Lima Senior head coach Alphonso “Biggie” Townsend said he thinks the Spartans are heading in the right direction as the second half of the regular season begins Friday.
Winners of back-to-back games, the Spartans improved to 3-1 on the season and are 2-0 in the Three Rivers Athletic Conference, and are coming off a big 28-13 win over Oregon Clay.
“I think our offense caught a spark,” Townsend said. “They showed what they could do when they are consistent and having D.J. Clark come back last week sparked everybody. Last week we scored in all three phases with offensive, defense and special teams.”
It was Clark on special teams that returned a kickoff for 97 yards to help the Spartans to the win.
The Spartans recorded 28 points points, its second most offensive output this season.
Offensively, Lima Senior rushed for 253 total yards and passed for 113 yards.
Spartan running back Kamar Johnson is the team’s leading rusher with 306 yards with two touchdowns on 44 attempts. Last Friday, Johnson exploded for 183 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.
At the quarterback spot, Aiden Howard has seen the majority of the time with Zavion Garner also getting time behind center. Both continue to show progress as Howard has gone 21-for-45 for 231 yards and one touchdown and six interceptions.
Against Clay, the Spartans were 12-of-23 with three interceptions and 113 yards.
“On our first drive of the game we had five or six straight first downs but we did stall out the end but that alone shows that the kids are getting it and are coming together at the right time,” Townsend said.
Defensively, the Spartans put in another solid effort. In its three of the four games this year, the Spartans have yielded 13 points or less.
Against Oregon Clay, the defense had an interception for a score and continually put pressure on the quarterback and recorded a safety.
The Spartans’ front seven, led by defensive end Anthony Mosely and linebacker Marcus Brown, have been instrumental in the defenses’ success. Mosely had nine and a half tackles and two sacks and a forced fumble and Townsend said he is averaging around 10 tackles and a couple of sacks.
“Marcus played great and Jerome Daniels also had a good game and was the second leading tackler in the game,” Townsend said. “Marcus made a big play and got us a safety and then we turned around and Matthew Minor and Anthony Mosely had sacked the quarterback and in three games we have knocked out six quarterbacks out of the game. I think that has been the difference in a lot of the games.”
Townsend said it was his team’s ability to comeback in the game to get the win was what showed this team’s improving week to week.
“The kids were down twice in the game and never game up,” Townsend said. “That let me know that they are progressing and getting better. Winning brings all the energy up and it gets contagious when you are winning. Everyone is holding each other accountable and you can tell everyone wants to get better.”
Townsend said practices continue to get better and the Spartans will need to have another big showing when they travel to face perennial powerhouse Toledo Central Catholic who Lima Senior has not beaten since joining the Three Rivers Athletic Conference. TCC, Lima Senior, Toledo Whitmer and Fremont Ross are all 2-0 in the conference
The Irish come in with a 3-2 mark but that can be a bit deceiving. After its first games to Lakewood St. Edwards, the No. 2 ranked team in Division I, and Benedictine, the No. 1 ranked team in Division II, TCC has won three straight and outscored its opponents 114-6. They beat Findlay 41-6 two weeks ago and followed it up with a 38-0 win over Toledo St. John’s.
Leading the charge on defense is senior linebacker Chris Jackson is a Division I top prospect and was second team Division II All-Ohio last year.
Offensively, Sam Lee is a senior wide receiver who has 22 catches for 467 yards and six touchdowns.
Junior Ty’Waun Clark is the TCC’s quarterback and in the team’s three-game winning streak, he is 46of 63 for 690 yards with eight touchdowns and no interceptions.
“We prepare for Central Catholic like we prepare for Bowsher,” Townsend said. “We can control what Lima Senior can control. We can only go week to week and correct the mistakes that we have made and get ready for the opponent on Friday.
.neFileBlock {
margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
padding-bottom: 5px;
padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
font-size: 85%;
}
