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HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
Wayne opens with 'Peake
WAYNE -- As the Wayne Pioneers get set to open their 2008 season, they face the disadvantage of going up against a team that has ridded itself of first-game jitters.
Chesapeake opened the Ohio regular season with a 30-29 win over Oak Hill in a game that the Panthers were thought to be a major underdog.
Now, Chesapeake will take its 1-0 record to Pioneer Field to meet the Pioneers at 7:30 p.m. tonight.
After watching the film of the game that week, Wayne coach Tom Harmon said there was one glaring aspect of the Panthers that he wanted his team to recognize.
"They played with a lot of passion. You can't put a value on a team playing their guts out," Harmon said. "It was obvious on film that they were an inspired football team. You combine that with being well-coached on both sides of the ball, it presents some problems."
The Panthers' exciting win over Oak Hill didn't come without its portion of first-game mistakes. The teams combined for 12 fumbles and Chesapeake had a pair of special teams miscues that led to touchdowns for the Oaks.
Still, the game was in limbo when Oak Hill scored a touchdown with 4.4 seconds to go to pull within one. With momentum on their side, the Oaks decided to go for a two-point conversion and the win.
Despite being on the road with several new varsity players on the field and the game in the balance, Chesapeake was able to come up with one more play to get the win.
"It was a very ragged football game. There were a lot of turnovers," Chesapeake coach Phil Davis said. "I didn't think either team played great, but our kids never quit playing hard. They played the whole game."
Davis said that he hoped his team would utilize having a game under its belt while the Pioneers will be opening their season. Harmon echoed his coaching companion's sentiments, saying that it can't do anything but help.
"Anytime you play a team that has a game under their belt, if nothing else, they've been exposed to what some of their strengths are," Harmon said. "There is no substitute for game experience."
Davis and Harmon know exactly what the other coach is going to do on the field tonight, and with good reason. Harmon played for Davis at Buffalo and then the two coached together at Chesapeake before Harmon moved onto become head coach at Wayne.
Davis even joked that some of the terminology may be the same for both his Panthers and Harmon's Pioneers tonight, but that will matter little in the outcome.
"Terminology doesn't matter with what you call," Davis said. "It's about what you do with (the play) once it is called."
Both teams have plenty of players that know what to do in that respect. Chesapeake quarterback Aaron Donahoe excelled in the option attack and passing game in the win over Oak Hill and Wayne quarterback Joey Ferguson and running back Jason Thompson both return after stellar years in 2007.
With lots of skill on the field, Harmon said it will come down to a pair of key aspects.
"Penalties and turnovers are decisive factors in close ballgames," Harmon said. "We definitely need to eliminate both of those to be effective."
