Week 7 Football Preview: Buckeye Trail looks to make it two wins in a row
OLD WASHINGTON — The wait is over in eastern Guernsey County. Buckeye Trail, after weeks of near misses, finally got off the winless trail and picked up that first ‘W’.
We now enter the déjà vu portion of the Buckeye Trail football schedule.
Trail started 2022 with an 0-5 mark before getting right against Tuscarawas Central Catholic. Next up was the once-beaten Malvern Hornets, who avenged their first loss of the season a week prior by hammering Strasburg, 42-0.
Flash forward to 2023. Trail again started the season 0-5 before righting the ship with a dismantling of TCC. Next up are the once-beaten Malvern Hornets, who avenged their first loss of the season a week prior by hammering Strasburg, 49-6.
Last year, the teams were tied at halftime before Malvern made good on a few opportunities in the second half to win, 28-21.
Might a similar game be expected on Friday, with preferably a different outcome for Trail head coach Donnie Kerns?
“We always play tough and it’s a nice rivalry with us and them,” Kerns said. “They are well coached, play hard and physical, but also have some athletes. But I think our schedule has prepared us for a team like this, for sure.”
Indeed, it has. Trail’s first three opponents sport a combined 22-2 record. Of those games against Barnesville, Caldwell and Harrison Central, Trail was in contention late in the game twice. Victory had been just a play or two away, but against TCC, BT would not be denied.
“It’s always good to get that first one out of the way, especially for the kids, as it’ll help get things going,” Kerns said. “I’m not saying we’re going to win the next four games, but I think we’ll be in them all and have a chance. We just have to take it one game at a time.”
Hornets’ QB Jared Witherow has thrown for 1,059 yards and 13 touchdowns this season, averaging 17.3 yards per completion. His leading receivers are Dylan Phillips (33 catches, 440 yards) and Rodney Smith (23 and 489), with Smith hauling in the most scoring strikes (seven).
“He’s a big kid, tall, and had a good game against us last year,” Kerns recalled. “He was the guy who beat us pretty much. He had over 100 rushing yards and hit some nice, timely passes. We’ll have to do some things differently and present him with some different looks.”
John Glenn at Maysville
John Glenn’s defense keeps showing it’s the real deal.
Facing a high-scoring Meadowbrook attack last week in New Concord, the Muskies limited the visitors to a late touchdown in a 45-6 romp.
Now John Glenn plays at Maysville (2-4), which lost 42-0 at home last week to West Muskingum. Maysville will be led by junior quarterback Mat Harper. The Panthers have tried multiple options at QB but seemed to have settled on Harper recently. He led the Panthers to victory against Crooksville and is a threat to run or pass.
Meadowbrook at Coshocton
Meadowbrook, meanwhile, will look to pick up win No. 5 at Coshocton. The Redskins (0-6) pose an entirely different challenge than John Glenn.
Coshocton plays a throwback-style of offense that relies primarily on the running attack and actually will come out under center. CHS’ run game is led by Israel Rice, who’s logged 362 yards on 58 carries. Quarterback Colton Conkle averages 97 passing yards per game and is also capable of doing damage with his feet.
Last week, Meadowbrook avoided the shutout when quarterback Justice Huey, who totaled 230 yards, found Bentley Sedor for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Penalties and mental mistakes hurt Meadowbrook early, and head coach Steve Norman will want to avoid that against a team like Coshocton, hungry for its first win.
It’s a deceiving record for the home team. Coshocton may be winless, but lost to 3-3 New Lexington 19-7 and Morgan barely escaped Coshocton with a win the week prior, 35-34. Keep in mind, this is also the same team that gave Ridgewood all it wanted in a week one game on the Generals’ home field, falling 22-21.
Union Local at Cambridge
Cambridge returns to the friendly confines of McFarland Stadium for its homecoming matchup.
The Jets (4-2) are coming off an impressive win at home against Weir, handing the Red Riders their first loss. However, quarterback Isaiah Tomolonis was injured in the fourth quarter and his status is questionable.
Tomolonis has been splitting duty with sophomore Colby Carpenter. While Tomolonis has more yards and more rushing yards, Carpenter has the edge in completion percentage.
Might that put more pressure on Jets’ running back Brody Perzanowski? UL’s leading rusher currently averages 106.7 yards per game and 6.3 yards per carry.
Health will be paramount, as a game with Cambridge this season is a near guarantee to be a shootout.
QB Garrett Carpenter has 1,003 yards and 14 TDs through six games. Top target Devin Ogle has 878 yards and eight TDs on 60 catches, while Reed Johnson, Eli Edwards, and Keaton Kyser all average at least three catches and 40-plus yards per game.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Jeffersonian: Cambridge-area high school football Week 7 preview
