Going into the season, there have been more questions than answers about this year’s Tyrone squad. With an entirely new backfield, new quarterback and new starters at many offensive positions, how effectively can they replace the senior leadership lost from last year? Can they repeat as District 6 AA Champions? And of course, can they beat rival Bellwood-Antis?

Friday night gave a clear, straightforward answer to at least one of those questions.

By the start fourth quarter, the thinning crowd on the home side of Bellwood Stadium told the story of the game.  Meanwhile, on the Tyrone side, you couldn’t help but feel the enthusiasm erupting from the players and fans alike as the team walked away with a convincing 41-7 victory.

Far from the exciting 18-14 nail-biter from last year, the final score surprised even some of the players.

“Everyone doubted us all week,” said senior defensive end Ricky Reader, “Everyone said we were soft inside and I never bought that for a second. All week we were counted out and we let the results speak for themselves.”

Despite the blowout win, things did not start well for Tyrone as they struggled to produce a first down in their first two possessions.  Initially the game looked like it might be a low scoring, defensive battle. Tyrone senior quarterback Drew Hunter struggled, missing the mark on his first four pass attempts.

“First game jitters plagued me early on,” said Hunter,  “I’m just lucky I have such good athletes to throw the ball to.”

The Golden Eagle’s fortunes changed dramatically on the third drive of the game.  From that point on Hunter completed nine of eleven passes for 152 yards and three touchdowns.

Senior receiver Cullen Raftery was the main benefactor of the air show, catching five passes for 85 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore Parker Mitchell added two catches, both went for red zone touchdowns. Mitchell also had an electrifying 80 yard punt return to give him the first multiple touchdown night of his career.

The Golden Eagle ground game shredded the Blue Devil defense for 171 yards on 39 carries. The effort was led by two promising young runners, junior Gary Weaver and backup sophomore Brandon Loose.  Weaver went for 65 yards and two touchdowns while Loose ended with a game leading 72 yards.

Despite the offensive flurry, the biggest story of the game was the dominating Tyrone defense.

Many expected the defense to be challenged by Bellwood’s Jake Burch, the Devils speedy and talented three year starting quarterback.  The Tyrone defense instead forced three takeaways and gave up only 168 yards of total offense.

The Eagles had Burch on the run for most of the game and Bellwood’s only score came in the fourth quarter with most of Tyrone’s defensive starters sitting comfortably on the sidelines.

“Containing an athlete like [Burch] is never easy,” said senior Nick Bonsell, “but the combination of our outside contain and inside pressure was enough to keep them on their toes from the opening whistle.” Burch was limited to 123 yards total and turned the ball over two times without reaching the end zone.

After the game, the team was elated to hoist the Backyard Brawl trophy for the third consecutive year.

“It’s definitely a moment I will never forget,” said Hunter immediately following the victory,”having the team and the whole community behind us is an unbelievable feeling.”

Next week the Golden Eagles have a highly anticipated matchup with the consensus district favorite Central Dragons. They play Friday night at Gray-Veterans Memorial Field in what will hopefully be another exciting contest.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Tyrone 13 21 7 0 – 41

Bellwood-Antis 0 0 0 7 – 7

First quarter

T-Weaver 3 run (kick failed), 3:07

T-Mitchell 14 pass from Hunter (Vipond kick), :47.9

Second quarter

T-Weaver 15 run (Vipond kick), 9:55

T-Mitchell 14 pass from Hunter (Vipond kick), 5:19

T-Raftery 13 pass from Hunter (Vipond kick), 1:03

Third quarter

T-Mitchell 80 punt return (Vipond kick), 10:25.

Fourth quarter

BA-Watters 3 run (Kowalski kick), 7:25.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING: Tyrone-Loose 15-72, Weaver 16-65, Farias 1-17, Light 2-8, Hunter 2-4, Putt 1-3, Soellner 2-2. Bellwood-Antis-Burch 11-50, Burr 2-22, McCaulley 6-18, Watters 2-9, Kline 11-0, Beam 1-(-4).

PASSING: Tyrone-Hunter 9-15-0-152. Bellwood-Antis-Burch 6-11-1-73.

RECEIVING: Tyrone-Raftery 5-85, Lewis 2-39, Mitchell 2-28. Bellwood-Antis-McGee 2-58, McCaulley 1-8, Kline 3-7.

INTERCEPTIONS: Tyrone-Weaver. Bellwood-Antis-none.

TEAM STATISTICS: 

First downs T:18 B:7

Rushes-yards T:39-171 B:33-95

Passing (comp.-att.-int.) T:9-15-0 B:6-11-1

Yards passing T:152 B:73

Total yards T:323 B:168

Fumbles-lost T:4-2 B:6-2

Penalties-yards T:4-25 B:1-5

Punts-avg T:1-35 B:2-39.5