Andrew Leonard may have gotten upended on the first play from scrimmage, but that did not stop him or the Patriots from putting a big-time hurt on rival Olentangy Orange. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless)
Capitalizing on four Olentangy Orange turnovers, Olentangy Liberty turned a competitive game into a rout. Andrew Leonard cemented his reputation has one of the area’s top quarterback, passing for 267 yards and four touchdowns and running for another.
Lewis Center, OH – When asked a multiple-choice question whether it was more satisfying A) winning a share of the Ohio Capital Conference Central Division, B) securing the No. 1 seed in the Division I, Region 3 playoffs or C) beating intra-district rival Olentangy Orange, second-year Olentangy Liberty coach John Sansbury took the high road.
“All of the above,” offered Sansbury after a few seconds to ponder the dilemma. “Getting the No. 1 seed is a big deal for our path going forward. Winning the league isn’t something we’ve done lately (2020), so that’s something to be proud of. And beating Orange, well, that’s a big achievement as well for our guys.”
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If you ask Liberty’s players, the majority would no doubt would choose option C.
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“Beating them here on their Senior Night, that’s special,” Liberty senior linebacker Austin Stamp said.
Added senior quarterback Andrew Leonard, “The other stuff is great but beating Orange is special because that’s our biggest rival.”
And the Patriots did it in resounding fashion, forcing a rolling clock on the way to a 50-22 shellacking of the Pioneers. Liberty now leads the series 12-4, including a playoff win, dating to 2010.
Few could have seen this avalanche coming in a matchup between two of the elite teams in central Ohio. But a spate of costly turnovers by Orange quickly turned an entertaining back-and-forth game into a rout. The Pioneers entered the contest with a plus-12 ratio in turnovers.
Antonio Kish seemed to be in perfect position to deny Terryn Thomas a reception, but the ball slipped through and so did Thomas for 6.
“That obviously was a big part of the game,” Orange first-year coach Wes Schroeder said. “The turnovers sure surprised me, yes. We haven’t done that all year long. But that happens sometimes, especially when your program hasn’t played in a lot of big games … and they have.”
When the track meet broke out, Orange had no answer for Leonard, who was magnificent reading the Pioneers’ defense, getting his team into the correct plays and – most importantly – throwing darts to his receivers.
Leonard completed 20-of-23 passes for 267 yards with four touchdowns and also ran for a score before giving way to his brother Alex for the start of the fourth quarter. He was 14-for-15 for 210 yards and three scores in the first half.
“All I do is just play, and get our playmakers the ball,” said Leonard, a three-year starter who know has thrown 27 touchdowns and just four interceptions with an uncanny 68 percent accuracy. “I had a lot of time to throw tonight, and I trust my offensive line., I knew there were two good offenses out there tonight, but I sure didn’t think we’d drop 50.”
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Liberty (8-2, 4-1), Orange (8-2, 4-1) and Upper Arlington (8-2, 4-1) will share the championship trophy in the rugged Central, considered one of the toughest big-school divisions in Ohio.
Jake Struck wills himself into the end zone during a 50-22 drubbing of Orange.
Orange was unable to mount pressure on Leonard, often dropping its defenders back in coverage, partly out respect for the quarterback’s running ability.
He spread the wealth effectively. All-purpose back/receiver Jake Struck – an Ohio State lacrosse commit – made seven receptions for 113 yards and two TDs, and also ran for a score. Christian Moulton and Ben Godwin also caught TD passes.
“Andrew is awesome,” Sansbury said. “He’s our hardest worker, our leader and nobody deserves it more. He’s a three-year starter and he knows where to go with the ball. We’ve seen games like this where teams sit back and keep him in the pocket, but I think that only plays into his hands.”
He did this against a terrific secondary yielding just 125 yards per game to opponents.
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Liberty’s defense, which came in allowing 12.9 points per game against one of the toughest schedules in the state, did its part once again. Faced with the task of corralling Orange dual-threat QB Levi Davis, the Patriots – who blitzed relentlessly in a win over Hilliard Davidson a week earlier – took a different approach this time.
Grayson Davis grinds up more real estate as Brennan Kessler goes airborne to try to take him down.
“Actually, we were going to blitz, but we had to change our game plan because of what they were doing,” Stamp said. “The biggest key was containing Davis and trying to keep them out of rhythm.”
Davis, who came in with 1,371 yards passing and 721 yards rushing with a combined 25 touchdowns, had his moments. He completed 13 of 20 passes for 212 yards and a pair of TDs to towering wideout Terryn Thomas (five catches for 96 yards), but was intercepted once, fumbled three times and was sacked for a safety. Many of the fumbles were exchange issues or errant snaps.
Liberty led only 14-10 in the second quarter. But Leonard completed five passes on a quick six-play scoring drive, capped by a 22-yard connection with Struck.
On Orange’s next play, a bad snap eluded Davis and he fumbled. Elliot Rankin recovered for a Liberty TD.
The Patriots poured it on from there.
“We’ll enjoy this for about 24 hours, and then we’ll go back to work for the next one,” Sansbury said.
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