2009

BR	2009 Saccoccia	OPP
43	Indian Creek	20
13	N Woodland Hills Pa.	0
39	@ East Liverpool	22
40	Buffalo St. Joseph Collegiate Ny.	13
32	Fairview Pa.	10
39	@ Wheeling Park Wva.	14
13	Massillon Washington	3
24	Poland Seminary	13
29	Inkster Mi.	36
32	Tonawanda Cardinal O'Hara Ny.	24
34	Alliance Marlington	26
34	N Salem	10
28	N Dover	14
7	N Youngstown Cardinal Mooney	45
407	12-2-0	250

Regional Quarter-final, Big Red, 9-1, vs. Alliance Marlington Dukes, 8-2, Friday, November 6th, 2009, at Death Valley.

STEUBENVILLE - It wasn't a whitewash or even a red one, but it was a win and Big Red will take it. Top-seeded Steubenville held off No. 8 Alliance Marlington, 34-26, Friday night at Harding Stadium to move on to the second round in the OHSAA Division III, Region 11 playoffs.

"It was the first step, but it was a baby step," Big Red coach Reno Saccoccia said after the game. "We still have a long way to go, but we got the first step out of the way."

The score wasn't indicative of the game. While the Dukes finished just one TD behind the Red, Marlington never posed a legitimate threat. Big Red finished with twice as many first downs, moving the chains 23 times to the Dukes' nine. Steubenville quarterback Dwight Macon threw for 200 more yards than Marlington. He recorded 228, while the Dukes' Jesse Carpenter register 28. On the ground, the Dukes beat the Red by just 20 yards. Marlington carried the ball 27 times for 175 yards and four touchdowns. Big Red had 173 yards and four scores on 43 carries.

And then was Big Red's first three possessions which resulted in three scores. Macon opened the scoring with a 5-yard TD run at 7:06 of the first quarter. Six minutes later, LeShawn Luke took it in from a yard out, and with 5:05 left to go in the first half, Macon came up with another 5-yard scoring run. Pierro made good on two of the three extra-point attempts and Steubenville led, 20-0.

Big Red's would come up empty on its next possession. Steubenville would also allow the Dukes back in the game. Facing fourth-and-seven at their own 45, the Red went for it, but didn't get it. Macon's pass fell incomplete and Marlington took over in Big Red territory. Two plays later - a 37-yard gain by freshman running back Dymonte Thomas and an 8-yard TD run by sophomore Alden Hill - the Dukes were on the board. The kick failed.

"What changed the game, was not punting the football away at midfield. There was five minutes left in the first half and if we would have punted it away, we would have gone into the lockerroom up, 20-0. That was my mistake. That let the Marlington back in the game," Saccoccia said. "I should have punted and that gave Marlington hope. If you give a good football team hope you give them a chance and they took advantage of it."

The Dukes scored with 1:54 left in the first half, plenty of time for the Red's two-minute offense. Steubenville drove to the Marlington 6-yard line before being backed up to the 15 due to penalties. After two incomplete passes and with four ticks left on the clock, Macon took one final shot at the end zone but his passed was picked off.

"I thought our two-minute offense did a great job moving down the field with the exception of the last four plays," Saccoccia said.

Flags hampered the Red all night. Steubenville was penalized 14 times, including four personal fouls, for 127 yards.

"I was upset with the penalties. They were uncalled for," Saccoccia said. "Penalties hurt us tonight."

Big Red took back the six points on the opening drive of the second half. LeShawn Luke capped off the nine-play-39-yard drive with a 2-yard run at 8:19 of the third. Pierro supplied the extra point.

The Dukes answered with their second touchdown four minutes later. A big kickoff return by Thomas coupled with a personal foul call on Steubenville gave Marlington the ball at the Big Red 45. Seven plays later, Hill scored his second TD of the night from a yard out. The run after failed.

Steubenville's final points of the night came at 10:49 of the fourth when Macon hit Trey Wiggins, who would finish with 233 yards receiving, on a post-pattern route that covered 62 yards. Pierro split the uprights.

Big Red sent in the second team after the touchdown and the Dukes scored two more times - Hill scored on a 9-yard run and Thomas ripped off a 60-yard TD run.

"I made the decision to stick it out with the younger players because they practice as hard as anybody else. They've been working hard since August and it was a thrill for them to get into playoff game," Saccoccia. "I just wish they would have gave us a better effort and made the most of the opportunity they were given."

Big Red's JoJo Pierro was a force up the middle. He pounded the Marlington line for 88 yards on 14 carries.

Macon finished with 44 yards on 13 carries. Luke added 12 yards. Anthony Pierro hauled down nine catches for 60 yards. Jordon Meyer had 19 yards on two receptions. Sage Cutri had one for 16.

Big Red moves on to the Region 11 finals to face Salem - a 38-31 winner of Granville in overtime - at neutral site to be announced later.

"We're just happy to be there," Saccoccia said of the next round.

 

Regional Semi-Final, Big Red, 10-1, vs Salem Quakers, 9-2, Friday, November 13th, 2009, at New Philadelphia's Quaker Stadium.

NEW PHILADELPHIA And the Red rolls on.

After a surviving a scary first half that saw Steubenville go into the locker room down, 10-6, Big Red settled down and then anted up, scoring 28 unanswered second-half points en route to a 34-10 win over Salem in the Division III, Region 11 semifinals Friday at a packed Woody Hayes Quaker Stadium.

"I thought we played well in the first half. We just killed ourselves in penalties. We had four penalties on third down," Big Red coach Reno Saccoccia said. "Fortunately, we were able to overcome that and win the game."

The Red also committed three turnovers in the first half two of which led to Salem points.

The Red rolled out of the starting gate driving deep only to fumble the football. They held the Quakers, but on the next drive Big Red senior standout Dwight Macon threw an interception on the Red's 17. Steubenville all but withstood the turnover when a pass interference call at third-and-12 on the 19 gave Salem first-and-goal at the Big Red 8. Two plays later, the Quakers were on the board when Justin Adams hauled in a 7-yard TD pass from Trent Toothman.

Big Red was turned away on its next possessions despite short fields. It wasn't until there was three minutes left in the first half that Big Red finally cashed in. A run of 17 by JoJo Pierro, 15-yarder by Shaq Petteway and another 4-yard dash by Pierro pushed Big Red inside the Quaker 10. Macon then ran it in from 7 yards out at 3:06. The run after failed and the Quakers led, 7-6.

Salem added three points to its total when Macon coughed up the ball on his own 19. Ben Eisel, who missed a 42-yard attempt minutes earlier, booted a 27-yard field goal with no time left in the first half.

"We got down on the scoreboard but we never got down on the field," Saccoccia" Our kids kept fighting and we were able to take the lead in the second half."

The Red scored on its second possession of the second half when Macon broke out for a 67-yard touchdown run. He also ran it in for the two points after. The Red led, 14-10.

The momentum had shifted and things were about to go downhill for the Quakers.

On the first play of the ensuing drive, Toothman fumbled. Big Red jumped on the ball and the Red took over on the Salem 29. With one official signaling that Toothman was down and another signaling fumble recovery by Big Red, confusion set in. A fumble was eventually ruled which sent Salem Mike Kopachy running onto the field. After an exchange of words, he was slapped with unsportsmanlike call and Big Red got the ball on the 14.

Macon took care of the rest, keeping the ball on the first play and covering all 14 on his way to the end zone at 7:09 of the third. Anthony Pierro made good on the extra point.

Big Red would score two more times Macon had a 12-yard TD run out at 10:47 of the fourth and JoJo Pierro scored from a yard away with 5:59 let in the game to put the game put of reach.

"I want to congratulate Salem on a great season. I lived up there for six years and it's great to see them get their program back on its feet," Saccoccia said. "Their coaches do a great job and they're getting back to what they used to be when Henry Maxim and Kurt Lowdermilk was there. They are a fast football team. They played fast tonight. We just played a little more physical."

Big Red finished the game with 273 yards on 38 carries. The Quakers finished with just 2 on 21 totes, thanks in large part to two sacks by Jamey DeVaul that totaled a loss of 24 yards for Salem. Macon finished 7-of-11 for 103 yards passing. Toothman was one yard short, completing 11-of-19 for 102. Steubenville doubled Salem in first downs, racking up 12 to the Quakers six.

Salem finishes the season 9-3 while Big Red rolls on to the Region 11 final at 11-1. The Red will next play Dover, a 28-21 winner in overtime over Northwest, Friday at a site to be determined on Sunday.

 

Regional Final, Big Red, 11-1, vs Dover Tornadoes, 11-1, Friday, November 20th, 2009, at Canton's Fawcett Stadium.

CANTON - No. 2 Dover put up a fight but scored only 14 points on top-seeded Steubenville, as Big Red made the Tornadoes look more like an afternoon thunderstorm with a 28-14 win in the Division III Region 11 final at Fawcett Stadium, Friday.

"Our first goal is to get a home playoff game and win our region. If we can do that then we get to go home and reassess our goals," Big Red coach Reno Saccoccia said. "Now we get to rethink things. Hopefully, we can win our next game and go from there."

Big Red secured a spot in the state semifinals with a 17-play, 84-yard scoring drive that chewed eight minutes off the clock in the final quarter. Before the long drive, Dover trailed just 20-14 with a quarter left to be played.

After it, the Tornadoes were down by two scores with just 1:52 left to be played.

"That drive was beautiful. It was probably our best drive of the year," Saccoccia said. "We had some nice drives against Inkster, but that was the best one hands down. That drive was the key to the game."

Dover coach Dan Ifft agreed. After scoring to pull with in a score of Big Red, the Tornadoes held Steubenville. However, Big Red answered by holding the Tornadoes to three-and-out. It was all Big Red after that.

"We had our chances and we gave ourself a chance. We had stopped them and they punted to us and we were in a good situation but we went three-and-out," Ifft said. "That was big key because when you face an offense like that and you get them stopped once, that's what you're looking for. We were able to do that but stopping them twice was going to be a little more difficult."

Statistically, the game was lopsided. Big Red finished with 28 first downs which doubled Dover's 14. The Tornadoes had just 55 yards passing and 58 rushing for 113 total offense yards. Big Red threw for 195 and ran for 179 more for 374 total yards. Big Red also outdid the Tornadoes in time of possession. Steubenville had the ball for 33 minutes. Dover had for just 15.

Big Red drew first blood with an 11-play, 65-yard scoring drive that came at 6:14 of the opening quarter.

Steubenville crossed the goal line when JoJo Pierro ran in from a yard out. The kick after was blocked. That came back to haunt the Red when Dover's Ricky Maz returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for a score and Zachary Rafter split the uprights to give the Tornadoes a 7-6 edge

With 1:22 remaining in the first half, it looked like the 7-6 score would stick, but Big Red made the most of time it had left by driving 60-yards on 9-plays in just over a minute. Dwight Macon capped off the drive with a 2-yard run with 17 ticks on the clock. He also ran in for the two points to give Big Red a 14-7 lead at the half.

The Tornadoes tried to take back the points but Jordon Meyer intercepted Dover QB Marcus Mamarella on the Big Red 3.

"Scoring right before the half was huge," Saccoccia. "It was a beautiful score and we needed it. At one point, we had run 40 plays to their 14, but we we're only up by seven. Getting the lead at the half was key. "

Big Red tacked on seven more points at the start of the second when Shaq Petteway hauled down a 9-yard pass from Macon. The TD connection finished off an 11-play, 54-yard drive at 5:19.

At that point, the Red had 14 first downs while Dover had yet to register one.

Dover's first finally came with just four minutes left in the third quarter. Its second came on the same drive as did its third.

A pass interference call on Big Red gave the Tornadoes it's fourth and half the distance from the goal. At first-and-4 on the 4, a false start pushed Dover back by Mamarella was able to find Ian Murphy in the end zone.

After two quick possessions, Big Red began its game-clinching drive.

Seventeen plays later, Macon ran the ball in from six yards out. On his way into the end zone the ball was stripped but offensive lineman Jamey DeVaul dove on the loose football. That made it 26-14. Dominic Garay then pulled down the two-point conversion pass from Macon for the 28-14 final.

 

State Semi-final, Big Red, 12-1, vs Youngstown Cardinal Mooney Cardinals, 13-0, Friday, November 27th, 2009, at Canton's Fawcett Stadium.

 

2009~

Trey Wiggins
Isiah Willis
Anthony Pierro
Marcus Prather
Najee Murray
Jordan Meyer
Caleb Westlake
Alvin Taylor
Dwight Macon
Dorand Watts
Josh Thompson
Jesse Birden
Shaq Petteway
Lucas McClurgh
Jo Jo Pierro
Jonathan Littlejohn
Shaq Dorsey
Marcus Livingston
Darnell Turner
LeShawn Luke
Brian Difillippo
Aaron Fabian
Cedric Johnson
Shane Rea
Dustin Davis
Blake Carroll
Mike Constantini
Dan Bayne
Joey Pizzino
Pat Blair
Victor Lytle
William Houst
Delshawn Woods
Jordan Banks
Jamey DeVaul
Justin Gillette
Jake Linn
Simon Saxon
Wesley Prichard
Frank Mastroianni
Zach Clayton
Devon Wicker
Jack Paul
Willie Pruitt
Chad Fuller
Mike Camilleti
John Elder
Steve Gorman
Michael Boney
Chris Thorne
Trey Terry
Mason Campbell
Quinton Smith
Sage Cutri
Dominic Garay