Collaboration: Statistical information from the game in this article was provided by Kris Mowry, Tony Van Duyne and Aidan Chandler with the Ashland Arrows Broadcasting Network, hosted by YouTube.
BAY VILLAGE – There were plenty of new names on the field Friday night at Bay High School for the Ashland football team.
But the results looked plenty familiar.
Behind a stout defense and a stellar debut for junior quarterback Liam Hubacher, the Arrows rocked the Rockets by a 28-7 count.
Not only did it give Ashland its fourth consecutive 1-0 start, but it was the fewest amount of points allowed by the Arrows in an opener since a 49-7 win over Willard in 2010.
“Our defense really got after them tonight and I thought our defensive staff had a really good game plan,” said Ashland’s Scott Valentine, who kicked off his 30th season overall as a head coach and tallied his 196th career win.
Brayten Stuart and Landen Cooke each had interceptions in the win, while Bryden Bolen (two sacks) also forced a fumble that Bodie Smith recovered.
Those four defensive players had just 31 tackles combined last year, an example of the type of varsity experience Ashland began this season with after the graduation of some of the best players in its history.
“You just never know what you’re going to get in the first game or how kids are going to respond,” Valentine said.
The AHS defense allowed minus-10 yards on 20 carries in the game, applying constant pressure on Bay quarterback Patrick Cleary (14-of-23 for 201 yards passing).
The Rockets’ lone touchdown came midway through the fourth quarter on a five-yard Cleary touchdown pass.
Hubacher, meanwhile, entered Friday with a massive amount of intrigue surrounding his debut.
The 5-foot-11, 175-pound junior was tasked with stepping into the shoes of two-time first-team All-Ohio quarterback Nathan Bernhard – now playing at Maryland – and he didn’t disappoint.
Despite suffering a possible broken nose in the first quarter, Hubacher finished his varsity debut behind center by going 13-of-21 for 151 yards and a touchdown through the air. He also rushed for 120 yards and two scores on the ground.
The only points of the first half actually came on a screen pass from Ashland sophomore backup quarterback Carson Graber, who hit Grayson Baith for a 21-yard screen while Hubacher was dealing with his injury.
In the second half, Hubacher got rolling, connecting with star senior wide receiver Killian O’Brien for a 25-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-0, then running in a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns.
“Early on, offensively, we had to get settled in; we were making little mistakes here and there,” Valentine said. “But after half, we were able to get things going.”
Baith (12 carries, 75 yards) combined with Hubacher to run for nearly 200 yards in the game – a nice return to action after he suffered multiple injuries in the last year.
“Grayson and Liam both ran the ball well,” Valentine said. “Our line and our receivers did a good job of blocking for them in the second half.”
O’Brien, meanwhile, got back to his stellar receiving ways. The senior, who has multiple NCAA Division I offers, totaled 100 yards on seven catches in the contest.
He now has more than 80 catches and 1,500 receiving yards in his career and Valentine said the team plans to move him around to get some different matchups out wide.
First-year kicker Layton Roop made his four PAT kicks Friday and Valentine was happy with the depth he saw overall.
“Those backups have to be able to go in for a series or two to give guys some breaks throughout the game and we weren’t sure of that depth (entering the week),” he said.
“There was no huge drop-off and those guys played at a high level when they went in there.”
The Arrows extended their regular-season winning streak against non-conference teams to nine. They’ll be back on the road next week at Marion Harding, a 21-17 winner Friday over Mount Vernon.
