HYDE-If there was ever a more perfect feeling, in the stands…in the air…or on the gridiron, the Bison Sports Complex had it on Friday night. As the senior class was honored prior to the game, and then took to the field one last time in front of the home crowd, it just felt perfect. The sadness was taken over by eagerness, and desire. The Central Dragons were ready to ruin what seemed to be a perfect night, as the Clearfield Bison hoped to remain unbeaten.
On this night, perfection came in the form of a senior superlative running fast, running tough, and running into the record books. On the cleats of senior running back, Brady Collins, Clearfield would take a 35-14 win to keep their season perfect. In doing so, Collins would cement himself at the top of the heap, as he officially became the all-time rushing leader for the Bison.
“We have a great offensive line. They are competitive, work with each other, and made some plays,” head coach Myles Caragein said afterwards. “They communicate well and that’s been the story all season.”
The front line on offense went to work on the night to a tone of rolling up 381 yards on the ground, while allowing no sacks on quarterback Xavier Curry. But, it did not come easy as the opening quarter saw both sides grind the ball hard down the field, but coming to a stop, as Clearfield turned the ball over on downs just outside the red zone. Central was forced to punt on their opening drive, but then, the star of the offense would get his feet in the turf.
Entering Friday night, Collins needed 231 yards to become the all-time leader in Bison football history. However, none of his rushes were coming easy, as he was held down in the first drive to just 19 yards. However, he trusted his front five and the Bison pushed into the red zone, wearing down the Dragon defense. Faced with 1st and Goal at the 6, Collins put the Bison on the board with a push forward into the blackened turf. Senior teammate Bryce Frushour put the extra point through, and the lone score of the quarter gave Clearfield the lead.
The second quarter saw Clearfield again push the ball deep into Dragon territory, but at the same time saw their one difficulty all season hurt themselves. A block-in-the-back penalty on 1st and Goal from the seven pushed them back 10 yards. Two plays later, on a tough run by Collins, he would be dinged with an unsportsmanlike personal foul, pushing the Bison back to the 23. Ultimately, the penalties kept Clearfield out of the end zone and the Bison turned the ball over on downs.
“We faced some adversity tonight with the penalties, and that’s something we need to address going forward,” Caragein said. “We can’t make those mistakes at this point in the season.”
Clearfield’s defense got them out of the difficult spot, forcing a punt from the Dragons’ own end zone, a punt that ultimately got shanked and gave Clearfield possession at the Central 30. Three plays later, Clearfield got in the end zone a second time with Collins on the ground, this time from 11 yards out. The point after made it 14-0. The Bison tried to push the ball into Dragon territory on their last possession of the half, but had to punt and took a two-possession lead into the locker room.
The defense held Central to just one single yard of offense in the first half, but the Dragons made adjustments at halftime and came out in the second half ready to sling the ball. Quarterback Eli Muthler got his right arm doing a lot of work, and he connected on three big passes in the first drive of the second half, pushing into Bison territory before being slowed up and faced with 4th and 4 at the 38. A gutsy call to hand the ball off to Braydon Beach paid off as he busted through the sea of red jerseys and found the end zone to put Central on the board. The lead was cut in half and Clearfield suddenly was on the ropes.
That feeling did not last long as Collins and Carter Freeland used their legs to answer right back, rushing for all but 12 yards on the next possession, with Collins capping the drive from four yards out to increase the lead to 21-7.
Central would again drive deep into Clearfield territory and seemed to sputter outside the end zone, and looked at another fourth down. Dragon coaches elected to play an end around, which became an option play as tight end Lukas Black would hurl the ball back across the field to an open Jay Hoenstine for the touchdown pass. The extra point made it 21-14, and it appeared that Clearfield again was having to make up for miscues. Penalties cost the Bison in the form of nine calls going against them, five being personal fouls.
It only took one play for all those miscues to vanish.
Up until the 4:41 mark of the third quarter, Collins was still chasing the record, but was more focused at breaking into the second and third level of the Dragon defense. A handoff from Freeland at his own 40 saw him find a crease, push through the linebackers, and the entire secondary could not catch him as he used the track speed to rumble 60 yards to the end zone for his fourth touchdown on the night. The 28-14 score held through the end of the third quarter, and Collins could sense the record was near.
Entering the final 12 minutes, a mere 14 yards was needed between him and being atop the stat chart.
At the 10:40 mark, he took the handoff and pushed for six yards. After Freeland got stuffed on second down, Collins took the handoff again, pushing for eight yards and officially into the book as the all-time rushing leader. But, that was not enough, as there was a lot more game to play. So, he got the ball five more times on the drive and capped it off with his sixth rushing touchdown on the night to put Clearfield up 35-14, ultimately remaining there for the final five and a half minutes.
The stat line for Collins at night’s end read 281 rushing yards on 34 carries, an average of over eight yards per touch, and five touchdowns. Collins now stands alone as the rushing leader, sitting with 4,692 yards for his career, and a staggering 55 touchdowns on the ground.
“It’s spectacular. He’s a great athlete, don’t get me wrong, but that offensive line is doing a fantastic job, our backs are doing a fantastic job blocking. It’s a whole team effort,” Caragein said. “Brady’s a stud, but if it wasn’t for all those guys around him, he wouldn’t be in the position he’s in.”
At the 2:55 mark, Clearfield too over after another three-and-out by Central, and Collins took to the field with his team. But, rather than take a snap, the offense stayed out and the play clock ran nearly out before Caragein called time out in order for the stadium announcer to tell the crowd that he now was the record holder. His coaches, peers, and teammates all congratulated him as he walked off the field. At night’s end, he and the senior class stood on teh sidelines together for one more moment, knowing that this night became extra special.
“These guys, they’re just a big family. These seniors compete with one another, and fight with one another at practice, but do so as if it’s brother vs. brother,” Caragein said. “They make each other better.”
The regular season, when it comes to scheduled contests, concluded with Clearfield at a 9-0 record. They now wait to hear from the Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference to determine their week 10 opponent in the crossover between the divisions. Clearfield’s game will not be for the LHAC title, as Penn Cambria won the East Division and will face Bishop Guilfoyle for the championship.
Clearfield’s crossover game is slated for Friday night at 7 p.m. The game will be on the road, with the announcement of the opponent coming over the weekend.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Central 0 0 14 0 – 14
Clearfield 7 7 14 7 – 35
BOX SCORE
1st Quarter
- BISON: 6-yard run by Collins (Frushour kick), 1:13
2nd Quarter
- BISON: 11-yard run by Collins (Frushour kick), 6:42
3rd Quarter
- DRAGONS: 38-yard run by Beach (Hummel kick), 9:15
- BISON: 4-yard run by Collins (Frushour kick), 4:41
- DRAGONS: 5-yard pass from Black to Hoenstine (Hummel kick), 1:27
- BISON: 60-yard run by Collins (Frushour kick), 1:15
4th Quarter
- BISON: 2-yard run by Collins (Frushour kick), 5:38
GAME STATISTICS
Central/Clearfield
- First Downs: 9/17
- Rush Yards: 44/381
- Pass Yards: 132/63
- Penalties-Yards: 5-40/8-92
- Total Yards: 176/444
- Turnovers: 0/1
- Time of Possession: 19:53/28:07
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
- Central: Beach-12 carries, 62 yards, TD; Muthler-3 carries, (-12) yards; Musei-2 carries, 0 yards; Team-1 carry, (-1) yards; Mickel-1 carry, (-6) yards.
- Clearfield: Collins-34 carries, 281 yards, 5 TD; Freeland-9 carries, 59 yards; Fletcher-2 carries, 15 yards; Ryan-2 carries, 4 yards; Curry-1 carry, 20 yards; Ludwig-1 carry, 3 yards.
Passing
- Central: Muthler-12 for 28, 127 yards; Black-1 for 1, 5 yards, TD.
- Clearfield: Curry-4 for 6, 63 yards; Freeland-0 for 1, INT.
Receiving
- Central: Hoenstine-6 catches, 65 yards, TD; Beach-3 catches, 19 yards; Detterline-2 catches, 14 yards; Baird-1 catch, 24 yards; Mickel-1 catch, 10 yards.
- Clearfield: Freeland-2 catches, 23 yards; Broad-1 catch, 33 yards; Ryan-1 catch, 7 yards.
BISON SCOREBOARD:
Date Opponent Score Record
08/23 @ Tyrone 36 – 20 1 – 0
08/30 FOREST HILLS 27 – 7 2 – 0
09/06 @ Philipsburg-Osceola 33 – 7 3 – 0
09/13 BELLEFONTE 28 – 7 4 – 0
09/20 @ Huntingdon 46 – 7 5 – 0
09/27 @ Penns Valley 59 – 27 6 – 0
10/04 BALD EAGLE AREA 41 – 7 7 – 0
10/11 RICHLAND 41 – 21 8 – 0
10/18 CENTRAL 35 – 14 9 – 0
10/25 @ LHAC cross over game (TBD)