Harrison Central football falls short in final seconds

Trailing 20-7 at the half, Harrison Central came out of the visitors locker room at Newcomerstown with a chip on its shoulder. Over the course of the following 16 minutes of game play, the defense locked down, the offense found a rhythm and with 8:23 remaining on the fourth quarter clock the Huskies found themselves in front 21-20. Senior Beau Rinkes rumbled in from a yard out to knot the game at 20-all, and kicking specialist Noah Thaxton then tacked on the PAT to give the Huskies their first lead of the contest. It was a long climb, but it was even longer final eight minutes.

Fast forward through the last whistle, and you would find a dramatic fourth-down stop from the Harrison defense, an exchange of turnovers, a last-second Huskies drive halted near the goal line and a final score that favored the Trojans by a score of 28-21.

“Our kids gave a great physical effort. You can’t argue that. Turnovers and mental mistakes caught up with us, but it was not a lack of physical effort. We dug ourselves a hole being down 20-7, but to our kids credit we battled back and took the lead,” said Central head coach Anthony Hayes, whose team dipped to 0-2. Coming into the matchup, the anticipation of a clash of philosophies certainly played out on the field.

The Trojans (1-1) piled up 244 rushing yards, to just 13 through the air. On the other sideline, the Huskies threw for 204 while rushing for just 22 as a team. A clear distinction in game-planning and execution. What wasn’t accounted for was the turnover battle. The Huskies handed the rock over four times, three interceptions with one fumble lost. The Trojans were bit by the turnover bug as well, all three fumbles. While the Trojans recovered from all of their mishaps, the Huskies unfortunately wouldn’t do the same from their lone fumble. 

With just over two minutes remaining in the game, the Huskies defense stopped the Trojans on a 4th and nine from inside their own territory at the Harrison 34-yard line. Newcomerstown had just two timeouts, so a Harrison Central first down would have ended the ball game. 

What unfolded next was the final nail, however. The Huskies fumbled the ball right back over to the homestanding Trojans on the very next offensive play, setting them up with all the momentum and more importantly- prime field position for the final push to the pylons. 

It took just five plays, and the Trojans were into the endzone, and back in the lead at 28-21. Leaving the Huskies just 41 seconds to respond, senior quarterback Brady Hyre would have to take the Huskies 57-yards on a game-clinching drive. Four completions later, the Huskies got two chances at the goal line from the Trojans 27-yard line. The second of which landed in the hands of Trojan defensive back Dom Singer. Singer was the ultimate weapon, as he rushed for 188-yards and two touchdowns on offense. He also caught a 22-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. 

Hyre finished 19 of 27 passing for 204-yards with a touchdown through the air. Senior Kayne Dunkle was again the favorite target; hauling in eight catches for 94 yards, highlighted by the 31-yard scoring strike in the third frame. Hyre did spread the wealth around, finding five other Harrison targets throughout the night. Freshman Colson Crothers caught three passes for 39-yards, sophomore Lance Smith also pulled down three balls for 29-yards, and Rinkes finished with two receptions for 35-yards. Chaz Culbertson and Jacob Quito both found the column as well with a catch each. 

The Huskies will look to rebound this weekend at Malvern. The Hornets have topped the Huskies in each of the last two seasons. 

“While I’m proud of our physical fight, we are not in to moral victories. We need to get better and that starts in practice. We will continue to do that Monday,” Hayes said.