High octane Horses ‘O’ back in Section 2 final
Ward rushes for 189 yards, 4 TDs in rout of Shenendehowa
If you have a senior running back racking up 189 yards and four touchdowns in a Section II Class AA semifinal do you really need anything more?
Troy High football coach Bob Burns isn’t a greedy individual, but he had the entire package at his disposal Friday night as the Flying Horses routed Shenendehowa, 5014, in the Section II Class AA semifinal and Troy marches once again to the Super Bowl Friday at the University at Albany.
Ward was almost unstoppable, rushing for 189 yards on 27 carries and three rushing touchdowns. He also caught a 17-yard pass from senior quarterback Joe Casale.
“It’s not about giving him an opportunity tonight, we give him an opportunity every single time he plays, and he’s just that good. He’s one of those special kids that you get every now and then and he looked like he had a little more pep in his step tonight,” Troy High Coach Bob Burns said. “He’s always been explosive, but tonight he looked a little more motivated to try and get things done. Nothing he does
surprises me.”
Against the Plainsmen defense it was a combination of his offensive line providing him the planned entry point and then his natural talent took over.
“The linemen were working hard all week,” Ward said. “They just tell me to run behind them and that’s exactly what I did.
“All week scout team was going hard. Coaches were telling us ‘Scout teams go hard’ and they definitely gave us a look and they gave us a game look. When the game came we weren’t surprised, everything was the same as it was in practice.”
Shenendehowa acknowledged Ward’s talent heading into the semifinal, but seeing the 5-foot 9-inch 195 pound speedster in person was another challenge.
“Joey Ward has that extra gear that can hurt you unlike any other running back we’ve seen,” Shenendehowa Coach Brian Clawson said. “It’s not only his speed, it’s his vision.
“When we would get him strung out to the outside and we would lack a cut back player, he would cut back. When we bottled him up in the middle he’d jump cut and was off. He’s a phenomenal back and did pretty well for himself tonight.”
Burns then was able to level up and give Casale and his receiving corps a chance to shine, throwing for 132 yards on an 8-of-9 passing night, including two touchdowns, one to Ward and his second a 21-yard toss to Dev Holmes.
“Our run game is crucial to get started in the first half to get that going because if people can’t stop the run than we might not even have to look to the pass,” Casale said. “Once they were getting really concerned with the run and Joey that’s when we can stretch and vertical and have opportunities to make big plays.”
With a night of continuous offensive explosions a rested Flying Horse defense came on to limit the Plainsmen to 172 yards of total offense, minus a last-minute 62-run by Evan Gauer, Shen would have one of its poorest offensive outings on the year.
“I’m proud of the defense,” Burns said. “It’s something that they take pride in, we work hard in practice all week.
“They work hard off the field doing things they got to do to get themselves ready and tonight they showed it.”
If there was any disappointment Friday night it was that the Section II Class AA Super Bowl, held last year nearby for the Flying Horses at RPI will be held at the University at Albany 7 p.m. next week.
For Troy High, currently undefeated, the No. 1 ranked team in the Class AA New York State Sportswriters poll and defending New York State Public High School Athletic Association champions it could be another case of wash, rinse, repeat for the Flying Horses.
“The Section II Super Bowl is huge,” Casale said. “I think sometimes because of what we did last year people will overlook ‘Oh, it’s the Super Bowl’ you guys won states last year. It’s huge.
“This program is a very successful program, but winning the Section II Super Bowl is huge around here. You get to claim the section, anything after that is gravy. We’ll worry about that once we get there.”