Behind seven first-half rushing touchdowns by Zacciah Saltzman, the Athens Bulldogs cruised to a 48-13 over Vinton County.
McARTHUR, Ohio -- On Friday, Athens running back Zacciah Saltzman scored so many points in the first half against the winless Vinton County Vikings, the Bulldogs put in their junior varsity squad.
Saltzman shredded the Viking’s defense by rushing for seven first-half rushing touchdowns — a record for most rushing touchdowns by a Bulldog player in a single half — as Athens (2-3) won 48-13 Friday.
Saltzman finished the night with 17 carries for 167 yards and seven rushing touchdowns.
“(Saltzman) is one of the hardest working kids we’ve had in terms of preparation in the offseason and he’s a physically and extraordinarily strong kid,” Athens coach Ryan Adams said. “He plays the game with a lot of passion."
Aided by favorable field position in the first half, Saltzman finished off every Athens' first-half drive with touchdowns.
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Starting their first drive on their own 42 yard line, the Bulldogs marched down the field with relative ease, as Saltzman’s finished the drive with a 20-yard touchdown run.
Athens' next three drives all started in Vinton County territory, and it made quick work of the short field, scoring three more times to make the score 27-0 at the end of the first quarter.
To start the second quarter, Vinton County finally got on the board with an 80-yard drive, capped off by a one-yard touchdown run by Tim Ousley to cut the Athens lead to 27-7.
Again starting with good field position, quarterback Brendan Sano handed the ball off to Saltzman, who raced 35 yards for his fifth score of the contest to give Athens a 34-7 advantage.
“The opportunity presented itself to us (to keep giving Saltzman the ball) and I think our kids came out and played with a lot of passion," Adams said. "He’s a kid that is so strong and powerful that you cannot tackle him with your arms. You’re going to have to step in front of him. … Most guys aren’t willing to do that.”
After two more stops on the defensive side of the ball, Saltzman ran for two more scores before the half to push the lead to 48-7 going into the break. Athens went on to give up six points in the second half.
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