AUGUST 31, 2012 – UNION CITY
Maximum effort on every play.
That’s the message delivered by the Covington coaching staff on a daily basis to a football team looking to max out on its potential. It’s the expectation regardless of what the scoreboard reads and who is in the lineup.
And maximum effort is what the entire Covington roster gave for four quarters in a 62-0 victory over Mississinawa Valley, Friday night.
“Yes,” agreed Covington coach Dave Miller. “I agree one-hundred percent. Our kids played hard from start to finish.”
And it showed as Covington thoroughly dominated the game on both sides of the ball – rushing for a school record 556 yards and holding the Blackhawks to just 17 yards of total offense.
Covington also controlled the clock, running 61 plays to just 33 for Mississinawa Valley. The Buccaneers had scoring drives of 7 plays for 74 yards, 10 plays for 72 yards, 6 plays for 58 yards, 3 plays for 41 yards, 2 plays for 23 yards, 1 play for 22 yards, 6 plays for 47 yards, 4 plays for 49 yards and 1 play for 44 yards.
“We don’t run a lot of different plays,” Miller explained. “We just run our basic stuff and make you try to stop us. We don’t try to be something we’re not.”
Defensively, Covington shut down the Blackhawk offense in the first half as Mississinawa Valley never crossed midfield. It wasn’t until a pass interference penalty by Covington in the third quarter that Mississinawa Valley gained a first down and entered Buccaneer territory.
“Our kids were flying to the football,” said Miller. “I like the fact that it didn’t matter who it was, whether it was a starter or a JV kid, everyone flew to the football.”
Covington opened the contest with a 7-play, 74-yard drive that was capped by a short touchdown run by quarterback Trent Tobias.
After holding Mississinawa to a three-and-out, the Buccaneers went 10 plays for 72 yards and pushed the lead to 14-0 on a touchdown run by A.J. Ouellette.
“Our offensive line took over,” Miller said. “It wasn’t like we came in saying we were going to run this play or that play. We took what they gave us and our kids up front came off the ball low and hard.”
The flood gates opened in the second quarter as Covington scored on four of five possessions in the frame – the last possession ending inside the Mississinawa 20 as time expired.
By then, it was 42-0 in favor of Covington.
“The big worry there is a letdown,” said Miller. “You have to play one way, all out with maximum effort, regardless of the score.”
Avoiding a letdown, Covington continued to play inspired ball the entire second half even while getting its entire roster into the game for significant playing time. Whether it was a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior, Covington continued to execute.
Junior Justin Williams started the second half by taking the handoff from his brother, freshman Jared Williams, and bursting in for a five-yard score.
From there, freshman Brandon Magee scored on two long touchdown runs to cap an impressive evening for the Buccaneers.
“I’m pleased with our effort across the board,” praised Miller of his kids. “We’ll see some things we need to work on when we watch the film, but our effort was there for four quarters and that’s what you want to see.”
Covington improves to 2-0 overall and hosts Bethel (1-1) next week.
SCORE BY QUARTERS:
BUCCS – 14 – 28 – 7 – 13 = 62
‘HAWKS – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 = 0
SCORING SUMMARY:
COV: Trent Tobias 15-yd run (A.J. Ouellette Kick)
COV: Ouellette 1-yd run (Ouellette Kick)
COV: Ouellette 1-yd run (Ouellette Kick)
COV: Ouellette 8-yd run (Ouellette Kick)
COV: Justin Williams 3-yd run (Ouellett Kick)
COV: Troy Cron 22-yd run (Ouellette Kick)
COV: Justin Williams 6-yd run (Zach Barnes Kick)
COV: Brandon Magee 5-yd run (Barnes Kick)
COV: Brandon Magee 44-yd run (Kick Failed)
