| Game Played Before Record Crowd
Schartiger makes a Red Devils TD
Goodrich makes a comeback TD
By Gaylen Duskey
realfang@citlink.net
Injuries finally caught up with the Red Devils.
Calhoun was able to withstand injuries to four starters but when Kennedy
Award candidate Paul Goodrich went out with a hip injury with the Red Devils
on top 28-27, St. Marys was able to rebound and grab a 43-28 victory.
With the loss, Calhoun dropped to 8-2 on the season and set up a road trip
for the first round of the Class A playoffs.
Had Calhoun won it would have
been home.
As it is the Red Devils will probably drop 10th or 11th place and travel to
either Hamiln or Man in the first round of the playoffs. Should the Red
Devils drop to 12th they would face St. Marys in a rematch.
The pairings are to be released by the WVSSAC on Sunday.
St. Marys jumped on top of the Red Devils on the first play of the game on a
strange play, but one that should have shown the stars were aligned for the
Blue Devils.
On that play a Calhoun defender jumped for what appeared to be an
interception only to have the ball bounce off his hands into the hands of a
St. Marys receiver who galloped the rest of the way for the score.
The next time St. Marys got the ball it scored again - on the second play
from scrimmage - for a 12-0 lead.
The Blue Devils, who finished the season at 9-1, scored again on the second
play from scrimmage and went up 20-0.
That's when Calhoun started a tremendous comeback that could have been
perhaps the greatest comeback in school history.
Calhoun put together a drive that culminated on a two-yard touchdown run by
senior fullback Chad Conley, who was playing on a gimpy knee.
The Red Devils got the ball back and started another drive that culminated
with Paul Goodrich hammering it in from two yards out making it 20-12.
After another St. Marys' touchdown put the Blue Devils back up by two
touchdowns, 27-12, Calhoun fought back and scored when Paul Goodrich hit
Tyler Shartiger on a 20-yard halfback option pass. Goodrich ran the extra
point conversion and the score was 27-20 at the half.
Calhoun took the lead on its first offensive series of the second half when
Matt Houchin plowed in for the touchdown from two years out. Houchin's extra
point conversion put the Red Devils on top 28-27.
But that's when Goodrich went down and St. Marys took advantage.
First the Blue Devils took advantage of a bad snap on a punting attempt and
recovered the ball in the end zone for a score. That made it 35-28.
Calhoun valiantly battled back and marched down the field on the passing arm
of Houchin, getting inside the St. Marys 10 before being stalled by
penalties.
Playing against what essentially was made up of a lot of reserves the Blue
Devils scored again setting up the final score.
Calhoun finished the regular season with an 8-2 record.
Goodrich's father, Paul Goodrich Sr., said his son would have his hip
ex-rayed to see if there is any breaks or fractures.
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