Troy’s Camryn Mangas returns the opening kick off for a touchdown in the Trojans’ 28-14 win over rival Piqua. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Lee Woolery)
The Trojans’ defense gets big stops and key interceptions to secure the win the longest running rivalry in Ohio.
By Scott Langston for Press Pros
Piqua, OH – Was it all he expected? First-year Troy head coach Ryan Jones got his first experience as part of the The Battle on the Miami – the annual Piqua vs. Troy rivalry that started in 1899.
“Absolutely!” he said. “For the most-played rivalry in the state, it’s everything you would want and more. It definitely lived up to the hype. Both teams played extremely hard.”
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Jones’ Trojans scored two late touchdowns Friday night for a 28-14 victory, their fourth straight in one of the longest running rivalries in the country.
“Piqua came out, and they were very physical early on,” Jones said. “A lot of credit to them and their coaching staff who did a fantastic job this game. It’s just a shame somebody has to lose this game because both teams fought their hearts out. I’m just really proud of our guys. We had some setbacks. The offense stalled out in the first half, but we got some things going in the second. We made some adjustments, and the boys executed those adjustments perfectly.”
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Tied at 14, Troy took the ball after a punt at its 13-yard line with 7:22 on the fourth-quarter clock and scored 13 plays later on quarterback Colton Akins’ one-yard sneak with two minutes left to take the lead. The big play of the drive came early when Akins threw into double-coverage to Casey Anderson who leaped for the catch and a 33-yard gain to the Piqua 49. Eight of the next ten plays were on the ground.
“We had to (open things up),” Jones said. “They were physical up front. We were having trouble moving the ball on the ground, and we had to open it up. The boys made plays when we needed them. When we needed to put a drive together and salt it away with the offensive line, we were able to do that.”
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The Indians then went into their two-minute offense, starting from their own 9 after the kickoff. A big 30-yard pass from Chris Davis to Cameron Albright put the ball at the Trojans 30. However, two plays later Akins intercepted a pass and returned it for the game-sealing score with nine seconds left.
Troy center Mitchell Finkes blocks for quarterback Colton Akins.
“That’s what Piqua-Troy is,” Jones said. “You throw out the records or the expectations of the fans. We knew it was going to be a battle, and we knew it was going to come down to the bitter end, and that’s what happened today.”
Troy started the game with a bang when senior Camryn Mangas returned the opening kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown. Just like that it was 7-0.
However, the first-half offense struggled for the visitors with just three first downs and 54 total yards. On the other side, the Indians racked up 11 first downs and 183 yards. The home team moved the ball up and down the field, but struggled to find the end zone.
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An interception by Eric Culbertson ended the first Piqua drive. Their second possession ended on downs at the Trojans’ 30. The Indians finally got on the board on their third possession, going 72 yards in nine plays. This time they came up with a big conversion on fourth down when Davis found Albright in the end zone for a 39-yard touchdown pass on 4th-and-4 to tie the score with 4:39 left in the first half.
Piqua wide receiver Cameron Albright catches a touchdown pass to tie the score 7-7.
The Indians had a chance to take the lead into the halftime when Davis hit running back Myles Haney over the middle for 28 yards to the Trojans’ 29, but five plays later they gave the ball up on downs again at the Troy 11.
Piqua opened the second half with the ball and once again went on a long drive. Starting from their own 20, they found themselves facing 4th-and-5 from the Troy 39. The threat ended with an interception by Jackson Mercer.
Troy responded with a quick score, needing just four plays to go 49 yards. The touchdown came on a 20-yard run on an end-around by Mangas to put the Trojans up 14-7 with 4:54 left in the third quarter.
“Nobody deserves it more than him,”Jones said of his speedy reciever. “Since I got hired in the in the winter, he was there every day working on routes. Unbelievable kid. Two touchdowns, and that kickoff return to start the game is a heck of a way to start. I couldn’t be happier for a kid. He deserves everything he gets here.”
The Indians tied the score, taking advantage of the only Troy turnover of the game. Taking over after a fumble at their own 30, the Indians went 70 yards in eight plays. The drive opened with a 31-yard pass from Davis to Haney and ended with a 13-yard strike to Jay’Zail Hancock for the score. Davis was 6-for-6 on the drive for 65 yards.
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The Troy seniors have not known what it is like to lose in this rivalry game, while those on the Piqua side have never tasted victory in the match-up. Four years ago the record stood with sixes wild at 66-66-6. It now stands 70-66-6 in favor of the Trojans.
“I’m just fortunate to be a part of this game, really, and be able to watch the guys celebrate this win,” Jones said. “That’s the thing you want more than anything else. You want these seniors – a lot of them have never played in this game before – you want them to experience this win. So it’s pretty awesome.”
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