Football delivers home/season opening victory against Waynesburg

The Muskingum football team used a strong team effort to deliver a season and home-opening victory against Waynesburg on Saturday afternoon, 31-20.

The Basics

• Records: Muskingum (1-0), Waynesburg (0-1)
• Location: New Concord, Ohio - McConagha Stadium
• Attendance: 1,750
• Temperature: 75 and sunny

Highlight

• The win marked the second straight year that Muskingum has started 1-0 under Head Coach Erik Ieuter. Last season, the Muskies beat Waynesburg 31-24.

How It Happened

• Muskingum took the opening kickoff and orchestrated a 10-play, 80-yard drive that culminated with junior quarterback Brody Hahn rushing for a 14-yard touchdown. Following sophomore kicker Gavin Costello's extra point, the Muskies led 7-0.
• Waynesburg took advantage of a Hahn fumble that was forced by Tyler Smith on a sack to set up its first scoring drive. The Yellow Jackets covered 27 yards on four plays that ended with Tyler Perone plunging in from one-yard out for a touchdown. The Yellow Jackets missed the extra point and the Muskies led 7-6 with 6:20 left in the opening quarter.
• Muskingum extended its lead midway through the second quarter on an 11-play, 94-yard drive that ended with Hahn scoring on a three-yard run. Costello's extra point gave Muskingum a 14-6 lead.
• Waynesburg tied the contest in the final minute of the half on an 11-play, 75-yard drive that resulted in a Perone one-yard score. Perone then hit Howard Metzger for a two-point conversion to send the game to halftime tied at 14-14.
• Early in the third quarter, the Muskies took advantage of a short field and quickly pieced together a five-play, 29-yard drive that was capped off with a Hahn 20-yard touchdown run. Costello's extra point lifted the Muskies to a 21-14 lead.
• Waynesburg used a fake punt to set up an 11-play, 65-yard drive that saw Perone connect with Metzger for an eight-yard touchdown reception at the 4:34 mark of the third quarter. Waynesburg's two-point conversion failed and the Muskies led 21-20.
• Costello nailed a 30-yard field goal at the 14:07 mark of the fourth quarter to extend the Muskie advantage to 24-20.
• Muskingum capped off the scoring with 8:28 left in the game on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Hahn to fullback Kirkland Davis. The scoring drive covered 74 yards on seven plays.

Inside The Numbers

• Muskingum churned out 391 yards (212 rushing/179 passing) of offense on 70 plays. The Muskies erupted for 29 first downs and ended the outing 5-of-6 in the red zone.
• Muskingum held a 34:34 to 25:26 time of possession edge.
• Muskingum's defense held Waynesburg to just 207 yards of offense and 13 first downs.
• Hahn led the Muskie offense going 16-of-21 passing for 179 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 93 yards on 14 carries for three scores.
• Senior running back Bernard Johnson rushed for 97 yards on 21 totes.
• Freshman wideout Tyler Heinecke led the Muskie receivers with five grabs for 66 yards.
• Senior Darius Hayes-Carruth had three receptions for 53 yards.
• Sophomore tight end Jacob Quinn and junior running back Cameron Near each had two receptions.  
• Junior defensive lineman Tim Ousley and junior linebacker Nehemiah Bowie led the Muskie defense with six stops each. Ousley also added 1.5 sacks for four yards and two pass breakups.
• Senior linebacker Trocon Keneah, senior defensive lineman Yannis Dailey, and junior defensive lineman Drew Lowery all logged five hits. 
• The freshmen defensive back duo of Yo-Vonne Roberts and Kalib Dailey each recorded their first career interception. 
• Perone led the Yellow Jackets offense going 12-of-29 for 102 yards with one score and two interceptions. He also rushed for 27 yards and two touchdowns.
• Chad Walker paced the Waynesburg running game with 49 yards on 16 totes.
• Nick Moretti and JaWuan Jones led the receivers with 40 and 37 yards, respectively.
• Dan Verhovsek led the Waynesburg defense with 12 tackles and Tyler Smith added 11 stops.

Up Next

• Muskingum next hosts Ohio Northern on Saturday, September 14. The game will mark the Ohio Athletic Conference opener for both schools. Game time is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.