One of the things that makes Tyrone coach John Franco so good – at least in the eyes of Indian Valley coach Gawen Stoker – is his ability to break down an opponent’s weaknesses and figure out what will work when his team has the football.
Unfortunately for Stoker, what worked against his Warriors in their 47-13 loss to Tyrone last night in a MAC non-divisional game at Mitchell Field could be broken down pretty easily. It might even fit with room to spare on a quarterback’s wristband play card: everything.
Tyrone pulverized Valley from beginning to end, scoring on every possession but its last, which ended when backup quarterback Tyler Golden drove the Eagles as far as the IV 5, only to take a knee on the Eagles’ final four plays.
“Coach Franco always does a good job,” Stoker said. “He picks at things and finds out where you’re weak and how you’re reacting to things and comes back to them.”
What Franco went to most against Valley was a running game so potent that it never went without gaining positive yardage until Golden began killing the clock with just over three minutes to play. The Eagles rushed for 317 yards and six touchdowns with senior Brinton Mingle leading the way, piling up 117 yards and three scores on 14 carries.
Leonard Wilson completed 8 of 10 passes for 101 yards and two touchdowns, in the process becoming the first quarterback in Tyrone history to surpass the 3,000-yard mark for his career. He also ran for 49 yards before being pulled in the third quarter.
Four of Wilson’s completions went for 13 yards or more as the senior averaged 10 yards per attempt.
“When you protect your passer and he’s as good as Leonard Wilson, your passing game is going to work,” Stoker said.
The win assured Tyrone (8-0) of the top seed in the District 6-AA playoffs, which begin in two weeks. It also put the Eagles one step closer to clinching the program’s ninth unbeaten regular season, which they will shoot for next week against Penns Valley at Gray Veterans Memorial Field on Senior Night.
“We played well in just about every area tonight,” said Tyrone coach John Franco. “You have to because Stoker-coached teams are always tough and well-prepared.”
While that may be true, the Warriors were in no way prepared to handle Tyrone’s defensive onslaught, which accounted for three sacks, 10 tackles behind the line of scrimmage, three turnovers and 36 yards in losses.
It was that effort that guaranteed Tyrone would play the game miles ahead in the battle for field position. Of the Eagles’ nine possessions, their worst field position to start a drive was their own 47.
Tyrone scored first on a seven-play, 43-yard drive that saw Wilson complete passes of 15 and 13 yards to Trey Brockett and Shane Barr, respectively, before Mingle sprinted in from seven yards out. Buddy Stotler’s kick made it 7-0.
Sophomore Johnny Franco set up the Eagles’ next score when he intercepted Valley quarterback Anthony Trutt at the IV 38. On Tyrone’s ensuing play, Wilson broke loose on a quarterback draw for a 44-yard gain to the 7, and two plays later Mingle crashed in from the 2 to make it 14-0.
Later in the first quarter, following a short IV punt and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the Warriors, Franco scored his ninth touchdown of the season on a 16-yard run as time expired in the first quarter. On the play, Franco hurdled one defender and cut on a dime past another near the goal line to put the lid on a three-play, 43-yard scoring march and lift Tyrone to a 21-0 lead.
Wilson’s tenth touchdown pass of the season – a four-yarder to Tyler Gillmen in the second quarter – ended an eight-play, 43-yard drive and made it 27-0 with 6:19 until halftime.
Valley got on the board with its next possession, moving 80 yards in eight plays. Jordan Brought capped the drive by hauling in an 18-yard pass from Trutt in the front corner of the end zone to make it 27-7 with 1:56 left in the first half.
It was 1:56 that the Eagles used judiciously, piecing together a six-play, 53-yard drive to squeeze in one more score before halftime. Franco got the drive started with a 13-yard run, and Trey Brockett kept it going with a 21-yard reception to the IV 12 four plays later. Wilson then hit Shane Barr crossing over the middle for a 12-yard touchdown pass that made it 33-7.
The teams exchanged fumbles out of the locker room, but the net result was Tyrone beginning its second drive of the third quarter at the Warriors’ 30-yard line. On play number 3 of the series, Mingle crashed in from the 8 and Tyrone led 40-7.
It was 47-7 just two minutes later, following another short-field drive. Tyrone took over following a punt at its own 49 and promptly handed off to Gillmen for 24 yards and Franco for 20 to the IV 2. Marvin Williams did the rest of the work from there, blasting in from the 1.
GRID TIDBITS: Brockett recovered a first quarter fumble, while James Updike corralled one in the third quarter … Stotler and Robert Emigh each had sacks … Franco ran for 65 yards on six carries … Valley’s final touchdown came on a one-yard run by Nam Shartzer in the fourth quarter … the Warriors fell to 2-6.
Sports Editor’s Note: I apologize to all the Tyrone faithful for failing to report that due to the Daily Herald’s strict Friday night deadline for getting our pages to the printing company, that we would not be able to print the story about the Tyrone/Indian Valley football game until Monday. The mistake in not alerting you was totally mine, for which I am very sorry. I will do the very best I can, not to let that happen again. Thank you for your concern. Bob Miller, Daily Herald Sports Editor.
Tyrone 47 Indian Valley 13
Tyrone 21 12 14 0 – 47
Indian Valley 0 7 0 6 – 13
First Quarter
T – Mingle 7 run (Stotler kick) 7:05
T – Mingle 2 run (Stotler kick) 3:44
T – Franco 16 run (Stotler kick) 0:00
Second Quarter
T – Gillmen 4 pass from Wilson (PAT failed) 6:19
IV – Brought 18 pass from Trutt (Laub kick) 1:56
T – Barr 12 pass from Wilson (PAT failed) 0:13
Third Quarter
T – Mingle 8 run (Stotler kick) 8:18
T – M. Williams 1 run (Rudasill kick) 6:17
Fourth Quarter
IV – Shartzer 1 run (PAT failed) 11:06
Team
T IV
First Downs 21 12
Yards Rushing 317 66
Pass Att.-Comp. 8-10 8-15
Pass Yards 101 92
Total Yards 418 158
Fumbles/Lost 1-1 4-2
Interceptions Thrown 0 1
Penalties/Yards 6-30 2-25
Punts/Avg. 0-0 4-35
Rushing
Tyrone – Mingle 14-117; Wilson 2-49; Franco 6-65; Gillmen 2-25; Tate 4-30; Leader 3-7; M. Williams 1-1; Walk 2-5; B. Williams 1-3; Golden 5-0; Brockett 1-15.
Indian Valley – White 2-31; Shartzer 8-27; Hartman 2-5; Hockenberry 3-14; Long 2-13; Thompson 4-(-9); Trutt 6-(-16).
Passing
Tyrone – Wilson 8-10-101, 2 TD, 0 Int.
Indian Valley – Trutt 6-11-59, 1 TD, 1 Int.; Long 2-4-33.
Receiving
Tyrone – Barr 3-41; Brockett 2-36; Gillmen 2-12; Morrow 1-12.
Indian Valley – Brought 2-24; Rosenberry 1-21; Green 2-20; Shartzer 1-11; Reigle 1-4; White 1-12.
