ASHLAND – If the Ashland football team was looking to submit film from one of its 25 wins over the last three seasons for a beauty contest, Friday night’s home-opener likely would be the last one the Arrows would choose.
Welcoming Clyde to Community Stadium for the final non-conference game of its schedule, Ashland committed six turnovers and 11 penalties.
But behind a survive-at-all-costs defensive effort, the Arrows endured, 21-19.
A goal-line tackle from sophomore Tristan Moss on a two-point run attempt by Fliers quarterback Grady Binder with 2 seconds to play clinched the victory.
Photos by Doug Haidet
Ashland’s defense forced four turnovers in the second half, all of them critical in helping AHS improve to 3-0 while stretching its home winning streak to 16 games.
“Of the things that will get you beat, turnovers are a big one,” Ashland head coach Scott Valentine said. “It could have easily been a loss for us. We gave them six (turnovers), but fortunately we didn’t lose.”
“The defense is doing its job, everybody’s playing good and we’re doing the right things,” added junior linebacker Bodie Smith, who had multiple big stops and recovered a fumble that set up what was the game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter.
“There were just so many key plays, it was really hard to keep track.”
Clyde (1-2) entered the night following a 33-6 win over Toledo Start in Week 2. But the Fliers committed four turnovers in their 42-0 season-opening loss at Bellevue, and Friday’s game in Ashland turned similarly sour in the second half.
Clyde ran nearly 100 plays in the game behind its hurry-up offense, stacking up 252 rushing yards on 66 carries – a good chunk of that from junior Justin Kofron (33 carries, 140 yards, TD).
And when Binder (10-of-28, 76 yards) hit Dekin Crockett for a 9-yard touchdown pass with 2 seconds left – one play after a fourth-down pass interference call on Ashland kept the game from ending – the Fliers had a chance to send things into overtime.
But Moss made his stop near the right sideline on the two-point conversion attempt and Clyde’s earlier mistakes came back to haunt them.
Smith and JJ Beverly both recovered second-half fumbles while Jeff Hickey and Killian O’Brien both had second-half interceptions for the Arrows.
Hickey had a 30-yard return on his interception to set up Graber’s first touchdown that made it 14-13, and the senior also blocked Clyde’s first PAT kick in the second quarter, which proved crucial.
All of it helped gloss over a mistake-ridden night that Ashland felt lucky to survive.
“(Having a finish like that) is one of the best wins you can have in a football game,” said O’Brien, whose 67-yard, tackle-breaking touchdown reception was the flashiest play of the night. “… A goal-line stand – that’s beautiful.
“We just kept battling, the defense caused turnovers and we came out on top.”
The Arrows were a bit handcuffed from the start on offense, having learned Thursday that they would be without standout running back Grayson Baith due to injury.
The senior cleared 1,000 career rushing yards in Week 1 and had over 200 yards of offense and two touchdowns through the first two weeks. His possible return this season is unknown.
It was one reason Ashland had a nightmarish start on offense, committing three turnovers on its first seven plays – an interception by junior quarterback Liam Hubacher on a tipped pass, then a pair of lost fumbles.
Fortunately for the home squad, Clyde didn’t turn any of that into points, as the AHS defense forced a punt, a turnover on downs and a missed field-goal try.
Then late in the first quarter, O’Brien took a short pass to the left from Hubacher, broke a tackle, spun off another, then won the footrace to the end zone for his 67-yard score.
Layton Roop’s first of three PAT kicks – all of them critical – made it 7-0, and O’Brien went on to finish his night with seven catches for 97 yards.
The senior, with multiple NCAA Division I offers, already has 25 catches and more than 300 yards receiving this season.
One more catch will give him 100 for his career, and Valentine has found a variety of ways to get O’Brien the ball.
With Baith out, the 6-foot-2 senior was more of a focal point than ever in his three standout seasons as a varsity receiver.
“Losing Grayson is losing a huge part of the offense,” O’Brien said. “He’s just a dog and it sucks losing him, but we’ve gotta adjust without him.
“I expect the most of myself and I always go into the game knowing I want to do whatever I can to help my team win. My mindset didn’t really change (without Baith) and I just kept playing football.”
The rest of the offensive weight in the game landed on quarterback Carson Graber. The 6-foot-3, 230-pound sophomore replaced Hubacher after the junior’s second interception early in the second quarter, and Graber muscled his way to a pair of rushing touchdowns in the second half.
The sophomore finished his night with a team-high 40 yards on 10 carries and was 8-of-16 for 59 yards through the air. But he did commit two turnovers in the second half – both of them after Clyde turnovers.
Valentine said it’s been a work in progress finding an offensive rhythm following the graduation of two-time first-team All-Ohio quarterback Nathan Bernhard, now playing at Maryland.
“We’ve got to find some continuity in the things we’re doing,” Valentine said. “… Carson went in and did a nice job, so we ended up staying with him.”
He said the Arrows might be a two-quarterback team moving forward.
“I’ll take the blame – maybe I’ve got too much (installed on offense for first-time varsity quarterbacks),” Valentine said, “so we might have to scale back some of the stuff we’re doing.
“That’s our job as coaches, and my job as the head coach – I’ve got to get sorted out what they can do well and help them be successful.”
Despite his tough start on offense, Hubacher continued his stellar play on defense with a variety of stops from his linebacker position.
Valentine, meanwhile, picked up his 160th win in his 21st season at Ashland and now is 198-123 in 30 seasons overall as a head coach.
The Arrows are 19-1 at home since he returned in 2023 to lead the program for a second stint, and they’re now 22-1 in the regular season since the start of 2024.
With Friday’s win, Ashland also started its season 3-0 for the third consecutive year– the first time the program has accomplished that feat since the 1942 through 1944 seasons.
Valentine said it was good to be home for the first time in 2026.
“Anytime you’re at home for the first time, it’s exciting for your kids,” he said. “You’ve got the band, you’ve got the cheerleaders, you’ve got the student body; we had a great crowd.
“That’s a new experience for a lot of these guys. Some of them didn’t have to get out there and play last year (on varsity) and they’re now in front of that home crowd.”
Ashland opens its Ohio Cardinal Conference slate next week back at home when New Philadelphia comes to town. The Quakers are 0-3 but have lost to three teams with a combined 8-1 record thus far.
The Arrows are the lone unbeaten in the OCC, which has 0-3 teams in New Philly, Lexington (losses to three 3-0 teams), Mansfield Senior and Wooster. Both West Holmes and Madison are 2-1, while Dover is 1-2.
