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Clinton-Massie wins title in epic fashion

CANTON, Ohio – It will go down as an “instant classic” as Clinton-Massie pulled off one of the most amazing comebacks in Ohio high school football history. Down by 21 points and looking dead in the water the Falcons mounted and epic comeback over the games final 16 minutes to capture the schools third state title, all in the last decade.

The day started off great but it didn’t last long for Clinton-Massie. The Falcons marched down the field, 75 yards on 17 plays on the game’s opening drive. They scored on a Carson Vanhoose two-yard run on fourth down while taking 9:13 off the clock. The Falcons then blocked an Ursuline yield goal on its initial drive of the contest.

It was all Ursuline after that for the next two quarters. The Fighting Irish scored 21 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a 14-point advantage at intermission behind a pair of rushing touchdowns from star running back Demarcus McElroy and the arm of quarterback Brady Shannon. McElroy ran for a game high 157 yards but just 52 in the second half.

In the third quarter, Ursuline would extend the lead on Shannon’s second touchdown pass. This one was to senior classmate Dean Boyd from 26 yards out. Shannon finished the game with 185 yards and two touchdowns through the air. The Irish were up 28-7 with 17:23 left in the contest.

The Falcons did not roll over and die. Quarterback Kody Zantene breathed some much needed life into Clinton-Massie with a 49-yard touchdown run to snap Ursuline’s run of 28 straight points. The running game started to find a second wind heading into the final stanza. The rushing attack would finish the night with 344 yards on the ground, of which 244 came in their final three drives of the game.

The Clinton-Massie defense tightened the screws. They forced punts on Ursuline’s next two drives. That was all the Falcons needed as they continued running downhill in the monumental comeback.

With 0:43 left in the affair, Zantene ound the end zone on fourth down and goal at the Irish one. He hit paydirt on a beautiful naked bootleg to the right corner of the end zone. That put Clinton-Massie down by a point, 28-27. Head coach Dan McSurley called a timeout and discussed the situation with his seniors. They decided to go for two points and Vanhoose scampered to the same corner to the end zone to give the alcons the victory on a gutsy call that was executed to perfection. The championship trophy was on its way to Clarksville.

POSTGAME INTERVIEW: Kody Zantene
POSTGAME INTERVIEW: Dan McSurley

SCORING BY QUARTERS
Ursuline 0-21-7-0-28
Clinton-Massie 7-0-7-15-29

SCORING PLAYS
C: Carson Vanhoose 2 run (Ean McGuinness kick)
U: Demarcus McElroy 34 run (Reagan Smith kick)
U: McElroy 1 run (Ty’Req Donlow run)
U: Jayklan Irving 39 pass from Brady Shannon (pass failed)
U: Dean Boyd 26 pass rom Shannon (Smith kick)
C: Kody Zantene 49 run (McGuinness kick)
C: Garrett Vance 0 fumble recovery (McGuinness kick)
C: Kody Zantene 1 run (Vanhoose run)

RECORDS: Clinton-Massie (14-1); Ursuline (11-4)

Check out the COMPLETE SCOREBOARD.

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