MAC/NWC All-Stars beat WBL All-Stars 38-0
By Tim Langevin
VAN WERT – Christmas in July? How about some football in June?
The Blue (MAC/NWC) dominated the Red (WBL) 38-0 at Eggress Stadium in the 12th Annual Van Wert County Hospital All-Star game Friday night.
Winning coach Nate Moore of Minster said, “It was a pleasure to coach this great group of kids all week. We made several big plays and that was the difference.”
Another big difference was the loss of starting QB Corey Clifton of Van Wert, who injured his hand in practice Wednesday. Lima Shawnee’s Jamiil Williams (Wayne St.) was called to duty, but a RB/WR/DB isn’t the same as QB.
Stranger than fictional characters, Rufus and Bubba proved to be a real nightmare for the Red squad. Lima Central Catholic’s Rufus Johnson (Eastern Michigan) returned a punt in the second quarter 70 yards for a score and Bubba Krieg rushed for 65 yards on eight carries.
Johnson’s return was the second longest in all-star game history. Mark Fuerst of Van Wert in the 2003 game owns the longest of 79 yards.
A pair of Delphos St. John’s players contributed to the Blue cause. Starting QB Jordan Leininger (BGSU) played his last game at that position and rushed for 108 yards and two TDs. He showcased a feathery touch with his arm and sheer power with his legs. This kid can scramble and improvise with the best.
“I can’t wait to get started for college,” Leininger said “I will run two miles tomorrow and hit the weight room. The coaches at BG evaluated me and I could play on OL, DL or LB. I feel good about my chances.”
Evan Burgei added 44 yards on the ground with a score, and like about 46 of the 66 all-stars, played his final game. The remaining few will play at the next level.
Three players to have an immediate impact on Saturdays are the triplet receivers from Kenton’s high-flying spread offense, Andrew Tillman (BGSU), Dustin Howell (Dayton), and Max Morrison (Cincinnati). These kids put up video-game numbers throughout their careers.
Morrison caught 293 passes for 4,170 yards and Tillman caught 196 passes for 3,134 yards. Howell played two seasons for Kenton after transferring from Triad. He had over 1,000 receiving yards in 2010.
Tillman said, “It was always fun the way we threw the ball around. I’m gonna miss these guys and our offense.”
Howell said, “It was the best two years of my life. I moved to Kenton to win a state championship. I thought we had the game in the bag against Alter, but we let it slip away.”
Kenton lost to Alter 35-32 in the D-IV regional finals.
Morrison said, “It was the best time of my life. It was the perfect offense for WRs and QBs.” Asked about Maty Mauk joining him next year at UC, “I don’t talk to him about that stuff. He’s a big boy and can make his own decisions.”
“Maty will decide what’s best for him,” Kenton coach Mike Mauk said in a recent phone interview. “He will make his decision sometime this summer before the season starts.”
Talk about “you can’t get blood from a turnip.” However, most insiders believe Michigan, Cincinnati, and Notre Dame have the edge over Missouri, Illinois, Northwestern, Oregon, and Vanderbilt.
Missing from the Blue roster was DSJ’s Chris Pohlman and LCC’s Taylor Royster. Pohlman had a shoulder injury and Royster a foot injury. Both will play for Bowling Green this season. That makes four players joining the Falcons.
The MAC/NWC all-stars lead the series 8-4.
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