Passing aids 36-6 victory
105
second-quarter air yards
best season
effort
By CHUCK HESS, JR.
Independent Sports
Editor
Quarterback Scotty
Dingler rang the bell and his receivers caught fire to make the effort
unanimous.
Getting their passing
game going after several disappointed attempts this season, was important to
the Massillon Tigers for it made rushing a lot easier and could arm their
arsenal a lot more effectively for next Saturday’s season finale against
arch-rival Canton McKinley.
* * *
WASHINGTON
HIGH’S charges downed their
second oldest protagonist, the Alliance Aviators, 36-6 before 11,076 in the
curtain closer Friday night at Tiger stadium.
The Tigers upped
their slate to 7-2 while dropping Alliance to 4-5. The WHSers evened their All-American conference record for four
tilts to stay in fourth and saddled the Aviators with their fourth loss against
no wins.
Dingler completed
five passes in six tries in the second quarter, connecting with wingback Art
Thompson for a touchdown, fullback Tom Hannon and split end Mike McGuire for
105 yards – the best effort of the season.
The Tiger aerial show didn’t connect on a couple of second half efforts,
but its prior-to-the intermission performance must have been enough to give
McKinley Coach John Brideweser’s scouts cause for consideration.
Dingler hit McGuire
on a 14-yard combination to offset a five-yard delay penalty. Scotty found Thompson for 15 to sidetrack a
five-yard procedure call, hit Hannon in the flat and Tom ran 25 yards for a
first down at the Alliance 30, but the Tigers ran out of gas at the four, four
plays later; after a 14-yarder through the middle by Larry McLenndon.
However, the Orange
and Black came back after the next punt and moved 45 yards in two plays to score
with four seconds left. Dingler hit the
Thompson target both times, one for 24 yards to the Alliance 31 and another
into Art’s nifty embrace in the center of the end zone.
Dingler’s kick was
off to the right.
* * *
“SCOTTY
COULDN’T have laid the ball in
there much better,” Coach Bob Commings said.
“I’m pleased with the poise with which we threw the ball. The protection was good. I thought the offensive line settled the
issue, blocking well, particularly in the first half.”
Former Tiger
assistant Gene Nara, now the head man at Alliance, had another version: “We gave Dingler too much time to throw.”
His TD pass may have
been the key to the Aviators’ loss.
“If we had been down
only 14-6 at the end of the first half, it would have been easier to come
back,” Nara said.
Alliance continued
to have the passing troubles it has experienced all year, failing to complete
11, with a lot of credit going to the Massillon secondary for alert coverage.
* * *
THE
AVIAITORS had their chances in the
second half, getting 44 plays to the Tigers’ 19, but couldn’t move the ball
past the WHS 21.
“Bob went to a stack
defense with a stunt and I think he used a safety blitz one time,” Nara
said. “We weren’t picking it up.”
The Tigers were in
what Commings calls a goal-line go, putting Hank Nussbaumer, the strong safety,
in the go position.
The Orange and Black
opened the scoring with a 49-yard run off left tackle by tailback Willie
Spencer on the game’s fourth play from first down.
Dingler kicked the conversion
with 10:05 on the clock.
Alliance’s score
came late in the first quarter after Rick got off only a 15-yard punt and the
Aviators drove 42 yards in five plays with a 14-yard pass-run from quarterback
Bill Anderson to halfback Joe Tucker setting up a first down on the Massillon
27.
* * *
TWO
PLAYS later junior halfback Dan
Contrucci charged through the middle from the 25, giving nice second and third
efforts. However, with 1:20 showing,
Anderson fumbled the pigskin as the Aviators tried for two and was stopped
short.
The Tigers marched
80 yards in seven plays after the kickoff with Spencer scoring off right tackle
and cutting back on second down from the Alliance 35 with 5:46 left in the
second stanza. Dingler’s 16-yard right
end keeper and Spencer’s 17-yarder over left guard helped.
Dingler kicked the
conversion.
Alliance punted
after its first third quarter series and Hannon flashed his groovy hips for 51
yards to put the ball on the Alliance four.
Two plays later Dingler smashed through the center from the one on a
third down with 9:06 on the lights.
He passed to
McLenndon playing fullback in the absence of injured Don Perry, to put two more
points on the total.
The final tally came
when a fourth-down snap went over Contrucci’s head and twins Dari and Terry
Edwards and Todd Cocklin hauled Contrucci down on the Alliance six. McLenndon raced around left end on the
ensuing play with 6:08 left in the goodbye frame.
* * *
JUNIOR
TAILBACK Jim Jackson slashed off
right tackle for the final two points.
The Tigers might
have had another TD, but junior wingback Terry Edwards fumbled on the Alliance
23 after brother Dari had recovered an Aviator fumble on the 21. Ron Kuceyeski recovered for the Carnation
City team.
ALLIANCE – 6
Ends – Jones, Randy
Kuceyeski, Brockett, Danesi, Harper.
Tackles – Ron
Kuceyeski, Addams, Kirksey, Grimes.
Guards – Huff,
Messenheimer, King, Garnes.
Centers – Miller,
Swanson.
Quarterbacks –
Anderson, Miller.
Halfbacks –
Snodgrass, Contrucci, Hewitt, May, Davis, Tucker.
Fullbacks – J.
Hancock, Deack.
MASSILLON – 36
Ends – McGuire,
Stephan, Matie, Bodiford, D. Edwards, Gutshall.
Tackles – Heath,
Weirich, Peters, C. Perry, Hauschultz, Green, Geiser, T. Peters.
Guards – Christoff,
Mayles, Guiffre, Bozzacco, Bash, Balizet, Heck, Graber, Ahlstrom, Danzy.
Centers – Studer,
Cocklin, Allman, McCabe, Grizzard.
Quarterbacks –
Dingler, Muhlback, Westover.
Halfbacks – Spencer,
Thompson, T. Edwards, Nussbaumer, Weise, Jakcson, Wonsick, D. Peters, Groff.
Fullbacks –
McLenndon, Hannon, Wood.
ALLIANCE 6 0 0 0 6
MASSILLON 7 13 8 8 36
SCORING
SUMMARY
M – Spencer, 49 run (Dingler kick);
A – Contrucci, 25 run (run failed);
M – Spencer, 35 run (Dingler kick);
M – Thompson, 31 pass from Dingler (kick
failed);
M – Dingler, 1 run (McLenndon, pass from
Dingler);
M – McLenndon, 9 run (Jackson run).
GRID
STICK
M A
First downs, rushing 11 4
First downs, passing 4 5
First downs, penalties 1 3
Total first downs 16 12
Yards gained rushing 234 105
Yards lost rushing 5 72
Net yards gained rushing 229 33
Net yards gained passing 105 52
Total yards gained 334 85
Passes completed 5-8 11-24
Passes intercepted by 0 0
Kickoff average (yards) 6-44.9 2-45.0
Rest is missing
OFFICIALS
Referee – Ted
Humphrey.
Umpire – Ted
Deutsch.
Head Linesman – Stan
Evans.
Field Judge – Hugh
Davis.
Back Judge –
Beauford Hatfield.
ATTENDANCE – 11,076.