Hanson Arrives Just In Time For Warsaw
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
FORT WAYNE - Kanye West raps in "Diamonds are Forever (From Sierra Leone)" that "when he came in the game, he made his own name."
While West was talking about himself, the same could be said for Warsaw's Justin Hanson.
Hanson made his name with an 84-yard punt return for a touchdown with 2:44 left in regulation to lift Warsaw past host Homestead 17-14 Friday night.
"I caught it, saw an opening and just ran as hard as I could," said Hanson.
The speedy junior's path to the end zone was relatively clear thanks to the textbook blocking of the other 10 Tigers on the field highlighted by a ferocious hit from senior Matt Boots that got rid of Homestead's last would-be tackler.
"One guy got my foot at one point but that's it," said Hanson of his game-winning jaunt to paydirt.
Hanson's touchdown came via a Warsaw defense that, after giving up an 84-yard touchdown run by Spartan quarterback Jordan Wise in the opening minute of the game, clamped down and kept Homestead from sustaining any offensive momentum.
The numbers show the Spartans with a 327-156 advantage in total yards. Numbers can be deceiving. While Wise threw for 177 yards and a touchdown, he also threw two interceptions and didn't complete a pass for more than 18 yards.
Defensive back J.W. Maierle, whose sure tackling and press coverage on Spartan receivers kept the Tigers from getting burned, was the recipient of both Wise interceptions.
Warsaw head coach Troy Akers came into Friday night's contest with the plan of loading up players in the box to shut down Homestead's running attack and forcing the Spartans to throw to win.
They did and they didn't.
Wise fatigued as the game progressed and by his 30th and final pass attempt of the night he lacked the poise and precision he had earlier in the game.
Warsaw's defensive front sacked the Spartan quarterback four times including three in the fourth quarter.
The Tigers were playing short-handed on the defensive line as senior end Shaun Cabrera left the game in the first half with a knee injury.
"That's just a testament to our defense," said Akers of his defense. "They stepped up in the second half and everything they did out there was for Shaun."
Cabrera led the Tigers as a junior with tackles for loss and was a preseason all-state selection in several publications. His status was unknown as of press time.
Cabrera watched intently with a crutch under each arm as the Tigers scored 17 unanswered points.
It was the second time in as many weeks Warsaw came back from a 14-point deficit. The Tigers came from behind to beat Columbia City in the opening week with a late fourth-quarter touchdown.
The momentum shift against Homestead may have occurred when senior kicker Jake Rogers, a member of Warsaw's soccer team, booted a 37-yard field goal through the uprights as time expired in the first half to put the Tigers on the board trailing 14-3.
The kick was set up by two clutch passes from Warsaw quarterback Mark Sudhoff.
Sudhoff was snake-bitten last year with injury but looked no worse for the wear as he marched the Tigers down the field from their own 29-yard line and less than two minutes left in the first half.
Sudhoff found Maierle for 19 yards on third down then hooked up with Chas Simpson for 23 yards to set up Rogers.
On the Tigers' second possession of the second half, Sudhoff found Simpson streaking down the Homestead sideline for a 67-yard touchdown to make the score 14-10 in favor of the Spartans.
Warsaw was also aided by Homestead's mental mistakes. The Spartans stalled their own drives several time by committing 13 penalties for 95 yards.
In contrast, the Tigers committed just four penalties for 20 yards.
Special teams play also went to Warsaw.
Maierle punted five times for an average of 43.8 yards including a 53-yard punt while he was pinned back in his own end zone.
The Tigers also covered well on kickoffs and punt returns.
Perhaps the biggest special teams play of the night came after Hanson's punt return.
On the ensuing kickoff, Rogers booted the ball through the back of the end zone, negating any Homestead return and placing the ball at the Spartan 20-yard line.
"That was huge. It was one of those momentum shifts," said Akers. "Everyone is excited after the touchdown and then your kicker puts through the back of the end zone. That really fired the defense up."
The defense did hold on Homestead's next possession following Hanson's touchdown giving the ball back to the Tigers.
Warsaw looked to run out the clock but when senior Tyler Hamman rumbled for eight yards, the Tigers' longest run of the night, he appeared to have fumbled the ball with Homestead recovering.
Afterwards, Akers said the referee closest to the play admitted that he missed the call and in fact the field turf at Homestead Stadium caused the fumble and Hamman should have been ruled down by contact.
The referees nearly botched another call when they failed to throw a flag on a Wise touchdown pass despite the fact he was six yards past the line of scrimmage. The Warsaw coaching staff succesfully argued its case and the refs correctly flagged Homestead for the penalty.
The Spartans took over at their own 36-yard line but only moved backwards as Wise threw three incomplete passes and was sacked once.
Akers said his team would enjoy the win until this morning when preparation for Plymouth began.
The coach also knows that there are some things his team has to improve on. With a more effective run offense topping that list.
"We gotta run the ball better to win in the NLC," said Akers.
The Tigers finished with eight yards on 28 carries with Sudhoff rushing for -31 yards on account of several sacks.
For now, with two come from behind victories coming in the fourth quarter, the Tigers are finding ways to win without posting big numbers.
Warsaw moved to 2-0 on the season and returns to the brand-new Tiger Athletic Complex to host rival Plymouth and open Northern Lakes Conference play Friday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
WARSAW 17, HOMESTEAD 14
Warsaw 0 3 7 7 - 17
Homestead 7 7 0 0- 14
War Hom
First downs 6 8
Rushing yards 28-9 28-150
Passing yards 147 177
Comp.-Att.-Int. 7-13-1 14-30-2
Total offense 156 327
Fumbles/lost 2-2 1-0
Punts/avg. 5-43.8 5-32.4
Penalties/yards 4-20 13-95
First Quarter
H - Jordan Wise 84 run (Trevor Terrell kick) 11:01 7-0
Second Quarter
H -ÊWise 15 pass to Taylor Kinzer (Terrell kick) 7:56 14-0
W -ÊJake Rogers 37 field goal 0:00 3-14
Third Quarter
W -ÊMark Sudhoff 67 pass to Chas Simpson (Rogers kick) 2:44 10-14
Fourth Quarter
W -ÊJustin Hanson 84 punt return (Rogers kick) 2:44 17-14
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Warsaw, Dale Wood 2-12, Tommy Reinholt 4-11, Tyler Hamman 6-9, James Sibray 2-8, Blake Deaton 2-0, Mark Sudhoff 12-(-31); Homestead, Jordan Wise 11-87, Kenneth Perkins 7-54, Taylor Kinzer 8-5, Matt Mikulecky 1-4, Trevor Terrell 1-0.
Passing - Warsaw, Mark Sudhoff 7-13-147, 1 TD, 1 INT; Homestead Jordan Wise 14-30-177, 1 TD, 2 INT.
Receiving - Warsaw, Chas Simpson 3-96, Mitch Reinholt 1-28, J.W. Maierle 3-23; Homestead, Trevor Terrell 10-124, Taylor Kinzer 2-26, Pat Muhler 1-17, Kenneth Perkins 1-10. [[In-content Ad]]
FORT WAYNE - Kanye West raps in "Diamonds are Forever (From Sierra Leone)" that "when he came in the game, he made his own name."
While West was talking about himself, the same could be said for Warsaw's Justin Hanson.
Hanson made his name with an 84-yard punt return for a touchdown with 2:44 left in regulation to lift Warsaw past host Homestead 17-14 Friday night.
"I caught it, saw an opening and just ran as hard as I could," said Hanson.
The speedy junior's path to the end zone was relatively clear thanks to the textbook blocking of the other 10 Tigers on the field highlighted by a ferocious hit from senior Matt Boots that got rid of Homestead's last would-be tackler.
"One guy got my foot at one point but that's it," said Hanson of his game-winning jaunt to paydirt.
Hanson's touchdown came via a Warsaw defense that, after giving up an 84-yard touchdown run by Spartan quarterback Jordan Wise in the opening minute of the game, clamped down and kept Homestead from sustaining any offensive momentum.
The numbers show the Spartans with a 327-156 advantage in total yards. Numbers can be deceiving. While Wise threw for 177 yards and a touchdown, he also threw two interceptions and didn't complete a pass for more than 18 yards.
Defensive back J.W. Maierle, whose sure tackling and press coverage on Spartan receivers kept the Tigers from getting burned, was the recipient of both Wise interceptions.
Warsaw head coach Troy Akers came into Friday night's contest with the plan of loading up players in the box to shut down Homestead's running attack and forcing the Spartans to throw to win.
They did and they didn't.
Wise fatigued as the game progressed and by his 30th and final pass attempt of the night he lacked the poise and precision he had earlier in the game.
Warsaw's defensive front sacked the Spartan quarterback four times including three in the fourth quarter.
The Tigers were playing short-handed on the defensive line as senior end Shaun Cabrera left the game in the first half with a knee injury.
"That's just a testament to our defense," said Akers of his defense. "They stepped up in the second half and everything they did out there was for Shaun."
Cabrera led the Tigers as a junior with tackles for loss and was a preseason all-state selection in several publications. His status was unknown as of press time.
Cabrera watched intently with a crutch under each arm as the Tigers scored 17 unanswered points.
It was the second time in as many weeks Warsaw came back from a 14-point deficit. The Tigers came from behind to beat Columbia City in the opening week with a late fourth-quarter touchdown.
The momentum shift against Homestead may have occurred when senior kicker Jake Rogers, a member of Warsaw's soccer team, booted a 37-yard field goal through the uprights as time expired in the first half to put the Tigers on the board trailing 14-3.
The kick was set up by two clutch passes from Warsaw quarterback Mark Sudhoff.
Sudhoff was snake-bitten last year with injury but looked no worse for the wear as he marched the Tigers down the field from their own 29-yard line and less than two minutes left in the first half.
Sudhoff found Maierle for 19 yards on third down then hooked up with Chas Simpson for 23 yards to set up Rogers.
On the Tigers' second possession of the second half, Sudhoff found Simpson streaking down the Homestead sideline for a 67-yard touchdown to make the score 14-10 in favor of the Spartans.
Warsaw was also aided by Homestead's mental mistakes. The Spartans stalled their own drives several time by committing 13 penalties for 95 yards.
In contrast, the Tigers committed just four penalties for 20 yards.
Special teams play also went to Warsaw.
Maierle punted five times for an average of 43.8 yards including a 53-yard punt while he was pinned back in his own end zone.
The Tigers also covered well on kickoffs and punt returns.
Perhaps the biggest special teams play of the night came after Hanson's punt return.
On the ensuing kickoff, Rogers booted the ball through the back of the end zone, negating any Homestead return and placing the ball at the Spartan 20-yard line.
"That was huge. It was one of those momentum shifts," said Akers. "Everyone is excited after the touchdown and then your kicker puts through the back of the end zone. That really fired the defense up."
The defense did hold on Homestead's next possession following Hanson's touchdown giving the ball back to the Tigers.
Warsaw looked to run out the clock but when senior Tyler Hamman rumbled for eight yards, the Tigers' longest run of the night, he appeared to have fumbled the ball with Homestead recovering.
Afterwards, Akers said the referee closest to the play admitted that he missed the call and in fact the field turf at Homestead Stadium caused the fumble and Hamman should have been ruled down by contact.
The referees nearly botched another call when they failed to throw a flag on a Wise touchdown pass despite the fact he was six yards past the line of scrimmage. The Warsaw coaching staff succesfully argued its case and the refs correctly flagged Homestead for the penalty.
The Spartans took over at their own 36-yard line but only moved backwards as Wise threw three incomplete passes and was sacked once.
Akers said his team would enjoy the win until this morning when preparation for Plymouth began.
The coach also knows that there are some things his team has to improve on. With a more effective run offense topping that list.
"We gotta run the ball better to win in the NLC," said Akers.
The Tigers finished with eight yards on 28 carries with Sudhoff rushing for -31 yards on account of several sacks.
For now, with two come from behind victories coming in the fourth quarter, the Tigers are finding ways to win without posting big numbers.
Warsaw moved to 2-0 on the season and returns to the brand-new Tiger Athletic Complex to host rival Plymouth and open Northern Lakes Conference play Friday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
WARSAW 17, HOMESTEAD 14
Warsaw 0 3 7 7 - 17
Homestead 7 7 0 0- 14
War Hom
First downs 6 8
Rushing yards 28-9 28-150
Passing yards 147 177
Comp.-Att.-Int. 7-13-1 14-30-2
Total offense 156 327
Fumbles/lost 2-2 1-0
Punts/avg. 5-43.8 5-32.4
Penalties/yards 4-20 13-95
First Quarter
H - Jordan Wise 84 run (Trevor Terrell kick) 11:01 7-0
Second Quarter
H -ÊWise 15 pass to Taylor Kinzer (Terrell kick) 7:56 14-0
W -ÊJake Rogers 37 field goal 0:00 3-14
Third Quarter
W -ÊMark Sudhoff 67 pass to Chas Simpson (Rogers kick) 2:44 10-14
Fourth Quarter
W -ÊJustin Hanson 84 punt return (Rogers kick) 2:44 17-14
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Warsaw, Dale Wood 2-12, Tommy Reinholt 4-11, Tyler Hamman 6-9, James Sibray 2-8, Blake Deaton 2-0, Mark Sudhoff 12-(-31); Homestead, Jordan Wise 11-87, Kenneth Perkins 7-54, Taylor Kinzer 8-5, Matt Mikulecky 1-4, Trevor Terrell 1-0.
Passing - Warsaw, Mark Sudhoff 7-13-147, 1 TD, 1 INT; Homestead Jordan Wise 14-30-177, 1 TD, 2 INT.
Receiving - Warsaw, Chas Simpson 3-96, Mitch Reinholt 1-28, J.W. Maierle 3-23; Homestead, Trevor Terrell 10-124, Taylor Kinzer 2-26, Pat Muhler 1-17, Kenneth Perkins 1-10. [[In-content Ad]]