QB Bernhard leads Ashland's rout of Madison

ASHLAND — Both coaches looked at Madison’s opening drive of the game as a key moment in the contest.

Starting from their own 45, the Rams drove methodically downfield deep into Arrow territory. But a huge penalty pushed Madison outside of the red zone that ultimately resulted in a turnover on downs.

Less than two minutes later Ashland quarterback Nathan Bernhard was forced out of the pocket but found a streaking Gabe Baith down the right sideline for a 74-yard touchdown for a quick Ashland lead.

The play would ignite Ashland’s offense to the tune of 28 first-half points as the Arrows (4-2) rolled to a 35-7 homecoming game victory over Madison (0-6).

“No doubt,” said Ashland coach Scott Valentine on the impact those first two drives for each team had. “They did a nice job driving down the field and fortunately the combination of the penalty and our defense getting the stop made a big difference.”

“It sure was. It was big,” said Madison coach Brent Besancon on his team’s opening drive and failure to score. “And we didn’t take care of the ball and had some blown coverages. You are not going to win many football games doing those things.”

More: Mapleton's run defense, screen game pay dividends in win over Plymouth

Bernhard scored from 1 yard out following a Ram fumble, and Cayden Spotts added a 1-yard plunge of his own for a 21-0 lead.

Another Bernhard to Baith 19-yard hookup with 2:02 left before intermission ended the first half as Ashland scored on all four first-half possessions.

In the third quarter Ashland made it 35-0 on the heels of a Bernhard to Michael Franz 77-yard bomb as Bernhard finished the evening a perfect 8-of-8 for 211 yards and 3 touchdowns.

“One thing we have talked about is we have not had a lot of many explosive plays,” said Valentine. “In that first one, he (Bernhard) moved out of the pocket, kept his eyes downfield and got himself set and threw a nice football down the field.

“On the big, explosive play to Mike, he put a nice touch on the ball and laid it in there where he could run under it. That is where our growth has come on a couple of long runs and our offensive line has gotten better.”

Besancon talked about the number of players who stepped up during the course of the game after several Ram players left due to injury.

“We had some of those injuries and we had kids come in and play hard,” he said. “They didn’t give up or we didn’t give up I should say. And I think that is a positive. But until I see film you just don’t know. If you give up you can’t expect anything and now we just have to see where we can get better.”

The Rams received a fine game from running back Khris Adkins-Tolbert who finished with 57 yards rushing on 19 attempts. His effort caught the eye of Valentine.

“Khris is a hard runner and he does a nice job,” said Valentine. “He puts his shoulder down, and he is not afraid of contact. He is a good one.”

Spotts finished with 56 yards rushing on 14 carries with Franz hauling in a pair of passes for 97 yards and Baith just a tick behind with 93 yards on two catches.

Valentine liked the way his squad handled the week of preparation.

“There are still things we can get better at,” added Valentine. “And those are the things we will continue to work on.

“For us this was one of those distraction weeks. We had the fair, we had homecoming and all these different things going on. And that is one thing I was proud of that we came out focused and ready to go. And that type of focus is what we have to take in and get ready for next week.”

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Football: Ashland rolls to win over OCC foe Madison