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After three nail-biting victories to start the season, there was a big chance the trend continued with Northern Lakes Conference rival Mishawaka coming to town on Friday night. That was not the case, as the Tigers were the better team for all 48 minutes and they showcased it, dominating the Cavemen en route to a 43-7 victory to move to 4-0.
“I think this is the best game that this team has played so far,” Warsaw head coach Bart Curtis said after the win. “We’re not going to get excited over our record or our ranking. We’re just going to keep focusing on Warsaw and hopefully good things continue to happen.”
The Tigers certainly set the tone on their opening drive, getting the ball at around their own 25 and holding it for the first eight minutes of the game. Quarterback Mark Hayes ran the option perfectly, as the home side methodically made its way down field. It looked as if the opening drive was going to end in six, but a fumble recovered by the offense on third down forced the team to settle for a field goal, which John Conley buried from 29 yards out.
The good times didn’t stop there. Warsaw elected a pooch kick on the ensuing kickoff, and the team fielded it perfectly. Sophomore Clayton Dias was there to recover it at the sidelines, giving the home team the ball right back. This time, the offense was able to reach the end zone. After slowly churning toward the goal line, Haynes finally punched it in from three yards out with a little over a minute to go in the first quarter. After eleven minutes, the Tigers led 9-0 and the Cavemen had yet to possess the ball.
Once the visitors did finally get their hands on it, it didn’t take them long to make the most of it. On the third play from scrimmage, Tommy Hoover got the ball in space, shed a tackle and was off to the races. Nobody would catch him, and after a 63-yard score, it was now 9-7.
Just three seconds remained in the quarter, but that was still enough time for more points to go up on the board. Tucker Reed, who has made things happen with the football all season long, kept it rolling by taking the kickoff 92-yards to the house to get those seven points right back. After an extremely exciting first 12 minutes, Warsaw led 16-7.
Just two minutes into the second, Reed struck again. After forcing a turnover on downs in enemy territory, Haynes faked a play action pass perfectly, allowing Reed to get free with plenty of open room. The pass was a perfect one, and the result was a 38-yard passing touchdown that made it 23-7.
“When the staff met on Sunday night, we saw some things that we thought we could take advantage of and we did tonight,” Curtis said. “Credit to the kids for making plays.”
After three scores in the first quarter, that would be the only one in the second. The rest of the quarter featured another turnover on downs by the Cavemen, as well as a trio of punts, two by the Tigers and the third by their opponent. Halfway through the game, Warsaw still held onto a 16-point lead.
Warsaw junior quarterback Mark Haynes looks for running room during Friday night's home game against Mishawaka...Nieter
Just as Warsaw picked up an early touchdown in the second quarter, they did the same in the third. The Cavemen got the ball to start the half, but fumbled on the third play of the drive. After the recovery by Jack Bradford, the offense needed just one play, a 45-yard run by Michael Schenck, to put six more points on the board. Ninety seconds into the second half, it was now 29-7.
The Cavemen used the next six minutes of clock marching down the field. A lot of plays didn’t go anywhere, but the visitors were having success running to the outside. They were able to get into the red zone before being faced with a fourth and short. For the third time in the game, the Tiger defense came up with a stop, and for Mishawaka to use all that clock and come away with nothing, things were looking better and better by the minute for the home side.
“The defense was so good tonight. This is a team that ran it down our throat last year. It was concerning and it was addressed tonight,” Curtis said.
Warsaw did not let another turnover by their opponent go to waste. After another big time run by Schenck picked up 20 yards and put the ball at midfield, the Tigers decided to let it fly for the second time. And for the second time, Haynes connected with Reed, who had a ton of room around him and went untouched to the end zone for a 50-yard score. At this point, the rout was on with Warsaw leading 36-7.
After the Cavemen were forced to punt deep in their own end, the Tigers spent a majority of the fourth quarter moving the ball down the field and melting the clock away. Even with the offense now made of mostly JV players, the home side still found a way to put more points on the board. This time, it was Mason Silveus breaking free on a 48-yard score to make it a 43-7 game, meaning the last three minutes would be played with a running clock.
Warsaw is on the road at Wawasee for the “W” game next Friday.
