Larkin Thomas looks for an open receiver in Friday’s thrilling win over Hamilton Badin. (Press Pros Feature Photos By Julie Wright-Daniel)
Their defense was again the overlooked difference as Tipp frustrated Hamilton Badin at the end in the Division III semi-finals to gain win #12, and another week of films and drama.
By Marcus Hartman for Press Pros
Tipp City, OH — Like most places these days, the offense tends to hog most of the headlines at Tippecanoe.
Minster Bank proudly sponsors the best area sports coverage on Press Pros Magazine.com.
Xavier Melton, Will Strong, Larkin Thomas, et al do plenty to earn them, too.
That continued Friday night when the undefeated Red Devils welcomed Hamilton Badin to City Park for a Division III, Region 12 semifinal, but the Tipp defense stood tallest in the end to make sure they got win No. 12.
Veteran columnist Marcus Hartman writes the OHSAA, Ohio State, and sports at large for Press Pros Magazine.com.
Most specifically, Collin Isaac made it happen.
The senior linebacker intercepted Badin’s final pass of the night to clinch a 23-16 win and send the Red Devils to the regional finals.
“I knew that if they’re in two by two (alignment), the second guy always comes in and runs a dig right behind this linebacker about 15 yards, and I got beat on it drive before,” Isaac said. “So then I was like, ‘All right, guys, we’re gonna go right here.’ I watched him come behind me, and then I just jumped as high as I could and got that ball.”
One possession earlier, he also had the key stop, slamming Badin running back Lem Grayson to the turf after reading a middle screen on third-and-long to force a punt.
“I saw the running back come out of the backfield, and the line kind of let our D line go, and I was like, ‘Oh, where’s he at? Where’s he at?’ And I saw him, and as soon as I saw him go up for the ball, that’s when I hit him.”
Tipp’s Max Deckard looks for yardage after a catch in Friday’s Division III semi-final win over Badin.
Isaac and the defense had a seven-point lead to protect thanks to Melton’s 2-yard touchdown run with 9:37 to go in the fourth quarter.
That extended a one-point lead to seven (the PAT kick was no good) and was set up by Thomas’ 13-yard run around left end on the previous play. Before that, Thomas hit Strong over the middle for a diving 32-yard reception on a crucial third-and-2 with the Red Devils clinging to a one-point lead.
“I was definitely a little sad just knowing this my last time ever playing on this field,” Melton said. “I played here my whole life, and a lot of us seniors, we actually had a talk right before the game. This is our last game here, so we knew what we wanted the outcome to be. So we came out here and just performed our best. And we expect that from each other. So, I mean, that’s how it is.”
The Arbogast family of dealerships proudly sponsors coverage of Ohio State football on Press Pros Magazine.com.
With neither offense being able to get into any extended rhythm, special teams proved crucial throughout the night.
If anyone doubted why Jim Tressel famously called the punt the most important play in football — because it can have a massive impact on field position, and the Rams provided multiple examples.
Great coverage by the Tippecanoe defense…Micah Pyles-Dodds breaks up an attempted pass.
Micah Pyles-Dodds recovered a muffed punt at the Badin 22 with 2:58 left in the second quarter.
That gave the Red Devils, who were leading 3-0 at the time thanks to a short field set up by a Jackson Robbins interception in the first quarter, another chance to score without mounting a long drive, and they took advantage.
After a false start penalty and a 3-yard scramble by Thomas, the quarterback found Strong in the end zone on a fade ball for a 24-yard touchdown with 2:06 on the clock.
Badin put together a nice two-minute drive to set up a 25-yard field goal by Gabe Miyahara just before halftime, but another punt team disaster hurt the Rams in the third quarter.
When the snap went over Badin punter Ben Sakach’s head, he scrambled to get the ball and try to get a punt away. He did, but it went just a few yards before going out of bounds well behind the original line of scrimmage (the Badin 45).
Logan Services, in Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus, proudly sponsors the best area sports coverage on Press Pros Magazine.
Tipp got the ball at the Rams’ 22, and Melton made it hurt all by himself, running for eight, two and five before slipping around left end for the final seven yards and a touchdown.
Tippecanoe led 17-3 at that point, but the two-score lead was short-lived as James Brink returned the ensuing kickoff for a Badin touchdown.
Will Strong made this diving catch from quarterback Larkin Thomas.
With :29 seconds left in the third quarter, Badin drew within a point on Chase Even’s 7-yard touchdown run, but a Ram offensive lineman was called for a dead-ball personal foul after Even crossed the goal line.
That meant Miyahara’s PAT kick was from 35 yards instead of the usual distance, and he missed it to the right.
“There were just so many different plays in the game that everything’s just running through my mind now, of like, ‘Holy smokes we got that play. Holy smokes, we got this play. Holy smokes,” Burgbacher said. “it wasn’t just one person, it was the whole team, and they all stepped up.”
Bunny’s Pharmacy, in downtown Sidney, supports the Shelby County League on Press Pros.
The punt game nearly bit Badin one more time when Max Deckard’s long, winding punt return set up the Red Devils offense at the Badin 32 with 4:42 to go, but a missed field goal left the Rams with life and set up Isaac’s final heroics.
Xavier Melton enroute to one of the two touchdowns he made for the Red Devils win over Badin in the Semi-Regional win.
“They’ve been doing it all year,” Burgbacher said of his team. “And I wouldn’t expect anything different from this group. And we knew it was going to be a 48-minute football game. There’s no doubt about it, that’s a great football team down there, and I appreciate Coach (Nick) Yordy and his team and everything they do. But I am so stinking proud of our kids because they have battled. We’ve battled injuries, we’ve battled everything all year, and it’s next man up, and every week, it’s somebody different. That’s just a great team football win for the Tippecanoe Red Devils.”
They move on to face fellow unbeaten London.
The Red Raiders were unbeaten and unscored upon in the Central Buckeye Conference Kenton Trail Division, and they rallied to beat Jackson 28-24 in Madison County on Friday night.
The snap went over Baden’s punter Ben Sakach’s head, the muffled punt went out of bounds landing the ball at the Rams’ 22 yd line, which lead to a Red Devil score.
The matchup of No. 1 and 2 in the region should be epic wherever it is played next week, but Burgbacher said he wasn’t thinking about it quite yet as players and fans celebrated around him on the field.
He probably will be by the time you read this, though.
“I’ll worry about them about about 11:30, 12 o’clock tonight,” the coach said. “I watched them last year. Obviously, a very good football team, and I know they didn’t lose a whole lot from last year. So we’ll worry about that tomorrow morning, once we get some film.
“So I’ll let the boys enjoy it for the weekend. I’ll enjoy it for about an hour, and I’ll get laundry started and we’ll get going on next week. So I’m just glad to be going to work tomorrow, or not even work. I’m just glad to be going in and watching some film.”
Linebacker Collin Isaac (21) took control, taking down Badin’s running back Lem Grayson (1).
Ever-Green Lawn and Landscaping supports Ohio State sports on Press Pros.