#9 Drew Plitt completes pass to Alex Hesse late in 4th quarter
Late Loveland rally wins regional title over Mt. Healthy 35-28
by Willie Lutz
Loveland, Oh.- High School football is a game of 48 minutes, two halves, and four quarters. It doesn’t matter whose down when, who makes mistakes, and what bad calls were made. All that matters is that who has the higher score when that clock reads 0:00 at the end of the game. With six minutes remaining in the game, the Tigers were trailing 28-14 to the Mt. Healthy Owls and showed no sign of life. As the clock expired and the Tigers lined up in that magical victory V formation, the warriors from Loveland High School pounded their way to the Ohio Div. II State semi-finals.
Mt. Healthy had their story inked out in pen in the history books of the OHSAA, all they had to do was close the book. Instead, the Tigers denied fate and rewrote the course of history. It was almost paranormal; Loveland’s student section had been muted for the first time all year. Almost for an entire half of football, but in the nature of the Tiger, they weren’t ready to go home. All that mattered were those magical final six minutes of football where the Tigers left every ounce of sweat on that Lockland High School gridiron.
They weren’t ready to let everything they worked for in the offseason slip through their fingers and begin the discussion of next year. An offseason that would last for nearly ten months, a time after the Tigers would lose all the seniors who have worked countless months, days, hours, minutes, and seconds perfecting their game of football. They couldn’t let that happen. The senior class has become accustomed to championships; they won league championships in 7th grade, 8th grade, as freshman, JV, and again this season in varsity football. They couldn’t let all of those championships be overshadowed by the looming trophy that trumps all other titles; the OHSAA Football State Championship.
After stopping the drive at the goal line, which would’ve been the nail in the coffin for the Loveland Tigers, Drew Plitt launched a perfect pass up the gridiron to Tre Heath which put the Tigers right in the Red Zone. Then, Luke Waddell punches in a ten yard touchdown. 28-21, Mount Healthy leads, 5:14 remains.
#5 Brian Popp takes down Hount Health QB David Montgomery
Then, Mt. Healthy was faced with the task of reclaiming the energy and emotion they had captured all game. They were playing for their slain brother, Vincent Turnage, who was a former football and track star at Mt. Healthy. Turnage had received a full ride scholarship to the University of Akron, but he was need home by his family. On November 17th, Turnage walked up stairs due to some commotion he was hearing. He saw both of his parents tied up before he was shot and killed. It was very tough on many of the players to see a man who they had played with just a season ago, now no longer with them.
Wide Receiver, Tyree Elliot, was wearing Turnage’s #85 as opposed to his normal #10 jersey. The boxing match between the Mt. Healthy Fighting Owls and the Loveland Tigers was one of those games where football was much heavier than the game itself. Mt. Healthy had the weight of the community on their backs, and for the most part, carried it without a struggle.
After a Max Mather kick-off, the Owls were at their own twenty yard line. On this drive, a hero was born. After two great stops on defense, the Tigers were faced with the challenge of containing Owls quarterback, David Montgomery on third down. Montgomery had been taking whatever he wanted from the Tigers. He was playing like Cam Newton in his days at Auburn. Montgomery had picked up 222 yards throughout the course of the game. Nothing Loveland tried could truly stop him. That was until on third down. A Montgomery pass is deflected… then intercepted, by who other than Max Mather. Immediately, every ounce of momentum headed to the Loveland side line. Drew Plitt launched a perfect spiral to Alex Hesse. Then Gunner Gambill slammed the ball into the end zone. 28-28, tie ball game, 3:49 remains.
#37 Luke Waddell, #56 Camden Baucke, #74 Andrew Alten, #19 Alex Hesse
Once again, Mather’s kick out of the back of the end zone but the Owls on the 20 yard line. Montgomery takes a quarterback keeper all the way down to the Loveland 30 yard marker. After a systematic 3 play, first down pickup, the Tigers had to stop the Owls inside the red zone, a place that was Mt. Healthy’s stomping grounds. On first down, Montgomery goes down with a knee injury that would hold him out for the remainder of the game, so it was up to Tyree Elliot to fill in as the quarterback for the Owls. On second down, magic happened.
Elliot was heading down the far side of the field, when it appeared the play had been halted due to a tackle, all of the sudden, a man in black was seen sprinting towards the Tiger end zone. Michael Weber had recovered an Owls fumble and hauled down field to pick up an 81yard Tiger Touchdown. An almost overwhelming volcanic eruption of cheers from the Tiger fans and the Tigers on the sideline themselves had proved to be a loud sigh of relief. Just like every other extra point, ice water Evan Burig pounded the ball square through the gilded uprights. 35-28, Tigers recapture the lead, 1:20 remaining.
It was time for the Tigers to finish the comeback that will be remembered in folk lore for the rest of time. Mather kicks the ball deep, but not out of the end zone. The referee swung his arm in a circle signaling the clock to start, and the returner stood on the one yard line, assuming the play was over, where he was splattered by the Loveland kick-off team. Could Mt. Healthy do it again? Last week, on their last drive of the game, they marched down field to knock off the Winton Woods Warriors. Tonight, the Loveland Tigers refused to let that happen. Four plays later, the Loveland Tigers had defeated the Mt. Healthy Owls despite all odds. The moral of the story for that miraculous Friday night, the team led by head coach Fred Cranford wasn't going to let anyone, including their own fans, write them off.
Next week, the DIV. II state ranked #2 Tigers will take on the #1 team in Ohio, the Zanesville Blue Devils. Expect a historic battle on both sides of the ball. Zanesville took down New Albany by a final margin of 35-28 to reach their spot in the state semi-final pairing. The team will be a battle of the undefeated. Both teams are looking at their 13-0 records and have no intention of adding blemishes to perfect seasons.
Friday’s game will be played at Columbus St. Francis DeSales Alumni Stadium at 7:30 PM.
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