Walsh University football team holds on to beat West Liberty in season opener
NORTH CANTON — The first night football game at Walsh University was a big success.
Fans packed the home stands at Larry Staudt Field. Others watched from a hill sloping down from Easton Street. A long line was always present at the food truck.
On the field, the Cavaliers could not have asked for a better start.
WALSH FOOTBALL: PHOTOS: West Liberty Hilltoppers at Walsh University Cavaliers Football
Walsh held on to beat West Liberty 24-21 in Thursday's season opener. All it took for the Cavs to match last year's win total was one game.
Football games came to Walsh's campus for the first time last season. The program longtime coach Jim Dennison started in 1995 spent many years playing home games at places like Fawcett Stadium, North Canton Memorial Stadium and GlenOak High School.
Walsh's first game on campus was a 42-0 loss to Tiffin. The first night game on campus was a different story. The Cavs scored two touchdowns in the first five minutes and built a 24-0 lead they eventually needed.
Walsh was picked to finish ninth in the 10-team Great Midwest Athletic Conference. There's youth all over the roster.
A season-opening win gives the up-and-comers and the rest of the Cavs something to build on.
"It's really big for young guys," head coach John Fankhauser said. "It really affects them mentally. Getting that win out of the gate at home on a Thursday night was awesome."
Many of the young Cavs made a big impact against the Hilltoppers.
Shortly after redshirt sophomore Garrett Waite returned the opening kickoff 70 yards, redshirt freshman Cam Macon scored on a 3-yard to open the scoring. Walsh's lead quickly became 14-0 when Dom Jennings scored on a 65-yard run.
Redshirt freshman Amare Jenkins and freshman Dalys Jett shared the quarterback duties in the first half. Jett entered late in the half led a scoring drive which resulted in Trent Doerfler's 40-yard field goal.
Early in the second half, redshirt sophomore cornerback Delshawn Petrosky returned an interception 33 yards for a touchdown. It gave Walsh a 24-0 lead. At the time, no one knew how big Petrosky's pick-6 would be.
"We talked about special teams giving us a great opportunity and changing some momentum early in the game," Fankhauser said. "We had a big kickoff return and were able to punch it in. We had a big play on offense coming right after that. We had a big field goal on special teams before the half and a huge interception for a touchdown."
Macon ran for 99 yards behind an offensive line that is the most experienced unit on the team.
"I know he's really excited about the offensive line," Fankhauser said. "They did a great job of opening up some holes for him and Dom. He and Cam are two downhill runners. They like to get their pads low and run behind those big offensive linemen. Those guys up front really established it."
Jenkins most of the game at quarterback. How the Cavs plan to utilize him and Jett is a work in progress.
"I think we'll use both quarterbacks for a little bit," Fankhauser said. "We'll evaluate the film and see what Amare and Dalys did well. They're both very similar, and we're comfortable with them."
Three unanswered West Liberty touchdowns made things interesting late in the game. Walsh needed to recover an onside kick to close things out.
"We needed to establish a better run game and some quick passes to keep the chains moving in the second half," Fankhauser said. "Defensively I thought we did a lot of good things. We probably didn't tackle as great as we probably will, but it was the first live shot those guys had a tackling for awhile. I was happy with them."
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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Young Walsh University football players make impact in win
