By Cort Reynolds
BLUFFTON - The homestanding Bluffton football team stuck to the ground and ran past last-place Delphos Jefferson 42-14 in a Northwest Conference contest Friday night.
The Pirates dominated their last home game of 2019 by running the ball - they did not throw a single pass en route to rolling up 377 rushing yards.
Delphos scored the first touchdown, but then Bluffton reeled off 35 unanswered points to pull away from a close game at halftime and win handily.
The Pirates evened their record at 4-4 overall and improved to 2-3 in the NWC after snapping a three-game losing skid. The struggling Jeff-Cats fell to 1-7 and 0-4 in league play with the defeat.
After a scoreless opening stanza, DJ got on the scoreboard via a 10-yard J.T. Taviano touchdown run with 9:14 left in the first half. The two-point conversion run by Colin Bailey put the Wildcats on top, 8-0.
Senior Pirate back Tucker Neff answered with a 49-yard TD run at the 6:36 mark of period two. The point after kick by Kyle Koontz cut the deficit to 8-7.
Bluffton took the lead for good late in the first half. Speedy Tyson Shutler found the end zone on a 14-yard scamper with 1:01 left before intermission. A second Koontz PAT kick made it 14-8 Pirates at the half.
Bluffton quarterback Nate Schaadt extended the lead to 20-8 on a two-yard TD run to cap the first possession of the second half. Koontz's PAT made it 21-8 with 10:03 left in the third quarter.
Neither team scored again until the fourth period. Schaadt hit paydirt on a seven-yard run 40 seconds into the final stanza as the Pirates went ahead 28-8.
Exactly two minutes later, Shutler tallied on a 44-yard ramble. A fifth Koontz extra point kick put the game out of reach, 35-8.
Jefferson QB Logan Hubert connected with Taviano on a 29-yard scoring strike to end the 35-point Pirate flurry. The two-point pass failed to keep the margin at 35-14 with 6:08 remaining.
Neff tacked on a last score when he scored on a one-yard TD plunge with 95 seconds left to play. Koontz added the final point with his sixth PAT boot.
1 2 3 4 F
DJ 0 8 0 6 14
Blf 0 14 7 21 42
Notes and stats
Bluffton netted its 377 yards in total offense on 60 plays (6.3 average). DJ netted 227 yards on 46 plays for an average gain of 4.9 yards per play.
The Wildcats picked up a dozen first downs, while the Pirates racked up 20 first downs.
Bluffton rushed for all 377 of its yards on 60 carries. The defense held DJ to 67 yards rushing on 33 tries (2.0). The Wildcats threw for 160 yards, while the Pirates did not even attempt a pass.
Neff led Bluffton with 167 yards rushing and two TDs on 28 carries. He surpassed the 1,000-yard barrier for the season during the win.
Schaadt rushed 18 times for 69 yards and a pair of TDs. Shutler netted 74 yards on four runs with two scores.
Mickey Ault added a 25-yard run, while Baylor Garmatter gained 22 yards on five rushes and Nick Prater added 20 yards on four carries.
Taviano led DJ with 43 yards on 18 runs with one TD. He also caught three passes for 38 yards and a score. Bailey led DJ with five receptions for 100 yards.
Hubert completed eight of 12 passes for 122 yards and one TD with one interception. Bailey completed his only pass for 38 yards.
Bluffton committed two turnovers compared to three miscues by the Wildcats. The Pirates possessed the ball for 27:25, while DJ held it for 20:17.
The Pirates converted on six of 10 third down tries, and Bluffton made good on two of four tries on fourth down. DJ was three for seven on third down, and 0-2 on fourth down.
The Pirates lost 55 yards on six penalties. DJ was penalized four times for 35 yards.
Ault led the Pirates with four solo tackles, while Taviano topped Delphos with eight solo stops.
Bluffton ended up 2-3 at home this season.
Bluffton (2-1 road) visits co-league leader Spencerville (5-3, 4-1 NWC) in week eight. The Bearcats (2-1 home) lost 49-23 at Columbus Grove Friday to drop into a three-way tie first with Grove and Allen East.
The Pirates fell at home to eventual co-champion Spencerville 47-0 last year. The 2017 outright NWC champion Bearcats defeated Bluffton 33-10 two years ago, and have won their last five meetings.
The Pirates last beat Spencerville 14-13 in 2013.
