Drew Langenkamp dashes 46 yards for his second of four touchdowns. (Press Pros Feature Photos By Julie Wright-Daniel)
Drew Langenkamp rushed for 190 yards and four touchdowns to lift St. Henry past Versailles in the MAC’s opening weekend.
St Henry, Ohio – When St. Henry senior running back Drew Langenkamp isn’t on the football field, he’s most likely catching baseballs behind the plate or playing poker with his good friend Tate Boeckman.
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That duo knows what it’s like to win; they contributed to St. Henry’s state title a year ago. And after an 0-2 start, they decided it was time the young guys knew the feeling of participating in a varsity win.
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St. Henry (1-2) toppled Versailles (2-1) 34-21 in the MAC opener, largely due to Langenkamp’s four rushing touchdowns. Four of a kind is a winning hand in his football games as much as his poker games.
“We learned from last year’s seniors about leadership, accountability, teaching the young guys, carrying the tradition,” Langenkamp said. “That’s the main thing around here.”
Kenny Rogers probably wasn’t talking about handing off a football when he sang you have to “know when to run,” but there was no wrong time for Langenkamp to run. He rushed for 190 yards, and averaged around eight per carry.
“We knew coming into the game we were gonna have to run the ball on them,” Langenkamp said. “It was gonna be a battle of the trenches: our O-line versus their line. I’ve got ours every time.”
Austin Zimmerman tips a 4th-down pass to himself to extend the opening drive. The Redskins cashed it in for six.
If you’d guessed before the game which team ran for 202 yards, you probably would have said the 2-0 team that runs a T-formation offense. But no, Langenkamp plowed away behind a steady offensive line led by Nick Lefeld to gain control early and keep it to the end.
“We’re an inexperienced group,” Head Coach Josh Werling said. “So then you have to lean on the few guys who have been there. Drew Langenkamp, Nick Lefeld, Tate Boeckman, Drew Buschur … we lean on them.”
Boeckman, a returning starter at receiver, contributed four catches for 56 yards, a touchdown and an interception in the first half alone.
The inexperience, injury issues, and strength of schedule led to St. Henry’s 0-2 record against Celina and Archbold. Werling plugged 12 starting holes with backups due to injury against Archbold.
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“Having a lot of guys back tonight allowed me to use all my energy,” Boeckman said. “With our receivers back, I can get a break on offense, and with our linebackers back, we set the edge better and they weren’t able to run.”
Just in time for conference play, St. Henry proved you’re not always what your record says you are.
Tate Boeckman high points a pass from Landon Schwartz for a 31 yard gain.
“I got told all week that they’re 0-2,” Versailles coach Scott Broerman said. “I said I didn’t buy that at all. Celina and Archbold are really good, and they’ve had some injuries. They’re too well coached and had too much success last year to fold like that.”
The Redskins will be a force to be reckoned with once again in the MAC this season. The usual suspects joined St. Henry as conference opener winners: Marion Local, Coldwater, Minster and Anna.
It’s Marion’s League until someone takes it from them, but St. Henry will give some top teams trouble this season. They have too many athletes not to.
Now that those athletes on the outside are healthy, quarterback Landon Schwartz completed his first six passes to six different receivers. He finished 12/16 for 184 yards and a touchdown.
Landon Schwartz buys time to find an open receiver. He usually did, completing 12/16 passes for 184 yards, a TD, and no picks.
Swing passes, screens, and a healthy dose of Langenkamp on the ground led St. Henry down the field on the opening possession. Schwartz capped it off with a perfectly timed throw and catch to Boeckman for a 7-yard touchdown on an out route. Langenkamp scored a 2-point conversion untouched.
Not even three 10-yard penalties on the ‘Skins kept them out of the end zone. Didn’t Kenny Rogers also say something about knowing when to hold em’? Not sure the opening drive is the time, but all’s well that ends well.
The Tigers only gave up 28 points in the first two weeks combined. But Broerman doesn’t think this week’s 34 points allowed start and end with the defense.
“Our offense didn’t help the defense at all,” Broerman said. “It didn’t move the ball at all in that first half. So that’s where it starts. And then they had some players make some plays.”
They can hit hard on defense, but St. Henry’s wealth of weapons spread those hitters too thin.
The Redskins defense stonewalled Versailles’ T-formation, heavy-hitting offense for the first quarter and a half. The Tigers gained six yards on their first nine carries.
“I have to give our defensive coordinator, Craig Dues, a lot of credit,” Werling said. “He worked on giving us two different looks with our fronts. That gives our offensive line problems, so let’s try to cause problems for theirs.”
Versailles quarterback Blake Monnin scampers for a gain in the second quarter. St Henry’s Drew Langenkamp pursues.
When they tried throwing, results varied. One such varied result was a jump-ball interception by Boeckman.
On St. Henry’s second drive, Boeckman hauled in a 31-yard jump ball, and Langenkamp scored his first TD from two yards out.
Two drives later, Langenkamp scampered untouched through a gaping hole, 46 yards to a 21-0 lead.
Versailles finally traveled into St Henry’s territory on a 2-minute drill at the end of the half. But Beau Uhlenhake, fresh from injury, tore around the edge, sacked Versailles quarterback Blake Monnin, and knocked the ball loose. St. Henry’s Cy Kremer fell on it to preserve a 21-0 halftime lead.
The Tigers somewhat cracked the code offensively in the second half. A Kade Schwartz receiving TD, a defensive 3-and-out, then a drive to St. Henry’s 11-yard line restored belief and volume in the visiting stands. But like clockwork, the Redskin defensive front harassed Monnin, and Will Speck intercepted a prayer throw to the end zone.
St. Henry’s Austin Zimmerman drags Oliver Brunswick to the ground. Zimmerman was one of several Redskins back from injury vs Versailles.
St. Henry launched a game-sealing 93-yard campaign from its own seven after the interception. Langenkamp threw the knockout punch with a 26-yard touchdown out of the wildcat, with Boeckman blocking the last defender on the edge.
Late scores by Versailles’ Cole Brewer and Brett Pulfer mattered not, especially after a 50-yard TD run by, you guessed it, Langenkamp.
“Drew [Langenkamp] is going to run over people, get tackled about 30 times in a game, and get back up and do the same thing over and over again,” Boeckman said. “It helps a lot having a guy like that on our team.”
By a 34-21 decision, the Redskins claimed their third in a row versus the Tigers.
Versailles hosts Marion Local (3-0) next week. The starting quarterback may be a point of discussion leading into the game, as Monnin was injured on a hard hit in the fourth quarter and replaced by sophomore Ian Hemmelgarn.
St. Henry still gets no rest from the schedule makers and will travel to Anna (2-1) next, before brief respite at Parkway. Of course, Josh Werling won’t let his team count wins before they happen.
There’ll be time enough for countin’ when the playin’s done.
Tate Boeckman battles to deflect a pass intended for Versailles’ Kade Schwartz
