Tiger offense improved
in
52-12 win
By CHUCK HESS, JR.
Bob
Commings’ remedial course in blocking began to pay off Friday night as the Washington
high offense began to move again.
But
while the line fired out much better than in the previous two weeks in a 52-12
win over Hamilton Garfield on homecoming night at Tiger stadium, Commings would
like to see more improved technique.
The
Tigers’ fifth win in seven games, including a loss and a tie, came before a
home-coming crowd of 9,170 smallest of the season. The Griffins fell to 3-4 in the non-league affair.
* * *
BEFORE FRIDAY, Massillon had scored only once in the last eight quarters. This time the Obies counted in each quarter
as senior tailback Darnell Streeter crossed into that payoff land paved with
streets of goal five times, three times for touchdowns.
Quarterback
Gary Herring threw two six-pointers and two two-pointers, one of each to split
end Dan Byelene, starting his first game. The senior played two years ago but
did not come out in 1968.
The
Tigers had some defensive problems with the triple option with which Niles
handcuffed them three weeks ago. With
Griffin backs running merrily around the ends, Hamilton netted 131 yards
rushing to the Tigers’ 100 before the intermission. But Commings placed an end on the pitch in the second half and
held the Giffs to 68 yards rushing while Massillon gained 104.
The
big difference was in passing as the Orange and Black completed seven of 14
while Hamilton connected on only two of a like number with totals of 206 and 27
respectively.
The
Tiger defense picked off four of seven Hamilton fumbles and Griff receivers –
perhaps hearing the pitter-pat of Tiger paws behind them – mishandled three
potential touchdown passes. One, in the
first quarter, would have gone for 61 yards, and might have helped to get Lou
Florio’s charges off to a flying start.
* * *
HAMILTON APPEARED to be rolling after the opening kickoff when Tiger
Junior line backer Tom (Beanie) Cardinal recovered a fumble at the Griffins’
48. In seven plays the Obies had their
first score.
Streeter
carried six times for 41 yards, “The Bopper” going the remaining 20 on second down
through the middle with 7:01 left.
Herring added two points on a keeper.
End
Mike Mauger picked up another fumble after a punt hit a Tiger defender, with
Hamilton recovering on the Massillon 38.
Mauger added an eight-yard run to the recovery and the WHSers took over
on the Hamilton 42.
Herring
lofted one to Byelene on the one and fullback Mike Autrey added a conversion
run to make it 16-0 with 2:19 left in the welcome stanza. Although this was Autrey’s only score, his continued
hard-nosed running, coupled with Streeters, put the spotlight again on one of
the best one-two punches around.
With
halfback Roy Kidd returning the kickoff 24 yards, the Griffins were off on a
12-play, 67-yard scoring romp aided by a 29-yard option jaunt by halfback Barry
Allen and a
20-yard
fourth-down, pass-run from quarterback Dan Wells to Allen for a first down on
the Massillon 16.
* * *
THREE PLAYS later, Kidd took a six-yard scoring pitch with 10:04 left in the second
quarter. Wells missed on the conversion
keeper.
Massillon
scored in five plays after the touchdown after Mauger got things started with a
30-yard kickoff runback to the Massillon 46.
Autrey picked up 31 yards and Streeter romped 19 yards off tackle on a
pitch of the score with 7:58 remaining and slashed off tackle for the
conversion counters.
Linebacker
Pat Midgley, who along with Cardinal, proving a good team for the Orange and
Black, picked up a Griffin fumble on their 32, but on the next play halfback
Steve Luttrell intercepted a pass on the 11 and added a 37-yard runback. A fumble, not lost this time, aborted the
effort.
However,
Allen ran the next punt back 31 yards in midfield and Garfield had its last TD
in nine plays. A 14-yard third down
keeper by Wells aided the cause by providing a first down on the Tiger 11.
Three
plays later Kidd again scored on a pitch.
Cardinal decked Wells on the conversion pass try and it was 24-12 with
1:41 left.
* * *
STREETER’S KICKOFF runback was for 27 yards to the WHS 39. A 25-yard Herring to Larry Harper pass-run
put the ball on the Hamilton 34.
Herring and Streeter executed a screen pass touchdown on the next play
and Herring hit Streeter again for the conversion with 59 seconds left.
An
ineligible-receiver-down-field penalty was called and then rescinded.
Streeter’s
20-yard runback of the second half kickoff ignited a five-lay 65-yard TD
effort. Autrey, “old reliable,” gained
21 of the yards. Junior tailback Mike
Mauger was given the task of scoring on a 36-yard draw with 9:33 left. Herring hit Byelene for the conversion.
Tackle
Bill Dorman recovered a Hamilton fumble on the Tiger 27. Thirteen plays later it was gold carat time
again for Massillon. A 41-yard
Herring-to-Harper pass-run, which saw Harper execute a beautiful escape at the
Tiger 40 and tightrope the sideline to the Giffs’ 38, and a pass interference
call helped the drive.
Successive
passes to Harper, a junior wingback, on the 13 and into the end zone accounted
for the score with 58 seconds left in the third quarter. Herring was rushed but got the later pass
away and “The Scooter” leaped into the air at the end line to snare the
spheroid. Streeter missed the
conversion.
* * *
THE FINAL Tiger tally came with the Cubs playing Harper’s 18-yard punt runback
set the stage for a six-play 32-yard drive.
Quarterback John Fromholtz found end Mike Cline for a 23-yard pass run
to the four.
On
the second play fullback Cardinal rammed home between guard and tackle with
1:40 left in the game. Fromholtz got decked
in attempting to pass for two more points.
HAMITON – 12
Ends
– Bennett, Wells, Fowler, Townsend.
Tackles
– Helton, McDaniel, Dennis Briggs, Davis, Brown.
Guards
– Sexton, Petrak, Rogers, Barnaky, Alexander, Turner.
Centers
– Arndt, Cadle, Lancaster.
Quarterbacks
– Wells, Turpin.
Halfbacks
– Rod Harbrecht, Jones, Kidd, Don Briggs, C. Jackson, Allen, Luttrell, Floyd.
Fullbacks
– G. Jackson, Harrison, Schmitz.
MASSILLON
– 52
Ends
– McConnaughead, Robinson, Cline, Maxhimer, Byelene, Pribich, Snyder, Lewis.
Tackles
– Ridgley, Heck, Bingle, Reinerts, Celik, Strobel, Dorman, R. Luke.
Guards
– Miller, Pifer, Jasinski,Kulik, Indorf, Ferguson, Midgley, Hout, Eckroate, McLin, Sims.
Center
– S. Luke.
Quarterbacks
– Herring, Fromholtz.
Halfbacks
– Streeter, Harper, Mauger, Gamble, Sheaters, Brand, B. Luke, Ammond,
Pattinson.
Fullbacks
– Autrey, Cardinal.
Massillon 16 16 14 6 52
Hamilton 0 12 0 0 12
SCORING SUMMARY
M
– TB Darnell Streeter, 20-yard run, Herring PAT (run).
M –
E Dan Byelene, 42-yard pass-run from QB Gary Herring, Autrey PAT (run).
H
– HB Roy Kidd, 11-yard run.
M
– Streeter, 19-yard run, Streeter PAT (run).
H
– Kidd, six-yard run.
M
– Streeter, 32-yard screen pass from Herring, Streeter PAT (run)
M
– TB Mike Mauger, 36-yard run, Byelene PAT (pass from Herring).
M
– WB Larry Harper, 13-yard pass from Herring.
M
– TB Tom Cardinal, three-yard run.
M H
First downs – passing 7 1
First downs – penalties 1 0
Total first downs 21 13
Yards gained rushing 235 218
Yards lost rushing 31 19
Net yards gained rushing 204 199
Net yards gained passing 206 27
Total yards gained 410 226
Passes completed 7–14 2–14
Passes intercepted by 1 1
Yardage on passes
intercepted 0 33
Kickoff average (yards) 8–46.5 3–46.3
Punt average (yards) 3–43.3 4–30.5
Punt returns (yards) 36 32
Lost fumbled ball 1–2 4–2
Yards penalized 2–30 3–25
Touchdowns rushing 4 2
Touchdowns passing 3 0
Total number of plays 52 67
INDIVIDUAL RUSHING
Massillon
Att. Net. Avg.
Darnell
Streeter 12 82 6.8
Mike
Autrey 11 84 7.6
Hamilton
Att. Net. Avg.
Barry
Allen 16 67 4.2
OFFICIALS
Referee
– Milo Lukity.
Umpire
– Jack Werkowitz.
Head
Linesman – Howard Eckert.
Field
Judge – Hugh Davis.