by Avon, Ohio – The Avon Eagles and Head Coach Mike Elder looked to get one step closer to their ultimate goal of a State Championship on Friday night. They looked to control the defensive side of the ball with an Olmsted Falls Bulldogs team who loves to run the ball. Eating clock and scoring late in drives is the key to the Bulldogs’ offense.
Avon’s run game led the way for them in the contest. They carried the ball 35 times for 303 yards and 5 touchdowns. Cam Wendell had 94 yards, Quinate’ Smith led the way with 119, and quarterback Nolan Good added 74.
The Olmsted Falls Bulldogs struck first and they did it quickly. On the first play from scrimmage, Owen Singleton took a handoff 66 yards to the house! The eighth seeded Bulldogs were making their presence felt early.
Avon was ready to go offensively as well. On their first play, a little trickery saw wide receiver Matt Maxey flip a screen pass to QB Nolan Good. Good took the pass and went 42 yards for a big play to start the Avon drive. Four plays later, Good kept it himself and scampered for a 26-yard touchdown run. Just over 2 minutes into the game, the game was knotted up at 7 following the Avon PAT.
On Olmsted Falls’ ensuing drive, they went for it on 4th and short. Avon’s Andrew Falasco laid the boom on the Bulldogs’ ball carrier to force a fumble. The Eagles’ defense jumped on the ball and recovered.
The Eagles would fail to capitalize on the turnover. Four plays into their drive, they went for it on 4th and short as well. A deep pass intended for Grant Barr fell incomplete to give the ball back to the Bulldogs in good field position.
The Bulldogs would take advantage of the Avon offensive miscues. A 6-play, 46-yard drive was capped by a 20-yard touchdown pass from Jimmy Rosol to Jaiden Beyer. Following the PAT Olmsted Falls held a 14-7 lead.
The Olmsted Falls defense would force a quick 3-and-out on Avon’s next drive. Starting from their own 42 on their ensuing drive, the Bulldogs looked to extend their lead. They would do just that as QB Jimmy Rosol did it all with his legs. A 52-yard run from Rosol would set himself up to take one into the end zone from 6 yards out. The Bulldogs were putting pressure on the number one seeded Avon Eagles early.
At the start of the 2nd quarter, the Avon Eagles had to get something going to stay in the game. An up-tempo 9-play 80-yard drive helped the Eagles cut into the Bulldogs’ lead. Quiante’ Smith capped off the drive with a 17-yard touchdown run.
On their next drive, the Eagles scored quickly. The drive was finished by a 28-yard touchdown pass from Nolan Good to Matt Maxey. After trailing by 14 heading into the 2nd quarter, the Eagles had tied it up just 5 minutes later.
Looking to take their first lead of the game on their next possession, Avon’s offense went back to work. A 26-yard pass from Good to Maxey set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Tyler Kaufmann. Following the PAT, the Eagles had a 28-21 lead.
Avon was not done either. On their last drive of the quarter, they marched 41 yards down the field in six plays. Matt Maxey’s 2nd touchdown of the quarter capped off the drive. This time it was from eight yards out.
The Eagles defense stepped up in a big way in the 2nd quarter as well. After allowing 176 yards in the first quarter, they allowed just 17 yards in the second. The Olmsted Falls offense was not able to get a single first down the entirety of the quarter. Heading into the break, the Eagles held a 35-21 lead.
The Eagles picked up right where they left off to start the 3rd quarter. A drive that featured mostly runs was finished by a Cam Wendell 32-yard touchdown run. The Eagles had extended their lead to 42-21 after the PAT.
The Olmsted Falls Bulldogs were not going to go down without a fight. On their ensuing possession, Jimmy Rosol found Logan Connelly in the end zone for a 37-yard touchdown pass. They had trimmed their deficit to 42-28 with the PAT.
As was the story since the start of the 2nd quarter, if the Eagles get the ball, they will score. On their 2nd drive of the 3rd quarter, Cam Wendell finished it off with his 2nd touchdown of the game. This time he found the end zone from eight yards out.
On the Eagles’ next possession, they would score once again. However, it was not a touchdown they would score, but a field goal. Owen Warrick extended the Avon lead with a 42-yard field goal.
After forcing their 2nd straight 3-and-out, Avon’s offense was back on the field. This time, they were unable to put points on the board to extend their lead. Instead, Olmsted Falls’ defense forced a fumble by QB Nolan Good and recovered. They were set up in great field position at the Avon 18.
Just 3 plays later, Owen Singleton found the end zone on an 11-yard touchdown run. This was his 2nd score of the game, and it cut the Avon lead to 52-35.
Coach Elder had this to say about the utilization of the run game, “We had to run the ball today. That’s what the structure of Falls’ defense asks you to do. Smart, because they see we’re a 50/50 run-pass team and we like to throw the ball. Today we had to run it. I thought our running backs did a great job, and our offensive line did a great job. Us running the ball was a product of how they were playing defense.”
That would be all Olmsted Falls would be able to do the remainder of the game. Avon’s ensuing drive found them kneeling the ball down to run out the game clock.
Avon survived the first quarter scare from Olmsted Falls and came out on top with a 52-35 victory. They will play Wadsworth in the Regional Semifinals next week at a location TBD.
Following the victory, I caught up with Avon running back Quinate’ Smith who finished the game with 13 carries for 119 yards and a touchdown. He had this to say about the team’s mindset going into next week, “It would be to bring more energy, keeping our team together in practice, being smart without anyone doubting, and staying locked in.”
Look for Quinate’ Smith and his running back mates, Cam Wendell and Tyler Kaufmann, to heavily impact the game next week against Wadsworth.
