Tipp Red Devils Football dominate Sidney 49-6
The clock had not even struck nine when the two teams reached midfield for their postgame handshake. That is how quickly the Tippecanoe football team took care of business last Friday night at Sidney.
After jumping out to a huge lead at the half, the Red Devils cruised with the help of a running clock and left Shelby County with a 49-6 win over the Yellow Jackets.
With the win, Tipp improved to 6-1 on the season. They not only maintain their slim lead in the Miami Valley League, but they also currently sit third in the latest computer rankings that determine the post-season playoffs.
“I liked how we started,” Tipp coach Matt Burgbacher said. “You go into a game, and you have the preparation and all those factors, but we got the ball first, and the offense set the tone. We got that stop on defense, and we were able to stick another one in there.”
“We gave up the one touchdown, but that happens. But overall, I am very proud of how the kids handled this week. The kids had a lot of different factors, we didn’t step foot on our practice field, we had to practice in a ravine for two days, it’s how it was. But we didn’t let that factor how we prepared for this game.”
Tipp came out fast and struck just one minute after taking possession when Larkin Thomas hit Bentley Heckman over the middle for a 41-yard touchdown pass to give Tipp a quick 7-0 lead. It was the first of three scoring connections on the day for that duo.
After the Tipp defense held Sidney to a quick three-and-out, their offense went to work again. Moving down inside the Yellow Jackets' red zone, it was Thomas hitting Heckman again on a short 5-yard strike, making it 14-0.
The Red Devils were not done in the opening quarter as Colston Artz scampered in from three yards out on their next drive with 1:14 left in the period, it was 21-0.
Thomas scored on their opening drive of the second quarter on a short run, making it 28-0. Then, after James Merry picked off a tipped pass, the Red Devils went to work again.
A pinpoint pass from Thomas to Heckman covered 72 yards to the end zone, giving Tipp a 35-0 lead with 6:04 left until the half.
“We had Grant Titley out tonight and needed guys to step up. I thought Bentley played really well tonight,” Burgbacher said. “It all goes back to the offensive line. Larkin had some time to throw. Sidney was gearing up to stop our run tonight, so that opened some things up, but we still have to make the plays, and we made them.”
Sidney got their only score of the night inside of two minutes left until the half, but Tipp responded in a big way. A couple of big passing plays from Thomas put Tipp in position to score right before the half, and with 23 seconds left, Artz scored from two yards out, making it 42-6 at half.
With a second half running clock, Tipp added the final score of the night when Levi Jones scored from 15 yards out.
On the day, Thomas finished 16-19 passing for 321 yards and a league-high 18 touchdown passes.
Tipp now has Xenia coming to town this week for their Homecoming game, kicking off at 7 p.m. on Friday.
“Xenia has been our toughest game the last two years. We have to be ready for their best shot,” Burgbacher said. “There will be distractions this week (due to Homecoming), but we want the kids to enjoy everything. When we are at football, let’s stay focused on football. When you are out of football this week, stay focused where your feet are. Enjoy it.”
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