OMS vs. Rockwood

The OMS Indians have seen their bumps in the road this season, but have rebounded well, winning their last two including a dominating performance in the TMSAA Semifi nals against Dayton City. On Saturday, the Indians took to the fi eld look-ing to improve on their record number of TMSAA State Championships as they faced the Rockwood Tigers, a team that defeated Oneida 36-6 in the season opener. This time around, it was Oneida getting to celebrate as a late pick-six would ice the game away, giving the Indians a 26-16 win and their 11th TMSAA Area 2 State Championship. Rockwood would win the coin toss and choose to receive, looking to set a tone early. The Tigers accomplished what they wanted, driving the ball down the fi eld 67 yards in just six plays, capped off by a one-yard TD run from Aiden Amonett. The two-point conversion run from Justus Nelson was good, putting Rockwood in front 8-0 early. The Indians would respond though on their fi rst drive. A fi ve play, 51-yard drive was fi nished by a 39-yard TD strike from Connor Mays to Kannon Gazay and he would weave through defenders on his way to the endzone. The Indians’ two-point conversion was no good as Oneida trailed 8-6 after one quarter of play. In the second, Rockwood would begin to drive again, but this time, the Indians’ defense took a bent-not-break mentality and were able to come up with a big stop. The Indians then come up with a pair of big plays, a 35-yard pass from Mays to Canaan Shoemaker and a 22-yard run from Gazay to put them at the Rockwood one-yard line. Af-ter a penalty to back them up fi ve yards, it was Mays calling his own number, improvising and carrying it in from six yards out for the score. The two-point conversion run from Shoemaker was good and the Indians led 14-8 at the half. The Indians received the opening kickoff of the second half and put together another solid drive. After a 29-yard run from Gage Duncan and a 23-yard run from Shoemaker, the Indians were back inside the red zone. A two-yard TD run from Carter Daugherty capped off a six play, 50-yard drive to extend the Indians’ lead. The two-point try was no good as Oneida led 20-8 entering the fourth. Rockwood would carry over their drive from the third and put together possibly their most impressive drive of the game, covering 57 yards on 13 plays, taking over seven minutes off the clock. The drive was capped by a two-yard TD run from Riley Freeman to cut into the Indians’ lead. The two-point try by Freeman was also good, making it a 20-16 game. The Indians were forced into a three-and-out on their next drive and decided to punt for the fi rst time in the game. A nice 46-yard punt from Mays would fl ip the fi eld, putting the ball on the Rockwood seven-yard line. The Tigers were 93 yards away from possibly having a chance to take the lead. Rockwood made their way down to the Oneida 27-yard line and were threatening late, but it was another big play from the Indian defense that iced the game away. A pass from Amonett intended for Mike Gibson was intercepted by Amauren Kidd and returned 78 yards for a touchdown to give the Indians a 26-16 lead that held until the fi nal whistle. The Indians tallied 181 yards of offense on just 20 plays. Gage Duncan led the way on the ground with 47 yards on six carries. Canaan Shoemaker added 23 yards on two carries while Kannon Gazay chipped in 22 yards on two rushes. Connor Mays added a rushing touchdown while going 3-7 through the air for 81 yards and a touchdown. Gazay caught two passes for 46 yards and a score while Shoemaker hauled in a 35-yard pass. Defensively, Gage Duncan led the way with 11 total tackles (six solo) with a tackle for loss. Carter Daugherty added seven total tackles while Tate Shepard and Brylan Strunk each chipped in six total tackles. Head Coach Jason Terry commented, “This team this year was so talented. Sometimes it was hard though. Some weeks they were fantastic and some weeks it seemed like they wanted to be anywhere but on the football fi eld. The past few weeks were phenomenal though. They bought in, they came to work, they paid attention. They knew this was possible and they worked their butts off for it. They sold out for it today and left everything out on the fi eld. I’m so proud of these kids, this coaching staff, our administration. I’m just at a loss for words.” It is the state-record 11th TMSAA State Championship and the second-straight championship for Coach Terry and the OMS Indians. Connor Mays was named the Offensive MVP of the game for his efforts. After the game, Coach Terry was named the Coach of the Year while Amauren Kidd, Jake Marcum, Tate Shepard, Kannon Gazay, and Gage Duncan were named All-District selections. All-State selections will be named later this week.