Mount Gilead topped by Upper Sandusky Friday

A slow start offensively placed the Mount Gilead football team in a 12-0 hole at the half — a deficit they would be unable to overcome in falling to the Rams by a 26-12 margin to fall to 1-1 on the season.

In the first half, the Indians were only able to muster one first down on a 13-yard pass from Cole Fricke to Logan High early in the second period. Meanwhile, the Rams were able to control the pace of the game behind the arm of quarterback Kaden Holman. Holman finished the game with 328 yards and three touchdowns, while completing 18-of-20 passes.

Head coach Mike Reid noted that Holman was a thorn in his team’s side all evening.

“In a game like that, it’s really important that we cap the routes and it’s really important that we find the routes and we don’t get beat deep,” said the coach. “We lost coverage a couple times there. Kaden Holman is a very, very good quarterback. My first year over here at Gilead, I knew right away I’d really have to game plan for him the next couple years. Give him a lot of credit — he’s good at what he does. But at the same time, we’ve got some things on film now that we can work on a little bit.”

Upper Sandusky took the opening kickoff in the game and looked like they would move the ball down the field and score. However, with the ball on the Indian 15, the Rams fumbled a snap and MG pounced on the ball to kill that threat.

Unfortunately for the Indians, their early struggles moving the ball meant that Upper would get the ball back quickly. This time, they would drive 80 yards in eight plays, getting a 13-yard touchdown pass from Holman to Max Martinez to take a 6-0 lead after missing the PAT kick.

After another three-and-out by Mount Gilead, the Rams took advantage of a 54-yard pass play to travel 79 yards in five plays. This time, Damon Ward handled the honors, scoring on an eight-yard rush.

Upper’s attempt at a two-point conversion didn’t net any points, so the score was 12-0. It would remain that way for the final 10:42 of the first half, as Mount Gilead was able to force a pair of Upper Sandusky punts to stay within striking distance.

With his team’s offensive struggles, Reid was very pleased that they were able to stay in the game thanks to some strong defensive work.

“I told the kids we made a lot of mistakes, but it’s only 12-0,” said the coach. “You’ve been advantageous, you’ve taken care of some business, we’ve dealt with some adversity and now we just have to show some heart and let’s get back to work.”

Mount Gilead then opened the third quarter with a lengthy drive that saw them move the ball from their 30 into the end zone over the course of 17 plays and nearly 10 minutes.

While the Indians got a pair of passes from Fricke — to High for 10 yards and to Cam Vickers for 12 — they did much of their work on the ground, getting 27 yards from Mason Barnum and 18 from Fricke before Carson Trainer scored on a three-yard carry. The team couldn’t convert on its point-after kick, but had cut their deficit in half.

“I’m awful proud of how they came out,” said Reid. “I don’t mind taking that time — at least Holman doesn’t have the ball in his hands at that point — but we just needed to be able to shut him down when he comes back out again because we’re back in the game at that point.”

That would not happen, though. Upper Sandusky was able to advance the ensuing kick into Mount Gilead territory at the 47 and, three plays later, Holman hit Gavin Frey for a 28-yard scoring pass. He would then hook up with Max Martinez for a two-point conversion to give the Rams a 20-6 lead late in the third.

Mount Gilead would respond with another run-heavy drive that saw them convert a fake punt attempt before Fricke scored from 25 yards out to make it a 20-12 contest with 7:44 left in regulation. However, they would not be able to get a crucial stop on Upper Sandusky’s next drive. After throwing an incompletion on the team’s first play, Holman hit Ethan Hill for a 61-yard score to make it a 26-12 game.

While the Indians had two more chances to move the ball, the Ram defense proved to be up to the task, allowing them to preserve the win.

Fricke hit on 8-of-16 passes for 72 yards and a pick, while also running for 60. Barnum had 35 yards rushing, while Vickers caught three passes for 32 yards and High had two for 24.

While his team wasn’t able to complete the comeback, Reid was proud of the heart they showed to stick around and give themselves a chance.

“One thing about the Mount Gilead kids I found out when I came over here right after the COVID years is they have a lot of heart,” he said. “That first group I had, they had heart; the kids that graduated last year, they have a lot of heart. They’re really committed to getting better every single time out. Halftime, we made a couple adjustments and they listened, they were teachable and we got some things to build on now.”

Rob Hamilton can be reached at 419-946-3010, ext. 1807. Connect with him on Twitter at @SportsMCS