Tyrone’s offense is going to get a laundry list of accolades this season.
That’s just how the team is built. With Ashton Walk on the verge of becoming the program’s first passer to post multiple 2,000-yard seasons while spreading the ball around to the deepest and most talented group of receivers in the Laurel Highlands, there’s no escaping it, and it’s fair.
But last night against Huntingdon the Golden Eagles’ defense wasn’t taking a backseat to anybody. In the unit’s most dominant performance of the season, Tyrone’s stoppers forced five turnovers, blocked a field goal attempt, and limited the Bearcats to zero net yards in the second half of a 32-7 victory at War Vets Field.
The win snapped a two-game losing streak for the Golden Eagles, who now stand at 3-4 with three regular-season games remaining.
Against the winless ‘Cats, Tyrone dropped 8 plays behind the line of scrimmage and sacked Huntingdon quarterback Eric Mykut three times, including two by defensive tackle Cian Hockenberry.
Thanks to second-half interceptions by Logan Rumberger and Eli Woomer, the Bearcats managed just 10 offensive plays in the second and third quarter, and five of them were stopped for losses.
It was exactly the kind of performance Coach John Franco thought the team needed in an environment like War Vets Field, where the Eagles have played some of their most challenging games over the years.
“Two years ago, we came down here and we were 6-1, and we were lucky to come out of here with a win,” said Franco. “We know when they play here, they play so much better. They’re a tough group of kids. We knew we had to prepare. With all of our injuries, every game is a challenge. I was proud of our attitude in practice this week to prepare for this team like it was a state championship game.”
Behind 280 passing yards from Walk, Tyrone outgained Huntingdon 315-153, but although most of the numbers point to a clearly dominating performance by the Eagles, the truth is both teams stumbled through a first quarter where neither was free from miscues and no one seemed set on taking command of the game.
On Huntingdon’s first possession, the Bearcats moved 30 yards to Tyrone’s 21 before Kaiden Snare came on to attempt a 37-yard field goal. But the Eagles’ defensive line got a strong push up the middle, and Hockenberry batted the kick off the toe of Snare into the hands of Woomer, who returned the block 55 yards to the Huntingdon 19.
On the next play, Walk scrambled up the middle for a 19-yard touchdown to put Tyrone up 6-0 with 8:47 left in the first quarter.
“That’s putting your defense in a tough position,” said Huntingdon coach Tim Lucko. “We were starting to get the momentum and we gave it away.”
With kicker Dante Novak out with a shoulder injury, the Eagles were forced to go for two-point conversions after every score, and on the first Woomer scored on a fake kick to make it 8-0.
What followed was a chaotic three minutes of play that saw the ball change hands four times. The Bearcats fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and Ashton Emigh covered it up to give Tyrone the ball at Huntingdon’s 35. But three plays into their next drive Walk had a pass to Gayge Miller intercepted by Elliot Guisler at the 5. One play after that, Landon Erdman fumbled at the end of an 8-yard run, giving the ball back to Tyrone at the 13.
However, after three plays Walk was sacked for an 18-yard loss and the series ultimately ended on downs. Tyrone’s Klayten Moore answered on the third play of Huntingdon’s ensuing series with an interception, and this time the Eagles were able to cash in. Tyrone moved 38 yards in six plays and scored with 1:18 left in the quarter on an 11-yard pass to Woomer.
The pass for two again went to Adams to make it 16-0.
The lead grew to 24-0 with three minutes left in the half when Walk hit a streaking Adams for a 54-yard touchdown capped by a two-point conversion pass to Woomer.
“(Ashton) found the open receivers,” said Franco. “They have some tough coverages, but we thought it was tough to cover us because we have several guys we can go to, and our line has been doing a great job in protection the last couple of weeks.”
Huntingdon answered with its best drive of the game, one that went 66 yards in 9 plays. They key was a fourth-and-9 throw on a reverse from Reese Hughes to Guisler that covered 33 yards and set up Huntingdon at the 3. Two plays later, Mykut found Guisler zipping into the flat for a 1-yard score with 21 seconds remaining that made it 24-7 at halftime following Snare’s PAT kick.
“We’ll do a lot of positive things like that, and then we’ll shoot ourselves in the foot,” said Lucko. “At the end of the day, this all comes back on me. I’m the head coach. I’ve got to get my kids better prepared to play a football game.”
Tyrone’s lone second-half score came in the third quarter on the heels of an interception by Rumberger. The Golden Eagles used 9 plays to go 60 yards, converting twice on third downs. The big play was a 24-yard reception by Woomer on third-and-3 where the junior tiptoed to keep his feet in bounds and move the ball to Huntingdon’s 2.
Walk eventually powered it in from the 1 and Woomer caught the PAT.
Woomer pulled in an interception on the ‘Cats’ next possession, and the Eagles closed the game with tackles for loss from Hockenberry, Emigh, Moore, and Alex Starr the next two times Huntingdon had the ball.
Franco praised the playmaking of Woomer, who finished with 5 receptions for 79 yards – “He thrives in that moment. No matter what sport it is, he’s the guy who wants that big moment” – but emphasized the need for his team to figure things out where turnovers are concerned. The three they had against the ‘Cats made it 21 on the season.
“We have got to eliminate them,” he said. “That just ticked me off.”
NOTES: Adams had 3 receptions for 122 yards … Caleb Whitby handled the kickoff duties in the absence of Novak, while Ian Gibbons averaged 46.5 yards on two punts … the Bearcats fell to 0-7 … Tyrone hosts Central Cambria next week, while the Bearcats travel to Forest Hills, which was 10 points head of the Eagles in the 3A standings heading into Friday’s games.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Tyrone 16 8 8 0 – 32
Huntingdon 0 7 0 0 – 7
First Quarter
T – Walk 19 run (Woomer run) 8:47
T – Woomer 11 pass from Walk (Walk pass to Adams) 1:18
Second Quarter
T – Adams 54 pass from Walk (Walk pass to Woomer) 3:05
H – Guisler 1 pass from Mykut (Snare kick) :21.2
Third Quarter
T – Walk 1 run (Walk pass to Woomer) 3:33
TEAM STATISTICS H T
First downs 7 14
Total yards 153 315
Rushes-yards 26-77 32-35
Yards passing 76 280
Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 8-16-3 13-20-2
Punts-avg. 3-30.3 4-46.5
Fumbles-lost 2-2 5-1
Penalties-yards 1-0 5-25
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
Tyrone – Hoover 18-41; Walk 5-8; A. Emigh 5-13; Whitby 3-(-25); Team 2-(-2). Huntingdon – Mykut 12-17; Lane 6-21; Erdman 3-22; McCall 3-5; Gibson 1-5; Hughes 1-7.
PASSING
Tyrone – Walk 13-20-280, 2 TDs, 2 Ints. Huntingdon – Mykut 6-13-43, 1 TD, 3 Ints.; Guisler 1-1-0; Hughes 1-2-33.
RECEIVING
Tyrone – M. Emigh 1-5; Miller 1-3; Adams 3-122; Woomer 5-79; Hoover 1-19; Weston 1-15; Martin 1-37. Huntingdon – Hughes 6-71; Gibson 1-0; Lane 1-5.
ORANGE AND BLACK 