Tigers fall in state final 35‑14
Moeller had 'too many horses'
By
MIKE HUDAK
Independent
Sports Editor
COLUMBUS ‑ The
place was the state capital, the date Nov. 27, 1982.
But for the Tiger head
coach Mike Currence it might as well have been medieval Mongolia. Why? Because
he must have felt like a villager seeing the rising cloud of dust marking the
approach of Attila the Hun, with his only viable option left to mutter
"there's too many horses" and go down fighting as best as possible.
Saturday, Attila the
Hun was Francisco Hiawatha and the rest of the Moeller Crusaders the Mongol
Horde. Moeller captured the Division I state championship with a 35‑14
win, overcoming a fine first‑half effort by the Tigers, giving the
Crusaders their sixth state title in the past eight years and 95th win in the
last 97 games.
The Tigers' first loss
of the year made them settle for the title of "Ohio Public School
Champs." Sunday's horrendous weather caused a postponement of the team's
"Recognition Day," but festivities are reslated for tonight beginning
at 7:30 in the school auditorium. The team, band and cheerleaders will all be
honored, plus officers for next year will be introduced to the throng.
The weather for Saturday's
game was near perfect. It was a bit chilly but bright sunshine made conditions
as conducive as possible for the contest, especially considering the sleet,
snow and rain of Friday and Sunday.
Massillon received the
opening kickoff, but on the second play from scrimmage, Tim Sampsel absorbed a
hit which caused the ball to fly straight up in the air, where Moeller
linebacker Shane Bullough pounced on the loose orb at the Tiger 38.
The Tigers sacked
Moeller quarterback John Shaffer on the first play, but then D'Juan Francisco
and brother Hiawatha took over, grinding out big chunks of yardage,
particularly with end sweeps.
The first score came
when D'Juan, the sophomore sibling, scored from four yards out with 7:26
remaining in the opening quarter. Rob Heintzman's soccer‑style conversion
kick was good.
The Tigers came right
back to fill their thousands of fans with hope. Junior quarterback Brian DeWitz
rolled out on a second‑and‑two play and found wide receiver Gary
Conley open over the middle. Conley, the senior speedster, caught the ball on
the dead run and ran unmolested into the end zone. Bronc Pfisterer added the
conversion kick to tie the score with 3:13 left in the period.
It remained tied until
the second quarter. Moeller had advanced to its own 42 on a 19‑yard pass
from Shaffer to Steve Williford, then went the remaining 58 yards as Hiawatha
broke up the middle and used his unbelievable speed to outrun the entire
defense into the endzone. The kick was good with 8:19 left in the half.
The next time the Moe‑Men
had the ball, they marched 70 yards for a score. The tally came with 4:03 left
in the half as Scott Mahan took a 28‑yard pass into the endzone after
evading a tackle at the point of the catch. The kick was again good for a 21‑7
lead.
But the Tigers still
weren't deflated. They used most of the remainder of the half, 15 plays to be
exact, to march 80 yards for a touchdown.
There were three key
plays in the drive. The first was a diving sideline catch by receiver Jim
Geiser to give the Tigers' possession on the Moeller 39 good for 18 yards. it
appeared that Geiser had neither foot in bounds for the catch, but the Tigers'
weren't about to quibble.
But it looked like the
break would go for naught when Massillon was faced with a third and 16 with
just 45 seconds until intermission. But DeWitz evaded a strong rush and
scrambled 20 yards for a first down to the Moeller eight. On the next play,
DeWitz led Geiser with a perfect pass to the right corner of the end zone, and
Pfisterer's kick made it 21‑14 at halftime.
Moeller received the
second half kick and began another drive, but on a fourth‑and‑one
most of the Tiger front line stacked up Hiawatha to give the Tigers the ball
back on their own 35.
The Tigers started a
drive of their own, but junior defensive back Byron Larkin ended the threat
with an interception on the Crusader 30. This time the Crusaders used the
running of fullback Dave Springmeier and the passing of Shaffer to move 70
yards for the score. The capper came on a 10‑yard run by Springmerier,
followed by the kick. The play took 11 plays and ended with 3:53 left in the
quarter.
The ball control
antics of the Crusaders wore the Tigers down eventually. Moeller's final score
came in the fourth quarter on an 87‑yard drive in eight plays, including
runs of 16 and 27 yards by brother D'Juan. The final 18‑yards came on a
pass from Shaffer to Williford, followed by the kick, with 3:23 remaining on
the clock, but no hope was left in the hearts of Tiger fans, who started to
empty the stands and prepare for the long journey back to Tiger Town and cries
of "wait till next year."
Offensively, the
Tigers' offensive total of 282 yards compared favorably to how they performed
against both Sandusky and Berea ‑ when they had the ball to work with a
lot more.
But defensive was
another story. Moeller racked up 479 yards of offense, including 326 on the
ground and 153 more though the air on a nine‑of‑14 performance by
Shaffer.
The problem was, the
Francisco brothers were all they were cracked up to be, plus the others were
better than feared. Hiawatha amassed 151 yards and D'Juan 123 more, while
Springmeier was more than effective with 77 yards in 10 bolts. Williford was a
killer on pass receiving with five glue‑handed grabs for 57 yards.
After falling behind
early, the Tigers went almost exclusively to the pass in hopes of scoring
quickly. The Tigers carried only 20 times for 79 yards, led by DeWitz' 31 yards
in eight carries and Chris Spielman's 28 yards in five attempts. Passing,
DeWitz hit on 13 of 31 for 200 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions,
while Spielman was one of two in the passing department. Spielman also had five
catches for 60 yards, while Conley grabbed four for 78 yards and Geiser three
for 47 yards.
First‑year coach
Steve Klonne praised his senior dominated team, noting that they deserved
"their day in the sun" after losing 13‑0 to McKinley in last
year's title clash while basically a junior‑oriented squad.
As for Currence, he
concluded, "We played better than we did in 1980 against them down at
Dayton. I just wish we could have won it all, but the great thing about sports
is, there's always next year."
Tiger gridstick
MASSILLON 14
MOELLER 35
M 0
First downs
rushing 3 14
First downs
passing 8 7
First downs by
penalty 1 0
Totals first
down 12 21
Yards gained
rushing 91 362
Yards lost
rushing 12 36
Net yards
rushing 79 326
Net yards
passing 203 153
Total yards
gained 282 479
Passes
attempted 33 14
Passes
completed 14 9
Passes int. by 0 2
Yardage on pass
int. 0 0
Times kicked
off 3 6
Kickoff average 41.0 51.3
Kickoff return
yards 91 10
Punts 4 3
Punting average 36.0 44.7
Punt return
yards -3 20
Punts blocked
by 0 0
Fumbles 5 1
Fumbles lost 1 0
Penalties 6 7
Yards penalized 30 75
Touchdowns
rushing 0 3
Touchdowns
passing 2 2
Miscellaneous
touchdowns 0 0
Number of plays 54 64
Time of
possession 20:34 27:26
Attendance 42,000
(est)
MOELLER 7 14 7 7 35
MASSILLON 7 7 0 0 14
Moe
‑ D. Francisco 3 run (Heintzman kick)
Mas
‑ Conley 58 pass from DeWitz (Pfisterer kick)
Moe
‑ H. Francisco 58 run (Heintzman kick)
Moe
‑ Mahan 29 pass from Shaffer (Heintzman kick)
Mas
‑ Geiser 8 pass from DeWitz (Pfisterer kick)
Moe
‑ Springmeier 11 run (Heintzman kick)
Moe
‑ Williford 18 pass from Shaffer (Heintzman kick)
Title
hopes die hard in Columbus
Tigers, fans gave it their all
By
DENNY HIGHBEN
Independent
Staff Writer
COLUMBUS ‑ There's a savage splendor about the Ohio State Stadium, which boldly thrusts its massive ramparts into the heavens.
On the floor of this
storied arena, American gladiators have battled with all their strength and wit
for the rush of glory that comes with conquest; and for that screaming,
cheering worship from the spectators.
Every schoolboy in
Buckeyeland who puts on the pads dreams of playing in that landmark along the
Olentangy. The best, on rare occasions, get their chance.
That's how it was
Saturday, with some 42,000 spectators there. But they were more than just
spectators. They were part of the battle, so intimately attached to the
struggle that they were one with the young warriors below.
The Tigers of
Massillon and the Crusaders of Cincinnati Moeller were locked in battle, and
the energy created in the stands was so powerful it had a life of its own. It
swept down from the maelstrom of its birth to join the struggle, growing as it
rolled down through row after row, wave after wave of explosive emotion.
The emotion which
erupted Saturday had been building for a long time, especially for the Massillon
faithful. Many things contributed: years of watching the state championship
elude the Tigers, usually to turn up in Cincinnati; two previous losses to
Moeller; and the final insult of watching Massillon's arch‑rival,
McKinley, knocking off Moeller first and for the state crown to boot.
When the Tigers
drilled Berea in the semifinals, the fuse was lit. And the site change to Ohio
Stadium seemed to add even more fuel to the Tiger' fans' fire.
One man, at least,
didn't like the change. We would fill Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati he said.
But as big as OSU stadium is, even 30,000 fans would be "lost" in the
bowels of that concrete‑and steel canyon.
But 42,000 showed up
and they were far from lost. The crowd was something to behold. The size, the
colors, the noise, the energy ... To step back and take a hefty drink of the
surroundings made you tremble with excitement.
The OSU officials were
shaken, too. obviously, such a following for a high school game was not
considered. Only the main gate was open for admission of those with tickets and
for ticket sales. When it was undeniable that one gate couldn't handle the
crowd, others were opened.
Still, however, some
fans didn't get inside until the first period of battle was well under way. And
it wasn't because the fans were late. Not for this game. Oh no! Not for this
game.
In the first half, the
hopes of the Massillon fans blossomed and withered time and again. From a seven‑yard
gain by the Tigers on the first play to a fumble recovered by Moeller on the
second play, ecstasy and misery traded shots within the hearts of the legions
from Tigertown. Moeller turned that fumble recovery into a score, but the
Tigers came back and tied it with a lightning bolt strike when Brian DeWitz
passed the Gary Conley.
Boom‑Boom. Two
touchdowns behind, time running out in the half and 80 yards away. But they did
it, pushed the ball down the length of the field for another score. The
reaction of the fans was awesome. They knew the Tigers had the stuff to win.
"Hey, Moeller's
tough, but we're still in the game. We can do it!" one man said to no one
and everyone within hearing distance at halftime. His sentiments belonged to
the thousands in black and orange.
Perhaps the most
powerful outburst of emotion ‑ even bigger than Moeller's final victory
cheer, came early in the third quarter. The mighty Crusaders were stopped on a
fourth‑and‑one Hiawatha Francisco, that cross between a tank and a
gazelle, was stopped cold.
But, victory was not
to belong to Massillon on this day. It turned very cold towards the end;
bitterly cold, it seemed. And the temperatures made the burden of losing harder
to bear; Moeller dominated the second half. There was still hope until late in
the fourth quarter, until Moeller built a three touchdown lead. The outcome
could not be denied after that touchdown, and the Massillon loyalists had to
endure.
The disappointment was
uncontrollable for many, fans and players alike. For they all had given it
everything they had.
It was a day for
heroes, and though Moeller left no doubt who the champion was on Saturday,
every Massillon fan knew this small town had just as many heroes on the field
as Mighty Mo.
And as the final
minutes ticked away, many a perplexed Tiger fan had to resist the urge to sneak
up behind a Moeller player and lift up his jersey. What was really under those
blue‑and‑gold shirts: muscle and bone or armor plate and high‑impact
plastic?
As one dismayed Tiger
fan put it, "They ain't human."