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The Buckeye Bucks went on the road and defeated North Olmsted 51-28. The win earned Buckeye head coach Greg Denison his 199th career win as a head coach. The mark makes him the most successful coach in Media County history.
It was another huge night for the Buckeye tailback combination of Troy McCann and Gage Nagy. McCann rattled off 222 yards on 25 carries with four touchdowns. His backfield mate Gage Nagy piled up 67 yards on 8 carries, with a touchdown as well.
Buck quarterback Casey Murray continues to be a dual threat for defenses to worry about. Murray went 7 of 10 for 127 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for 70 yards on 7 carries.
His top receiving threats were Austin Hyre with a 45 yard touchdown catch. Ranger Metter had a catch for 24 yards and a pick six. Treytan Widenmeyer had 3 catches for 31 yards.
My hat goes off to North Olmsted tonight, who had to play without star running back Logan Dangerfield, and their excellent backup Matthew Chalkwater who got hurt on the second drive of the game. Michael Passafiume stepped up from his receiving role into the backfield and tallied 102 yards on 15 carries with two touchdowns. He also caught 4 balls for 19 yards.
Also stepping up into a duel role was Brady Haug who pulled in 5 catches for 83 yards while rushing 4 times for 24 yards. All of this took a bit of the pressure of starting quarterback Tommy Horsfall who rebounded from an early pick, to throw for 188 yards while rushing for 62 yards on 9 carries with two touchdowns. Horsfall showed some serious growth tonight and made some great passes in tight spots.
Another bright spot for the Eagles despite the loss, was the emergence of young Lawrence Stanley who hauled in 4 passes for 69 yards.
Ranger Metter picked off a Horsfall pass, two plays into the game, returned it 32 yards to paydirt, and just like that it was 7-0 only 19 seconds into the game. The Eagles then went from the frying pan to the fire when Matthew Chalkwater who had been playing in place of Logan Dangerfield went down to an ankle injury.
The Eagles bounced right back with an impressive drive led by Horsfall as he hooked up with Brady Haug for some nice connections downfield to get them in the redzone. They made it down to the 9 of the Buckeyes where they faced a fourth and 1. The Bucks jumped offside handing the Eagles a first and goal from the four-yard line in which they cashed in on a Horsfall touchdown scramble. Horsfall went 3 of 3 on the drive and also ran the ball 3 times as well.
The game wasn’t tied long as Casey Murray hit a wide-open Austin Hyre on a 45-yard bomb over the middle for a touchdown. It was a 6-play drive that went 67 yards and resulted in points as the Bucks reclaimed the lead with 3:56 to go. The quarter would end by the same score.
A short punt by the Eagles, combined with a catch interference call, gave the Bucks the ball on the North Olmsted 17-yard line early into the second quarter. The Eagles defense stood tall and managed to hold the Bucks without any points in a major stop!
The Bucks did manage to strike one more time before the half however, as a two-yard rush by McCann gave the Bucks a 21-7 halftime lead.
An early second half turnover by North Olmsted, gave the Bucks the ball deep in Eagle territory. A few players later, a McCann touchdown run from 3 yards, made it 27-7 with 8:21 to go in the third quarter.
Down 20, the Eagles switched to the no huddle offense to try to score punches in bunches. It worked with some nice catches by Larence Stanley and also runs by Passafiume to get them into the redzone. In the end, it was Horsfall taking it in himself to keep the Eagles hopes alive, as he ran it in from 13 yards out to score and make it a 27-14 game.
McCann continued to cannonball his way off Eagle defenders, bringing the Bucks right back into the endzone with 2:33 left to play in the third quarter. A 32-yard rumble by McCann resulted with the ball at the Eagle two in which he took it in yet again, for his third touchdown of the contest. This increased the Buck lead to 34 – 14.
After another Buckeye Buck touchdown made it 41-14, a touchdown run by Michael Passafiume cut into it at 41-21 with 9:38 to go. It was too little too late however, as the Bucks went on to win easily.
The Bucks went on to win 51-28, improving their record to 4-0 while the Eagles dropped to 0-4. The Bucks will host Westlake, while North Olmsted travels to Holy Name.
Players of the game
Buckeye RB Troy McCann: McCann rattled off 222 yards on 25 carries with four touchdowns.
North Olmsted do it all man Michael Passafiume: 102 yards on 15 carries with two touchdowns. He also caught 4 balls for 19 yards.
