Wyoming has not been challenged all season. This is as dominant as any Ohio high school football has ever been through 12 games.
The Cowboys have outscored opponents 481-28, that’s an average of 40-2.3 per game.
Wyoming has been scored on in just three games all season, with nine shutouts. Mariemont scored 14 on Wyoming, Indian Hill had 7 and Madeira had 7. The rest … 0. Make that 000000000.
So that’s what is standing in the way of Clinton-Massie and another game this season, a 12-0 Wyoming team. The Cowboys and Falcons will square off 7 p.m. Saturday at Lakota West Firebird Field in a Div. IV Region 16 semifinal game. The winner will face either Cincinnati Taft or Archbishop McNicholas for the Region 16 championship.
The Ohio prep football website, fantastic50.net, predicts a Cowboys win over Clinton-Massie by 19 points.
To say the least, the spunky Falcons are the David to the Cowboys’ Goliath.
They likely were last season as well, but then defeated Wyoming 42-14.
“We are excited for another opportunity to play this week,” Wyoming coach Aaron Hancock said. “Clinton-Massie is well-coached and a very good football team.”
Clinton-Massie head coach Dan McSurley said each team can measure its success against the other.
“When we defeated them in ‘17, they built a beautiful indoor facility to keep up with us and they certainly have,” he said. “Wyoming is one of the highest achieving (school) districts, both academically and athletically, in the entire state.”
Quaid Hauer is the quarterback for WHS but the 6-2, 215-pound junior more importantly is the leading tackler on defense.
Joel Allen, a 6-1, 270-pound powerplant on the defensive line, has 8 sacks and is relentless in his pressure. His sacking sidekick is DJ Gray who has six sacks and three fumble recoveries.
In the secondary, Joel Hancock had four interceptions while Gray has three from his linebacker slot.
But this Cowboys team all comes down to CJ Hester. He has 2,461 yards rushing (8.8 per carry average) with a long run of 96 yards. He has 40 touchdowns on the ground.
He has given a verbal commitment to play in college at Western Michigan.
Hester went for 2,484 yards rushing last season and his 6,466 career total has him in the top 20 in state history.
In 2020, it was Wyoming coming out on top with a 28-9 win when these two teams played.
They did not play from 2008 to 2016 or from 2002 to 2004. Since Massie started its playoff run in 2002, the Falcons hold a 4-2 edge in the six games.
“Each week it’s about focused work and preparation to compete against our next opponent,’ said Hancock. “Our players and coaching staff are focused on working hard and preparing to play a very good team on Saturday.”
For McSurley and his resurgent Falcons, who started the season 0-4 before winning 7 of the last 8, this game is another in a long line of win or go home contests.
”The one thing about our group is that we’re not afraid of failure and that can be pretty dangerous for a football team,” said McSurley. “This is the youngest group we’ve put on the field in over 21 years, so playing loose and having fun is the theme of the week.”
