Steubenville runs past Jackson in regional quarterfinals
By: Andrew Woods
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STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (WOUB) – Despite both playing football for over a century, the Steubenville Big Red (9-2) and the Jackson Ironmen (8-4) had never faced off until the 2026 Region 11 quarterfinals. In their first matchup, Steubenville’s run game made a strong impression, rushing for 386 yards and powering the Big Red to a dominant 47-17 win.
Steubenville started with the ball and asserted their dominance on the ground immediately. Colton Henderson broke off rushes for 11 and 34 yards, then James Turner punched in a one-yard touchdown.
Jackson responded with a long, methodical drive down the field powered by a strong run game and a pass interference on a fourth-and-seven. Eventually, though, Steubenville forced the Ironmen to settle for a 27-yard field goal.
Henderson and the Big Red run game struck again on the next drive, taking only four plays to go down the field and score. This time, Turner scored a six-yard touchdown to make the score 14-3 Steubenville at the end of the first quarter.
Steubenville continued to drive during the second quarter. In total, the Big Red averaged 11.2 yards per play in the first half compared to Jackson’s three. However, Steubenville only scored once in the second quarter off a Colton Henderson touchdown.
Despite Steubenville’s dominance, the Ironmen seemed to find a spark at the end of the first half thanks to Dayton Kallner’s interception. His pick kept the score at 21-3 Steubenville at halftime.
Jackson turned the momentum from the end of the first half into a strong drive to start the second half. The Ironmen started their drive with a 33-yard rush from Tate Rosler, who led the Ironmen with 118 yards rushing on the night. Jackson then slowly made their way down the field with small rushes that put them in a goal-to-go situation.
Despite a false start on the Big Red one-yard line, the Ironmen were able to convert thanks to a 2-yard Nash Rosler rush, which narrowed the gap to 21-10.
Just as the momentum seemed to be headed in Jackson’s favor, Steubenville took back control of the game. Henderson, who rushed for 173 yards on only seven carries, broke off his biggest carry of the night and scored on a 73-yard rushing touchdown. Tate Rosler then fumbled on Jackson’s first play, which set up Steubenville quarterback Santino Haney’s touchdown pass to Kaiden Anderson a few plays later. The Big Red’s scoring storm made the score 35-10 at the end of the third quarter and put the game all but out of reach for the Ironmen.
Despite the score, the Ironmen kept fighting in the fourth quarter. Christian Gillum recovered a fumble, then Tate Rosler capped off a strong night with a 41-yard touchdown. However, Steubenville put the game away with touchdowns from Carson Simmons and By’Seir Luke.
Thanks to their convincing 47-17 win, Steubenville will continue in the OHSAA playoffs. The Big Red will host Dover Friday, November 13 in the Region 11 semifinals.