Big Red scores 48 straight, rolls past Linsly to improve to 7-0

STEUBENVILLE -- Like a round boulder barreling down a steep embankment, once the Red got rolling, there was no stopping it.

After a slow start, the Big Red football team scored 42 points while racking up 350 yards of offense in the second quarter on the way to a convincing 48-14 victory over Linsly at a packed Harding Stadium Friday night.

The win improved Big Red, the No. 2 ranked Division III team by the Ohio Associated Press in its latest poll, to 7-0.

Big Red finished with 499 yards of offense, 212 and three scores on the ground and 287 and four more scores through the air.

The Cadets (0-6) got off to a promising start, scoring on the opening drive of the game and coming up with a big defensive stop in their own end to hold a 7-0 lead after the first quarter. By the time Linsly scored again late in the fourth quarter, Big Red had rattled off 48-straight points and the continuous clock was running.

"This is a fun group to coach," Big Red head coach Reno Saccoccia said. "I thought we ran the ball and passed the ball pretty well. The stuff we worked on this week passing-wise was there and we were able to take advantage of it.

"We had good protection, we had good passes, and our receivers did a good job of catching the ball. Plus, we had the threat of the run, our tailbacks did a good job, and our full backs did a good job of blocking.

"It was a really good team effort offensively, and defensively we did a great job after the first series."

Big Red's offensive onslaught in the second quarter started with the run game. Kyleigh Hopkins evened the score with a great piece of tough running, breaking free from multiple Linsly tacklers for a 22-yard touchdown after a nice punt return by Brody Saccoccia and a 28-yard Landon Crosier run put Steubenville deep in Cadet territory.

After the first of two Jemier Faulks interceptions, Aiden Davis connected with Will Taylor on a deep shot and he got taken down at the 2. Two plays later, Hopkins muscled across the goal line to give Big Red its first lead.

From there, the passing game did the bulk of the damage.

After another strong punt return by Brody Saccoccia inside the Linsly 40, Davis fired a 25-yard strike to Jeremiah Hinton.

The defense forced a three-and-out, and on the next Big Red snap, Davis aired out a deep shot to Brody Saccoccia, who went 53 yards to score.

Faulks picked off another pass at midfield, and two plays later Davis and Hinton connected again, this time for a 45-yard scoring connection. Linsly failed to get a first down on the next drive, giving Steubenville the ball back with time for another quick strike before half, a 49-yard Davis-to-Brody Saccoccia connection on the first play of the drive.

The scoring frenzy ended up being five touchdowns in less than four and a half minutes of game time.

"As good as we started the first half, we ended the first half equally as badly," Linsly head coach BJ Depew said. "I'm proud of the way we came out and possessed the ball against a really good defense. We were really happy with the effort in the first quarter. After that, we kind of became unglued.

"I would never have guessed we'd have given them three or four possessions in the last three minutes of the half. That was a collective of things, defensively we weren't making plays and offensively we weren't operating as unit and staying on the field.

"(Big Red is) an excellent football team and we opened the door for them to take advantage and they did, and that's what good football teams do. They capitalized on all of our mistakes, and they didn't make any mistakes, and that's how games get lopsided."

Davis, who started 1 for 5 for 3 yards in the first quarter, connected on seven of his next eight passes for 254 yards and the four scores. Brody Saccoccia, who entered the game as the team's leading receiver, went over the century mark receiving with 105 on three catches.

Te'Jon Hython, who entered the game in the third quarter when Big Red subbed, racked up 94 yards and a fourth-quarter score.

Linsly QB Braden Wade, who opened the scoring with a 13-yard run, threw a late TD pass to finish 10 of 20 for 152 yards. He completed four of his first five before going 6 of 15 in the final three quarters.

NOTES

• Cole Bowers' six successful extra points made him the program leader in the category. He also booted all but one of his kickoffs for a touch back, and that one was set back 15 yards by a penalty.

• Joe Eitel's unofficial rankings had Big Red remaining in second place in the Region 11 standings as of Friday night.

• Big Red's game next Friday night at home against Huron Heights has been changed to a 6:30 p.m. start time.

Big Red 48, Linsly 14

Linsly 7-0-0-7 - 14

Big Red 0-42-0-6 - 48

SCORING PLAYS

First Quarter

L: Wade 13 run (67 kick) 3:12

Second Quarter

BR: Hopkins 22 run (Bowers kick) 10:12

BR: Hopkins 1 run (Bowers kick) 6:19

BR: Hinton 25 pass from Davis (Bowers kick) 4:04

BR: Saccoccia 53 pass from Davis (Bowers kick) 3:27

BR: Hinton 45 pass from Davis (Bowers kick) 2:53

BR: Saccoccia 49 pass from Davis (Bowers kick) 1:39

Third Quarter

None

Fourth Quarter

BR: Hython 9 run (kneel down) 5:59

L: Ramello 8 pass from Wade (67 kick) 1:51

RUSHING: Linsly 26-77-TD (Hamp 9-5; Brooks 10-30; Wade 5-37-TD; Derr 2-5); Big Red 25-212-3TD (Bryant 6-58; Taylor 1-(-1); Crosier 1-28; Hopkins 3-24-2TD; Davis 1-8; Hython 10-94-TD; West 1-1; Haney 2-0)

PASSING: Linsly 10-20-152-TD-2INT (all by Wade); Big Red 10-19-287-4TD (Davis 8-13-257-4TD; Haney 2-6-30)

RECEIVING: Linsly 10-152-TD (Murray 2-45; Troullos2-16; Derr 6-91-TD); Big Red 10-287-4TD (Saccoccia 3-105-2TD; Wiggins 1-5; Taylor 1-57; Hinton 2-70-2TD; Scurry 1-20; Gulan 1-28; Simon 1-2)

FIRST DOWNS: Linsly 9; Big Red 13

PENALTIES-YARDS: Linsly 6-37; Big Red 5-60

FUMBLES-LOST: Linsly 1-0; Big Red 0-0