Ashland pounds Hopkinton on the ground in 100th anniversary Thanksgiving football game
ASHLAND – For the 100th anniversary of Ashland’s Thanksgiving rivalry game against Hopkinton, the Clockers played old school football.
They lined up in tight, bunch formations behind a burly offensive line and ran.
Usually it was four yards and a cloud of turf pellets. Then Ashland’s dynamic backs broke through and broke the game open.
Ashland rushed the ball 48 times for 338 yards with eight backs in a 35-0 win.
"We're gonna run something until you guys stop it. There's no sugarcoating," Ashland senior Jason Crispin said. "We're gonna run the ball as many times until you stop it. They couldn't stop it, so we kept going."
The Hillers especially had no answer for sophomore Kevin Ozolumba. He gained 150 yards on just 12 carries and found the end zone twice to earn the Clockers offensive MVP.
His first covered 33 yards after he took a wildcat quarterback snap to cap Ashland's opening nine-play drive - all runs. Ozolumba struck again from 65 yards to open the second quarter.
"We wanted to set the tone, we did a pretty good job of that," he said. "It's because of everyone around me and my teammates and everyone that supported me and gave me the opportunity that set that up for me."
Ashland reached into its bag of tricks one last time near the goal line with 6:57 to halftime. The Clockers coaching staff called Crispin over to the sideline like he was in the wrong position. When he opened a one-on-one matchup, Ashland quarterback Cam Antoniuk snapped the ball and threw him a quick strike. Crispin cut one step to his left and bowled into the end zone for a 21-0 lead.
"We planned that the whole week, so we wanted to run it," Antoniuk said. "They're open to doing anything, it's fun."
Crispin (92 yards rushing) added a touchdown on the ground from eight yards out with 6:43 left in the third quarter.
The Clockers lived up to their namesake after halftime and let the clock run Ashland ran 27 plays in the third and fourth quarters compared to five for Hopkinton.
Ozulumba picked off a Hopkinton pass on the second pay of the third quarter, and Ashland forced a fumble on a kickoff return with a big hit after its last touchdown, a two-yard David Sales run with 7:26 left, to keep the ball out of the Hillers' hands.
"When you're able to be that physical and stay in the game plan, all credit to our kids and our coaches," Ashland coach Andrew MacKay said.
Ashland improved its record to 40-54-4 in the teams' 99th meeting.
"Hopefully the momentum of the program continues," MacKay said. "This is an expectation at Ashland now."
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Hopkinton's best chace came when James Marcinowski picked up a fumble and returned it to the Ashland 33 with 5 minutes remaining the opening quarter. The Hillers trailed just 7-0 and drove to the Clockers 1. Ashland's defense turned Hopkinton away and didn't give the Hillers many opportunities after.
"You get a turnover, you hope to capitalize and get some points, but we weren't able to punch i tin the end zone. Those are the opportunities you've got to take advantage of against a good team like Ashland," Hopkinton coach Mark Sanborn said. "We had a lot of young guys playing this year, and experience in football is key. A lot of our guys got that. So Hopefully that serves as well moving forward."
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Sanborn also knows the emotions of his seniors well. The Hillers alum lost his final game against Ashland, too.
"I couldn't feel more for them," he said. "I've been in their shoes, I know what it's like, but hopefully the younger guys see see that and use it as motivation moving forward."
Contact Kyle Grabowski at kgrabowski@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @kylegrbwsk.
This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Ashland blanks Hillers in 100th year of Thanksgiving football rivalry
