Madonna still on path to success
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BEALLSVILLE -- Two teams that seem to be on the same path to success will face off Friday night when resurgent 2-0 Madonna invades Beallsville (1-2), coming off a big win over Hundred. The opening kick will be at 7 p.m. at the Beallsville Stadium, which features a new state-of-the-art video scoreboard.
For the past couple of seasons, neither the Blue Dons nor the Blue Devils have had much success on the gridiron, but both are in rebuilding mode, and things appear to be coming together.
For the first time in four football seasons, the Blue Dons have opened with two straight wins. It started with a 34-0 victory over Tuscarawus Central Catholic two weeks ago, and Madonna followed it last week beating Bridgeport 28-12. Not since the 2013, 14-0 state championship team have the Blue Dons been able to accomplish that.
"It is thanks to the boys and coaches that we've seen success thus far," Madonna coach Darrin Hicks said. "It has been through a complete effort by those involved in the entire program top to bottom."
Hicks added that he has seen marked improvement in every facet of his Blue Don team in both games. He has film on the last two games Beallsville has played, and he sees a lot of improvement with them as well.
Blue Devil coach Larry Deem took over the Beallsville program in August of 2015 and virtually saved it from extinction, much the same as Bob Kramer did at Madonna back in the late 1990s. It has struggled over the past two seasons, but now is not a team to be overlooked despite losses in its first two games to Zanesville Rosecrans and Clay-Battelle.
"To hang 51 points on anybody isn't easy," Hicks said. "They seem to be playing with confidence, and I'm sure they are feeling good about themselves. We are, too. We had a sharp-focused practice Monday. It was a physical practice for a Monday. It is nice to see the guys focused and staying with the goal of being 1-0 Friday."
There is a little bit of familiarity. Hicks said the two teams didn't play in a regular season game last year but scrimmaged in the preseason.
"They have some good athletes and will give us some different looks on offense. We have to be prepared, focused and ready to recognize what they are doing on every play," Hicks said. "The films show they have a very athletic quarterback, whom they feature, and good size up front.
The youthful Blue Devils, however, will have to contend with a Madonna offense that features a devastating ground game built around junior Donovan Kirby. In the 34-0 romp over Tusky Central, the Blue Dons netted 376 rushing yards, and last week piled up 394 more against Bridgeport.
Hicks was quick to praise his offensive front that has opened holes for running backs Kirby, Hunter Baird and Vinnie Pulice. First-year quarterback Gavin Dietrich hasn't thrown much, but he has been effective when he does because of the devastating ground attack.
Kirby has been the workhorse. Against the Bulldogs he had 43 carries for 271 yards and three touchdowns. Kirby leads the area running backs in the early going with a total of 498 yards on the ground in just two games.
"We need to protect the football, win the turnover margin, control the clock and win the special teams battle with our special teams creating plays and slowing down the opposition," Hicks said. "Then we have to finish strong in the fourth quarter. If we can do those things each week, we should have success."