Saturday, September 26, 1998

Tornadoes roll over Willard, 45-13

By Dave Feltner
Sports Editor

Check those Northern Ohio League statistics again. Who's last in the league in offense?

What took the Columbian offense nearly three weeks to accomplish was done in less than three hours Friday night against Willard.

The Tornadoes moved the ball just 601 yards through the first three weeks (dead last in the NOL), but TC ran over, through and around the Crimson Flashes in racking up 548 yards in a 45-13 rout.

It was a break-out night for a trio of Columbian juniors. Quarterback Brent Wise was nearly perfect in hitting on 15-of-20 passes for 254 yards, while his favorite target, Brad Snyder, grabbed seven passes for 154 yards.

But the air show was only half the story. On the ground Jeremiah Johnson had his best game to date, rushing for 149 yards, four touchdowns on 25 carries.

The offensive explosion left Willard coach Terry King speechless. He had no comment after the game.

After a 4-0 start and convincing win in the league opener, the words came easy for Columbian coach Steve Gilbert.

''We knew it was just a matter of time,'' he said. ''We have a different type of offense than we've had in the past. I really like the balance we had tonight. We passed the ball extremely well, but when we had to run the ball and chew up the clock we did.

''I mean we only punted the ball once; that's just outstanding,'' he said. ''Mike Porter's kicking the ball extremely well. Really, I think it's all about the kids gaining confidence. But I hope they realize how they've gotten here. It's been through hard work.''

The Tornado offense, which racked up 25 first downs, was on the move on its first possession. But after Johnson's 29-yard burst up the middle, Wise and Brad Anspach had trouble on the exchange and Willard recovered the loose ball on its 3.

But TC was back on the move on its next try. Fueled by Johnson's 20-yarder, TC moved 70 yards in 11 plays, capped by Johnson's 1-yard plunge. The first of six Mike Porter PATs made it 7-0.

Willard struck back on the ensuing kickoff when Nick Bailey found a hole in the wedge and flew 85 yards to knot the score, 7-7.

On Columbian's next play from scrimmage, Wayne LeGrant took a reverse hand-off from Wise and sprinted 57 yards for a score, the third in just 32 seconds between the two teams.

After that it was all Columbian.

The Tornadoes would score on their next three possessions, while the defense held the Flashes to just two first downs.

The next score was on a 12-yard dash by Johnson to make it 21-7 with three minutes left in the half. Wise hit all four of his passes on the drive, including ones of 44 and 19 yards to Snyder.

Wise finished the first half 10-of-15 for 139 yards.

''I think Brent made a statement tonight,'' Gilbert said. ''All the talk has been about the Willard quarterback or the Galion quarterback, but tonight Brent showed what kind of command of this offense he has.''

Porter, who hasn't missed a kick this year, would add a 25-yard field before the end of the half for a 24-7 cushion.

''It's somebody different every week,'' Gilbert said. ''I thought Greg Hoke (4 catches, 55 yards) had a breakout game and I thought Brad Anspach had a great game blocking. That's the most we've balanced in a long time. We talked onSunday about how we were only throwing short; we wanted to get the ball down the field and stretch the defense a little, and I think we did a good job of that.''

The Tornadoes took the ball on the opening possession of the second half and moved 77 yards in just six plays, finished by Johnson's 1-yard blast. Wise hooked up with Hoke for 33 yards and Snyder for 25 to highlight the drive.

Johnson scored his fourth TD on Columbian's next possession and Anspach tacked on the final score, a 2-yard blast, with 10:50 left in the game.

Willard's final score came a minute later on a 3-yard run by Bailey.

''I'm really proud of this team,'' Gilbert said. ''I think a lot people doubted them, but I think they're showing they can play. This is just what we wanted. We wanted to start the league off with a big win. Now we're in control. We're in first and we want to stay there.''