Clearfield coach Tim Janocko knows that a season is not made or lost in one game – you have to look at the big picture. Good thing, too, because the Bison surely will want to forget their error-filled performance Friday night at the Bison Sports Complex. Clearfield QB Jarrin Campman had perhaps his worst game of the season, throwing six interceptions. The Bison had several untimely penalties and a crucial dropped TD pass. On defense, the Bison fared well against St Mary’s normally potent ground attack but were caught off-guard by the Dutch passing game.
\”You’ve got to give St. Mary’s credit\”, said Janocko. \”They made big plays in the passing game, and on offense we didn’t make plays when we needed to\”.
The game started extremely well for Clearfield. After returning the opening kick to their own 40, the Bison drove 60 yards in only four plays, capped by a 40-yard TD pass from Campman to Todd Hryn. Clearfield came out with a 5-wideout, no-running back set that seemed to catch St. Mary’s off-balance; however, the Dutch quickly adjusted and made life difficult for the Bison offense the rest of the game. St. Mary’s scored on a QB keeper with 2:08 to go in the first quarter, capping a short 40-yard drive and tying the game at seven.
Both teams had trouble sustaining offense the rest of the half; Clearfield’s passing attack was unable to sustain the success of their first drive, and St Mary’s ground game was kept under wraps by the Bison defense. The Bison offense was hampered by two interceptions and three costly penalties. The Dutch managed a quick strike right before the half, getting a 27-yard field goal from Andy Eck with only 3 seconds left in the quarter. The 4-play drive took only 52 seconds and was keyed by a 27-yard pass to Dutch RB Todd Schatz. \”The [first half] penalties took opportunities away from us\”, said Janocko.
The second half started slowly for both teams, with another Clearfield interception sandwiched between two Dutch punts after 3-and-out series. Clearfield got their last score on a great individual effort by Hryn. Well-covered near the goal line, he managed to tip the ball up in the air to himself, catch it, and fall into the end zone with possession. On the night, Hryn caught 6 balls for 115 yards and 2 scores. \”Todd Hryn had a great game\”, said Janocko. \”We thought they would double-cover [Drew] Hipps, and that would give Hryn some opportunities\”. The play was also set up by a well-executed fake-punt, as Hipps was able to run for 20 yards on fourth down near midfield.
St. Mary’s immediately answered, as following a 15-yard pass interference penalty QB James Swanson once again hit Schatz for a big play, this one good for a 48-yard TD reception. Eck hit the upright with the PAT, keeping the score 16-14.
After an exchange of possessions, Clearfield embarked on a long drive from their own 25, and faced a crucial scoring opportunity inside the Dutch 20 yardline. Hipps ran a corner route into the endzone and Campman threw a good pass, but Hipps was unable to make the catch. On the next play, Campman tried to hit Hipps on the same route but safety Brett Quiggle read the play and came up with a huge interception. The Dutch ground attack then came to life, all but sealing the game with an 8-play, 80 yard TD drive, once again keyed by Schatz. The speedy senior had a 50-yard run to set up St. Mary’s deep in Bison territory, then Brian Tamburlin scored on fourth-and-goal from the 1. The PAT made the score 23-14. The game was then officially sealed when Campman threw his sixth interception of the night to Dutch senior Jeremy Williams at the goalline, who then returned it 100 yards to set the final score at 30-14.
The star of the game for the Dutch on offense was definitely Schatz. He carried the ball only 7 times but had 147 yards rushing, and added another 100 yards on 3 catches for an amazing average of 24.7 yards per touch. The Bisons did a great job on the other St Mary’s backs, holding the rest of the team to just 38 rushing yards on 35 carries. \”[Schatz] has a lot of speed, and St. Mary’s blocked really well for him\”, said Janocko. The other surprise was the efficiency of the Dutch aerial attack, as Swanson completed 6 of 10 passes for 174 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT.
For the Bison, the running game was virtually nonexistent. The Clearfield runners combined for only 30 yards on 21 carries, 20 of those coming on Hipps’ fake punt. Campman was 15 of 35 for 242 yards, 2 TDs, and 6 INTs. \”We had a hard time establishing the run game, we saw an opportunity to exploit what their defense was giving so we tried to take it\”, was how Janocko explained the pass-heavy gameplan.
Still, as Coach Janocko pointed out, the sour ending cannot erase the accomplishments of this team. \”I am so proud of the kids. They went 7-4, made the playoffs, and upset a couple of very good teams. We fought hard every game\”, he said. The Bisons should fare well next season, as Campman, and much of the interior line returns. \”We have a good nucleus of kids coming back next year\”, said Janocko.
Scoring by quarter
Dutch 7 3 6 14 30
Bison 7 0 7 0 14
1Q
C – Hryn 40 pass from Campman (Herrington kick), 1:04
SM – Swanson 1 run (Eck kick), 9:52
2Q
SM – FG Eck 27, 11:57
3Q
C – Hryn 23 pass from Campman (Herrington kick), 6:57
SM – Schatz 48 pass from Swanson (kick failed), 7:15
4Q
SM – Tamburlin 1 run (Eck kick), 6:51
SM – Williams 100 Int return (Eck kick), 11:17