After New Richmond lost to Western Brown in Week 8, some of the luster of last week’s Clinton-Massie versus New Richmond game was gone.
But still, the Lions are a quality program and good enough to defeat the Falcons on a given week.
Clinton-Massie took care of business, though, handing New Richmond a 21-7 defeat to improve to 8-1 on the year and clinch a share of the SBAAC American Division crown.
There were, however, some talking points coaches were able to use to keep the Falcons’ focus at a razor’s edge.
“We felt that we played pretty sloppy,” CM coach Jeskee Zantene said. “We had some penalty issues and turnover issues. Those issues will get addressed in practice and we expect to see improvement this week.”
Clinton-Massie had two fumbles in the win and were penalized seven times for 85 yards.
Those issues and their possible remedies will be on full display in the regular season finale against Wilmington 7 p.m. Friday night in front of the home fans at Frank Irelan Field. It’ll be Senior Night for Clinton-Massie. In addition, Massie wants to get things right for the post-season run which begins next week.
The Hurricane is 4-5 on the year and defeated Western Brown last week 38-37 in a thriller at LaRosa’s Field.
“Wilmington is a spread offense,” Zantene said. “They look to get the ball out quick to several different players. They can be explosive. Wilmington’s defense and special teams are very similar to ours. They run a base 4-3 defense and try to do a lot of the same things we do. On special teams they have a nice kicking game with a strong-legged kicker. They also have a good return team as they have scored several special teams touchdowns this year.”
Massie running back Brendan Lamb returned after injury last week and ran for 221 yards and three scores. Not that the running game was bad without Lamb but his return boosts the Falcons’ offense.
“Robby Frederick has stepped up in a big way for us, carrying the load at fullback,” Zantene said. “He has given us more depth and he has had quite a few explosive plays this season.”
The offensive line of Seth Schmidt, Seth Stiverson, Matt Phillips, Davis Wulf, Spencer Voss and Colton Doyle have meshed and become the strength of the offense.
“When your goal is to rush for 4,000 yards in a season, your O-line better produce,” Zantene said. “These guys do a great job and often times don’t get credit.”
To this point in the season, Clinton-Massie has 3,380 yards on 445 rushes with 46 rushing touchdowns.
On defense, Zantene said the coaches believe Nathan Allgeyer has been a solid contributor in the secondary and at linebacker. Overall, the defense is playing “disciplined assignment football,” Zantene said.
Tyler Beam is the leading tackler with 60 while Griffin Laake has 54 and Thomas Myers has 52.
On special teams, Grant Avey and Myers have been strong kickers with Avey missing on just three extra points and Myers averaging nearly 40 yards a punt.
