by What defines a hall of fame game? Legacy, honor, dedication to your craft, and most importantly some good football.
Two teams in the visiting Elyria Pioneers and Barberton Magic did just that on a cloudy, humid night about 10 miles southwest of Akron. Sweat was shedding, and tears were created after Barberton shut out the Pioneers 35-0.
For what seemed like a varsity game from the get-go, the Barberton Magics shut down anything the Pioneers tried to accomplish in both halves. The key to this was their defense, who held sophomore quarterback Zach Fury to a mere 7/18, 130 yards and 1 interception.
The magics raging defense was hungry, and if that kind of QB performance isn’t enough, tack on 3 total team sacks from Barberton—one of those coming from freshman defensive end Eric Gaiter with a crucial second down sack to help junior defensive back Reginold Wyatt take the ball away from Fury the very next play.
If that doesn’t tell you enough, the efficiency of the magics offense was twice as good. One consistent thing from the team was the quick passing game. Elyria just couldn’t keep up throughout the night, making it nearly impossible to stop the chugging Barberton offense.
The Barberton offense was surely not short on playmakers, as three of their receivers notched over 60 yards in the contest.
Junior Vernon Reynolds had two receptions for 63 yards but had a touchdown on top of that. That mere touchdown totaled his yardage for the day, but it was nothing short of an impressive gain. Reynolds caught a lob pass from quarterback Jackson Hanlin and hit not one, but two spin moves and used his electric speed to grab a house call.
Hanlin had one of the best performances of the night, not only as a passer but a leader for this young but talented offense. He was decisive, hit all his reads, and got the ball out when it needed to be.
Hanlin had a great night passing the rock, stacking up an 18/28, 313 passing yard performance with three total touchdowns. All three of those came in the first half.
One of those came early in the first quarter, where Hanlin took the ball for a three-yard run right into the endzone, up two scores.
After half, the pioneers lost their touch and their motivation to win. Head coach Matt Wilson didn’t seem to have a solid plan to come back. His team was awarded at least 8 penalties in the game and could not get the train moving. Their receivers brought in a total of 108 yards on 7 receptions, not a result a head coach should be looking for.
This is certainly one Coach Wilson would love to have back.
What’s Next for the Barberton Magics?
After this dominant victory, the crew in purple advanced to 2-1 in their third non-conference game this season. They previously lost to Stow-Munroe, falling 44-13 in their only away game. Up next for Head Coach Pyrce Taylors crew is their first conference game at home against Brecksville-Broadview Heights next Friday, who comes into town sitting at 1-2. This will start their 7-game conference trip.
What’s Next for the Elyria Pioneers?
Elyria will need to bring their A-game against Olmstead Falls, who come into the pioneers’ house at a solid 2-1 next Friday at 7 pm. This will also be a conference game with many stakes and a strikingly low 59 passing yards per game.
Player of the Game – Barberton
My player of the game is junior wide receiver Cleophus Jackson, who was frankly unstoppable. In 6 receptions, he hauled in 6 receptions for 147 yards and a touchdown. Another touchdown was a 62-yard jet sweep where he would not be denied. He caught every screen thrown in his direction and was the definition of consistent.
Player of the Game – Elyria
My player of the game for Elyria is sophomore wide receiver Zaedin Fenderson, who only had one reception but stayed open, kept his feet churning and stayed on the field for most of the game. His one reception came on a 50-yard bomb from Zach Fury, producing his only pass that went 40+ yards.
