able to overcome all of that to get the win.

This time, though, it was no rout. Instead, it was a nail-biting, breath-taking rally that gave Massillon a 23-20 triple-overtime win over the Golden Eagles.

“I happy with it, but at the same time, I’m really disappointed with the way we played,” Massillon coach Jason Hall said after his team moved to 2-0 thanks to a 20-yard Andrew David field goal in the third overtime, followed by a fourth-down stop from his team’s own 1. “Take your hat off to GlenOak; they had a great defensive game plan. They just brought the house at us all night. We didn’t do a great job. We have to get back to fundamentals.”

On a night when history was being made with Danny Clark becoming the first freshman to ever start at quarterback for Massillon, a different kind of history was seemed possible as well. Outside of McKinley, no other Stork County team ever had beaten the Tigers in three consecutive meetings, but such an opportunity was there for GlenOak after taking the 2011 and 2012 contests.

It was nearly there, but GlenOak – which led 10-6 in the fourth quarter, as well as 20-13 in the second OT – couldn’t convert a fourth-and-goal from the Tiger 1 in the third overtime. Mike Smith came up to stop Jason Simon for a loss to preserve the win. The stop capped a night in which Massillon, despite a 288-152 edge in yards and an 18-8 first-down edge, shot itself in the foot over and over again. The Tigers turned the ball over five times, missed an extra point and three field goals, allowed GlenOak to pick up six recorded sacks in the game and missed onmultiple opportunities in Golden Eagles territory in the first half.

“We just kept battling and battling,” Hall said. “We didn’t play our best game.” as for Clark, there were times where he looked like exactly what he was, which is a freshman. Yet he gave Massillon a 13-10 fourth-quarter lead when he hit Marcus Whitfield on a 10-yard touchdown strike with 4:46 remaining, then helped send the game into a third OT with a 21 yard TD pass to Reggie Rogers.

Clark finished the game 14 of 24 for 170 yards with three touchdowns, two of which went to Rogers. The two also hooked up for an 18-yard score with 9:31 remaining in the first quarter to give Massillon a 6-0 lead.

“Danny’s a tough kid,” Hall said. “He’s going to learn from this. We’re going to learn from this.” GlenOak would rally twice. Simon’s 2-yard touchdown with 3:44 left in the first half gave the Eagles a 7-6 lead. They would then march down for a game-tying 31-yard field goal with 17 seconds left in regulation to send it to overtime tied at 13-13.

Both teams missed field goals in the first overtime session. Massillon’s was pushed wide left, while GlenOak’s was blocked.

GAME STATS

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

2013: Massillon 35, Massillon Perry 7

Massillon’s “Black Swarm” Defense leads way in win over Perry

By CHRIS EASTERLING
Independent sports editor

MASSILLON Much has been made of Massillon’s offensive capabilities. The Tigers boast a massive line and a deep pool of skill players.

Yet, somewhat quietly, they’ve also put together a defense that has a chance to be pretty good as well.

And Thursday night, it was that defense that helped set the tone for Massillon as it opened the season with a 35-7 win over neighboring rival Perry in front of a large crowd inside Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

“We just read our guards, followed our keys and made plays,” said Tiger junior linebacker Danny Robinson, whose 23-yard fumble return for a touchdown gave Massillon an 8-0 lead — following the two-point conversion — it would never relinquish.

The Tiger defense lived up to its “Black Swarm” monicker — even while clad in orange and white – by flying to the football on nearly every play. Massillon would limit Perry, which was making its debut in Keith Wakefield’s second tenure as head coach, to just 205 total yard while forcing a pair of turnovers.

“Three fumbles, turnovers,” Wakefield said. “Guys can’t line up right. … That (stuff) ends tomorrow.”

Even on a night when the defense held the key to Massillon getting off to the fast start, the offense became the talk of the town thanks to the debut of not one new quarterback, but two.

Andrew David earned the start after a preseason-long competition, and was 7-of-10 passing for 59 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Rogers that made it 22-7 with 2:13 remaining in the first half.

That score came just over two-and-a-half minutes after Perry’s lone touchdown, a 5-yard Braxton Berry score that cut it to 15-7. That score came after the Tigers fumbled a punt at their own 11.

However, David would suffer a severe leg cramp right before attempting the second-half kickoff. That would open the door for highly-touted freshman Danny Clark to take the reins in the second half.

“We have confidence in all our quarterbacks who run our system,” Massillon coach Jason Hall said. “The offense didn’t change because Danny Clark came in the game.”

And on his first play as the Tiger quarterback, on his first pass, he lofted a perfect pass down the left sideline to Rogers, who ran for the rest of the way for a 59-yard touchdown and a backbreaking 28-7 Massillon lead midway through the third quarter.

“I can’t stop thinking about it,” said Clark, who was 4-of-5 in his debut for 76 passing yards, while adding a 25-yard run. “It was crazy. I wanted to go in there and just stay calm. That was my biggest thing, just staying calm.”

Staying calm may have been the Tigers’ biggest problem, especially early on. Massillon — despite finishing with 416 total yards, including 281 rushing yards, 120 by J.D. Crabtree — was hurt by nine penalties for 70 yards.

The Tigers turned the ball over twice. They also had a couple of misplayed kicks that could’ve been troublesome.

“I think offensively, we were just sporadic,” said Hall, whose team closed out the scoring with a 74-yard Crabtree run in the fourth quarter. “We shot ourselves in the foot with penalties. Then we had penalties and a muffed punt that didn’t. We really have to be more consistent going into next week.”

Massillon will play host to GlenOak next Thursday. Perry travels to Central Catholic next Friday.

GAME STATS

History

2012: Massillon 16, Toledo Whitmer 49

Whitmer football wins third consecutive regional crown

MANSFIELD — For the third straight season, Whitmer will be moving on to the Division I state football semifinals.

The third-ranked Panthers (13-0) earned that berth Saturday night by jumping out early on 10th-ranked Massillon Washington, and cruising to a 49-16 victory over the Tigers in a Region 2 final at Mansfield’s Arlin Field.

“This is unbelievable,” first-year Whitmer head coach Jerry Bell said. “This was our goal, and these seniors have worked so hard. This was the 41st game they’ve played in three years, and this one was for our senior class. Massillon is a phenomenal team and very explosive, and we were able to neutralize them tonight.”

Senior quarterback Nick Holley ran for 116 yards, and was 10-of-17 passing for 137 yards and a touchdown to trigger the Panthers’ attack, and senior running backs Tre Sterritt (14 carries, 71 yards, three TDs) and Me’Gail Frisch (13 carries, 81 yards, two TDs) contributed mightily to Whitmer’s 409-313 edge (272-54 rushing) in total offense.

The rest was up to the Panther defense, which bent but did not break in containing Massillon’s high-powered 43-points-per-game offense. It was the third playoff win by Whitmer over Massillon since 2006.

Now 38-3 overall since 2010, Whitmer will face seventh-ranked Mentor (12-1) in a semifinal Saturday at 7 p.m. at a site to be determined.

Mentor advanced by beating defending state champion Cleveland St. Ignatius 57-56 in three overtimes in Saturday night’s Region 1 final.

In an otherwise superb first half where they could do little wrong, the Panthers spotted Massillon a 7-0 lead 49 seconds into the game.

On their second play from scrimmage, the Tigers scored on a 54-yard touchdown pass from Kyle Kempt to Gareon Conley.

The Tigers would not reach the end zone again until 7:42 remained in the game, and by then they trailed by 32 points.

Whitmer’s first drive stalled at the its 47 after seven plays, but Nate Holley’s punt ignited a furious scoring surge.

Tigers return man Marcus Whitfield muffed the punt at his 10, the ball bounced toward the goal line, Whitfield was knocked away by Marcus Elliott, and Keith Howell recovered in the end zone for a touchdown with 8:30 left in the opening quarter.

After kicking the extra point, Panther placekicker Michael Baldwin executed an onside kick and recovered himself at the Massillon 45.

Whitmer quarterback Nick Holley is hit by Massillon Washington’s Ryan Rambo after picking up a first down.

Holley ran for 35 yards on the next play, a Tigers late hit moved it to the five, and Frisch went around right end the final five yards for a 14-7 Whitmer lead 21 seconds after its first TD.

“When they scored right away it was like, ‘…what did we get ourselves into?’ But we responded, and we just had that fire underneath us,” Nick Holley said. “The momentum changed, and I think we had it for the whole game after that.”

The Panthers’ next drive covered 55 yards on seven plays, with Tre Sterritt carrying for the final yard and a 21-7 Whitmer advantage with 4:29 left in the first quarter.

The offensive surge continued after the Whitmer defense stopped Massillon on a fourth-down play at its 35. Once again the Panthers used seven plays to find the end zone, this time with Sterritt going 12 yards through the middle on the first play of the second quarter.

Massillon briefly interrupted the Whitmer express, marching 61 yards on 13 plays before having to settle for Andrew David’s 29-yard field goal with 7:33 left in the half.

The Panthers traded punts with the Tigers, then launched their fourth offensive scoring drive of the half from their 40.

They used 12 plays to move those 60 yards, and Sterritt capped it on a five-yard TD run over left guard 39 seconds before halftime, which arrived with Whitmer holding a commanding 35-10 lead.

“We knew if we just played our game we’d come back,” Sterritt said. “They’re a great offensive team and have a good defense too. We knew we had to respond and we couldn’t let our heads down.

“The momentum just came from us working hard, and believing we were going to win.”

After a scoreless third quarter, Whitmer added a touchdown on the second play of the fourth, capping a monster 16-play, 80-yard drive on Holley’s five-yard TD pass to twin brother Nate Holley for a 42-10 lead on the Tigers.

Most importantly, that drive took 7:51 off the clock, preventing Massillon from staging any comeback bid.

“The defensive staff and offensive staff were dialed in on the play-calling,” Bell said. “We thought we had to be able to run the football against them, and keep the ball out of the hands of their offense. We were able to do that.”

“Our defense is stingy, and we’ve been playing like that all year,” Panther senior defensive tackle Marquise Moore said. “That’s the mindset you have to have going into any game.”

The Tigers’ second TD came on an 11-yard pass from Kempt to Conley.

Kempt was 19-of-32 passing for 259 yards, and Ryne Moore topped the Tigers in rushing with 52 yards on 17 carries.

“We knew if we stopped the big plays we would have a shot at stopping them and winning the game,” senior third-year starting linebacker Jack Linch said. “We did that throughout the game.

“We’ve played a lot of games the last three years. We’re an experienced football team and I think we can go all the way if we just keep working hard.”

Whitmer closed the scoring on Frisch’s six-yard TD run with 4:24 remaining.

Contact Steve Junga at: sjunga@theblade.com

GAME STATS

2012: Massillon 28, Canton McKinley 19 History

2012: Massillon 28, Canton McKinley 19

KENT, Ohio — It is one of the best football rivalries in the country, but Massillon Washington definitely had Canton McKinley’s number in 2012. The Tigers defeated the Bulldogs, Saturday, for the second time in three weeks, 28-19, in the Division 1, Region 2 semifinals.

Ryne Moore carried the load for Massillon (11-1), scoring twice on short runs, as the Tigers jumped out to a 28-7 lead, before McKinley’s comeback effort fell short.

Massillon’s senior quarterback Kyle Kempt also threw two touchdown passes as the Tigers won their tenth straight game, dating back to a week two loss to Canton Glenoak.

Top-seeded Massillon advances to next Saturday’s Region 2 Final against 2nd-seeded and unbeaten Toledo Whitmer (12-0), which held on to eliminate Hudson (9-3) 39-28. The winner will advance to the State Semifinals.

GAME STATS

History

2012: Massillon 63, Nordonia 34

Massillon’s offense too much for Nordonia

Chris Easterling
The Independent

MASSILLON Two plays. That’s all it took for Massillon to show there would be no hangover from last week’s win over McKinley as it opened up the Division I playoffs on Saturday night against Nordonia.

Two plays into the game, the Tigers had already covered 85 yards and changed the scoreboard in their favor. And it would be just the start for Massillon, as it pummeled the Knights 63-34 in front of 5,329 at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

“This was for the seniors, because this is their last game ever playing at the stadium,” said Tiger junior receiver Marcus Whitfield, who had 113 yards and a touchdown on four catches. “We were all pretty hyped. We just got right after it in the first and second plays and ended up with seven points.”

The No. 1-seeded Tigers improved to 10-1, but will find themselves once again facing archrival McKinley next week in a regional semifinal at a site to be announced Sunday by the Ohio High School Athletic Association. The Bulldogs beat Hoover 36-29 in a regional quarterfinal on Saturday.

Massillon beat McKinley 37-29 last week at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

“We know their (the Bulldogs’) game plan, but they’re probably going to come in with a different one,” said Tiger receiver-cornerback Gareon Conley, who had two touchdowns receiving – including a 28-yarder on the game’s second play – on three catches. “We just have to be ready. We have to be fundamentally sound and play all three phases.”

If Massillon was so inclined, it could have turned its attention to next week’s game by halftime.

By that point, the Tigers already scored on seven of their nine possessions to take a 49-14 lead.

How dominant were the Tigers in the first half? They went into the locker room having already accumulated a 200-yard passer (Kyle Kempt, 243 yards), a 100-yard rusher (Ryne Moore, 102) and a 100-yard receiver (Marcus Whitfield, 113) on their way to 377 total first-half yards.

Massillon gained 476 total yards for the game.

Kempt finished with three touchdowns to go with the 243 passing yards. He was lifted after the Tigers scored with 9:15 left in the third for a 56-14 lead.

Moore, meanwhile, wouldn’t carry the ball again after his 19-carry, 102-yard, three-score first half. Lyron Wilson added 78 rushing yards and two TDs in the second half.

“The looks they’re giving us, they’re trying to stop the pass,” Kempt said. “They’re giving us a box to run on. We’re really executing well.”

By contrast, Nordonia had just 160 total offensive yards at halftime. And only one offensive score, as the Knights’ first touchdown came on a 64-yard interception return by Nick Rezek.

The Knights finished with 397 total yards, although they racked up many of those yards while running their first-unit offense against Massillon’s reserves. They were sabotaged by four turnovers, a bugaboo that had cost them in back-to-back losses to Highland and Wadsworth to end the regular season.

Rezek’s pick-six did give Nordonia a brief glimmer of life, cutting Massillon’s lead in half at 14-7 with 5:23 remaining in the first quarter. But the Tigers, who had scored on two of their first three possessions, squashed that life with an 11-play, 85-yard scoring drive to lead 21-7 at the end of the quarter.

And then the floodgates opened up.

Massillon scored on the first play of the second quarter – a 29-yard run by Gareon Conley on an end-around. The Tigers then tacked on two more scores – a Whitfield touchdown catch and Moore scoring run – to lead 42-7 with 3:08 left in the half.

Nordonia’s lone first-half offensive touchdown – a sibling scoring hook-up from Tyler Alders to Alex Alders – managed to cut the Tiger lead to 42-14. But Massillon ended the half with a second Kempt-to-Conley scoring pass to restore its comfortable 35-point cushion.

GAME STATS