What a Week 9 showdown between Delphos St. John’s and Marion Local, two storied MAC football powers with enough history to run out of ink.
What a chess match between head coaches Todd Schulte (121-32 with 4 MAC titles and 3 State titles) and Tim Goodwin (126-35 with 2 MAC titles and 4 State titles), two of the top young coaches in the state.
What a game!
Delphos St. John’s had their backs to the wall, trailing Marion Local 13-10 with 4:44 left in the contest. Their unbeaten season, 16-game MAC regular season win streak, along with a ninth MAC crown, about to vaporize below the glow of a full moon.
Never Fear. Jordan Leininger is here. The senior QB willed his team 80 yards in 12 plays to snatch a 17-13 come-from-behind victory against the Flyers Friday night at Booster Field in Maria Stein.
On that memorable, game-winning drive, Leininger was sensational, completing 3-of-4 passes for 50 yards, running for another 25 yards on option plays, and scrambling for at least 100 yards, in the process.
The Blue Jays were 4-of-4 on third down conversions, including the third and 11 when Leininger bought some time, and then connected with Ty Bergfeld over the middle for the 27-yard TD strike with 1:03 remaining.
The first-year signal caller told the guys in the huddle before that historic march, “This is it. We have work to do. No excuses. We don’t want to be left with that same empty feeling like in the state final last year.”
Sound familiar? Kind of like the movie, “The Program” when QB Joe Kane said, “Let’s put the women and children to bed and go look’in for dinner, boys.”
Marion Local wouldn’t “go gentle into that good night,” thanks to a 27-yard draw play by Alex Post and two Delphos penalties for another 25 yards. The Fyers embraced the moment, facing a first and 10 on St. John’s 18-yard-line with :27 seconds left, but couldn’t find the endzone on four attempts. End of comeback.
Marion Local coach Tim Goodwin summed it best, “That final drive was the game. Their quarterback made the plays.”
St. John’s coach Todd Schulte echoed the same sentiment, “Jordan did a lot that last drive. He created and kept plays alive. He’s the athlete. He’s the senior leader of this team.”
The Jays didn’t waste any time, scoring on the opening drive of the game. Leininger dumped a pass to Jordan Bergfeld for 14 yards. Two plays later, Jordan Bergfeld romped 35 yards, before Leininger found Ty Bergfeld in the corner of the endzone for a 7-0 lead.
Both Bergfeld’s played well. Jordan rushed for 54 yards on 10 carries and Ty caught four passes for 79 yards and two scores.
First impressions can be deceiving because Delphos wouldn’t score again until 1:30 left in the third quarter on a 26-yard field goal by Josh Rode to take a slim 10-7 lead.
Meanwhile, Marion Local stalled on its first possession of the game, but took advantage the next possession, thanks to a short field due to a 19-yard punt.
The Flyers grounded it out 36 yards in eight plays to knot the score 7-7 with 2:39 left in the opening stanza. Niles Keller paved the way with four touches for 11 hard-earned yards, including the one yard TD plunge.
Both defenses ruled in a scoreless second quarter. Marion Local managed 13 plays for 41 yards. St. John’s recorded 16 plays for 47 yards. It was evident that both teams, although battle-tested in big games, featuring big crowds, manifested signs of “tightness” in the first half.
“This was a big game and we were stressing,” Leininger said. “We were very tight. I know I missed some passes in the first half that I normally connect.”
Coach Schulte said, “I told the kids at half to relax. Too tense. Go out there and have fun. That first half was like a Chinese Fire Drill. Two steps forward and then a step backward. Too many silly, mental mistakes.”
With a MAC title on the line and trailing 10-7 with time running out in the fourth quarter, once again, the Flyers took advantage of a short field. They started on St. John’s 38-yard-line. Held in check most of the game, Niles Keller responded with five totes for 31 yards, including the go-ahead, three-yard TD run. The Flyers missed the extra point, but still led 13-10.
Coach Goodwin said, “That was a huge momentum swing.”
Coach Schulte agreed, “That was a momentum shifter, but we came here to win the game and be outright MAC champs. I didn’t expect anything less than what just happened.”
Both teams entered the game averaging over 30 points a game. However, on this night, yards were gained grudgingly. Delphos recorded 12 first downs and 150 yards on the ground for 278 yards overall. Marion Local collected 11 first downs and 152 yards rushing for 190 total yards.
Senior Delphos speedster Evan Burgei was held to 43 yards on 13 carries. Marion Local’s Niles Keller gained 65 yards on 18 carries.
QB Ryan Mescher had an off night, throwing for 3-of-11 for 38 yards and a pick. RB Alex Post finished with 55 yards on 12 carries.
No doubt Leininger has made the transition from RB to QB look easy. He finished the game with 110 yards via the air and 84 yards on the ground. He has 699 passing yards and 723 rushing yards on the season. That’s on pace for a 1,000-1,000 season with plenty of football left.
Coach Goodwin maintained, “We need to stay focused. Plenty of football left. Work hard and move ahead. Hopefully, a lot of games to win before a rematch.”
Asked which is tougher, winning a MAC title or a State title? Coach Schulte grinned and replied, “You just saw the game. Every week is a war. Tonight was a war between us. And in between wars, it will probably be us and them doing it again.”
