Playing its first home game in four weeks as well as the final home game of the regular season, Tippecanoe Valley had to fight tooth and nail to pick up a Senior night victory over John Glenn. In a game that came down to the final seconds, the Vikings got a much-needed defensive stop to finish off a 22-21 victory.
“That’s a good 1-6 football team that we beat tonight. They played really well on both ends of the ball and made it difficult for us,” Tippecanoe Valley head coach Steve Moriarty said after the game. “But at the end of the day a win is a win and I was proud of our kids giving everything they had for the seniors tonight.”
Glenn began the game with the ball and started things off with a picture-perfect drive. The Falcons were able to move that ball at will on the Vikings D, picking up a pair of first downs to get onto the Valley side of the field. What followed was the first big play of the game, as quarterback Archer Rust kept the ball on an option, made it to the second level and was gone on a 42-yard touchdown run just two minutes into the game. Glenn elected to go for two and did not get it, making it a 6-0 game.
Tippecanoe Valley looked good in its response, moving the ball methodically down the field and onto the Falcons’ side of the field. Owen Omondi and Brandon Stiles were huge factors on this drive, picking up a series of first downs that put the Vikings into the red zone. Faced with a 4th and five deep in Glenn territory, Valley elected to go for it, but a false start against the home side led to a 38-yard field goal attempt for Gage Overbey. His kick had the distance, but hooked to the left, no good.
The Viking defense fared much better on its second possession. Forcing what looked to be a three-and-out with Glenn deep in their own territory. For some reason, the Falcons elected to go for it on 4th and short on their own 28-yard line. The visitors did not get it, setting Valley up nicely.
Again, miscues in the red zone would burn the Vikings in a crucial spot. After picking up a first down to get to the Glenn 18, two plays went nowhere, resulting in a third and long. The next play was one the home side would regret, as the snap was fumbled and recovered by the defense to keep Valley scoreless.
To make matters worse, a screen pass for the Falcons picked up some serious yardage on the following drive, putting the visitors into Viking territory as the first quarter came to an end. The first play of the second was just what the home side needed though, as Glenn put the ball on the turf themselves, recovered by Kolten Sisk for the Falcons’ second turnover in as many drives.
Once again though, Valley was unable to keep from shooting themselves in the foot. A pair of false starts stunted the drive before it even began, leading to a three-and-out for the offense. To make matters worse, Overbey dropped the ball while attempting the punt, giving Glenn the ball at the Viking 28.
The Falcons moved the ball well after getting the ball back, getting deep into the red zone, as close as the one-yard line on the ensuing drive. However, another costly penalty, this time on the visitors, wiped a touchdown off the board and resulted in a 20-yard field goal attempt. The boot went through the uprights, making it a two-possession game at 9-0.
Just when things were starting to look bleak, the Vikings finally got the big play they were looking for. Facing a 1st and 25 on their own 20 after yet another penalty, Wes Parker got the ball on a counter play, and he did the rest. Parker found some space, exploited it and took it the whole 80 yards to put Valley on the board with seven minutes left in the first half. The point after was good, making it a 9-7 game.
Glenn used a lot of clock on the following drive, but was unable to do anything with it and was forced to punt, giving the ball back to the Vikings with a little more than three minutes remaining. Valley wasn’t able to get anything going either, having to punt themselves just a minute later.
Both teams possessed the ball in the final two minutes of the first half, with the home side getting the ball last. The Vikings put together a nice drive in the final minute of the game, ending the half with a 55-yard field goal attempt by Overbey. It did not have the distance, keeping it a two-point game at the half.
The Vikings started the second half off with a bang, as Omondi fielded the kickoff at the 15 and went to work. The sophomore broke a couple of tackles and found an edge, beating out all of the defenders chasing him to open the half with an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to give Valley its first lead of the game. The home side elected to go for two following the score and didn’t get it, leaving the score at 13-9 just 13 seconds into the third.
“That was a huge play for us, something we needed and got at the right time,” Moriarty said.
Glenn was able to answer almost immediately. The visitors started out their first drive of the second half with a 40-yard passing play to put them in Viking territory. The team was able to efficiently move the ball the rest of the way, getting into the red zone and into the end zone three minutes into the half on a 1-yard touchdown run by Walter Drews to make it 15-13 after another failed two-point conversion.
Valley began their next drive with a big passing play to Parker, but things fizzled out from there, as the home side was forced to go for a 4th and medium while in no-man’s land near midfield. The pass by quarterback Hunter Stage was incomplete, giving the ball back to the visitors. The Viking defense responded well this time around, getting the ball back to the offense after a three-and-out.
A pass-interference call helped Valley move the ball past midfield on the following drive, but a big sack by the Glenn defense led to yet another punt with just a minute to go in the third quarter. The Falcons ran two plays and were faced with a third and short as the fourth and final quarter began.
The Vikings came up big on defense as the fourth began, forcing a punt, which was a short one that gave the home side the ball at the Glenn 34. After just two plays, the home team was inside the red zone. While Valley would have preferred a touchdown in this spot, the team was still able to get points after the drive stalled out at the 14. Overbey came in and hit his kick from 30 yards out to retake the lead at 16-15.

    Senior Asher McGriff (#55) holds the hammer while Tippecanoe Valley celebrates its 22-21 victory over John Glenn Friday night.

They didn’t hold the lead for very long. The freshman quarterback for the Falcons continued to impress, moving his team down the field with ease before putting things in his own hands. For the second time in the game, Rust was able to find some space on a keeper and got to the sideline, exploding for a 52-yard score to get Glenn back in front. For the third time in the game, the visitors’ two-point try was no good, leaving it a 21-16 game.
“That kid is a stud. He does a great job in the pocket. We would pressure him but he’d stay so poised,” Moriarty said. “He’s got a great future at Glenn and beyond and it’s not going to be fun dealing with him for the next four years.”
The lead changed hands for the third time in the quarter just two minutes later, as a big run by Stage on third and long followed by a tough 28-yard touchdown run by Grady Moriarty put Valley back in front with 5:40 left. Another failed two-point conversion later, and the score was 22-21.
“Hunter did a great job tonight. He found his open receivers and had some big runs for us down the stretch,” Moriarty said. “He’s grown up quite a bit this season.”
The Vikings did leave a lot of time left on the clock, and the visitors took advantage of it. Glenn converted multiple third downs on their final possession of the game, getting the ball into Valley territory, the 24-yard line with a minute left. A botched snap by the Falcons lost about six yards on third down, taking the visitors out of field goal range. Forced to go for it, Glenn was not able to pick it up, clinching the 21st straight home win for the Vikings.
Tippecanoe Valley (6-2, 2-2 Indiana Northern State Conference) travel to Bremen next week for the regular season finale.