Tiger Gridders Put On 70-0 Clinic For Youth Grid Guests

September 3, 2022 at 3:49 a.m.
Tiger Gridders Put On 70-0 Clinic For Youth Grid Guests
Tiger Gridders Put On 70-0 Clinic For Youth Grid Guests

By Chip Davenport-

WARSAW – The future of Tiger football, in the form of a halftime parade Friday night among the three levels of the Young Tiger football organization’s 8-, 10-, and 12-year-old groups, was apropos for Warsaw’s Northern Lakes Conference opening 70-0 win over the Plymouth Rockies at Fisher Field.

The Tigers moved ahead 21-0 in the opening quarter and were afforded the opportunity to showcase numerous future Tigers at the prep level who spend most of their time getting minutes on the field in junior varsity action.

Warsaw put the fruits of their efforts to “coach next year’s kids this year” on display last night.

The Young Tigers organization shadowed their elder local football heroes in the locker room and formed part of the student cheer block tunnel.

Is it possible the older version of the future of Tiger football made the most of their varsity minutes last night due to inspiration drawn from their much younger guests?

Football has a natural attrition customarily triggering “next man up” scenarios, but Friday night’s reserve action resulted from Warsaw’s ability to move comfortably ahead on the scoreboard early in the fray.

Three quarterbacks took snaps in the contest, and each of the three field marshals scored on touchdown runs while managing Warsaw’s triple option attack.

Junior Grady Nolin (13 carries, 104 yards), and sophomores Drew Sullivan (4 car./51 yds.) and Daylor Vilamaa (2 car./43 yds.) combined for 198 of Warsaw’s 357 rushing yards Friday night.

Each quarterback scored a breakaway touchdown. Nolin opened Warsaw’s scoring with a 40-yard run a little more than 2 ½ minutes after the opening kickoff. Vilamaa (38 yd. TD) scored in the third frame, and Sullivan dashed for a 33-yard score in the final stanza.

Nolin, however, sprinkled some aerial success into his first half showing, earning a well-deserved second half rest while his understudies were afforded considerable playing time with a 56-0 Tiger halftime lead, and an IHSAA Mercy Rule running clock to launch the third frame.

Nolin’s improved passing accuracy was evident connecting on each of his three passing attempts for 58 yards. He tossed a touchdown pass for the second week in a row, this time a 15-yard scoring strike to B-back German Flores-Ortega, who added 32 rushing yards on 7 totes, and one TD on the ground.

Warsaw also scored a defensive touchdown for the second consecutive week. The Black Plague, the Tigers defensive unit moniker, joined the scoring effort when junior defensive lineman Isaac Beam snared a Rockies fumble in midair, and sprinted 16 yards to paydirt in the second quarter.

One defensive score wasn’t enough, though, and Theo Katris, whose twin brother stole a slant pass last week for a “pick six”, capitalized on an errant Plymouth pass returning the interception 46 yards to paydirt in the second period.

Thomas Boggs, Grant Cook, and Lucas Ransbottom are seniors who usually do not start, but each made the most of their opportunity on the field with solid tackling and pass coverage to secure the shutout.

Senior Morgan Johnson (6 car./45 yds.) effectively spelled Flores-Ortega, who had two previous high-volume carry weeks, in the second period. Johnson, who spends most of his time in the defensive backfield, scored two rushing TDs (1, 23 yards) in the second quarter.

Senior A-back Haydin Rodriguez added a 13-yard rushing score on a pitch-out in the second quarter. Mason Smythe successfully converted all 10 extra point kick attempts. Reed Zollinger, Ethan Egolf, and Robbie Hoffert each tallied runs greater than ten yards for Tiger first downs.

Warsaw (357 rushing yds., 58 passing yds.) outgained Plymouth (30 rushing yds., 6 of 16 for 55 passing yds.) 415-85, and converted 16 first downs to their guest team’s four.

Warsaw’s leads among the game’s first three quarters were 21-0, 56-0, and 63-0, respectively.

The Tigers, 3-0 for the first time since their 2001 unbeaten regular season, take their 1-0 NLC record to Jake Field Friday 7 p.m. to face the Concord Minutemen (1-2, 0-1).



WARSAW – The future of Tiger football, in the form of a halftime parade Friday night among the three levels of the Young Tiger football organization’s 8-, 10-, and 12-year-old groups, was apropos for Warsaw’s Northern Lakes Conference opening 70-0 win over the Plymouth Rockies at Fisher Field.

The Tigers moved ahead 21-0 in the opening quarter and were afforded the opportunity to showcase numerous future Tigers at the prep level who spend most of their time getting minutes on the field in junior varsity action.

Warsaw put the fruits of their efforts to “coach next year’s kids this year” on display last night.

The Young Tigers organization shadowed their elder local football heroes in the locker room and formed part of the student cheer block tunnel.

Is it possible the older version of the future of Tiger football made the most of their varsity minutes last night due to inspiration drawn from their much younger guests?

Football has a natural attrition customarily triggering “next man up” scenarios, but Friday night’s reserve action resulted from Warsaw’s ability to move comfortably ahead on the scoreboard early in the fray.

Three quarterbacks took snaps in the contest, and each of the three field marshals scored on touchdown runs while managing Warsaw’s triple option attack.

Junior Grady Nolin (13 carries, 104 yards), and sophomores Drew Sullivan (4 car./51 yds.) and Daylor Vilamaa (2 car./43 yds.) combined for 198 of Warsaw’s 357 rushing yards Friday night.

Each quarterback scored a breakaway touchdown. Nolin opened Warsaw’s scoring with a 40-yard run a little more than 2 ½ minutes after the opening kickoff. Vilamaa (38 yd. TD) scored in the third frame, and Sullivan dashed for a 33-yard score in the final stanza.

Nolin, however, sprinkled some aerial success into his first half showing, earning a well-deserved second half rest while his understudies were afforded considerable playing time with a 56-0 Tiger halftime lead, and an IHSAA Mercy Rule running clock to launch the third frame.

Nolin’s improved passing accuracy was evident connecting on each of his three passing attempts for 58 yards. He tossed a touchdown pass for the second week in a row, this time a 15-yard scoring strike to B-back German Flores-Ortega, who added 32 rushing yards on 7 totes, and one TD on the ground.

Warsaw also scored a defensive touchdown for the second consecutive week. The Black Plague, the Tigers defensive unit moniker, joined the scoring effort when junior defensive lineman Isaac Beam snared a Rockies fumble in midair, and sprinted 16 yards to paydirt in the second quarter.

One defensive score wasn’t enough, though, and Theo Katris, whose twin brother stole a slant pass last week for a “pick six”, capitalized on an errant Plymouth pass returning the interception 46 yards to paydirt in the second period.

Thomas Boggs, Grant Cook, and Lucas Ransbottom are seniors who usually do not start, but each made the most of their opportunity on the field with solid tackling and pass coverage to secure the shutout.

Senior Morgan Johnson (6 car./45 yds.) effectively spelled Flores-Ortega, who had two previous high-volume carry weeks, in the second period. Johnson, who spends most of his time in the defensive backfield, scored two rushing TDs (1, 23 yards) in the second quarter.

Senior A-back Haydin Rodriguez added a 13-yard rushing score on a pitch-out in the second quarter. Mason Smythe successfully converted all 10 extra point kick attempts. Reed Zollinger, Ethan Egolf, and Robbie Hoffert each tallied runs greater than ten yards for Tiger first downs.

Warsaw (357 rushing yds., 58 passing yds.) outgained Plymouth (30 rushing yds., 6 of 16 for 55 passing yds.) 415-85, and converted 16 first downs to their guest team’s four.

Warsaw’s leads among the game’s first three quarters were 21-0, 56-0, and 63-0, respectively.

The Tigers, 3-0 for the first time since their 2001 unbeaten regular season, take their 1-0 NLC record to Jake Field Friday 7 p.m. to face the Concord Minutemen (1-2, 0-1).



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