Wheelersburg crushes Waverly as they put on an offensive clinic
By: Joshua Hoerner
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WHEELERSBURG, Ohio (WOUB) – It was a beautiful night in Wheelersburg as the Pirates played host to the Waverly Tigers. Wheelersburg came into this game 3-3 on the season after their game last week against Oak Hill was cancelled. The Tigers beat Minford last week and held a 5-2 record on the season.
The opening kickoff of the game featured an onside kick that wound up in the Tigers hand. Two early short gain runs from Jase Hurd put the Waverly offense in an early third-down situation. The Pirates defense stood tall and forced a punt to get their offense the ball with solid field position.
The Pirates offense flew right out of the gate. Quarterback Braylon Rucker took a read option for 58 yards, setting up a Landon Hutchinson three-yard touchdown run. The Pirates jumped out to an early 7-0 lead.
Wheelersburg tried the onside kick again, this time recovering the attempt. The Pirates offense got the ball back on the Waverly 43-yard line. The offense quickly gained a first down, and Braylon Rucker took to the air. He found Devin Lattimore deep for a 32-yard touchdown score, and Wheelersburg took an early 14-0 lead.
Waverly’s offense got the ball back with a chance to make a one-score game. Hurd tried to get the offense going but couldn’t find any room to run with the football. Wheelersburg’s defense forced another three and out, giving their offense the ball back on the 50-yard line.
Wheelersburg’s offense continued to march right down the field. Using pre-snap motion, the offense was able to get into the redzone thanks to running backs Creed Warren and Jake Darling. Darling got the carry on the nine-yard line and rumble his way into the endzone, improving the Pirates lead to 20-0.
Moving into the second quarter, Wheelersburg kept their foot on the gas. Another three and out forced by the defense got the offense the ball back. This time, Braelon Rucker escaped the pocket and find his man Kenyon Evans for a 25-yard score, adding on to the Pirates lead.
The two teams traded punts on the next few possessions, giving Waverly the ball in their own territory. Quarterback Mason Kelly took a deep shot down the field and got a pass interference penalty, finally giving the Tigers their first first-down with 4:26 to play in the second quarter. Just as it seems their offense sustained a drive, the Wheelersburg defense forced a fumble and pounced right on it, giving it right back to the Pirates offense.
The Tigers defense got a stop and gave their offense the ball back. Jace Hurd caught a huge fourth down pass to extend the drive. Kelly found Mason Sparks in the back of the endzone on a deep pass and finally got the Tigers on the board, making the score 26-7 going into the half.
Wheelersburg would continue their dominance in the second half. The Pirates shut out in the half en route to a 40-7 victory.
With the win the Pirates improved to 4-3 on the year. Not to overlook their week 9 matchup with Waverly, but I know Wheelersburg has their eyes on the prize. In Week 10 the Pirates face off against Portsmouth West with a chance to have the Southern Ohio Conference on the line in their home stadium.
Waverly falls to 5-3 on the season and drops to 1-2 in conference play. They will host Northwest next week.