The Tyrone junior high football team hosted the Blue Devils of Bellwood-Antis Thursday evening for a match up in the mud, and prevailed 22-6.
A steady rain throughout the game caused a lot of slipping and sliding, and kept both offenses relying on the ground game. Both teams were unable to get their footing on their first drives, and it looked as though the game would turn out to be a defensive battle. On Tyrone’s second possession of the game, however, running back Dustin Brown took a counter play 55 yards for a touchdown. The Golden Eagles faked the extra point kick, and converted the two point conversion to go ahead 8-0.
Brown finished the game with 158 yards rushing and three touchdowns, his second coming on Tyrone’s next offensive possession. After halting a Blue Devil fake punt, Tyrone took over in enemy territory and drove down to the 8 yard line. Brown took it in from there, and after the two point try failed, Tyrone was ahead 14-0.
Bellwood responded, using a 59 yard running play to get down to Tyrone’s one yard line. The Golden Eagle defense rose to the occasion, stuffing three up the middle runs and then shutting down a sweep on fourth down. The Blue Devil defense came up big later in the game, when they intercepted Tyrone and set up shop on the opposing 14. Josh Klinefelter scored from a yard out, and although they missed the two point conversion, Bellwood had narrowed the gap to 14-6.
“It was an excellent game for us,” said Tyrone coach Dan Plummer. “The team really came together and played their best game of the season. The offensive and defensive lines did a fantastic job that stands out for us. This waqs a very hard-hitting, physical game for both teams.Individually, Dustin Brown did an excellent job at running back and Tyler hoover and Bill Smith on both offense and defense did a super job on the line. This was a big game for us. Bellwood is always a big rival at any level. They gave a good effort, played hard against us and did a good job.”
As the game wore on, field conditions got worse and both teams struggled to hold onto the football. While Tyrone had problems with the center/quarterback exchange, the Blue Devils fumbled with three minutes left to play. As Tyrone began to run the clock out, Brown slipped out of the hands of several Blue Devil defenders and raced 25 yards for his third score of the game. The successful two point conversion set the final score at 22-6.
In eighth grade action, the undefeated Blue Devils edged out Tyrone 6-0. Throughout the game both teams used several running backs, but neither offense was able to find the end zone until late, when Bellwood’s Devon Clapper scored from the Tyrone four yard line with 13 seconds left in the game. Clapper broke a tackle in the backfield, and then beat the Golden Eagle defense to the corner to score the game winning touchdown. Clapper also amassed 93 rushing yards to go along with his touchdown.
