Long passes lift Canton over Pioneer

By C.J. Risak
Staff writer

Other than the opponents being the same, this season-opener was nothing like last year's season-opener.

A year ago Canton began its football season at Ann Arbor Pioneer, and after giving up the ball six times on turnovers the Chiefs managed to obtain a 10-point victory.

On Thursday at Canton, in the first game played on the new synthetic field, it just wasn't the same kind of game. The Chiefs did not dominate offensively - they gained just 10 more yards than the Pioneers -Êand they couldn't run the ball with ease, slicing through the opposition with no trouble.

But they did almost everything else right. They had no turnovers. They had no penalties. And they did manage to carry over one important factor from 2002 - they won, 28-14.

Pioneer struck first, scoring on a 69-yard pass play from junior quarterback Mike McCoy to senior wideout Allen Kennedy on their third play from scrimmage. But Canton fought back to take a 13-7 lead into halftime, and what turned the tide for the Chiefs wasn't their ground game, but their passing attack.

True, they only threw four passes in the entire game (by the way, Pioneer threw 40). But they completed all four, two going for touchdowns, for a total of 197 yards. And the player on the receiving end of all four passes was Devin Thomas.

Canton coach Tim Baechler had started the game with 29 runs in the first 30 plays. The game was tied at 7-all - fullback Chuck Schumacher plowed in from 2 yards out to cap a 10-play, 56-yard drive with 7:00 left in the second quarter to knot it - when he started asking himself why he was sticking with his full-T alignment.

"I asked myself, 'Why am I being so stubborn?'" he recalled. "Their corner(back) was still playing right up on (Thomas)."

So, on Canton's next possession, facing a third-down-and-11 at its own 8, quarterback Shawn Little dropped back and lofted a pass down the left sideline to Thomas, who was well behind the defensive back. In fact, Thomas slowed down to catch the ball, cut back inside and outran the rest of the Pioneer defense to finish the 91-yard play. The extra-point kick was missed, leaving the score at 13-7.

The Pioneers, led by the McCoy-to-Kennedy combination, did manage to regain the lead on their first possession of the second half. McCoy finished an eight-play drive with a 7-yard TD toss to Kennedy; Jon Sebolt's extra-point kick made it 14-13.

McCoy would throw 40 passes in the game, completing 19, for 286 yards and two TDs. But he would also throw three interceptions, one made by Bryan Sieferd at the end of the first half and two others by Eric O'Shaughnessy to stop second-half drives.

Pioneer's second-half lead lasted three plays and 1:21. On a second-and-9 play from the Canton 39, Thomas ran a deep post pattern on the left side, snared the pass and ran in for the score. He also caught the two-point conversion pass, making it 21-14.

The Chiefs' defense took control from there, forcing a punt, a turnover on downs and three turnovers in the Pioneers' remaining possessions.

"Our defense stepped up in the third quarter," said Baechler, taking special note of linebackers Matt Paye and Jake Powers.

They weren't the only ones, however. When Little was knocked dizzy on a tackle with four minutes left in the third quarter, backup Dave Neu was called on to replace him. Little came back for one series but, after getting sacked for a 10-yard loss, it quickly became apparent he wasn't 100 percent.

Neu was back at quarterback when the Chiefs got possession following a Pioneer punt at their own 8. Six runs got them to the 20, where they faced third-and-12; Neu dropped back and found Thomas over the middle for 41 yards, Thomas fumbling the ball on the tackle but Canton's Ron Opdyke recovering.

Two plays later, Schumacher - who gained 110 yards on 18 attempts -Êtook the ball on a trap play up the middle for 35 yards and a touchdown. The extra-point was good, and Canton led 28-14 with 5:58 left.

Pioneer didn't threaten again, McCoy fumbling on a sack by Paye (the ball was recovered by P.J. Caram) and then O'Shaughnessy picking off two passes.

"You take away the big plays by Canton and its a tie ballgame," said Pioneer coach Chuck White. "The thing that bothers me about Canton is, you make mistakes and it hurts.

"They make you pay."

The Chiefs did just that, taking full advantage of four turnovers and three major penalties against the Pioneers.



cjrisak@oe.homecomm.net (734) 953-2108