Friday, October 24, 2008

Troy 48 Sidney 14

And so it ends.

First off, congratulations go out to Tyler Wright, the first Trojan QB to throw for over 1,000 yards in a season since 1985. That's quite an accomplishment. It was a welcome sight to see Troy with a legitimate passing attack to complement the always-strong ground game. Hopefully it won't be another 23 years before a Trojan QB sees 1,000 yards again.

As for the game itself, there really isn't a whole lot to say. The Trojans were able to sustain the momentum they accrued from rolling over archrival Piqua last week, and they used it to lay the wood to a simply overmatched Sidney team. Between Tyler Wright and tailback Matt Allen, Troy had a 21-0 lead with four minutes left in the first quarter, and they were able to coast from there.

The defense also played a great game, keeping Sidney's offense off the board until nearly halfway through the 4th quarter, when the game was already well in hand. I was particularly impressed with the pass defense, with plenty of nice plays made on balls in the air. Guys were laying out to bat down passes, hit receivers as the ball arrived, or pick them off. Sophomore linebacker Kyle Terando had a couple of interceptions, one of which was a great, athletic move on trick play by Sidney's offense - the ball looked like it was going to sail over his head, and he just got up and snagged it.

All in all, the Yellowjackets just didn't have an answer for the Trojans on either side of the ball. Or special teams either, for that matter - Troy had a punt return for a TD, and they also forced fumble on a kickoff return. Yes indeed, it was a dominant Week 10 showing by the Trojans.

So now the season's over, when it feels like it's just begun. Pick out any other 10-week period over the course of a year, and it feels like ten weeks; but when it's high school football season, it just flies by. Now begins the long countdown to, if my figuring is correct, August 28, 2009. I'll probably make it to a playoff game or two in the next few weeks, but it just isn't the same without the Trojans involved.

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