The Redskins’ running game came from quarterback Charlie Werling, who ran it unofficially 13 times for 109 yards. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
It took a stout showing from the defense, and a 60-yard punt return for touchdown before the half to jump start the offense. But it all worked out – a team win, they call it – as St. Henry topped Celina for a season-opening win.
St. Henry, OH – When it was over and second-year coach Josh Werling could smile about his 31-7 opening win over Celina Friday night, Werling, defensive lineman Anderson Kramer, and linebacker Brayden Heath didn’t mince words about how the St. Henry Redskins had come away with the victory.
“Our defense was great,” said Werling. “They gave us a chance in the first half until the offense began to play better in the second half.”
“My first year playing defense,” said Kramer, who more than did his part with a sack, a couple of quarterback hits, and a 23 yard pick six for a touchdown in the third quarter, “I never thought I’d get a pick-six like that. I’m a defensive lineman, but I did my best to act like a linebacker.”
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“It was good to win,” said Heath, an actual linebacker. “But we’ve still got work to do. We can definitely play a lot better than we played tonight.”
“It was a team win,” quarterback Charlie Werling added, emphasizing the issue of ‘team’. “Sometimes when the offense isn’t clicking it’s nice when the defense and special teams can pick you up, for sure. So yeah, we played better in the second half, and the punt return from Jack (Huelsman) obviously helped a lot.”
Four short quotes that summed up the Redskins’ 31-7 win. It wasn’t a thing of beauty…they could have played better, indeed…and importantly, to Charlie Werling’s point, it is a good team when one part can play to expectation until the other parts figure it out.
Josh Werling concluded his post-game comments this way: Half the teams in Ohio lost on Friday night, and the Redskins played well enough to win.
St. Henry is a veteran senior group that’s going to score points. No one doubts. But for whatever reason – and Werling made a point of giving Celina’s defense some deserved credit – the first half, offensively, was an exercise in gaining yards, but failing to score. Werling moved the Redskin offense to within striking distance of the goal line on their first drive, only to turn the ball over on downs.
And on three ensuing possessions, they turned it over again on downs, and Werling was picked off twice to snuff out two other St. Henry possessions.
St. Henry’s Anderson Kramer grabs Celina quarterback Parker Wynk by the shirt for a sack in the first half of Friday’s win.
But Celina was having its own issues with moving the ball, punting three times in the first half, because Van Gogh, himself, could not have painted a prettier picture of frustrating defense. Brayden Heath repeatedly hurried, or hit, Celina quarterback Parker Wynk, even on short tosses to the slot receiver trying to get to the edge and turn up field.
Teammate Anderson Kramer did him one better, sacking Wynk in the second quarter when he tried to pass…and pulling him down by the shirt tail when he tried to evade the Redskin rush and run out of the pocket. Literally, while Charlie Werling was struggling to start the engine on offense, Kramer, Heath and company were buying time, waiting out the options.
And one of the options in football…is special teams.
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With possession of the football and just 37 seconds remaining before halftime, Celina was forced to punt for the fourth time in the first half, and dropped a high spiral right into the hands of Jack Huelsman, standing on his own 40 yard line. Huelsman started upfield, got a block that sprung him to the sideline, got another block that cut off Celina pursuit, and broke down the sideline with only two defenders left to beat, and both left with poor angles in their effort to tackle Huelsman. He easily outran them to the end zone, finally getting St. Henry on the board, 6-0.
Jack Huelsmam (left) battles Celina defenseman Cohen Harter for this pass attempt in the first half of Friday’s 31-7 win.
On the point after attempt Celina jumped offside, moving the ball to the one-and-a-half yard line. Choosing not to kick, Werling ran the ball over left tackle to score on a two-point conversion, taking an 8-0 lead into halftime.
St. Henry got the ball first in the second half, and on their second possession they again drove it inside the Celina red zone, where alternate sophomore quarterback Landon Schwartz faked a handoff to Werling in the backfield at 6:29, then passed to Brayden Heath standing wide open in the end zone. The point after kick was good, and St. Henry led 15-0.
The ensuing possession spelled doom for Celina, when on third down Parker Wynk attempted a short pass over the middle, the ball was tipped, and Anderson Kramer was standing in just the right spot to catch it and run 40 yards for six more points. Celina again committed a penalty on the kick try, and St. Henry attempted a failed two-point conversion, but now led 21-0.
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When it rains, of course….yeah, it pours. And on their next possession Celina fumbled on their on 16 yard line, leading to a one-yard run by Landon Schwartz with 1:21 remaining in the third quarter to send St. Henry up 28-0. And four minutes into the fourth quarter kicker Owen Zimmerman thumped a 29-yard field goal to conclude the Redskins’ scoring for the night, 31-0.
With substitutes in the game trying to preserve the opening night shutout, Celina got the ball one last time with a running clock. And on four plays the Bulldogs scored a token touchdown with five minutes left in the game on a 23-yard run by junior Noah Talmadge…31-7.
St. Henry outgained Celina by a two-to-one margin during the meaningful minutes of the game, anchored by the rushing efforts of Charline Werling, who unofficially picked up 113 yards on 14 carries. Conspicuously quiet was junior running back Drew Langenkamp, who never materialized as much of an option to run the ball.
“First of all, Celina’s defense played a real tough game,” added Josh Werling. “Their defensive line gave us trouble and that’s a team with a recent state Final Four appearance. And they had us scouted pretty well with some of things we would have done with Drew.
“But I thought our defense and special teams really played well tonight. Coach Dues really had the defensive plan right where it needed to be. Anderson Kramer was phenomenal, Brayden Heath was phenomenal, and in football if one phase is slow the other two have to pick it up. And I felt that way tonight, big time.
Anderson Kramer had one man to beat on his third quarter 40 yard interception and return for a touchdown.
“The score from Jack before the half kinda’ took the stress off. and as a play caller I’ve got to be better when we get down in the red zone. And we’ve got to be more efficient throwing the ball. But tonight, when our offense was down the defense and special teams stood up, and I’m pretty proud of that.”
Eventually, it all worked out, which allowed for plenty of Hail To The Redskins by the St. Henry band.
Which allowed a community bursting with expectation and anticipated success in 2025 to go home talking about all the good things that come with a win on opening night…over the ‘what ifs’ that plagued the teams that didn’t win.
“It was a Division III win for us,” added Josh Werling. “A good win for us. It’s week one, you enjoy it, but there’s still plenty to work on.”
Hail, yeah!
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