NWOAL FOOTBALL … Wauseon senior Tyson Rodriguez makes a move on a would-be Bryan tackler after a catch. (PHOTO BY RENEA KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
By: Nate Calvin
WAUSEON (October 13, 2023) –A solid kicking game can be the difference between winning and losing, especially in high school football.
That was the case on Friday night in Wauseon where the Indians used two field goals from Tyson Rodriguez and stopped a pair of Bryan two-point conversions attempts to pull out a 27-26 win.
The kicking game was factor on the first Wauseon drive of the night as behind a steady diet of Ryan Friend on the ground and a 15-yard facemask penalty against Bryan allowed the Indians to march the Bryan 15.
The drive would stall, and Tyson Rodriguez drove home a 32-yard field goal for an early 3-0 Wauseon lead.
The Indians controlled possession for a majority of the first quarter but were unable to extend the lead before Bryan finally struck paydirt in the second quarter.
The Golden Bears put together a 10-play, 74-yard drive ending with a 38-yard touchdown strike from Jase Kepler to Maddox Langenderfer on 4th-and-10 to take their first lead of the night.
The ensuing extra point was blocked though by Wauseon, keeping the score at 6-3 with 8:27 to go in the half.
The lead was short lived for the Bears as Wauseon answered back in one play with Trey Parsons throwing a screen pass to Rodriguez who would zig-zag his way through the Bryan defense for a 79-yard touchdown to put the Indians back on top 10-6.
Wauseon closed the half with an impressive 15-play drive that started at their own 22-yard line and ended at the Bryan 14, leading to a Rodriguez 31-yard field goal to end the half and extend the lead to 13-6.
Bryan had the ball first in the second half and went on the attack as Kepler hit Langenderfer on a similar play to the touchdown for 45 yards to the Wauseon six-yard line.
Four plays later on 4th-and-goal at the one, Sam Herold would pound it in to bring Bryan within a single point at 13-12.
After the unsuccessful extra point after their first touchdown, Bryan would go for two, but the Wauseon defense would make the stop to keep it a 13-12 game.
Following an Indian punt from their own endzone, Bryan was on the attack again starting at the Wauseon 46.
The running game would move the ball to the Wauseon seven-yard line where Herold would take it in for his second touchdown of the night to put Bryan back in front with 3:50 to go in the third quarter.
Bryan would go for two again and Herold was able to run it in to give Bryan a 20-13 lead.
It took Wauseon five plays this time to respond to the Bryan touchdown as they covered 64 yards, the last 31 coming on a Parsons to Rodriguez hookup to tie the game at 20-20.
Near the end of the third quarter, Wauseon’s defense forced the one and only turnover of the night thanks to Braylon Miller with a diving interception to give Wauseon the ball at the Bryan 40.
A couple of Wauseon penalties would back them up before Parsons would go 33 yards to Rodriguez along the right sideline to give Wauseon a first-and-goal at Bryan seven-yard line early in the fourth quarter.
On third-and-goal, Parsons would do it himself by rolling to the right and taking it in from six yards out for a 27-20 Wauseon lead at the 9:26 mark.
It was Bryan’s turn to respond as a mixture of Herold, Dameon Wolfe, and Drew Hahn runs combined with a successful fake punt at their own 33-yard line eventually gave Bryan a first-and-goal at the Wauseon seven.
After a one-yard loss on a Wolfe carry, Kepler would score on a quarterback keeper to bring Bryan to within one point again with 2:05 remaining.
Bryan would go for two points and the lead, but the Indians defense stacked up the run by Wolfe to keep their lead at 27-26.
Wauseon was able to recover the ensuing onside kick and milked the remainder of the fourth quarter clock on the running of Austin Kovar who had carries of 8,6,15, and 9 yards to close out the game.
“We had a really good week of practice and we put what happened last week (a 35-14 loss to Archbold) behind us”, said Wauseon head coach Shawn Moore.
“We showed some physicality tonight and opened some holes”, said Moore when referencing Wauseon’s running game.
“Our defense played good, they got a little momentum in the third quarter, but our guys kept fighting and were able to make one more play than them.”
Following just four yards on the ground in the previous game versus Archbold, Wauseon would run for 169 yards led by Friend with 69.
Parsons threw for 213 yards, 169 of those going to Rodriguez along with two touchdowns.
Herold finished with 85 yards running and two scores for Bryan and Langenderfer caught two passes for 83 yards.
UP NEXT: October 20 – Wauseon (6-3, 4-2 NWOAL) at Liberty Center (9-0, 6-0 NWOAL) 7pm; Archbold (8-1, 5-1 NWOAL) at Bryan (3-3, 5-4 NWOAL) 7pm
BHS WHS
First Downs 15 15
Rushing Yards 43-184 33-169
Passing Yards 110 213
Passing 5-13-1 12-20-0
Total Yards 294 382
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 0-0
Penalties 2-10 8-53
BRYAN 0 6 14 6 – 26
WAUSEON 3 10 7 7 – 27
W- Rodriguez 32-yard field goal
B – Langenderfer 38-yard pass from Kepler (kick blocked)
W – Rodriguez 79-yard pass from Parsons (Rodriguez kick)
W- Rodriguez 31-yard field goal
B- Herold 1-yard run (run failed)
B- Herold 7-yard run (Herold run)
W- Rodriguez 31-yard pass from Parsons (Rodriguez kick)
W – Parsons 6-yard run (Rodriguez kick)
B – Kepler 8-yard run (run failed)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Bryan – Herold 24-85, Kepler 11-56; Wauseon – Friend 21-69, Kovar 6-54; PASSING: Bryan – Kepler 5-13-1-110; Wauseon – Parsons 12-20-0-213; RECEIVERS: Bryan – Langenderfer 2-83; Wauseon – Rodriguez 6-169
Nate can be reached at sports@thevillagereporter.com
