Troy 52 Vandalia Butler 7

This is what Homecoming games are supposed to look like.

Butler has had Troy's number in recent years. Granted, Troy has been weaker during most of those years than the powerhouse teams they're generally known for, but even during Troy's last playoff season, their single loss during the regular season was to the Butler Aviators. Of course, this was probably only fair considering that Butler failed to defeat Troy the first fourteen times the two teams met. Still, getting back on the winning track against them felt quite nice indeed.

The Trojans did it in grand style, scoring 21 points before Butler ever got the ball on offense. This was a result of scoring on the opening drive, recovering an onsides kick, scoring again, recovering another kick, and scoring again. The game was all but over at that point, about halfway through the first quarter, and I found myself exceptionally glad that Brandi and I managed to make it to the game on time (kickoff happened while we were walking into the stadium, and we sat down just in time to see the first touchdown--an 80-yard run by Trojan tailback Cody Boyd); had we been even a little bit later, we would have missed the only part of the game that really mattered.

It was another great game for Boyd, who rushed for 315 yards and 5 touchdowns on just 17 carries. With those totals, he surpassed the 1,000 yard mark for the season with three games left to play. The passing game (on the rare occasions when it was used) and the defense also looked quite good. The Trojans are really shaping into a good team. I can't even explain how happy that makes me, especially given my criticism (mostly of the coaching staff) earlier this season. I still wish we could have brought it together earlier in the season--Centerville may have been beyond us in any case, but we probably should have beaten Alter--but I have to give them a lot of credit for getting the team to this point.

The Trojans are now 5-2, 4-0 in the Greater Western Ohio Conference. They play at Northmont on Friday with a chance, if they win, to clinch at least a share of a division championship. With Northmont standing at 6-1, also at stake are a large number of computer points, which will boost either team's chances of making the state playoffs.