Upper Arlington running back Drew Theado kept the Orange defense busy most of the night. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Angie Greenwood).
Despite committing three turnovers, the Pioneers used four touchdown runs from Lucas Fickel to edge Upper Arlington and stay unbeaten.
Upper Arlington, OH – Standing atop Division I, Region 3 in computer points and off to its best start in program history, Olentangy Orange has rarely been challenged this fall while taking on the mantle of Central Ohio’s best team.
One thing the Pioneers haven’t had to do much of is overcome adversity, but they can now check that off their list of learning experiences as the 2025 season continues to age closer to playoff time.
Veteran central Ohio columnist Jarrod Ulrey writes the OCC and sports at large for Press Pros
On Friday at Ohio Capital Conference Central Division-power Upper Arlington, Orange turned the ball over on each of its first two possessions and committed another turnover midway through the final period.
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Despite those miscues, the Pioneers managed to pull away for a 28-14 victory and improve to 8-0 overall and 3-0 in the league.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game the whole way through, and we just had to stay resilient,” senior Treyton Schroeder said. “That was a good test. We needed that with the later part of the season and the playoffs coming up.”
Having perhaps the best one-two punch offensively in Central Ohio — senior quarterback Levi Davis and senior running back Lucas Fickel — combined with a playmaker on both sides of the ball in Schroeder at wide receiver and defensive back, the Pioneers are reaching new heights this fall.
“Everyone takes pride in what their role is, and that’s the key part of our team, that and just knowing (Davis and Fickel) are back there and can run when they want and get five yards when you need them to,” Schroeder said. “This is the fewest amount of points Orange has given up going into week nine. We’re just very connected and have fun playing together.”
Upper Arlington, which lost its second game in a row but is 6-2 overall and 1-2 in the league, was poised to hang with the Pioneers from the start after the teams split a pair of matchups a year ago.
Golden Bears senior Ryan Marks recovered a fumble by Fickel on the game’s third play at the Orange 23, but the Pioneers responded by forcing UA to turn it over on downs on the same yard line.
Olentangy Orange QB Levi Davis scrambles for additional yards against Upper Arlington.
UA sophomore Nolan Miller intercepted Davis with 6:03 left in the opening quarter at the Orange 25. This time, the Bears cashed in as senior quarterback Luke Backes ran in from 5 yards at 5:01 for a 7-0 lead.
Orange gained a turnover of its own four minutes later when Schroeder intercepted a pass at the UA 25. Three plays after that, Fickel ran in from 14 yards to tie it at 7.
Schroeder has three interceptions on the season and 18 for his career.
“The kids played hard, and the best thing about it was after our first turnover, the kids got a stop right after that,” coach Wes Schroeder said. “We were super proud of our guys for responding.
“I was really proud of Treyton. I don’t give him enough credit because he’s my nephew, but he’s an important piece of the puzzle. When you go against (UA) coach (Justin) Buttermore, you’re going to have to earn it. You have to execute over and over. They’re physical and they’re disciplined.”
The Bears went ahead 14-7 on a 2-yard run by Backes with 5:25 to go before halftime, but the Pioneers responded with an 11-play, 78-yard drive that took up the remainder of the first half.
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Davis hit Treyton Schroeder for a 48-yard reception on the second play of the possession. After setting up first-and-goal at the UA 4, Fickel ran for 3 yards on first down, but Davis was stuffed for no gain on the next two plays.
Then with three seconds left, Fickel charged in for a 1-yard run to tie it at 14.
“It jarred us a little bit having those turnovers early, and it got us to thinking that we’ve got to play as tough physically as possible to win,” Fickel said. “They’re definitely the best team we’ve played all season, and I’m really glad we came out on top. We just spend a lot of time together getting the reads done, and the coaches are really good at scheming.”
Upper Arlington quarterback Luke Backes forces his way into the end zone to score the second Golden Bears touchdown.
UA opened the second half by marching from its 20 down to the Orange 7, but on fourth-and-4, Backes was stopped for a 1-yard gain to turn it over on downs with 5:46 to go in the third period.
Orange then put together a 17-play, 94-yard drive that ate up the remainder of the third-period clock and continued five plays into the fourth. Fickel ran for a 2-yard score with 9:42 remaining to make it 21-14.
“(Fickel is) pretty good at football,” coach Schroeder said. “He runs hard. He wants the ball. Coach Buttermore mixes up things, and they gave us some nice pressures, but when you have a guy like (Fickel), it’s pretty easy to give him the ball.”
Fickel wasn’t done, but his longest run from scrimmage came after two other key possessions.
Orange turned it over again on a fumbled snap with 7:25 remaining, with Miller falling on it at the UA 9, and the Bears began marching downfield in hopes of tying it.
After reaching the Pioneers’ 46, Backes threw three consecutive incompletions to force fourth down. He then nearly hooked up with senior wide receiver Trent Wolpert near the goal line, but Treyton Schroeder got a hand on the ball and it went incomplete to give it back to Orange.
Olentangy Orange running back Lucas Fickel extends the ball into the end zone during the first quarter.
On the first play of the Pioneers’ ensuing possession, Fickel sprinted for a 54-yard touchdown run to complete the scoring.
Fickel finished with 24 carries for 195 yards and four touchdowns.
“They’re good everywhere,” Buttermore said. “Each position group they have on offense is the best we’ve seen all year. That’s a testament that they do a good job coaching, too. They’re very talented. But Fickel is a different player than he was last year. He played jayvee last year against us.
“We got turnovers when we needed to get them, but we also turned the ball back to them, and you can’t do that. They’re extremely good, as good as anybody I’ve seen in a long time. Their offense is so explosive that it’s rare they don’t have an explosive play on any drive.”
While the Pioneers will look to remain undefeated next Friday when they play host to Hilliard Bradley, the Bears will attempt to bounce back at Dublin Coffman.
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Backes finished 14-for-27 passing for 132 yards and rushed for 47 yards and two touchdowns. Junior running back Drew Theado rushed 13 times for 85 yards to lead the UA offense.
“Coffman’s record isn’t great (at 2-6), but they competed really well against Orange,” Buttermore said. “In our league, if you don’t play well, you’re not going to win. (Tonight came down to) a couple plays, a couple turnovers, a couple big plays on both sides, but I was proud of our effort. You look at the film and see they’re as good as any team in the state. We wanted to be within a score in the fourth quarter, and we were in position but we couldn’t put it all together.”
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