HOWARD — Freshman running back Matt Smith, subbing for the injured C.J. Ruhl, led the undefeated Fredericktown Freddies to a 47-0 drubbing of the host East Knox Bulldogs in Mid-Buckeye Conference football action on Friday. Smith had 175 yards on 17 carries, four touchdown runs and a two-point conversion.
Things were a little slow to start the game, but the Freddies, who had 439 total yards, took the lead on the first of Smith’s touchdowns near the end of the first quarter.
“You want to get off to a fast start while the field is still in pretty good shape,” said Fredericktown coach Luke Beal. “We started off a little bit slow, but we were pleased with the way we were able to run the football early. We were having trouble throwing the football. It was getting a little wet. I was real pleased with the way our offensive line played. I was pleased with the way we were able to run the football. In conditions like this, it’s really nice if you can hand off and you are able to move the football.”
A short TD run by Austin Hoeflich and a 22-yard pass from quarterback Thomas Hinkle (7-for-11, 92 yards, one interception) to receiver Tony Lybarger (two receptions, 34 yards) gave the Freddies a comfortable 27-0 lead at halftime.
It was tough all around for the Bulldogs, who are battling injuries.
“I thought we tried hard the whole game,” said East Knox coach Tom Holton. “Scheme-wise, we knew what they were going to do. We knew what we wanted to do to stop it. We didn’t make plays and we didn’t tackle well.”
The Freddies, who rolled up 347 yards on the ground, scored on all three posessions in the third quarter, seemingly running the ball at will.
“We’ve got a lot of athletes that make plays so if we are having success with something, we’ll stick with it,” said Beal.
The 5-foot-9, 195-pound Smith peeled off a spectacular 54-yard run on first down early in the third to put the Freddies up by 33-0. Having been caught by the foot in his own backfield, Smith made a 180-degree spin, got free and took it down the left side to score. He followed on the next possession with a 46-yard run to cap a 91-yard Freddies’ drive.
“It’s been really nice, with C.J. banged up a little bit, to have a freshman come in and be able to play like that,” said Beal. “Matt’s got tremendous talent and certainly had a great game tonight, and that was very nice for us to see.”
Fredericktown running back Dylan Esteph, not to be outdone, took Fredericktown’s first play of its final possession in the third quarter 66 yards for a touchdown.
The Fredericktown defense, which grabbed three interceptions, along with special teams, gave the offense a short field, which was one of the Freddies’ goals this week.
“Our defense played really well,” said Beal. “East Knox has some weapons. They’ve got some talented kids so, getting a shutout, we were really pleased with that.”
“[Fredericktown is] a good football team,” said Holton. “The only thing I can say is that we have got to block better and tackle better at the line of scrimmage.”
Also for the Freddies, Tyler Hathaway had four receptions for 44 yards.
The Bulldogs’ top rusher was Colton Tucker, who had seven rushes for 43 yards.
Ruhl, who saw limited action on both sides of the ball Friday, will be ready for the Utica game next week. The Freddies have their biggest test of the year Friday when they host Utica.
“”Utica’s got a high-poweresd offense and a great quarterback and some pretty good skilled people,” said Beal. “We’re going to have to play some great team defense next week and we are going to have to execute on offense. This will be the biggest defensive challenge we’ve had yet. We’ll enjoy this win and then, Monday, we’ll go back to work.”
It will not get any easier for East Knox as they go on the road to take on pretty good Loudonville team next Friday.
