Could this be the season the Hilltoppers pass?
Every year Chardon coaches talk about opening up the offense some. Partly to throw off opponents, who stack the box against the Wing-T offense. Partly due to the genuine desire to be more versatile.
But when the offense is running well, calling run plays can be addictive.
And yet, the Hilltoppers threw to a 8-6 Week 1 victory against West Geauga.
Senior QB Patrick Sullivan, who bruised his knee in the pre-season and missed the team’s final scrimmage, looked like a regular gun-slinger by Chardon standards, completing seven of nine passes for 102 yards, including the team’s lone TD.
“We weren’t expecting to pass a lot this game,” Sullivan said, “but we ended up having to, and it worked out well.”
The game-winning playcall was called Joker Boot, Sullivan recalled. “So I turned my head around after the fake and I couldn’t believe how wide open Christian was, so I just set my feet and threw it to him.”
Junior Christian Ross caught the pass from 22 yards out.
“We’ve worked mainly on our rush game,” said Ross, one of the team’s two top halfbacks. “But we’ve really developed with Patrick as a senior QB. It all starts with the offensive line. If they do well, the backfield does well.”
Ross caught four passes for 84 yards and was wide open on multiple routes. “I have no idea,” he said of the open space. “They just didn’t cover me.”
Still, it was a run between the tackles that made the difference on the scoreboard.
Chardon played the game without a placekicker because of the knee injury to its kicker, Sullivan. Without confidence in the replacements, Chardon went for two after its third-quarter TD.
Ben Cyvas took the carry straight ahead for the conversion.
“Any time they hand me the ball and tell me the yards I need, I’m not not getting those yards,” Cyvas said of his goal. “I’m not going to fail them. I love my team. I’ll do anything for them.”
Chardon coach Mitch Hewitt wasn’t particularly happy with the offense and said the line needed to play better in the trenches.
“If you would have told me it was an 8-6 game tonight, I would have said no way,” Hewitt said. “I’m extremely proud of our defense. The offense gets the bulk of the coverage. The secondary isn’t very tall and there’s nobody over 205 pounds on the defensive front.”
Senior Drew McCartney played great defensively in the second half, sacking and pressuring West Geauga QB Cameron Searight on critical plays. He finished the night with three sacks.
“Drew was a beast,” Hewitt said. “We’re excited to watch what he can do over the next nine weeks.”
Of the halftime meeting, McCartney said, “We got fired up in the locker room and went over what we did wrong. We made our effort the best we could that half.”
West Geauga managed a strong opening drive before being stopped on fourth down. It then completed a 66-yard TD pass from Searight to senior Abdul Levy in the fourth quarter with five minutes remaining.
A Chardon offsides penalty inched the ball closer, but Levy was hit low and brought down before crossing the goal during the 2-point conversion, sealing the Hilltoppers’ win after two first downs and two knees.
Both teams played guys both ways, like Levy and Cyvas. Cyvas said he was “bright-eyed” about the opportunity to play so much.
“But I love contributing, and I love both sides of the ball,” he said. Senior Joe Grippe also played fullback and helped McCartney on the defensive line.
“I’m very appreciative of Joe,” Cyvas said. “Last year I took all the reps, but this year he’s really stepped up and helped me. He’s my side-hand man. I’m his side-hand man.”
The Wolverines moved quickly to the bus following the defeat. Coach Cirino has lost 27 seniors from a year ago, and new faces are forced to learn quickly. Weapons like Levy, Searight and Cameron Engoglia should help to turn things around quickly.
“For them to come out and be as physical as they are, it says something about their coaching staff,” Hewitt said of the Wolverines.
The game was taped by G-TV; a DVC copy can be purchased by emailing geaugatv@windstream.net.
More photos of the game visit http://smu.gs/WalxrF.