By Cort Reynolds

BLUFFTON __ The Bluffton High School football team dominated visiting local rival Allen East 43-7 in their traditional Northwest Conference backyard grudge match Friday evening, October 18, at Harmon Field.

The game was preceded by the postponed Homecoming parade and presentations commemorating the 100th anniversary of Harmon Field.

The Pirates raced to a 20-0 lead after one period of play, and were not threatened.

The Bluffton out-gained AE 370-172 in total yardage. 

The defending league co-champion Pirates improved to 9-0 overall and 6-0 in the NWC with the victory. ▶︎

Bluffton remains tied for first in the league with fellow unbeaten Columbus Grove (9-0, 6-0 NWC). The two rivals face off at Harmon Field next Friday to determine the league champion. 

Meanwhile, the Mustangs fell to 4-5 overall and 2-4 in the NWC after the defeat.

Bluffton tallied three touchdowns in the first quarter.

Pirate signal-caller Tayte Giesige got the scoring started with a 13-yard TD run with nine minutes left in the first period.

Senior back Landen Worcester capped a 53-yard scoring drive with a four-yard scoring run to provide a 12-0 lead at the five-minute mark. The extra point kick by Jackson Brauen was good to put the Pirates ahead, 13-0.

A Worcester sack thwarted the ensuing AE drive, and he then ripped off a long run to the Mustang 36. 

Noah Bricker punctuated the 62-yard march with a 17-yard TD run. The PAT try was blocked again by Jacob Pinks to keep the margin at 20-0 after one period of play.

AE put together its first good drive early in the second stanza. They crossed midfield but a loss brought up fourth and near the 50. On a fake punt run, the Mustangs came up just inches short after a measurement.

Bluffton took over at the AE 49. On the first play, a long Giesige pass to Quinn Eachus gained 34 yards inside the AE 15. Two runs brought up third and one at the Mustang six.

Parker Lovell was stopped for a short loss. On fourth and two, Lovell scored on a seven-yard run with just 6:51 left in the first half. Brauen’s extra point was deflected to keep the score at 26-0.

AE started at their own 36 after the ensuing kickoff return. On fourth and short again the Mustangs were stuffed once more on a run attempt at their own 46.

A short swing pass to Noah Bricker gained 22 yards. Griffin Stackhouse faked out the AE defender and scored on a 24-yard pass from Giesige.

The extra point kick by Brauen with 3:59 left in the second stanza advanced the margin to 33-0.

A Bricker tackle caused a loss of five yards on the next AE run from scrimmage at their own 32. On third and 13, a holding penalty and a short gain forced a punt. 

Eachus returned the ensuing punt to the Pirate 37 with under two minutes left in the half. A 20-yard pass reached AE territory at the 43. A toss to Bricker advanced the ball to the Mustang 32.

AE dropped a near interception, followed by an 11-yard pass. On third and 15, Eachus caught a pass at the one and scored – but it was negated by a holding penalty.

On third and 25 from the 26, an 11-yard pass necessitated a 32-yard field goal try. After AE was called for being off sides, the Brauen kick from 27 yards out split the middle of the goalposts with 7.1 seconds left. 

Bluffton led 36-0 at the half. The second half started under the running clock. 

After a scoreless third quarter, Lovell scored on a 16-yard run with 8:27 left to play. The Brauen PAT kick stretched the lead to 43-0.

AE avoided a shutout when Miles McDorman scored on a 12-yard run with 4:57 remaining. 

1 2 3 4 F

Bluf 20 16 0 7 43

AE 0 0 0 7 7

Notes and stats

Bluffton racked up 370 yards in total offense on 52 plays (7.1 yards average). The Mustangs netted 172 yards on 37 snaps (4.6 avg.) against the swarming Pirate defense.  

The Pirates rolled up 182 rushing yards and passed for 188 more yards. The big-play Bluffton offense averaged 6.3 yards per rush on 29 carries. 

AE netted 96 yards on the ground against the tough Pirate defense. The Mustangs amassed 76 yards through the air by completing seven of 0 attempts.

The Pirates compiled 21 first downs, while AE moved the chains seven times.

Lovell led the ground game with 56 yards and a pair of scores on eight rushes. He added one catch for 17 yards.

Senior Worcester netted 42 yards on seven runs and TDs on seven carries. He added a catch for 11 yards.

Senior Stackhouse had 11 yards on four runs. He caught two passes for 44 yards and a TD. with scores.

Giesige ran for 46 yards and a TD on four carries. He completed 10 of 17 passes for 188 yards and one TD, with no interceptions. 

Bricker rushed for 30 yards on two carries with one score. He also grabbed three passes for 57 yards.

Eachus snagged three receptions for 59 yards.

Worcester was in on eight tackles, including two sacks. Bricker contributed two assists and two solo stops. Carson Kruse was in on eight tackles, including seven assists.

Mason Shank added a sack. Gabe Meza punted once for 34 yards.

The Pirates committed eight penalties for 57 yards, while AE was flagged four times for 32 yards. 

Bluffton was successful on two of six third down tries, and went 1-2 on fourth down. Meanwhile, the Mustangs converted 2-8 tries on third down, and they went 0-1 on fourth.

Neither team committed a turnover.

The Pirates have outscored their opposition by a commanding 424-59 margin over nine games this season (47.1 ppg to 6.6 ppg). 

With the win, Bluffton remains second in the Div. VI, Region 22 computer rankings. They trail only first-place Hopewell-Loudon (8-0). Patrick Henry (7-2) is third.

Pirates host Grove showdown Fri.

In the most anticipated league game of the season, Bluffton hosts fellow unbeaten rival Columbus Grove to determine the outright NWC title. 

The Bulldogs are 9-0 overall and 6-0 in league play following a close 28-20 win over visiting LCC on Friday.

Bluffton is 4-0 at home, while CG is 4-0 on the road. The Pirates have won 14 NWC titles, while Grove has captured 16.

Grove is first in the Div. VII, Region 26 rankings. The Bulldogs have outscored their opposition 399-107 through nine games for an average margin of 44.3 ppg-11.9 ppg.

The Pirates have won 17 of their last 18 regular season contests, and have been victorious in 20 of their past 22 games. Both losses in that span were to Grove last season.

CG won their week 10 battle 14-7 in 2023 at home to earn a share of the NWC title. The Bulldogs then eliminated the Pirates 17-10 in the hard-fought region 22 playoff finals.

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