After a half of throwing the ball around, the Warsaw Tigers got down to smash-mouth football against the Columbia City Eagles, pulling out a 24-7 win Friday at Fisher Field.
Leading 10-7 going into the second half, senior running back Andy Conrad got his number called early and often, rushing for 96 yards on 18 attempts in the half, including a score.
"We seemed to get a little stronger as we went along," Warsaw head coach Phil Jensen said. "Our running game really picked up in the second half.
"(Conrad) ran real hard as the game got on," he added. "He did a nice job, and the offensive line did a nice job."
Conrad finished the game with 138 yards on 31 carries, wearing down the Eagles defense in the third quarter, when Warsaw ran 19 plays to Columbia City's 10.
"Our biggest thing was we couldn't keep the ball on offense," Columbia City first-year coach Randy Hudgins said. "Our defense was on the field an awful lot. That showed in the second half, because they were able to wear us down. (Conrad) is a pretty good football player."
Conrad also got his carries in the first half, but the game plan seemed to be more passing oriented, as senior quarterback Justin Clemens went 7 for 19 for 91 yards, including 35-yard touchdown pass to senior Justin Denlinger on 4th-and-10 with 7:36 remaining in the half.
The touchdown pass gave Warsaw a 10-7 lead, but it made Jensen anything but comfortable.
"The first half wasn't everything we had wanted it to be, but we stayed focused," he said.
With the rushing attack working in the second half, Clemens also took advantage of the sucked in defense, going 3 for 4 for 57 yards and a 21-yard touchdown pass to senior Zac Linky with 3:37 remaining in the third quarter, finishing the game 10 for 23 for 148 yards and two touchdowns.
The Clemens to Linky connection helped give the Tigers some breathing room after the Eagles had more than a few opportunities slip through their fingers - literally.
Eagles junior quarterback Logan Rehrer hooked up with just seven of his 20 targets, but five dropped balls, including two for first downs killed any rally.
A big downer for the Eagles occurred on the opening possession of the second half when Rehrer hit senior Alex Parker for a 35-yard pickup to the Tigers 9-yard line. However, a fumble on the play handed the ball back to the home team, letting an excellent opportunity slip by.
"There's no real excuse for it," Hudgins said of the miscues, which also included a punt inside the 1-yard line being jumped on, and subsequently being knocked into the end zone for a touchback. "We've just got to execute a little bit better. That's something that will come with practice."
Against the Tigers, the miscues cost Columbia City possessions, as Warsaw ran 71 plays to their 32.
However, aside from the mistakes, Jensen saw Columbia City fight to the end, showcased by a 4th-and-1 stop with less than a minute to play in the game.
"Obviously, this team is well-coached," Jensen said. "They're playing real hard for (Hudgins), and you got to give a lot of credit to them. They came out ready to play ball tonight."
The problem for the Eagles was the Tigers were ready to play too, there were just a couple miscues, including a player forgetting to take the field on punt coverage.
"If we come ready to play with a mental intensity, they're all problems we can fix," Jensen said.
Junior tight end Jalen Roscoe did come ready to play, leading Warsaw with four catches for 57 yards.
The Tigers now travel to Homestead Friday for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
