Recap: Talawanda football continues dominant run with homecoming win against Dayton Carroll
“Our kids just really wanted to win for our community because we knew there was going to be a good crowd, and there was.”
White shirts flooded the student section, instruments sounded from the marching band and the concession lines remained crowded before the Talawanda High School Brave took the field under the lights for the school’s 70th homecoming game.
The stands filled with parents, students and a handful of jerseys numbered 88 for senior tight end Joey Beckett. The Brave (5-0) did not disappoint, as they defeated the Dayton Carroll High School Patriots (2-3) 42-0 on Friday, Sept. 18.
The game opened with a kickoff to the Patriots, but a stoppage occurred following the third play of the game due to a Patriot player requiring a cart off the field with a knee injury. Immediately following the injury timeout, a bad snap caused a fumble, with Talawanda recovering the ball, and the stadium rumbled.
After two chunk passes to sophomore receiver Aiden Zimmerman, sophomore quarterback Jake Van Gorden threw to senior tight end Joey Beckett for a 17-yard touchdown, putting the Brave up 7-0 early in the first quarter.
After a quick three-and-out and a false start by the Patriots, the Brave started their second drive of the game at midfield with five minutes left in the first quarter.
On a third-and-one, senior running back Oliver Bennett dashed up the middle and broke free for a 38-yard touchdown, making the score 14-0 within the first 10 minutes.
The Patriots couldn’t find any footing following the second Brave touchdown, and they committed another three-and-out on their next drive. On fourth and two, the sophomore quarterback James Jaynes kept the ball on a read-option play but fumbled. The Brave fell on top of the ball, and they started their third drive on the Patriots’ 28-yard line.
Two plays later, the Brave went to junior running back Ethan Hainline who helped bolster the Brave to a 21-point lead with an 11-yard touchdown run.
On the Patriots’ next drive, a facemask penalty against the Brave set them up at midfield. As the first-quarter clock winded down to zero, the Patriots went for it on a fourth-and-four and couldn’t convert, setting the Brave up at midfield. A 16-yard pass concluded the first quarter.
The Brave continued driving down the field before turning the ball over on fourth down. Within their own ten the Patriots punted from their own endzone, but a roughing the kicker penalty gave them a first down on the twenty-four yard line.
On a third-and-long, sophomore running back Anthony Smith ran the ball up the middle for a short gain, causing fourth and short.
Before the Patriots punt team could run on the field, a hot spring of yellow flags flew in the air against the Brave sideline.
The coaching staff received two technical fouls for arguing with the referees on a separate call, giving the Patriots a first down on the Brave’s 31 yard-line.
“I let my emotions get the best of me,” Talawanda Head Coach Andy Stuckert said postgame. “But I think our kids have been resilient all year round, and they did a pretty good job of coming back, staying focused, fixing some of the penalty stuff, and then they played really well after that.”
With under five minutes remaining in the first half, the Patriot offense couldn’t capitalize on a drive with sixty yards awarded to them in penalties against the Brave defense. On a third-and-long, Kemper McAfee intercepted Jaynes and sprinted down the sideline for a 77-yard pick-six, putting the Brave up a commanding 28-0.
The interception was not just McAfee’s second in two games, but the 14th of his career breaking the Talawanda school record.
The next Patriot drive ended in a punt, and the penalties continued to pile up for the Brave. A holding call pushed them back 10 yards to start a drive with one minute left in the first half. After a few no-huddle plays, Van Gorden scrambled out of bounds at the fifty yard-line with 20 seconds left.
A short pass to the 41, a Brave timeout and a 15-yard pass to Hainline would set the Brave up with a shot toward the endzone. The clock ran out before a Brave receiver scurried out of bounds inside the five. Still, the Brave would maintain a 28-0 lead at halftime, leaving the packed crowd hopeful of a homecoming victory.
“Our kids just really wanted to win for our community because we knew there was going to be a good crowd, and there was,” Stuckert said. “There’s a bunch of people along the fence, [and] a bunch of people in the stands, so I think our kids get a sense of pride out of that because our community’s been really supportive during this run the last couple of years.”
The red, blue and white endzones glistened under the Friday night lights as the Patriots kicked off to the Brave to begin the second half. Starting on their own 19, the Brave didn’t let off the gas.
On the first play, Van Gordon fired to Beckett for a 71-yard catch and run, giving him 106 total yards on the night. On the very next play, Hailine ran through a defender and completed his second touchdown of the game, an 11-yard run, to push the Brave to a 35 point within the first minute of the second half.
The point differential triggered a continuous running clock for the rest of the game.
On the Patriots first drive of the half, Jaynes completed a 10-yard pass before a high snap resulted in an 11-yard sack. Jaynes went backwards 2 yards on the next play, setting up a third and 23. Another high snap forced Jaynes to jump on a live ball, and the Patriot punt unit took the field.
The Brave took over on their own 45 yard-line. On a second and long, Van Gorden connected with senior wide receiver Tate Underwood to set up a third and short. Oliver Bennett would hit a gap and take off on a run down to the eight yard-line. Even with only four attempts on the night, Bennett amassed 82 yards and a touchdown.
Van Gorden connected with Underwood again for an eight-yard touchdown pass resulting in a 41-0 Brave lead as the third quarter came to a close. Junior kicker Owen Keal made the extra point kick, marking a perfect 6-6 extra point ratio on the night. Van Gorden would finish the night with 18 completions on 21 attempts for 246 yards and two touchdowns.
With the continuous play clock and a heavy Brave run scheme in effect, the fourth quarter yielded back-and-forth possessions that affirmed the strong defensive unit. Neither team scored in the final 12 minutes, giving the Brave a 42-0 win over the Patriots.
Junior middle linebacker Windon Lowe ended the game with an impressive four tackles for loss, adding even more to the Talawanda defense’s resume.
“We’ve been playing for a long time, and I feel like we’re just all so violent, physical, and everybody’s fast to the ball,” Lowe said. “We also swung to the ball, and I feel like that’s just what makes us a great defense.
Talawanda’s defense only gave up 48 total yards of offense against the Patriots. Now, across their first five games, the Brave have outscored their opponents 197-12. They will look to leverage this combination of a dominant offense and an immovable defense for the last five games of the season, featuring three competitive, in-conference games.
