The Massillon Tigers rolled up over 400 yards of total offense in giving the Akron Garfield Rams a 36‑6 whipping in front of 10,223 fans at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium , Friday night.
The victory boosts the Tigers to 3‑0, while Garfield falls to 0‑3.
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The Golden Rams opened the season with a 17‑0 shutout defeat at the hands of the McKinley Bulldogs. So it was natural to ask veteran Garfield coach Bill McGee to compare the two storied rivals. But McGee wasn’t about to be drawn into a controversy.
“Massillon has an outstanding club,” McGee said. “They are the best balanced club we’ve seen. They did a good job of executing and they didn’t make any mistakes. This is one of their better balanced teams I’ve seen in all the years we’ve been coming down here.”
Indeed. Massillon racked up 259 net yards rushing and 153 net yards passing. Those are the kinds of statistics that will make offensive coordinators smile and defensive coordinators wince.
But McGee wasn’t about to anoint the Tigers state champions just yet. He believes they still have to answer some questions.
“The weakest part of our team is the offense,” McGee said. “Massillon’s test is going to be when they play a team with a high‑powered offense. They’re not as good on defense as they are on offense. They handled us but we’ve only scored two touchdowns in three games.”
The Tigers did manhandle the Golden Rams offense, limiting the Garfield attack to 128 total yards, nine first downs and an average of less than three yards per rushing play. Massillon ran 70 offensive plays. Garfield snapped the ball 43 times.
“It was just like what it looked like out there,” McGee conceded.
Jack Rose wasn’t about to make any comparisons either and he wanted no part of grading just how good the Tigers are this season.
“I think we’re pretty good,” Rose said. “How good? I don’t know. We are improving every week. That’s always been our goal.
“But, don’t forget that Garfield had two tough games in a row.
But what about the fact the Tigers beat Garfield by 30 points and the Bulldogs margin of victory was 17 points?
“I don’t like to get into a comparison of games,” Rose said. “We wanted to go out and establish ourselves offensively and mix it up. We feel we have a chance to be a pretty good offensive team.”
Pretty good would not seem to cover it. Tigers tailback Christian Morgan recorded his second straight 100 yard rushing game in two starts, gaining 122 yards in 20 carries. He found the end zone no less than four times.
Massillon quarterback Ben Hymes was sharp once again, hitting on 11 of 17 aerials for 137 yards. He had one interception. The senior’s numbers would’ve been even more impressive, except for three intentional incompletions late in the first half when the Tigers were without time outs and needed to stop the clock.
Hymes spread the wealth around, hitting Devin Williams five times for 45 yards, Brian Baer twice for 36 yards, Chris Martin twice for 33 yards and Elijah Blake and Chris Autry once each.
Blake had another superb game in relief of Morgan, carrying the football 11 times for 61 yards and a touchdown run that conjured images of Jimmy Brown.
Early in the fourth quarter Massillon moved the football from its own 15 to the Garfield 10, mostly on Blake’s shoulders. The 5‑10, 170‑pound senior had five carries for 27 yards. On first and 10 from the 10, Blake took a handoff from Hymes, hit the middle of the pile and was pushed back into his own backfield. Refusing to go down, Blake bounced outside, ducked under a couple of tacklers broke a tackle at the 5 and fought his way to paydirt to close the evening’s scoring.
“I don’t know how I did it,” Blake said. “I never ran like that before. I saw all those defenders and they were trash talking, saying I wouldn’t get in. I just had the heart to get in there. I got in there somehow. I don’t know how.”
Neither does Rose.
“We didn’t block anybody on the play,” marveled Rose. “That was simply a great effort on the part of Elijah Blake.”
Massillon opened the scoring by marching 65 yards on eight plays on its initial possession of the evening. Morgan covered the final 15 yards, finding a hole over right guard and running over Garfield tacklers at the 10 and 5 on the way to the end zone at 5:57 of the first quarter.
The Tigers defense forced Garfield into a three‑and‑out series and the offense had superb field position at the visitors’ 41. After a penalty, Morgan tore off a 21‑yard gain to the 25. Two snaps later, Hymes hit Williams on a curl route for a first down at the 12. Morgan scored one play later, following his blockers off right tackle from eight yards out with under 90 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
Garfield got its offense untracked in typical Garfield manner. The Rams covered 81 yards in 15 plays, the final on a Phil Mitchell to Erick Hawkins touchdown pass at 5:56 of the second quarter. The drive took 7:15 off the game clock, but did not take the momentum away from Massillon.
Morgan carried the ball on all five plays of the Tigers’ ensuing drive, scoring a touchdown on a run around right end from the 23‑yard line at 3:34 of the second quarter to make it a 20‑6 contest.
MASSILLON 36 GARFIELD 6 M G First downs rushing 14 6 First downs passing 9 2 First downs penalty 3 1 Total first downs 26 9 Net yards rushing 259 94 Net yards passing 153 34 Total yards gained 412 128 Passes attempted 18 9 Passes completed 12 3 Passes int. 1 1 Times kicked off 7 2 Kickoff average 49.9 28.5 Kickoff return yards 17 90 Punts 0 6 Punting average 0 38.0 Punt return yards 22 0 Fumbles 2 0 Fumbles lost 1 0 Penalties 6 4 Yards penalized 47 55 Number of plays 70 43 Time of possession 25:31 22:29 Attendance 10,223
GARFIELD 0 6 0 0 0 MASSILLON 14 12 3 7 36
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter Mass Morgan 15 run (Hose kick) Morgan 8 run (Hose kick)
Second Quarter Gar ‑ Hawkins 15 pass from Mitchell (kick failed) Mass ‑ Morgan 23 run (kick failed) Mass ‑ Morgan 2 run (pass failed)
It sure seemed like the Massillon Tigers were on a roll when they carried a 21‑6 lead over the Akron Garfield Rams into the halftime locker room, Friday at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
But the Tigers stumbled and bumbled their way through the second half, before regrouping to hold off the Rams 21‑14 in front of 10,872 fans. The victory boosts Massillon to 3‑0, while their counterparts from the Rubber City fell to an uncharacteristic 0‑3.
In a subdued Tiger locker room after the game, head coach Jack Rose admitted the signs were there the orange-and‑black might be in for a struggle.
“We didn’t practice very well all week,” Rose reported. “We just weren’t real crisp like we were the week before.
“We focused on Moeller real well. I didn’t see that same look this week. Anytime you have a ‘big win like (Moeller), that’s going to be the drawback. Plus the short week,. But (Garfield) is going to win some games. They’re a pretty good team.”
Garfield fumbled the game’s opening kickoff and it seemed the Tigers were in business at the visitors’ 35 yard line. But Massillon was unable to move the football and turned it over on downs at the 26.
Bill McGee’s Rams mounted one of their patented, clock eating, run‑dominated drives. They converted four third downs, the biggest coming at the Massillon 15 when a face mask penalty moved the ball to the 2‑yard line. Junior fullback Anthony Blackwell hit the middle of the line on first‑and‑goal and burst into the end zone to give the Akron crew a 6‑0 lead at the 1:41 mark of the first quarter.
The 15‑play, 74‑yard march consumed 8:04 and it seemed the Tigers’ worst fears were being realized.
After the ensuing kickoff, Massillon took over at its 33. Quarterback George Whitfield Jr. picked up the host’s first first down of the evening on a two‑yard quarterback sneak on the first play of the second period.
After Vinny Turner picked up 12 yards up the middle, Whitfield bootlegged left and found a wide open Vaughn Mohler along the left sideline at the 10‑yard line. Mohler hauled in the football and coasted into the end zone. Josh Hose’s PAT made it 7‑6 Massillon at the 10:20 mark of the second quarter.
Garfield cranked up its full house T‑formation offense once again, moving from the Ram 31 to the Tigers’ 30. But the Massillon defense pushed Garfield back nine yards on three plays, forcing the punt which traveled out of bounds at the Tiger 17.
On first‑and‑10, Whitfield handed the ball to Turner, who found a seam off right tackle and was off to the races. He didn’t stop until 83 yards later, leaving several Garfield defenders in his jet stream. Hose was true on the conversion kick and Massillon suddenly had an 8 point lead at 14‑6 with 5:42 left in the half.
Garfield got poor field position after Matt Stanley boomed the kickoff. The Rams, starting at their 19, went three‑and‑out and set up to punt at their 25. But Massillon’s Bill Condon broke through and spiked the kick. It rolled toward the Garfield goalline and after a mad scramble the Tigers’ Lance Grimsley fell on the football in the end zone for a touchdown.
Hose made it three‑for‑three and Massillon seemed to have it all their way at 21‑6 with 2:40 until the band show.
“It’s a crime to lose it on the kicking game,” lamented McGee. “But that’s what happened. We allowed them to block a punt. Those are always bad things. I don’t ever remember winning a football game in which we had a punt b1ocked. We haven’t had many blocked over the years. Maybe two or three. It’s something that’s not a good sign. It’s a momentum thing. We score first and we come in at halftime down 21‑6.”
Massillon fumbled away the second half kickoff and that was pretty much the way the third and fourth quarters would go for the Tigers.
Massillon held after the fumble, forcing Garfield to turn it over on downs at the 21. But the Tigers, after a couple of first downs, failed on a fourth‑and-one at the Ram 39.
Garfield quarterback Phil Mitchell hit tight end Erick Hawkins for 33 yards on the second snap of the next series and the Rams were in business at the Tiger 25. Another facemask penalty against the locals helped move the ball to the 8-yard line. Three snaps later, Blackwell found the end zone from two‑yards out. The junior also hit paydirt for the two‑point conversion and it was a 21‑14 game with just over one period left to play.
After a Massillon punt, Garfield got one final chance, taking over at its 22 at the 1:55 mark. The Rams hit on four passes, but Lavell Weaver’s sack of Mitchell eftded the game.
M G First downs rushing 7 12 First downs passing 4 3 First downs penalty 1 0 Total first downs 12 15 Net yards rushing 190 169 Net yards passing 98 79 Total yards gained 286 248 Passes attempted 12 10 Passes completed 6 6 Passes int. 0 0 Times kicked off 4 3 Kickoff average 41.0 47.0 Kickoff return yards 69 29 Punts 2 4 Punting average 36.0 19.8 Punt return yards 12 8 Fumbles 2 1 Fumbles lost 2 1 Penalties 7 6 Yards penalized 41 47 Number of plays 39 59 Time of possession 16:24 31:36 Attendance 10,872
GARFIELD 6 0 8 0 14 MASSILLON 0 21 0 0 21
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter G ‑ Blackwell 2 run (run failed)
Second Quarter M ‑ Mohler 44 pass from Whitfield (Hose kick) M ‑ Turner 83 run (Hose kick) M ‑ Grimsley recovered blocked punt in end zone (Hose kick)
Tiger lament: Missed opportunities Massillon falls 21-6, but score not indicative of tilt
By JOE SHAHEEN Independent Sports Editor
When your offense gets inside the “red zone” against the rugged Akron Garfield Golden Rams defense, it had better put some points on the scoreboard.
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The Massillon Tigers learned that lesson the hard way, squandering two “golden” scoring opportunities in the first half and falling to the defending Akron City Series champions 21‑6 Friday night in front of 15,772 at muggy Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
The defeat drops Massillon to 2‑1 on the season with the Mansfield Tygers scheduled to visit next Friday. Garfield improves to 2‑1.
The Tigers had all the better or it in the first half, but failed to put any points on the board. Garfield recharged its batteries at halftime and dominated play in the third and fourth quarters.
Massillon took the opening kickoff and marched to the Garfield 10 before stalling.
The drive was keyed by senior tailback Leon Ashcraft, who returned the kickoff 43 yards to the Rams 45‑yard line. Ashcraft found a hole over left guard and picked up 12 more on the second play of the drive to move the ball inside the 30.
On fourth‑and‑four, quarterback Willie Spencer gave the drive life by hitting Ryan Shanor over the middle for a first down at the 16. Vinny Turner picked up three yards on first down and Spencer added three more on second down.
But Ashcraft was stuffed for no gain on third‑and‑four at the 10 and Garfield’s Antoine Winfield came up with an interception in the end zone on fourth down to end Massillon’s first threat.
“When you get backed up your own goal line,” said Garfield coach Bill McGee, “sometimes character comes through and our guys had character tonight. I was real pleased we got solid and tough when we had to. Of course, you don’t have to defend as much ground, so it gets easier.”
Garfield’s next three possessions and the Tigers next two series ended in punts.
Brennan Rohr returned the Rams’ third punt of the evening from the Tiger 35 to near midfield and Massillon would mount its second serious march of the night from that point.
Ashcraft got the orange‑and-black started by picking up 11 yards on first down. Then, on second‑and‑nine from the Garfield 40, the Massillon line opened up a hole over left guard and tackle, and Ashcraft burst 18 yards to the Rams’ 21.
Turner picked up eight more on first down, prompting Garfield head coach Bill McGee to call for time out. It didn’t help much as Spencer rolled around right end for 10 yards to the three‑yard line two snaps later and it looked like the locals would draw first blood.
But with first‑and‑goal at the three, Massillon’s second opportunity to put up points went by the boards. Ashcraft was tackled for a loss of two on first down. Spencer lost four on a rollout on second down, then was sacked by Damon Turner for an 11‑yard loss on third down.
After a delay of game, Massillon faced a fourth‑and‑goal from the 26 and Spencer’s pass went out of the end zone for a Garfield touchback.
“Against a team the caliber of Garfield, you can’t miss those opportunities,” said a dejected Jack Rose in the Tiger locker room. “That was a big series for them when we got it down there and didn’t get in right before the half. It kind of took the momentum away from us a little bit. If we had punched it in there, it would have been a different ballgame.
“Give Garfield a lot of credit. They really controlled the line of scrimmage down there. We just couldn’t block them.”
Despite failing to score in the first 24 minutes, Massillon had the better of things. The Tigers out gained Garfield 100‑to‑65, recorded eight first downs to the Rams’ four, and owned a time of possession advantage of 14:26 to 9:34.
But the most important statistic, the score, was still 0‑0 and Massillon’s inability to put up any points proved fatal.
“I was happy to be 0‑0 at halftime, especially the way we played offense in the first half,” McGee admitted. “I knew we wouldn’t play that way the entire game.”
Obviously, he was correct. The Rams opened the second half by driving from their 22 to the Tigers 38 in eight plays. But Spencer fell on a Garfield fumble on the 29 yard line to quell the incursion.
Again the Tigers marched, sparked by runs of 14 and 31 yards by Ashcraft, who finished the night with 142 yards on 19 carries. Massillon had first-and‑10 at the Garfield 25, but failed to gain any yardage on the next three downs. On fourth-and‑10, Damon Turner sacked Spencer for an 11‑yard loss.
On the ensuing series Garfield moved from its 36 to the Massillon 47, where it was second‑and‑five. Desmond Bell took a handoff and attacked the middle of the Tiger line. He burst through a small seam as if he were launched by a rocket didn’t stop until he struck paydirt. The kick made it Garfield 7, Massillon 0 with 4:04 to play in the third.
Massillon coughed up the football at their 30‑yard line on its next possession and Garfield went for the kill. Winfield and Bell took turns blasting into the Massillon line. Then fullback Eric McKinstry took three handoffs in a row, diving in from the one on fourth‑and‑goal at 11:22 of the fourth quarter. The PAT made it 14‑0 Garfield.
Massillon came back with a 13‑play, 79‑yard march. Ashcraft had bursts of 19‑ and 14‑yards to move the ball to the Garfield 40. Spencer hit Rohr for 13 yards and then found Turner for 10 more to the Rams’ 2. The senior quarterback culminated the drive by scoring on a rollout around left end, making a superb cutback at the 3‑yard line to elude a final defender.
The Tigers tried for a two point conversion, but the pass was intercepted and it was a 14-6 game at the 5:28 mark.
There was still time for the locals and the comeback looked possible when Garfield faced a second‑and‑20 at its 10‑yard line. But Winfield dashed the hometown hopes by slashing up the middle and dashing 73 yards before Courtney Herring dragged him down from behind all the way down to the Tiger 17‑yard line.
Six plays later, Alonzo Wallace kept the football on the option play and swept around right end for the icing‑on‑the-cake TD with just l:50 to play.
“I thought our defense did a great job,” Rose said. “They couldn’t have played any better. Take a couple of plays out of there and we really shut them down. That last run of Winfield’s for 72 yards … up until then we had him contained. But a great player makes great plays in big games, and he made a couple on offense and defense. ”
B.J. ‘Paynes’ Garfield ‘11’ ‘ By JOE SHAHEEN Independent Sports Editor
The Massillon Tigers didn’t, wait until after the band show to get going this time, putting up 14 first‑half points on their way to a convincing 28‑7 victory over always‑rugged Akron Garfield before 13,245 at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium Friday night’
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While the Tigers’ offense roared to life in the first half, the game’s turning point did indeed come after halftime, when the Massillon defense forced I he Rams to go three‑and‑out on their first possession of the third quarter.
In fact, Tiger defensive tackle B.J. Payne was a one‑man gang, making three consecutive tackles as Garfield netted zero yards in the key sequence.
After the Rams punted, Massillon drove 53 yards in eight plays Danzy capping the march on a nine‑yard touchdown pass to Ali Dixon in the right corner of the end zone. The score gave the Tigers a 20‑7 lead and Garfield ‑ with its ground based attack ‑ was pretty much out of the game.
“We needed that series right there,” recalled Tigers coach Jack Rose. “They had a chance to go back down and tie it up and that could’ve been a big drive for them. B.J. did a great job. The whole defense did on that we got the ball back and we scored.”
Payne admitted he felt the momentum might be slipping away from the Tigers at that point of the game. They had just received a good kickoff return and a fortunate bounce on a fumble but failed to capitalize with a score.
“Offensively when we got stopped, I knew we had to hurry up and get three plays and out,” [ Payne said. “I just tried to do my job and make some plays to get us out of it.”
On first down, Payne smelled out a draw play and tackled Rams halfback Antoine Winfield for a yard loss. On second clown, Winfield again got the football and Payne took him down for a four‑yard loss. Garfield gave the ball to fullback Frank Idley on third down, and Payne tripped him up just as it appeared he might find some daylight.
“There are certain times in the game when you have to step it up,” Payne. explained. “We have a lot of seniors on defense and we all know we have to step it up at certain times and that was my time right there.”
Garfield head coach Bill McGee couldn’t agree more.
B.J. is an outstanding player,” McGee said. “He’s the ideal size for a defensive tackle. He’s a guy where your offensive linemen have to stay down on him. He was outstanding. They had a lot of outstanding people on defense tonight.
“The turning point in the game was the first touchdown of the second half. Massillon kind of established control with that score. We felt at that point we had to do some things different and they just didn’t allow it. They played outstanding defense. They swarmed us and we couldn’t block them.”
Things didn’t look quite so bright for the locals in the first quarter. Garfield took the opening kickoff and marched 54 yards in 13 plays before a touchdown saving deflection by Lonnie Simpson in the end zone killed the drive. A 29‑yard field goal attempt hit the crossbar and bounced back.
But the Rams got another chance moments later, recovering a Massillon fumble at the Tiger 43. Four plays later, Idley found a hole over his left guard and tackle and rumbled 23 yards to pay dirt. Mark Glockner hit the extra point and it was 7‑0 Garfield with 1:40 to go in the opening period.
The Tigers came right back. On second‑and‑12 from the Massillon 43, Danzy rolled right and hit Eddie Griffith for a first down at the Garfield 44. On the very next snap, Danzy rolled the opposite direction and found Simpson alone in the end zone for a 44‑yard touchdown bomb. Randy Endsley’s conversion kick made it 7‑7 with less than a half minute gone in the second quarter.
More than any other, that score drew McGee’s ire:”
“They made the big play,” he said. “We allowed a guy (Simpson) to get behind us. We play zone coverage and that’s something you simply cannot have happen.”
“It’s a bootleg and there’s a lot of play action,” Danzy explained. “I saw the free safety bite on the play fake. Then Lonnie got behind him and it was just a matter of getting the ball to him. Lonnie was wide open and I hit him.”
“Mike has a good feel for that play,” praised Rose. “We want him to run it sometimes, too. If it’s open deep, throw it. Mike did a good job reading that and putting the ball down there.
“That really turned the momentum our way, especially after fumbling away the ball. The passing game was much better this week and it’s only going to get better.”
Rose admitted this week he’s heard from the fans about the aerial attack. So has Danzy.
“Sure, it becomes a challenge,” Danzy said. “I love challenges. People might criticize but I can take criticism and move on.”
With the game knotted at 7, Garfield retaliated. The Rams drove from their 20 to the Massillon 3S, with Winfield accounting for 42 yards on two slashing carries over the right side of his offensive line.
The Tiger defense stiffened at that point and quarterback Shane Legg dropped back to pass on third‑and‑11. Legg fired a short slant pass but Tim Menches timed it perfectly and stepped in front of the intended receiver for a drive‑killing interception at the 29.
Then Massillon mounted a drive that Garfield fans could appreciate, taking 12 plays to cover 75 yards and eating up over five minutes of game clock in the process. Danzy sustained the march with two key 17‑yard passes, the first to Dixon and the second to tight end Isaiah Jackson.
On second‑and‑goal from the 5, Danzy rolled right and executed the pitch option to perfection, getting the ball to Dixon at the last possible moment. The senior tailback handled the toss and sprinted untouched into the right corner of the end zone for a 14‑7 Massillon lead at 2:31 of the second period.
McGee thinks Danzy’s play is the spark in the Tiger attack.
“Danzy throws the ball well and he’s an outstanding runner,” McGee observed. “He really puts pressure on the defense. When you have to worry about containing him, it puts pressure elsewhere on the defense.”
After the Danzy‑to‑Dixon TD connection in the third quarter put Garfield in a hole, the Tigers threw dirt on top of the visitors with their final scoring drive of the evening. Massillon moved 77 yards in 10 plays as Leon Ashcraft and Dixon took turns running through holes created by the right side of the offensive line.
On third down from the 10 Danzy rolled left after a play fake, took a hit at the 2 but dove into the end zone for the final touchdown of the evening. The senior signal caller hit Ashcraft with a two‑point conversion pass to make it 28‑7 with 6:30 to play.
A late Garfield drive died when Willie Spencer Jr. picked off a pass on the game’s final play.
“The second half of the ball game they were more physical,” McGee said. “I was disappointed with that. We held our own physically in the first half. The second half they were more physical. They came out and went at us harder. They ran right at us and took it to us.”
Payne indicated the Rams may have stirred the Tigers’ emotions with some comments made following last season’s 14-13 Garfield victory.
“They said last year we weren’t physical enough and I think this year we showed them how physical we are,” Payne said.
“This is the kind of game I love. Somebody who’ll bring it right at me. Bring it on. Let’s see what you’ve got. I don’t think there’s anybody who can drop me. That’s my feeling.”
MASSILLON 28 GARFIELD 07 M G First downs rushing 11 8 First downs passing 7 1 First downs penalty 0 3 Total first downs 18 12 Net yards rushing 171 135 Net yards passing 119 16 Total yards gained 290 151 Passes attempted 11 8 Passes completed 7 1 Passes int. by 2 0 Times kicked off 5 2 Kickoff average 45.8 48.5 Kickoff return yards 70 94 Punts 0 3 Punting average 0.0 32.0 Punt return yards 26 0 Fumbles 1 2 Fumbles lost 1 0 Penalties 7 3 Yards penalized 45 15 Number of plays 47 47 Time of possession 20:44 27:16 Attendance 13,245
GARFIELD 07 00 00 00 7 MASSILLON 00 14 06 08 28
G ‑ Idley 23 run (Glockner kick) M ‑ Simpson 44 pass from Danzy (Endsley 1kick) M ‑ Dixon 4 run (Endsiey kick) M ‑ Dixon 8 pass from Danzy (kick failed) M ‑ Danzy 10 run (Ashcraft pass from Danzy)
RUSHING: Massillon Ashcraft 14‑70, Dixon 9‑62, Danzy 10‑33, Fraelich 2‑2, Paul 1‑4; Garfield Winfield 17‑76, Idley 12‑64, Bell 5‑8.
Akron Garfield head coach Bill McGee knows a good opponent when he plays one.
Garfield has played a couple of them in the first three weeks of the season, arch rivals Massillon and McKinley. The Rams lost to the Pups 7‑0 in Week 1, and 28‑7 to the Tigers Friday.
So, Bill, which is better? Massillon or McKinley?
“At this point in the season, I’d have to rate Massillon an advantage,” McGee said. “They are quicker on defense and there’s the quarterback, situation.
“(Mike Danzy) made some big plays for them tonight. He makes their offense go because he opens things for other people.
“So I’d have to rate them a little bit ahead. But there’s a long way to go until Week 10
Hard day’s night in Tigertown Garfield rally provides 14‑13 upset
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
It rained Friday, hard enough, maybe, to wash tomorrow into today. For the Massillon Tigers, 14‑13 losers to Akron Garfield, tomorrow got here too soon.
“I told the team before the season, ” Tiger head coach Jack Rose said after his football team fell to 2‑1, “we would face a crisis sometime this season. “Obviously, it got here with this game. It’s tough.”
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“But,” added Rose, “I really feel we’ll bounce back. We’ll have a good week of practice. Our kids will play hard … they’ll play as well as they can against Moeller.” Cincinnati Moeller, 6‑0 in the all‑time series against the Tigers will pay a visit next Saturday to Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, where 9,950 saw last night’s game.
Meanwhile, tomorrow couldn’t have arrived at a better time for Garfield. “We use a lot of two‑way players,” explained Garfield head coach Bill McGee. “We want October to get here. Tonight felt like October.” It felt that way because of the rain, because it was cool. Consequently, some of the energy the two‑platoon Tigers might have sapped from the Rams on a hot day hung around. It was there after the Tigers broke a 7‑7 halftime tie with a touchdown in the middle of the third quarter.
Garfield marched 59 yards after the ensuing kickoff . Junior running back Frank Idley scored from nine yards out with 2:25 left in the third quarter. Since the Tigers had misfired on the previous extra‑point kick attempt, Garfield’s Mark Glockner was able to give his team a 14‑13 lead by booting it through when it was his turn.
When the Tigers couldn’t keep moving on a fourth-quarter drive that pushed the ball to the Garfield 15‑yard line, the Rams toughened up and rode out the 14‑13 lead until it was the final score.
The rain couldn’t wash away yesterday. Not for Garfield’s senior quarterback, Joe Nemith. Nemith said a recurring thought kept flashing through his mind throughout the game. ”Sixty to 13,” was the thought, he said. “That’s all … 60 to 13.”
That was the score by which the Rams lost to the Tigers in 1991. “Our kids were highly motivated by that 60‑13 theme,” McGee said. “It was real embarrassing for us … not that Massillon ran it up, or anything like that. We just had one of our poorer teams.”
This year’s team is different. It has at least five seniors with a shot at landing a Division I college scholarship. It has sophomores who should keep the 2‑8 nightmare that was the 1991 season from happening again soon . ‘ “I’ve said all along they play harder this year,” Rose said. “They have a lot of talent. They have good speed and good balance.” McGee, who says the goal of his team (now 2‑1) is to win the 1992 state title, returned the compliment. “I underestimated how physical a team Massillon is,” he said. “That was one of the harder‑hitting games we’ve played in a long time.” There were a few hard feelings afterward. Most of Garfield’s players punctuated their post‑game celebration by dancing on the Obie the Tiger insignia on the middle of Massillon’s sand‑turf field.
By that time, most of the Tigers were near the locker room. Some of them saw the celebration and went out to meet it. There was some shoving, but the mini‑melee was quickly broken up. McGee didn’t endorse the actions of his team. “Get your fat (butt) back to the locker room,” he told one of his linemen.
But he understood it. “That was all about something that happened before the game,” he said. “Their players all congregated on the tiger. The problem was, they cross the 50‑yard line and pushed some of our players out of the way to do it.”
There were also some hard feelings in the stands. Some directed their anger at Rose, who is in his first year as Tiger head coach. “Go back to Kent State,” a few of them yelled. Rose was an assistant coach at Kent State before becoming the Tigers’ defensive coordinator in 1991.
The loss was tough on Rose. He looked like a man who had been up all night in the postgame locker room. But he is a tough man. He was composed as he assessed the loss.
“The main thing,” he said, “was that we kept shooting ourselves in the foot … penalties … turnovers … mistakes.”
The game was tense throughout. Garfield woke up the crowd right away when sophomore sensation Antoine Winfield returned the opening kickoff from his 8‑yard line to the Tigers’ 5 before Dan Hackenbracht brought him down. A clipping penalty on the return put the ball on Massillon’s 25, but Garfield needed only five plays to run it in. On third down from the 7, Winfield lined up at left halfback in the T‑formation (three back) offense, took an inside handoff, and streaked up the middle for a touchdown. Glockner’s kick made it 7‑0.
The Tigers wound up with only three first‑half possessions, which will happen against a good ball‑control team. They made it to the Garfield 15 on the first and to the Garfield 32 on the second, but didn’t score until the third.
Quarterback Mike Danzy threw a 31‑yard touchdown pass to tight end Todd Peters with 1:32 left in the half. Peters ran an end zone route and Danzy hit him with a well‑thrown bomb that barely eluded the sophomore, Winfield, who was streaking in front of him.
Jason Brown’s kick created a 7‑all halftime score.
Early in the third quarter, Tiger cornerback Scott Brediger recovered a Winfield (yes, the soph plays running back, too) fumble at the Garfield 35.
A holding penalty set up a third‑and‑19, and Danzy tried to hit flanker Alonzo Simpson on a post pattern near the goal line. Again it was the soph, Winfield, arriving on the scene to make the interception; however, Garfield was stuck with the ball on its own 4‑yard line.
Switching to running back, Winfield fumbled on second down and the Tigers’ Joel Smith recovered at the 1. Tiger senior Eugene Copeland scored on the next play, but Brown’s extra point try was wide left, and the Tigers led 13‑7 with 6:23 left in the third quarter.
Garfield drove 59 yards for the decisive points after the ensuing kickoff. A 9‑yard run by Frank Idley and the conversion kick made it 14‑13 with 2:25 left in the third quarter,
Key plays were a pair of 13‑yard completions from Nemith to senior end Eugene Lewis.
“They were bringing a strong safety to the strong side and I was throwing to the short side,” Nemith said. “We were in a spread formation and we’d send the tight end to the flats, up the seam.
Garfield then pulled a stunner by onside kicking, but the Tigers recovered near midfield.
The Tigers spent the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth quarter driving the ball ‑ running it, mostly. A bootleg run of 17 yards gave the Tigers a first down on the 16. But two runs for a total of one yard and a holding penalty stalled the drive, then Danzy was sacked for a 19‑yard loss that was nearly worse than that. Danzy threw while he was going down and the ball was picked off by a Garfield lineman who would’ve had clear sailing to the end zone. The Tiger quarterback, though, was ruled down, as McGee scolded a Ram assistant coach who blew his stack over the ruling.
Garfield then staged a drive reminscent of 1987, the last time the Rams beat the Tigers. They completed a pass to loosen things up and otherwise used Idley and Winfield on runs. They took the ball from their own 17 to the Tiger 16. There was 2:43 left when B.J. Payne stopped Idley at the 16 on fourth down.
Danzy scrambled for a yard, then threw three incomplete passes. On fourth down, Danzy lobbed what seemed destined for a completion to Peters, but there he was again ‑Winfield ‑ flashing in to knock away the pass.
Garfield took over and ran out the clock. The Rams wound up with a 213‑160 advantage in total offensive yards. They got away with gridiron murder, fumbling six times, losing four of the cough‑ups. Idley was the workhorse, rushing 87 yards in 23 carries. Nemith didn’t pass much, but he did it effectively ‑ 5‑for‑6 for 58 yards.
Tiger running back Andre Stinson left the game in the first half with a bruised thigh and was replaced by Hackenbracht. Stinson returned in the second half and wound up with 48 yards in 11 carries. Hackenbracht was the Tigers’ second‑leading rusher with 42 yards in eight carries.
“It was a good game,” concluded Garfield’s coach, McGee. “We’re a good team. We win here occasionally.”
The Tigers, meanwhile, are a team facing a crisis: trying to rebound from a tough loss, and having to do it against Cincinnati Moeller.
GARFIELD 14 MASSILLON 13 M G First downs rushing 8 10 First downs passing 2 4 First downs by penalty 1 1 Totals first downs 11 15 Net yards rushing 116 155 Net yards passing 44 58 Total yards gained 160 213 Passes attempted 14 6 Passes completed 3 5 Passes int. by 0 1 Kickoff average 44.0 31.7 Kickoff return yards 39 111 Punts 2 2 Punting average 33.0 40.0 Punt return yards 8 0 Fumbles 2 6 Fumbles lost 1 4 Penalties 5 6 Yards penalized 44 55 Number of plays 47 55 Time of possession 18:27 29:33
Alliance 7 0 7 0 14 Massillon 7 0 6 0 13
G ‑ Winfield 7 run (Glockner kick) M ‑ Peters 31 pass from Danzy (Brown kick) M ‑ Copeland 1 run (kick failed) G ‑ Idley 9 run (Glockner kick)
Even when it was 48‑6, Chauncey was taking no chances.
Massillon Tiger sophomore Chauncey Watson, whose longest previous run was a 65yarder last year at Lorin Andrews Junior High, took a fantastic 99‑yard voyage for a touchdown to put an added glow on a 60‑13 high school football victory over the outmanned Akron Garfield Rams Friday night.
The Tigers improved to 3‑0 on a warm Friday night. Next up is a game one week from today at Kings Island against Cincinnati Moeller. Garfield fell to 0‑3 before 10,752 at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. Moeller improved to 2‑1 by beating Trotwood Madison 28‑0 Friday night.
Watson has run the 100‑meter dash in track but says he isn’t very good. He runs the 40 in 4.9. He looked pretty snazzy in the 100‑yard dash, though.
Following “great blocks” by Terry Holland and Dan Seimetz, Watson broke (by his count) “five or six” tackles as he roared toward the left sideline and broke into the clear.
Seimetz was angry at himself for slipping on a kickoff return that stuck the ball inside the 1.
“It was right on the goal line,” observed Watson, meaning he set a school record ‑ call it 99 1/2- yards ‑ that would have to be broken by inches.
Seimetz made up for his slip with the fine block and Watson did the rest.
“All I was thinking was, ‘Get out of the end zone. No safety,”‘ he said.
Watson was promoted to the varsity this week because of injuries to junior running backs Gene Copeland and Pat McVeen.
99 Yard TD Chauncey Watson
He was on the field with backup players; in fact, the second and third teams played all but one series in the second half after the Tigers had taken a 41‑0 halftime lead.
Garfield head coach Bill McGee, whose team has been the dominant force in the Akron City Series in his 17 years, and who owns four wins over Massillon in the 1980s, thanked Massillon head coach Lee Owens for holding down the score.
“On paper Massillon was better than us in every aspect of the game, and it was that way on the field,” McGee said. “I’m just glad these first three games are over.”
Garfield has lost 34‑0 to McKinley, 49‑12 to Cincinnati Elder and now 60‑13 to Massillon.
“I can’t imagine any teams anywhere in the state being much better than any of those three,” McGee said.
McGee rated Massillon and Elder “about even” and slightly better than McKinley.
“I give a strong edge to Massillon in the running game,” McGee said “Massillon is much more of a problem because they execute so well out of so many formations.”
The Tigers rushed for an amazing 458 yards. Watson led the way with 134 yards in seven carries.
The backfield starters were Travis McGuire (11 for 132) and Falando Ashcraft (10 for 66).
Backup Dan Seimetz chewed tip 85 yards in nine carries, all in the second half.
Quarterback Nick Mossides had another steady game. Playing only in the first half, Mossides completed five of seven passes for 100 yards.
On the Tigers’ second play from scrimmage, pre‑game, talk about Garfield being susceptible to the deep pass came to the forefront.
Flanker Marc Stafford ran motion right and was trailed by Garfield defensive back Marv Campbell. After the senior tight end Greg Paul slipped away from the line he broke for the right sidelines. I was wide open when Mossides threw the ball about 35 yards a catch‑and‑run that covered yards for a TD.
“It was a boot pass and the offensive line did a great job with the protection,” Paul said, “The quarterback and the running backs made some good fakes and I was wide open. Nick got me the ball.”
Rating the Tigers’ performance, Paul said, “We’re taking the steps we need to take. I need to keep getting better.”
The Tigers got on the board moments after the bomb. Middle guard Carl Hye recovered a Garfield fumble on a bad exchange at the 10. Ashcraft ran the 5 and McGuire scored on the next play.
The Tigers had run for only four plays; yet, Ashcraft’s two point conversion run swelled their lead to 14‑0.
McGuire, who is turning the spin move into an art form, had a big first half with nine carries for 102 yards. He seems to be within one move of scoring a touchdown half the time he touches the ball.
He set up first‑half touchdowns with runs of 28 and xx yards. Another touchdown was the result of a Troy Burick interception that gave Massillon possession on the 10. McGuire and Ashcraft each finished the first half with a pair of TDs.
Burick took over at quarterback for one series in the third quarter and looked sharp. I ran once for 18 yards and completed both of the passes I tried for 23 yards. Ashcraft scored his third touchdown of the night early in the second half. The second team took the field and kept making more yards.
Seimetz scored two touchdowns on runs of 21 and 1.
The game got a little bit wild. Moments after Watson scored his 99‑yard special, Garfield’s Campbell raced 81 yards for a touchdown on the kickoff return.
Garfield had one other fourth quarter touchdown on which they scored on a 47‑yard drive.
The Tiger defense turned in another strong performance.
At the point in the second quarter when the Tigers took a 34‑0 lead, Garfield had run 19 plays and gained 19 yards.
“That’s not bad,” said Tiger defensive tackle Jonathon Jones, “but I compare what we do one week to what we did the previous week. And the previous week we didn’t give up any yards to Walsh (on the ground) in the first half.
“We’re playing fairly well on defense. Our strongest point so far has been our run defense. But we’ve still got to improve on everything.”
The Tigers led 243‑41 in total yard in the first half and finished with a season‑high 581 yards. The 581 yards is believed to be the largest number in a game during the four years Owens has been head coach. Garfield finished with 111 yards.
Owens didn’t know quite what to say in the end.
“One thing for sure,” he joked, “we proved time of possession isn’t that important in football.”
Garfield held the ball for 27:46. Massillon had it for 20:14.
“Our goal,” Owens said, “was not to get anyone hurt and have some momentum going into the Moeller game.”
Owens confessed he had a hard time concentrating on Garfield this week, given the Rams’ uncharacteristic struggles and the fact Moeller is up next.
“I told the players after the game that they showed a lot more discipline than I did in focusing on Garfield and tuning out Moeller,” Owens said.
Owens spent part of the week planning the itinerary for the trip to Kings Island.
Those who have not ordered tickets can get them Monday at the Washington High ticket office, but there is a limit of two per customer. They won’t last long. Galbreath Field, where the game will be played, holds only about 10,000. Some standing room tickets will be sold the night of the game.
Garfield’s coach, McGee, isn’t used to nights like this or seasons like these.
“My worst,” he said, “was 6-5. We’ll be hard pressed to get to that point now. But, believe it or not, there were some areas where I thought we improved tonight. It’s just that we didn’t have the players to match up. We couldn’t slow them down. Nothing we tried worked.”
Stafford was the Tigers’ receiving leader for the second straight week. He caught three passes for 58 yards.
Garfield got 68 rushing yards from sophomore Frank Idley. The Rams’ senior quarterback, 6‑1, 225‑pound Barry Christ, failed to complete a pass in five tries.
Two future Tiger opponents played each other Friday, Austintown‑Fitch downing Youngstown East 26‑0. Both teams have 1‑2 records.
Last year’s Tiger offensive coordinator Tom Stacy, is 0‑3 as head coach at Shelby after a 3‑0 setback to Ashland last night.
Defending state champion Warren Harding outlasted Akron Buchtel 19‑16. On Monday at 5:30 P.M., the Warren jayvees will be at Massillon to take on the Tiger jayvees.
Tigers get win, Rams get respect Moeller next for 3‑0 Massillon
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
Forget the “looking ahead to Moeller factor.
Instead, give Akron Garfield an Aretha Franklin salute:
“R‑E‑S‑P‑E‑C‑T.”
That’s what the Rams deserve for giving the Massillon Tigers a night on the edge before 11,370 in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium,
While it is true the Massillon Tigers were not at their best in a 20‑14 victory over Garfield, a couple other things also are true.
Program Cover
One, in the words of old warhorse Nick Vrotsos as he kicked around the game with other Massillon coaches, “The name of the game is to win.”
Two, Garfield is a very good team; so good, in fact, that head coach Lee Owens made sense when he said, “I’d be surprised‑if- they lost another game.”
Two observers in entirely different parts of the Massillon locker room made exactly the same point. They were Gary Vogt, last year’s Booster Club president, and Tom Stacy, the Tigers’ offensive coordinator.
“Garfield has got to be the best 0‑2 team in the state,” they both said.
Hard to argue. The Rams have outgained both McKinley (218‑184) and Massillon (293236) in their defeats.
Bill McGee, the classy Garfield head coach, did not seem to take the loss hard.
“This was definitely a much better effort than our game against McKinley,” he said.
I’m proud of ’em. I think we’re on our way. ”
The Tigers, 3‑0, wore down their first two opponents, Stow and Covington Catholic, in winning by a combined 90‑14 margin. Both of those opponents used many two‑way players. So did Garfield, but the Rams hardly faded in the fourth quarter.
In fact, Garfield drove 81 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter to make it 20‑14 and had the ball at midfield with three minutes left before an interception by Dan Hackenbracht on a flea‑flicker pass snuffed out the big scare.
McGee said one of the most important things his staff did all week was to plan substitutions so two‑way starters could stay fresh.
“I think Massillon’s greatest strengths are diversification and the two‑platoon system,” McGee said. “We knew we’d be facing fresh players every time the ball changed hands.”
Two weeks ago Owens was saying the Tigers were at an exceptional level considering the earliness of the season. No more.
“We’ve practiced poorly the last two weeks and it’s started to catch up to us,” he said after improving his personal record against Garfield to 2‑0. “My biggest concern is that we have not improved. I’m just glad Moeller is the next team we play. That will force the entire team to come up a notch. I expect to have a great week of practice.”
Ah, yes, Moeller. The Fighting Crusaders, 4‑0 in the abbreviated all‑time series with the Tigers, will be in Massillon next Saturday.
“In my heart I believe we are a better team than they are,” said Owens, speaking of Moeller. “I hope we can convince the players of that.”
One player who does not need to be convinced is defensive tackle Ron Humphrey.
Tigers needed some big plays to beat Garfield and Humphrey provided a couple of them. One was an eight‑yard sack of Garfield’s junior quarterback, Barry Christ, late in the first half that preserved a 13‑8 lead at the intermission.
” I don’t think we were looking ahead, ” said Humphrey, a 6‑foot‑2, 235‑pound senior. “We were coming off the road trip to Cincinnati and we were a little tired. We weren’t focused. I think we will be next week.
“Garfield was also a lot stronger than the other teams we’ve played. A lot smarter, too. They used their running backs to help block our front four and it was effective. The other teams hadn’t done that.”
Tony DeLappi, a senior lineman on the other side of the ball, agreed Garfield was the best of the Tigers’ three opponents so far. He also agreed the Tigers weren’t at their best.
“We didn’t play to our full potential,” the 5‑11, 230‑pound offensive tackle said. “We’re capable of playing better. Next week, I think everybody will see us play to our potential.”
DeLappi was on the field during the most important series of the game when the Tigers scored after the second‑half kickoff to take a two‑touchdown lead.
Massillon also scored on its first possession of the first quarter after a sack by Tiger defensive end Jermaine Hinton snuffed out Garfield’s opening series. On fourth down from the 13‑yard line, Tiger quarterback Barry Shertzer had good enough protection to scan both sides of the field, then loft a pass over 6‑3 cornerback Corvin Harrison to 6‑5 split end Steve Brown at the back of the end zone on the right side. Ryan John’s kick made it 7‑0 with 5: 50 left in the first quarter.
Garfield then started on its own 25 after sophomore Jason Brown’s kickoff. Two plays later, on third-and‑two, 6‑foot, 185‑pound senior halfback Troy Robinson broke two tackles on the right side and exploded 67 yards for a touchdown. It was a play Garfield has been using for many years. The powerful, speedy Robinson followed 220 pound fullback Sean James’ block on an off‑tackle play. Foes know it’s corning, but Garfield’s execution can still kill you.
Garfield took an 8‑7 lead on a bit of luck. The P.A.T. snap was botched. Sophomore quarterback Joe Nemith, the place‑kick holder, tracked down the loose ball and found John Wright wide open for a two‑point conversion pass.
Massillon showed its respect for Garfield on the next series. On fourth‑and‑one from their own 43, the Tigers punted. Under Owens, they usually use a fake or a regular play under similar circumstances.
Senior Chris Roth, who had his best night as a Tiger punter, buried Garfield at the 16. Garfield plowed to midfield when, on a carry by Robinson, Scott Karrenbauer stripped the ball and Chad Buckland recovered for the Tigers.
Shertzer went to Brown again seven plays later, lofting a 21‑yard scoring strike over 5‑10 defender Reggie Hitchcock. Brown’s second TD was part of a big night that included eight catches for 82 yards.
The Tigers had trouble after the touchdown, calling two timeouts to sort out some confusion before a two‑point conversion pass attempt failed when Roth dove to catch a tipped ball but landed just out of bounds.
That made it 13‑8 at the half.
Garfield had bottled up the Tigers’ running game in the first half. Junior Falando Ashcraft, who rushed for 190 yards against Covington Catholic, was held to 12 yards the first half. He doubled that number immediately with a 24yard blast on his first carry of the second half.
A twisting 11‑yard run by Travis McGuire on second‑and‑nine was another key as the Tigers marched 76 yards in 11 plays. Ashcraft dove in from the one and John added the P.A.T. kick to make it 20‑8 with 8:26 left in the third quarter.
Garfield stopped itself on its next possession, as Hitchcock, one of the two‑way starters, simply lost the handle on a handoff. Hackenbracht, continuing to show a big‑play knack (two interceptions last week), recovered the fumble.
It was three plays and punt for the Tigers, though. Another good Roth punt pinned Garfield at the 19. It took the Rams three plays to dig out and turn the game back into a thriller. The play was a 47‑yard pass to Corvin Harrison, who was covered well but forcefully snatched Christ’s deep pass.
On fourth‑and‑seven from the 13 Christ hit Hitchcock for 10 yards. Morris Cosey, best known as a 250pound defensive tackle, got the ball from the fullback position on the next play and barged Fridge‑like into the end zone, off tackle, standing up.
The Rams tried a fake kick on the P‑A‑T, but it was short‑circuited when sophomore Eric Woods tackled Nemith before Nemith could get off a pass. It was 20‑14 with 9:38 left.
The Tigers, then the Rams, then the Tigers again went one‑two-three‑punt on the game’s next three series.
The Rams got the ball on their 30‑yard line with 3:41 left.
“They’d run the ball effectively but they were running out of time,” Owens said. “They couldn’t just try to drive the ball down the field.”
On second‑and‑seven from the Tiger 47, as the clock wound past two minutes, Robinson took a handoff, then pitched the ball to Christ. The quarterback heaved a bomb toward Harrison, but Hackenbracht was in perfect position and made an over-the‑shoulder interception on the 8.
Ashcraft mustered a 13‑yard run on first down, a key play in that the Tigers were then able to run out the clock.
MASSILLON 20 GARFIELD 14 M G First downs rushing 8 7 First downs Passing 5 3 First downs Penalty 1 0 Total first down 14 10 Net yards rushing 149 229 Net yards passing 99 81 Total net yards 236 293 Passes attempted 18 8 Passes completed 9 4 Passes intercepted 0 2 Fumbles/lost 2‑1 6‑2 Punts 5 3 Punting average 40.6 42.3 Penalties 1 4 Yards Penalized 5 28 Time of poss 21:28 38:32
Receiving (Mas) Brown 8‑82, Stafford 1‑7, McGuire 1‑10. (Gar) Hitchcock 1‑11, Harrison 2‑60, Robinson 1‑10.
Massillon 7 6 7 0 20 Garfield 8 0 0 6 14
M ‑ Brown 13 pass from Shertzer (John kick) G ‑ Robinson 67 run (Wright pass from Nemith) M ‑ Brown 2l Pass from Shertzer (pass failed) M ‑ Ashcraft 1 run (John kick) G ‑ Cosey 3 run (run failed)
Did Dame Destiny and the Fickle Finger of Fate conspire to stop Lee Hurst and Craig Turkalj Saturday?
There stood Hurst on one side of a water bucket in the Akron Rubber Bowl. There stood Turkalj on the other side. There ticked the clock 0:08 … 0:07 … 0:06 ‑ on a scoreboard that read Massillon 43, Garfield 7.
“Let’s do it,” the two Tigers yelped at 0:01.
And away they ran with their sloshing cargo. But when they got there, the sideline was bare. Their head coach, Lee Owens, had been absorbed by a sea of celebrants. . “Where’d he go?” the quarterback yelled.
“I don’t see him,” the linebacker replied.
They scrapped the mission and joined the fun.
And maybe that’s the way it’s supposed to be.
Maybe the cards have it that (attention Coach Owens ‑ do not read this and spoil your surprise) the grand dousing is to take place in Columbus two games down the playoff highway.
As for Owens, he went that‑a‑way ‑ the way that leads to the Division I state semifinals and from there to the state championship.
It’s two playoff wins down and two wins to go for the rampaging Tigers, who came home Saturday night to another frenzied moonlight celebration downtown.
Massillon will oppose defending state champion Cleveland St. Ignatius at 7 p.m. Saturday in the Akron Rubber Bowl.
It won’t be all fun and games.
“This turf is terrible,” said Tiger guard Jim Goff as he walked off the field following Saturday’s Garfield game. “Our sand turf is so much easier on the body. I’m really sore.”
Many Tiger fans thought their team, first in the Region 3 computer rankings at the end of the regular season, should not have had to play against No. 4 Garfield where the Golden Rams saw action in five regular‑season games this year.
But there is a flip side.
The Tigers now have had a game in which to get the hang of the Rubber Bowl (winning by 35 points against a team whose only other loss this season was by 1 point in overtime).
Ignatius has not played at the Rubber Bowl this year.
Still, expect to hear plenty of talk this week painting Ignatius as the favorite. The Wildcats won it all last year, the talk will go, and they have one of the best quarterbacks in the nation in Joe ‑ Ohio State wants him bad – Pickens.
“I hope we do play Ignatius,” Massillon senior Todd Porter said before he knew Ignatius advanced by outlasting Euclid Saturday night. “We beat them in a scrimmage, but people will say it was just a scrimmage. We want to beat them in a game.”
The Tigers’ first opportunity to commence beating on someone other than their own teammates came Aug. 12 in Lakewood, when they beat Ignatius in a practice game.
Three months later, after 12 “count ’em” games, Ignatius owns a 12‑0 record. The Tigers are 10‑2.
In Saturday’s other semifinal battle, Cincinnati Moeller (10‑2) will take on Lima (10‑2) in a 7:30 p.m. clash at Dayton’s Welcome Stadium.
Ask around the Massillon locker room and you’ll find a whole lot of folks who want to face Moeller again ‑ the Tigers lost to the Cincinnati kids 41‑7 Sept. 16.
They may get the chance.
And maybe they’re within striking distance because they had things in the right perspective all along.
This was co‑captain Ryan Sparkman talking shortly after the Tigers beat Ignatius in August:
“It was all right to go up there and practice against the defending state champions, but we still have a long way to go.”
It’s not so long anymore.
Massillon makes Garfield pay dearly for its errors By Ralph Paulk Beacon Journal staff writer
The Massillon Tigers stepped boldly into the Garfield Rams’ backyard ‑ the Rubber Bowl ‑ then proceeded to manhandle the Rams.
What was supposed to be a grueling battle of defense quickly developed into a Massillon blowout Saturday night before a crowd of 13,607.
The Tigers, racing off to a 29‑7 halftime advantage, advanced to the state Division I semifinals with a convincing 43‑7 victory.
The Rams got out of the blocks in good shape, scoring on their first possession to take an early 7‑0 lead.
After that the Rams’ faithful sat in stunned silence for 3 1/2 quarters. The Tigers whipped Garfield at every phase of the game.
The Tigers’ defense harassed Rams quarterback Marcus Sims, sacking him five times and intercepting two passes. They also recovered four Garfield fumbles in the second half.
As Massillon continued its onslaught the Rams lost their confidence and poise. They were flagged for three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and a rash of other penalties.
Garfield’s coach, Bill McGee, paced up and down the sideline in search of an answer. All McGee and his Rams could find was misery, misery and more misery.
Massillon’s coach, Lee Owens, adjusted his orange cap occasionally and put his hands in his pockets.
What else could he do? His team’s victory already had been put on ice.
“We just got on a roll and were executing very well,” said Owens. “We felt we had to execute well if were going to win.
“This team was playing with extreme confidence. The kids know they can go all the way (state title game).
“I thought we had to get off to a better start than we did last week. We couldn’t wait until the second half.”
Massillon (10‑2), which overcame a 24‑6 deficit to defeat Walsh 42‑24 in the regional semifinal last week, again rolled out of the gate slowly. This time, however, the Tigers started their scoring flurry late in the first quarter.
Massillon halfback Ryan Sparkman ignited an awesome first‑half scoring explosion with a 44‑yard run to the Rams’ 2. Two plays later, Sparkman bounced off left tackle for a 1‑yard touchdown, making it 7‑6.
Gary Miller’s conversion kick was blocked by Thomas Lewis. It was the only thing the Tigers didn’t execute perfectly.
Quarterback Lee Hurst who threw for three touchdowns and ran for another, ripped apart the Rams’ secondary like a master surgeon.
“We knew there were some things in there defense that we could exploit,” said Hurst, an All‑NEO Inland Region first‑teamer.
Massillon, which made its last appearance in the state ‑ title game in 1982, took a 14‑7 lead with 8:35 left in the second quarter.
Doug Harig, who caught a 45‑yard pass, capped off a 7‑play, 61‑yard scoring drive by catching a 4‑yard touchdown pass from Hurst.
There was still hope for Garfield. That was until Tigers safety Keith Rabbit intercepted a Sims pass at the Garfield 37.
It took the Tigers six plays to get the hall into the end zone. Hurst bootlegged around left end for an 11‑yard touchdown scamper and tossed a 2‑point conversion pass to Rameir Martin to put Massillon ahead 21‑7 with 5:17 left in the second quarter.
The Rams, marched to the Tigers’ 46. But Kevin McCue intercepted another Sims pass at midfield.
Hurst wasted little time in making the Rams pay for their mistake. On first down. he rifled a 50‑yard touchdown strike to Martin with 2:31 left in the first half.
Martin’s touchdown, Owens said, is what really burst the Rams’ bubble.
“The touchdown to Martin probably sealed the game,” Owens said. “We were doing every thing right, and we knew we were in good shape.”
Hurst, catching Garfield’s defense off‑balance, bootlegged left for a 2‑point conversion to give Massillon its 29-7 lead at the half.
“I thought at the half we would play a strong second half”‘ said McGee, whose team lost to Cincinnati Princeton in the 1983 championship game.
“I think once they scored to begin the third quarter, I realized it wouldn’t be our night. It was frustrating for us because it was always something.
The Rams began the second half by fumbling the ball away to Massillon. Again, Hurst rewarded the Tigers’ defense by directing the offense into the end zone.
Hurst threw a 20‑yard touchdown pass to Harig with 6:42 left in the third quarter, giving Massillon a commanding 36-7 lead.
The Tigers got their final points a 3‑yard touchdown run by Lamonte Dixon ‑ which also was set up by a Garfield fumble.
“This doesn’t happen to its very often.” McGee said, “Massillon was very excited about playing.
“We weren’t overwhelmed physically, but I think emotionally we were never in it. It was hard getting our kids’ confidence back.”
Massillon will play Cleveland St. Ignatius in next weekend’s state semifinals.
Receiving (Mas) Martin 4‑77, Harig 3‑68, Manion 2‑21, Carpenter 1‑11, Sparkman 1‑8. (Gar) Lewis 3‑41, Harrison 2‑42, Martin 1‑14, Keller 1-5.
Kickoff returns (Mas) Dixon 1-20. (Gar) Martin 4‑83, Lewis 2‑37, Sankey 1‑19.
Punt returns (Mas) Blake 1‑17, Manion 1‑0. (Gar) None.
Massillon 6 23 14 0 43 Garfield 7 0 0 0 7
G – Sims 3 run. Williamson kick M – Sparkman I run. Kick failed M ‑ Harig 4 pass from Hurst. Martin Pass from Hurst M ‑ Hurst 11 run. Miller kick M ‑ Martin 50 pass from Hurst. Hurst run M ‑ Harig 20 Pass from Hunt. Miller kick M ‑ Dixon 3 run. Miller kick
MASSILLON 43 GARFIELD 7
M G First downs rushing 9 3 First downs Passing 7 5 First downs Penalty 0 4 Total first down 16 12 Net Yards rushing 142 79 Net Yards Passing 185 102 Total net yards 327 181 Passes attempted 15 22 Passes completed 11 7 Passes intercepted 0 2 Fumbles/lost 1‑1 5‑4 Punts 2 3 Punting average 14.5 34.7 Penalties 6 6 Yards penalized 59 47
All‑around dominance Massillon’s offense, defense click in 43‑7 rout
By MARK CRAIG Repository sports writer
AKRON ‑ If’ you’re a fan of high‑powered offenses, the Massillon Washington High School football team has the fix you’ve been looking for.
That’s not an earth‑shattering statement. Most people know that.
But what’s becoming more evident each week is the Tigers have plenty to offer you fans of defense ‑ quick, hard‑hitting, in‑your‑face defense.
Massillon had both its units working to near perfection Saturday night against Akron Garfield at the Akron Rubber Bowl.
Of course, the results of the Tiger explosion of power wasn’t pretty for Garfield fans, as their Rams lost this Division 1, Region 3 championship game 43‑7 in front of 13,637 fans.
The win raised Massillon’s record to 10‑2 and placed the Tigers in a state semifinal game next weekend. The site, date and opponent will be determined later today. Garfield, meanwhile, ended its season at 9‑2.
“I get the strong feeling these kids want to go all the way,” said Massillon head coach Lee Owens.
“They’re playing with extreme confidence right now. They’re getting better and better each week, which is what you need to do.”
Massillon’s confidence began to soar last week against Walsh Jesuit when the Tigers scored 36 unanswered points to erase a 24‑6 halftime deficit. Massillon’s confidence never wavered Saturday, not even when Rams’ quarterback Marcus Sims capped a 46‑yard seven‑play drive with a four‑yard TD run to put Garfield ahead by a touchdown with 6:58 left in the first quarter.
The Tigers calmly reeled off 29 points before the half was over. Ryan Sparkman scored on a one-yard run, and quarterback Lee Hurst threw TD passes of four yards to tight end Doug Harig and 50 yards to Rameir Martin, and even ran for an 11‑yard score.
Martin’s TD reception came one play after an interception when Hurst layed a beautifully thrown pass on Martin’s fingertips. Gary Miller added the PAT to make it 29‑7 with 2:31 to go in the half.
“The pass to Martin is probably what sealed it,” Owens said “That play just shows how” balanced our offense is.”
“Before that, we were able to score with our running back, our quarterback and our tight end.” Owens added. “You can’t concentrate on any one weapon when you play us.”
Harig will attest to that. After catching just 13 passes all season, he caught three for 68 yards Saturday, including a 20‑yard TD pass in the third that extended Massillon’s lead to 36‑7 and convinced Garfield head coach Bill McGee that, “This maybe wasn’t going to be our night,”
“We can do anything we want to do,” Harig said “You can’t shut down just one guy and expect to beat us.”
Massillon tacked on another TD when Lamonte Dixon scored from three yards out with 29 seconds left in the third.
The Tiger defense didn’t let up in the second half. It added another four takeaways, giving itself six for the game.
“This is the best we’ve played defensively as a team all year,” said Massillon defensive coordinator Dan Boarman. “You have to say everyone played well. The main thing is we needed to control the line of scrimmage, and that’s exactly what we did.”
Massillon’s defense also threw gasoline on Massillon’s red‑hot offense in the first half. Safety Keith Rabbitt set up Massillon’s third score with an interception at the Garfield 37, and linebacker Kevin McCue set up the fourth score by returning an interception 12 yards to the 50.
Rabbitt also set up the first score of the second half when he recovered a fumble at the Garfield 48. Other players to recover fumbles in the second half were Eric Wright, Chad Tharp and David Whitfield.
Massillon out gained Garfield in total offense, 327 yards to 181. Massillon led in rushing, 142‑79, with Sparkman picking up 70 yards on 10 carries.
Hurst again was efficient at throwing the football. He completed 10‑of‑ 14 passes to five different receivers for 175 yards and no interceptions.
Martin led all receivers with four catches for 77 yards. He also caught a two‑point conversion on pass.
Owens tried to sum up just how bad his team beat Garfield, but somehow he didn’t come as close as a sign that was held Up by one of the younger Massillon fans.
The sign read, “Massillon kicks …” Well, uh, you know the rest.
Akron Garfield 7 0 0 0 7 Massillon 6 23 14 0 43
Garf ‑ Sims 3 run (Williamson kick) Mass ‑ Sparkman 1 run (kick failed) I ‑ Mass ‑ Harig 5 pass from Hurst (Martin pass from Hurst) Mass ‑ Hurst 11 run (Miller kick) Mass ‑ Martin 50 pass from Hurst ( Hurst run) Mass ‑ Harig 20 pass from Hurst (Miller kick) Mass ‑ Dixon 3 run (Miller kick)
Garfield ‘T’ off against Tigers Cuyahoga Falls to replace Rams on ’88 Massillon schedule
By STEVE DOERSCHUK Independent Sports Editor
Chris Spielman was the guy with the funny haircut, but “Mr. T” was a guy named Bill McGee Friday night in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium,
Spielman, the Ohio State headliner from Massillon, hit town to see his old team open its 1987 high school football season against the Akron Garfield Fighting Rams.
Spielman saw what he’d seen when he was a Massillon player ‑ a Tiger defeat ‑ as the Rams roared to a 22‑8 win before 12,079 fans.
“Mr. T” has struck again.
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Garfield head coach McGee now has seen his troops topple the Tigers four times in the last five years, dating back to a 14‑10 win over Spielman and the ’83 Tigers. McGee mostly has used the antiquated “T” formation in which a fullback and two halfbacks line up in a straight row behind the quarterback.
“Tailback? What’s a tailback?” McGee deadpanned. “The ‘T’ is the only thing we know … well, we did use Charles Gladman as a tailback when we had him.”
Because of Garfield, 1986 was the only time in the last five years the Tigers survived two weeks of football without at least one defeat.
If it happens again, it won’t be because of Garfield. The Rams have been dropped from next year’s Tiger schedule and replaced in the opening game with Cuyahoga Falls.
”It was their decision, not ours,” McGee said. “The Cuyahoga Falls contract is only for one year. We’d like to resume the series in 1989.”
Just now, Tiger head coach John Maronto says his only concern is bouncing back next Saturday against Altoona, Pa., which was tied 7‑7 by its arch‑rival Johnstown Friday night.
“We will be back,” said an obviously disappointed Maronto. We have a team of real solid men. We’ll find out a lot about ourselves next week.”
Something was found out about Garfield Friday night ‑ the Rams have an awesome running attack. Despite the fact the Tigers bounced back from an early 8‑0 deficit by tying the game 8‑8 at halftime, there was no shift in momentum.
Garfield used that “T” like a two ton piece of forged steel, driving for touchdowns on its first two possessions of the second half, and playing solid defense against a Massillon team whose decent passing attack did not get enough support from the running game.
“Passing is going to be part of the personality of the ’87 Tigers,” said Maronto, who watched quarterback Erik White complete 13 of 22 aerials for 155 yards. “But I’m not pleased with aspects of our running game. We weren’t tough‑minded enough. We will have a better running game next week.”
Led by 180‑pound junior John White, a starter at Akron North last year, the Rams amassed 277 rushing yards (at 6.2 yards a carry) to the Tigers 59 (at 2.4 per lug).
White, often the second man through the line on counter plays that troubled the Tigers, cut loose for 120 yards in 14 carries. Sophomore halfback Dwayne Martin added 74 yards in 14 carries. Senior fullback Dwayne Mitchell plowed 55 yards in 10 trips.
Even though third‑year starting quarterback Todd Johnson had no stats to speak of (he completed his only two passes for a modest 28 yards and ran seven times for 28 yards), he may have been the key to the whole works.
Prior to the game, referee Chet DiStefano got a friendly warning from a Massillon official “make sure you know who has the ball before you blow the whistle.” Often, it was very hard to tell. Such were the deceptive abilities of Johnson, the magician.
Johnson had his own ideas as to why Garfield was able to win by two touchdowns and lead 305‑214 in total yardage.
“They used a lot of players both ways and we had 22 different guys in 22 different positions,” he said. “We wore them down. It was obvious in the second half.
“But they’re a good team, that’s for sure. I guess that’s why I feel pretty good right now … to beat a team like that. What a program this is, with all the fans. We don’t have anything like this in Akron.”
After the Tigers passed their way into scoring position in the first quarter on a drive that ended with a wide‑right 27‑yard field goal attempt, Garfield launched the game’s first scoring drive.
The march overlapped the end of the first quarter and the early part of the second. It covered 72 yards on 11 plays, all on the ground. White, the transfer student, went the final eight yards up the in middle, getting hit at the three and diving into the end zone.
The subsequent PAT attempt was a bizarre play on which the ball was snapped over kicker Rob Balca’s head. Balca scrambled to get the ball with Tiger Jason Relford in hot pursuit. He scooped it up, heaved a pass at nobody in particular, and jumped in the air as it landed in the hands of an unsuspecting Steve McGee, the coach’s son, for a two point conversion.
Massillon bounced back, though, by scoring on its next possession. Steve Siegenthaler returned a short kickoff 23 yards to the Garfield 45, from where the Tigers drove 55 yards in nine plays. A key play was a third‑and‑10 sideline pass to senior Mark Kester, who wound up catching five passes for 84 yards in a sparkling performance.
On third and five from the 11, White retreated to pass and zinged a tight spiral to senior split end Craig York, who caught the ball in front of his No. 87 two yards deep in the end zone.
The Tigers opted to try for the tie, and they got it when White, avoiding a heavy rush by throwing as he backpedaled, threaded a pass between three defenders to Siegenthaler.
That made it 8‑8 with 4:08 left in the first half. Neither team threatened again before the band how.
The burning question at halftime was, would the Tigers be able to top a Garfield running attack that already had netted 129 rushing yards?
The Rams provided the answer by battering the ball 46 yards in six plays to start the second half. That put the ball on the Massillon 22‑yard line. The Tigers needed a big play and they got it when Bob Dunwiddie stopped the fullback for no gain on first down. But the Rams responded on the next play with a 22‑yard touchdown pass from Johnson to junior tight end Pat Anderson.
Anderson broke open on a quick slant pattern.
“Even though they only passed twice, we had to be very conscious of Johnson’s passing abilities,” Maronto said. “He’s obviously very good. ”
Rob Balca’s PAT kick made it 15‑8 with 7:35 left in the third quarter.
The Tigers got only three plays on their next possession before facing a fourth‑and‑one from their own 35. There was no hesitation as to whether to make the big gamble and go for it as the punting unit poured onto the field. The Rams then set up at their own 30 and marched for the game‑clinching score. Runs of 5, 12, 14, 5, 10, 11, 4 and 9 yards ‑ the last run by the fullback Mitchell ‑ put the ball in the end zone. Balca’s kick made it 22‑8 with 42 seconds left in the third period. The Tigers would get the ball just two more times. The first time, they lost it on a fumble at the Garfield 42‑yard line with 9:44 left in the game. Garfield then ran the clock down to 5:30 before Siegenthaler’s tackle on fourth down gave the Tigers the ball back on downs at their own 35.
On fourth and long, White whistled a pass that deflected off a Garfield safety, then hit Tiger tight end Gerald Pope in the shoulder pads and helmet before bouncing incomplete. Garfield had the ball back, and the game in hand, with only two minutes left.
“This was as satisfying as any opening win I’ve had,” said Garfield Coach McGee. “And the opponents haven’t always been this good. Massillon has a lot of things to solve ‑ and so do we ‑ but they’re going to win a lot of ball games.”
Massillon coach Maronto said be thought his team would play better than it did.
“But when you don’t play as well as you’d like, it has something to do with the opponent,” Maronto said. “That’s a real fine Garfield team and it deserves a lot of credit. They have a very diversified attack. They stuck with the game plan, and you saw what they did.”
They did what “Mr. T” has done alot in Tigertown. They ran out of that old formation and added a new notch to Bill McGee’s gun belt.
M F First downs rushing 4 18 First downs passing 9 1 First downs by penalty 0 1 Total first downs 13 20 Yards gained rushing 90 280 Yards lost rushing 31 3 Net yards rushing 59 277 Net yards passing 155 28 Total yards gained 214 305 Passes attempted 23 2 Passes completed 13 2 Passes int. by 0 1 Times kicked off 2 4 Kickoff average 51.5 45.8 Kickoff return yards 81 37 Punts 2 1 Punting average 42.5 42.0 Punt return yards 7 0 Fumbles 2 1 Fumbles lost 1 1 Penalties 1 1 Yards penalized 15 5 Number of plays 49 47 Time of possession 22.04 25.56 Attendance 12,079
GARFIELD 0 8 14 0 22 MASSILLON 0 0 0 8 8
SCORING
GAR ‑ White 8 run (McGee pass from Balca) MAS ‑ York 10 pass from White (Siegenthaler pass from White) GAR ‑ Anderson 22 pass from Johnson (Balca kick) GAR ‑ White 8 run (Balca kick)
MASSILLON ‑ The Tigers won a triangular last night.
Their foes were Akron Garfield and Popular Opinion.
They battered the Rams 21‑0. And they routed the rumors.
“We shut down a lot of rumors tonight,” said Bart Letcavits, one of five Tiger football captains. “We showed we can pass. We showed we can move the ball. We showed we can put points on the board.”
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Three completions in five attempts won’t start any talk about “Air Maronto.” And 21 points are hardly unusual for the home team in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
But the 34‑yard gainer to Letcavits that set up Massillon’s second touchdown was a rifle shot that showed junior quarterback John Miller just might have a gun.
And the 21 points weren’t scored on any Tom, Dick or Harry. Try Bill. Bill McGee’s Garfield team had won in its last three trips to P.B.’s Big House.
“We enjoyed what we’ve had here,” McGee said afterward. “Tonight, it was pretty clear cut. We got beat by a better team.”
Of John Maronto’s even dozen games as head coach of the fabled orange and black, this was clearly his brightest hour.
“The good news is, we’re just starting to get better,” Maronto said.
“We showed we’re capable of being very good in all facets of the game. We were able to play the type of football Massillon must play to beat a great team.”
In the end, it was Massillon’s night in every way.
But the Tigers had to get past a scary beginning.
On its first possession, Garfield made it look easy as in marching the ball to the 1‑yard line.
Massillon nose guard Andre Horner, who went on to play an outstanding game, was on the sidelines at the time.
“I said a little prayer…’God, pull us through this,’ “Homer said.
On second down, junior running back Harold Mitchell was separated from the ball and Massillon linebacker Kevin Spicer recovered at the 3.
Four plays later came one of the more spectacular runs of Massillon’s last 10 years. On third‑and‑four from the 21, junior running back Jerome Myricks took the pigskin over the right side of the Tiger line.
“I saw a lot of defenders, so I just cut it back the other way,” Myricks said.
Guard Tony Lambert threw a good block that helped Myricks get to the outside. Then he showed his back to the Rams. He had one man to beat, returning starter Frank Washington, a cornerback, who had a clean angle to make a tackle at about the 20. But Myricks’ speed and a block by Miller opened the gates to the end zone.
The crowd of 10,320 roared. Myricks had scored on a 79‑yard run. Lee Hurst’s PAT kick made it 7‑0 with 1:54 left in the first quarter.
What had seemed to be a certain 7‑0 Garfield lead instead went the opposite way.
“Even though Myricks ran the ball only once (for 12 yards in a 7‑0 win over Akron Buchtel) last week, we knew he was quite a threat,” McGee said. “We scouted him in scrimmages. You can tell just by the way he runs pass patterns what kind of skills he has.”
Myricks wound up with five carries for 96 yards. In two games, he has gained 108 yards in six totes. That’s an average of 18 yards a carry. That’s not bad.
“We weren’t just an offense with Mike Norris,” Maronto said.
Just so. The quarterback Miller also made five carries, picking up 57 yards. The fullback Norris, who rushed for 130 of Massillon’s 178 yards last week, gained 64 yards in 20 trips.
“Mike Wilson (held to two yards in four carries) is a great asset to our offense, too,” Maronto said. “If they gets revved up, we’ll have all the tools.”
Miller wound up completing three of his five passes for 44 yards. They were his first completions of the year.
Many of the Tigers’ fans came to the ball park itching to see a more wide open offense than the one that hadn’t scored on Buchtel until the fourth quarter.
The first completion of the year was a 5‑yard strike to Letcavits with 3:17 left in the first half. Many of the fans on the roof side rose in a standing ovation.
Asked to assess the passing game, Maronto said, “John Miller needs more opportunities, and he’ll get there as the season goes along.
“We’ll concentrate on building a strong running game, but we have good receivers and we can pass the ball.
“We shouldn’t forget that the Buchtel team we beat last week was a very good, a very fast, team. The football we’ve played the last two weeks might not be what some people consider good football. But it’s good football.”
It took good football to contain Garfield’s resourceful junior quarterback, Todd Johnson. And that’s what the Tigers got in limiting Garfield to 176 yards. Fifty‑five of those yards came on the final series of the game, a play‑for‑pride drive on which the Rams drove to the 15 before the Tigers sealed their second straight shutout.
The Tigers wound up with 263 yards on the night.
“Massillon is basically just a big, strong, good team,” said McGee, whose team was bothered by losing three fumbles, just as it was plagued by losing four fumbles in a 20‑0 loss to Lakewood St. Edward a week earlier.
Myricks’ touchdown held up for a 7‑0 halftime lead.
Garfield received the second‑half kickoff and started out in a pro set instead of its usual T‑formation ‑ a come‑from‑behind strategy.
Halfback Brent Williams burst through the line on the first play from scrimmage and was on his way to a 12‑yard gain when the ball was jarred loose and squirted wildly upfield. Tiger tackle C.J. Harris won the race and recovered at the Garfield 40‑yard line.
The Tigers’ first play of the second half became the long pass to Letcavits.
“I was in motion from the left side and Mark Kester ran a post pattern to the middle,” said Letcavits. “That attracted a crowd to him and left me pretty wide open. I don’t really remember what happened after that, except that it was exciting to catch the ball.”
The next play was a trap up the middle. The offensive line of center Todd Feemster, tackles Hostetler ‑ and John Schilling and guards Lambert and John Woodlock did its thing. Norris waltzed through a hole up the middle from six yards out. The PAT kick sailed wide right and the Tigers led 13‑0 with 50 seconds left in the third quarter.
That pretty much wiped out memories of 1985, when the Tigers led 6‑0 at halftime but went on to lose 14‑6.
The ghost of ’85 was totally blown away by an 86‑yard drive ending midway through the fourth quarter.
The big play was a “naked bootleg” in which the Tigers faked a run to the left side and sent Miller around the right side for a 39‑yard gain.
Norris eventually scored on a 3‑yard run, then tacked on a two‑point conversion.
Garfield’s only scoring threats were on the Rams’ first and last possessions.
The only statistic in which Garfield held a clear edge was time of possession. It was 25:10 for the Rams and 22:50 for the Tigers.
None of that kept the Tigers from having a hot time in the old town last night.
MASSILLON 21 GARFIELD 0 M G First downs rushing 6 6 First downs passing 1 3 First downs by penalty 0 0 Totals first downs 7 9 Yards gained rushing 228 142 Yards lost rushing 9 27 Net yards rushing 219 115 Net yards passing 44 61 Total yards gained 263 176 Passes attempted 5 7 Passes completed 3 4 Passes int. by 0 0 Times kicked off 4 1 Kickoff average 46.8 45.0 Kickoff return yards 13 36 Punts 6 5 Punting average 34.3 37.6 Punt return yards 12 00 Fumbles 0 3 Fumbles lost 0 3 Penalties 5 1 Yards penalized 58 5 Number of plays 38 44 Time of possession 22:50 25:10 Attendance 10,320
GARFIELD 0 0 0 0 0 MASSILLON 7 0 6 8 21
Mas ‑ Myricks 79 run (Hurst kick) Mas ‑ Norris 6 run (kick failed) Mas ‑ Norris 3 run (Norris run)
History 
