Trending
It was only a month ago when Shadyside watched Ridgewood rack up yardage on the ground and eventually kick a field goal as time ran out to score a victory.
Well, the Tigers the following week still looked sluggish against the run and watched Monroe Central build a sizable lead before the Orange kicked into gear and rallied for the victory with a strong second half.
Then it wasn’t as much the Shadyside defense, but the Tigers’ offense, which struggled some before the Tigers eventually did away with Linsly.
It was all of those three combinations rolled into one, which left very few area pundits thinking the Tigers could be the team to snap the winning streak of powerful Wheeling Central at 35 games.
Well, it wasn’t the pundits who were in the Shadyside Field House all week leading up to last Friday’s game vs. the Maroon Knights and it wasn’t the pundits who were wearing the headsets making the adjustments.
Those who were doing that were collectively on the same page, aiming at a common goal.
And after a nearly three-hour slobber knocker it was junior dandy Dylan Kimble – who played a big role throughout the contest – who picked off a Central pass to seal the deal for the Tigers by a 22-14 count.
Shadyside head coach Ty Fleming – who owns four regional titles and has led the Tigers to an appearance in the Division VI state championship game in 2006 – went as far as to call it one of the biggest wins of his illustrious, two-term career at his alma mater.
He’d know his career wins better than anyone and where it ranks, so we’ll take his word on that.
However, it’s safe to say – without the shadow of a doubt – that Friday’s win is one that could very well set the Tigers into motion for the remainder of the season. A loss would have evened their mark at 2-2, but now at 3-1 and riding the ultimate wave of confidence, Shadyside’s going to be a threat for everyone the remainder of the season.
Coming into the campaign there were question marks at several key spots, including the quarterback job. David Bonar has settled into the job well in, replacing three-year starter Billy Merryman.
Johnny Merryman and Kimble are big-play threats on both sides of the ball and seniors Nathan Butts and Mario Liberati are also capable home-run hitters for the Orange.
Strong line play has been crucial and the defense’s ability to bend but not break has been another edge. Special teams are once again strong for the Tigers.
If you survey the remainder of the Orange schedule – including this week’s road trip to Sulsberger Memorial Stadium to meet Rosecrans – there are very few speedbumps. Through the years, Barnesville has been a proverbial thorn in the Tigers’ side and Bridgeport is much improved.
It’s a fairly strong limb to say that barring something totally unforseen and barring any serious injuries, the Tigers have a legitimate shot of once again being members of the Division VI post-season party.
In knowing Fleming the way we do, it’s safe to say he and his capable coaching staff won’t let their players look any further than this week.
RALLY JETS
The Union Local Jets must like to keep their fans are on the edge of their seats in even numbered weeks, meaning this week’s game at Martins Ferry the fans should be a little more relaxed.
Two weeks ago, the Jets spotted Shenandoah 21 points before scoring the final 53 for the victory. Well, the Jets – fresh off their prized win over rival St. Clairsville – decided to spot Indian Creek the same amount of points.
However, the Jets once again proved they like to live dangerously. For most teams, spotting a team 21 points is fatal and you can close up shop and it’s probably going to be a long night.
But most teams don’t have a five-wide attack with a quarterback like Jordan Barbina running the show. Barbina – who is putting together an all-Ohio campaign thus far – gets a lot of the credit and rightfully so. He’s the guy that every coach leading up to the game talks about.
This past week it was Andrew Connor, knowing that if his Redskins could contain Barbina they’d have a strong chance of pulling out the victory. Well, Barbina joined forces with the likes of Kyle Blackman, Joby Barr and Brandon Nicholes and the Jets scored the final 33 points of the contest to pull out the victory and increase their stranglehold on both the Region 15 lead and the OVAC 3-A standings.
While head coach Mark Cisar is happy to be undefeated, he knows his team is going to have to string together four quarters and can’t sleep walk through early stages of the game as the season progresses.
“That’s something we can and definitely need to fix,” Cisar said in reference to falling behind early. “I am not sure how many times you can expect to come back from 21 down. It comes down to execution offensively.”
STATEMENT GAME?
It was a week ago that Martins Ferry was basking in the glory of its come-from-behind, overtime victory at Harrison Central. Well, the Riders took the momentum achieved in that contest and carried it into their return home to meet Linsly.
In the week leading up the meeting with the Huskies, Harrison Central head coach Justin Kropka talked about how he could tell that the Riders were on the verge of breaking out.
Well, the break-out occured at B.J. Depew and the Cadets’ expense.
Ferry stayed with what got it into overtime and the eventual win in Cadiz and that’s riding the legs of senior quarterback Jeremy Murray. He carried just 13 times, but accumulated 168 yards and three scores.
He wasn’t alone. The Purple also rode the wave of senior tailback Rawn Driver who carried 15 times for 128 yards and a score.
All told, the Ferry ground game amassed 418 yards.
When the Riders take the field Friday against Union Local, it’ll be interesting to see because of the contrasts in styles. The aforemenionted Jets looking to spread everyone out and throw the ball primarily and the Riders getting back to the ground attack.
It’s safe to say, Friday night at Purple Rider Stadium is going to be a dandy and it’s going to be a tough ticket. Thank goodness both schools are selling tickets in advance for the game.
ST. C. SEARCHING
The St. Clairsville Red Devils came into the season fresh off a 12-1 campaign and then won their first two games of the season. Everyone was riding high.
Now, as the Red Devils prepare for undefeated and physical Weir to come to the Belmont County Fairgrounds Friday night, Brett McLean, his staff and players are doing a little bit of soul searching. The Red Devils have now lost two in a row after upstart Bellaire knocked off the Red Devils 22-14.
According to McLean, the Red Devils need to get back to some basics on both sides of the ball. And he’s counting on his senior leaders to step up and get this swoon turned around before it’s too late. The Red Devils play one of the more challenging schedules around and have played four straight Buckeye 8 games. The back-end of the slate’s got Martins Ferry and Harrison Central on it, meaning there aren’t many pushovers.
“We’ve got a big mental hurdle to overcome,” McLean said. “We handled the (Union Local) loss pretty well, but we just didn’t produce any Friday night. Our kids are still confident in what we do, but we’ve got to work hard to make sure of that.”
BIG WIN
Saying Bellaire’s victory over the aforementioned Red Devils is a big win could still be an understatement. The Big Reds have tasted plenty of success in recent memory. However, the same school, which has won six regional championships and played for a pair of state championships, needed a win to hang their hat on under now second-year head coach Gregg Bonar.
The Big Reds’ 0-10 campaign has been well-documented, so we need not go there any further because that’s all in the past. Bellaire showed a swagger last Friday. One it had nary a game last season. However, this group believes in one another and the coaching.
Quarterback Ryan Feller played well for the Big Reds. He didn’t put up gaudy numbers by any means, but he managed the game, didn’t take a sack and didn’t turn the ball over. He used multiple receivers, including the likes of Trevor Bobka, Anthony Hocker, Ty Tobiczyk, Tyler Rose and Levi Crozier.
The Bellaire defense – with Mark Spigarelli calling the shots – was opportunistic and forced several turnovers, which the offense capitalized on.
The Big Reds are on their way back and in the Buckeye 8, anyone is open to winning on any given week. Bellaire returns home this Saturday to meet Steubenville Catholic, which has limped to a 1-3 start.
Bellaire’s still got many tough games left, but last Friday’s win went a long way in opening many eyes around the area that the Big Reds aren’t going to everybody’s whipping boys anymore.
JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED
Barnesville and Monroe Central meet each other in a few weeks. They have another fact in common, which is neither is still searching for its inital victory of 2008.
The Shamrocks rallied past Buckeye Trail and the Seminoles – who easily could have been 3-0 or at least 2-1 entering this past weekend – took down previously unbeaten Caldwell.
Luke Johnson and Jay Circosta are quality coaches and work diligently to improve their football teams and something tells this writer that more wins could lie ahead for both of these coaches.
RECOGNIZING THE CHAMPS
St. John Central’s football team is struggling and there’s no other way of putting it. It was nice to see the school recognize the accomplishments of the girls’ track and field team, which won the Division III state championship running away in dominant fashion, at halftime of Saturday’s loss to Madonna.
However, a picture and being recognized just doesn’t seem to be enough for me. We’re talking about an Ohio team state championship. Now, I am not saying a statue or anything of that nature, but the school needs to do a little more for this group of girls and coaches.
St. John Central’s athletic program has rich history of individual and team success. We understand that, but a team state championship is something totally different. This group of girls needs to have a flashy bling on their finger at least and banners should be erected in the school. A sign at both ends of Bellaire, recognizing the achievement of all successful village teams wouldn’t a bad idea either. The village has rich tradition on both sides of the street and something needs to be done, so this isn’t lost as people move away, retire and eventually pass on because success of this nature doesn’t come around often enough to just let it slip away.
Staskey can be reached at sstaskey@timesleaderonline.com