Athens' offense ignited last weekend, burning Meigs with its big-play abilities in a 33-27 comeback win.
Touchdown plays of 78, 59, 37 and 32 yards propelled the Bulldogs to the win and brought their record back to .500 at 3-3.
Any time you can spread the field and get a team on their heels
it definitely helps to open things up coach Ryan Adams said.
Despite playing the entire first half without linebacker Mitch Rider, the Bulldogs were able to stay in the game, something Adams said is a testament to his team's tenacity.
Running back DeVon Sharp proved Adams' expectations right again. The running back ran for 239 yards and three touchdowns.
I knew he had this potential but I didn't know taking him off the defensive side of the ball would be this beneficial for him
Adams said. When he's got fresh legs
he's a hard kid to handle.
Adams said moving Johnny Young into the starting secondary has allowed Sharp to focus solely on the running back position.
After a disappointing 0-3 start to the season, Athens has now won three in a row and has turned their season around.
It's been a matter of some growing pains that kept us from getting over the hump
Adams said. It took three games to allow our offensive line to get stronger and gel together. It also took some other kids stepping up at other positions. Some things just have to work out before you can play your best ball.
Nelsonville-york
While most Athens County teams feature a single star running back, Nelsonville-York pounds offenses with a pair of excellent runners.
The pair of Dustin Young and Justin Cunningham combined for 238 yards and two touchdowns last weekend against Wellston in a 28-21 win.
Buckeye coach David Boston said Young and Cunningham are the latest in a long history of strong Buckeye backfields.
We've been that way year in and year out
he said. Both backs compliment each other
and both backs block for each other. We're not afraid to hand the ball to either of those guys.
Boston also said a strong running game helps to open up the pass for quarterback Nathan Dean.
On the other side of the ball, Boston has been pleased with the play of defensive lineman Logan Milliron and Jacob Coon.
We had a tough test in stopping Wellston upfront
and I was really pleased with the way those two performed.
Alexander
A 28-21 win over Vinton County last weekend pushed Alexander's record to 5-1 and solidified the Spartans' spot atop the TVC-Ohio standings.
Despite the fact that running back Cody Lawson accounted for all four Alexander touchdowns, Alexander coach Sean Arno said last week's win was an all-around group effort.
It was a great team effort. It was probably our best team effort to date
he said. Our kids were ready to play from the beginning.
With players like quarterback Mike Chapman and Benton Milum facing injuries all year, the team is almost back to 100 percent, Arno said.
The Spartans will face 2-4 Wellston this weekend before a big showdown with Athens in week eight, but Arno said his team will not look past the Golden Rockets.
We take it week to week and approach it one game at a time
he said. We know we're going to have to be focused to win. We can't worry about stats or standings. We just need to stay focused on the task at hand.
Trimble
A 40-6 win over Waterford last weekend left Trimble coach Phil Faires with a lot to be pleased about.
Faires particularly liked the efforts of defensive lineman Sunny Cain and fullback Austin Keith
(Cain) did a great job limiting their offensive production upfront
