By Mr. Eddie Dwyer, Copyright Credit September 2016
Cleveland, Ohio - There is no question that Saint Ignatius' No. 2 Freshman Football Team has plenty of promise.
Playing under the tag of the Freshmen Blue, the young Wildcats went toe-to-toe with an athletic Akron Buchtel team at Wasmer Field Wednesday night before the Griffins' talented duo of quarterback/safety Devon Bracy and running back/linebacker/defensive back Daylan Bennett came up big in the final four minutes and showed the way to a 22-13 victory for the team from the Rubber City.
After the Saint Ignatius Blue closed to 14-13 on a touchdown pass from quarterback Sean Costello to hard-nosed and gifted tight end/offensive lineman Thomas Mullee off a third and goal from the 7-yard line that featured a diving catch by Mullee in the scoreboard end zone of Wasmer Field, the 'Cats appeared to be in business again when defensive lineman Rico Levert recovered a fumble after the ball popped in the air.
Taking possession at their 31-yard line, the Blue 'Cats moved to a first down at their 42-yard line.
However, after losing 2 yards on first down, Saint Ignatius misfired on three consecutive passes and Buchtel took over on downs with 4 minutes and 16 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
In what could be described as the key play of the game, the Griffins' Bennett, off a second-and-9 from the 'Cats' 41-yard line, rambled and powered his way for a 32-yard run and a first-and-goal at the Saint Ignatius 9-yard line.
On the next play, the versatile Bracy called his own number and swept the right side and into the corner of the Lorain Avenue end zone for a 9-yard TD with 2:51 left.
Bracy's two-point conversion pass following his touchdown gave Buchtel a nine-point lead.
Behind another key reception by Mullee, Coach Rodney Gallaway's Wildcats would drive from their 20 to a first down at the Buchtel 47.
Saint Ignatius came up empty on three consecutive passes, however, and the Griffins sealed the deal off a pass breakup by Bracy on fourth down.
As for the early going, Buchtel took a 6-0 lead on a 4-yard touchdown run by Bennett with 2:08 remaining in the first quarter and the Wildcats moved to a 7-6 lead on a 4-yard touchdown run by tailback James Crosby and the ensuing extra-point kick by Rory McConville with 5:56 left in the first half.
It stayed that way until Bracy scored from less than a yard out and Bennett added a 2-point conversion run with 2:38 to go in the third quarter. Bracy set up his first touchdown with a 40-yard second- and third-effort run to the Saint Ignatius 2-yard line.
Buchtel's freshmen now stand 2-3 and Coach Gallaway said his Freshmen Blue are 0-3.
FROM COACH GALLAWAY: "I was happy our offense came alive a little bit, which was nice " Coach Gallaway said. "We got to see some of those guys on the outside that work real hard in practice, as more or less scout team guys, get some action and come up with some big catches. Will Thornton and Tommy Mullee in particular. Tommy Mullee was unbelievable, making some real nice plays. And Costello had to get it there, so that was important.
"Defensively, I thought Thomas Maloney was all over the place," Coach Gallaway continued. "He loves to hit. When we get some weight on that kid, we're good to go.
"In general, I thought we could have tackled a little better," said Coach Gallaway. "Obviously there were some big plays. Bracy and Bennett are great athletes. They knew who to get the ball to."