Troy Rallies Late, Stands Up Defensively To Edge Central Clarion For State Title
By: Chris Manning | NTL Sports | December 7, 2024 | Photo courtesy Chris Manning
MECHANICSBURG - Every team that makes the state playoffs knows their season is going to end in tears, and for only one team those will be tears of joy. On Friday tears of joy flowed as Troy eked out a 25-24 win over Central Clarion for the PIAA, Class AA Football state title, the first in the program's history, and the first in NTL history.
"I'm a ball of emotion right now," said Troy coach Jim Smith. "I'm a blubbering mess. I'm just so proud that we were able to take this game, and stand up there in the end when we had to. We knew it was going to be tight."
Tight would be an understatement as the fans who braved the cold and wind were treated to a thriller. Troy pounded their way to a 12-3 first half lead, only to see the Wildcats rally for a 16-13 advantage going into the fourth.
It was back and forth after that with Troy taking the lead on a Brendan Gilliland touchdown run, followed by Central Clarion getting a touchdown run out of quarterback Jase Ferguson just over two minutes later.
Mason Smith put the Trojans back up with a touchdown run of his own with 1:15 left to play, as Gavin Lykon-Leffler added the point after for the 1-point difference.
The Wildcats got into Troy territory to try a 50-yard field as time expired. It had the leg, but not was wide left, giving the Trojans the 1-point win.
"I was watching it in warm-ups and I knew that here was definitely a shot of it going in," said Troy's Lincoln Chimics. "So as soon as I saw the ball flying left to the goal post I just started running."
"It was a lot of fun," added Gilliland, though the stressed out coaches on the sidelines may not have agreed.
"My heart dropped a little bit when they got that big kick return," admitted coach Smith. "But boy, our kids made some plays right there at the end."
Gilliland had a big day with three touchdowns - two rushing, one receiving - as he finished with 143-yards rushing on 25 carries.
"Our O-line was really physical with them, and I'm proud of those guys," said Gilliland. "We didn't have many big plays, it was just three yards, three yards, three yards, just enough to get first downs. We were working the clock, and getting to the enodzone."
Smith couldn't say enough good things about Gilliland's performance this postseason.
"He's a Division-I athlete," he said. "But we're in Troy, so not a lot of people come to Troy, and I hope that a kid like him gets recognized for what he is."
It was part of a day that saw Troy run for 266-yards on 53 carries, while garnering 21 first downs as they doubled up the time possession on Central Clarion, 31:37 to 16:23.
They also converted on third down (8-for-12) and fourth down (2-for-2) to keep drives alive.
"It felt amazing to be able to get a push on such a big line that was dominant throughout their season," said Troy's Avery Sens. "To be able to control them was a great feeling."
Evan Woodward added 13 rushes for 62-yards, while going 2-for-6 for 19-yards and a score through the air. It was Woodward's first incompletion since the district title game against Warrior Run as the wind played havoc with Troy's passing game.
"We were getting outside runs going, and Brendan was running hard, picking up extra yards," Woodward said. "We were able to get a couple long drives there and finish the drives with points."
Mason Smith added nine carries for 43-yards with the final score of the game, while Kael Millard pounded out 18-yards on six carries.
On the other side Troy pretty much shutdown the Wildcat run game, holding them to 53-yards on 15 carries, much of that coming on Jase Ferguson's 37-yard run just before the half.
"We knew what they had, they had a quarterback," said Troy's Jake Burbage. "We had to come out, we had to stop the quarterback, and that's what we did in the first half."
However, Ferguson got going through the air, going 17-for-24 for 189-yards and two scores with Ethan Rex hauling in seven catches for 79-yards and two touchdowns. Mason Buford added five catches for 42-yards, and Jesse Siwiecki added three grabs for 47-yards.
"In the second half they had some big plays," added Burbage. "But when it came down to that field goal we stopped them."
Central Clarion came in averaging nearly 50 points per game, so holding them to half their average was a win for the Trojans.
"Kudos to them, they're a great team," said coach Smith. "You couldn't ask for a better football game in the state final."
Things didn't start off very good for Troy as they fumbled away the opening kick-off, giving Central Clarion prime real estate at the Troy 20-yard line.
Ferguson would run five yards on first down, but a holding call on second down backed the Wildcats up to the 23. Ferguson got four yards back, but on third-and-long he threw an incomplete pass, setting up Thomas Uckert's 36-yard field goal for the 3-0 lead with 9:46 on the first quarter clock.
Troy held on to the football during the ensuing kick-off, taking over their own 23-yard line.
From there they put on a long drive clinic, running 14 of their 15 snaps, which ended with a 4-yard punch into the enodzone by Gilliland on first and goal.
Everybody touched the ball for Troy on the drive as Gilliland rushed six times for 42 yards, Millard three times for 14 yards, Mason Smith three times for 15 yards, and Woodward twice for six yards. The Trojans had the ball for just over seven minutes.
They also went 3-for-3 on third downs - all third and short - though the extra point was no good due to a good push by the Central Clarion defense, putting Troy up 6-3 with 2:30 left in the first quarter.
The ensuing kick-off saw Central Clarion fumble the squib kick, ending with Burbage on top of it to give Troy possession.
This time they only needed to go 35-yards on seven plays. An 11-yard run by Woodward on third-and-4 got them a new set of downs at the 18-yard line.
However, Gilliland was tackled 8-yards deep by Central Clarion's Briggs Beckwith, setting up a second-and-18 at the 26.
Troy only got it to the 20-yard line over the ensuing two plays, for a 4th-and-12. That's when Woodward found Gilliland open down field at around the 5-yard line, with the junior running it in for the score.
Troy's 2-point conversion try was no good but they led 12-3 with 10:20 left in the half.
Central Clarion would get their first first down of the game on their ensuing drive, and with eight minutes left in the half, on a Ferguson 2-yard run on fourth-and-one.
The drive ended three plays later on a Ferguson incompletion, forcing Central Clarion to punt.
Troy took over at their own 30-yard line, and after a fumble on the first play got the machine going again.
A 9-yard run by Woodward on third-and-9 gave them a new set of downs. He followed that tup with a 7-yard run, two Gilliland ran for 9-yards two plays later to get into Wildcat territory.
The drive stalled out there, as Troy went backwards on their next snap, followed by Woodward throwing an incompletion on third-and-long.
Chimics came on to punt, and appeared to have a first down on a long run off a fake, but a penalty brought it back, and Troy punted for real, pinning the Wildcats inside their own 10-yard line.
After two incompletions Ferguson scampered out to the Troy 45-yard line to give his team some breathing room. However, sacks by Gilliland and Teribury saw the drive end at the half with Troy up by nine.
Central Clarion started with the ball in the second half, but didn't get anywhere with two runs. However, they got something on third-and-8 with a 6-yard pass from Ferguson to Rex.
Ferguson then found Kohen Kemmer for 11-yards and a new set of downs, and the Wildcats were off. They threw on five of their next six plays, ending with a hook up from Ferguson to Rex, who broke two tackles en route to an 18-yard touchdown run. The extra point clanged off the left upright but the Wildcats were back in the game, down 12-9 with 7:11 on the third quarter clock.
Troy's ensuing drive went 3-and-out, giving Central Clarion the ball back at their own 43-yard line. It only took them two plays to score this time, as Ferguson hit a wide open Rex out in the flat, and he raced 49-yards to the pylon to give the Wildcats the lead.
Uckert hit the point after for the 16-12 advantage with 4:08 left in the third.
"They came out swinging, and they got a couple things going," Woodward said about Central Clarion.
Troy started their next drive at their own 8-yard line, and two short gains looked to put them behind the eight ball.
However, a late hit call on Central Clarion gave them new life, moving them to their own 29-yard line.
Two negative yardage plays followed, but on third-and-15 Woodward targeted Chimics, who was held by the Central Clarion defender, moving the sticks again for Troy.
With first-and-10 at their own 39 Gilliland ripped off a nine-yard run. That was followed by a 12-yard run from Woodward two plays later to get inside the Wildcat 40.
The Central Clarion defense stiffened, forcing a fourth-and-1 at the 30, but Gilliland punched through for a new set of downs.
Two plays later he punched through again, this time 28-yards over the left side of the line to pay dirt. The 2-point conversion was no good but Troy was back on top 18-16 with 8:46 left in the game.
"It was huge," Gilliland said. "If we didn't answer they would have just scored. It was huge to answer, and we knew that was a big drive, so it was awesome to get that touchdown."
Central Clarion continued to have their way offensively on their next possession, going 48-yards on four straight completions to get to the Trojan 10-yard line.
From there Ferguson out ran the Troy defense to the corner of the enodzone to put his team back on top. He then found Kemmer for the 2-point conversion for the 24-18 lead with 6:37 to go in the game.
That set up the game winning drive for Troy, starting at their own 22. Woodward got them off to a strong start with an 8-yard run, with Gilliland following that up for five yards, and a new set of downs.
Two plays later, on third-and-8, Gilliland took the ball on the jet sweep left for 19-yards to the Central Clarion 44.
A 13-yard Smith run got them to the 36. The Trojans nickel and dimed their way to the 30 for a third-and-5. Once again Gilliland went over the left side of his line for eight yards and a new set of downs.
After another four yard run from Gilliland Troy looked to go for the home run ball, just not the way they intended.
Smith went right looking to pass, but didn't have an open receiver. Instead he went back right, picked up a block, broke a tackle, leaped over his quarterback, and dove into the enodzone for the tying touchdown.
"I knew that they were really committing on that toss, because we've been getting yards on it all night," explained Mason. "So we thought, maybe, we'd be able to hit it. But (Ferguson), he's an amazing player, and he picked it up, so I knew I had to make a play. I saw a cut back lane going across the field, and I knew I had to get it."
Once he changed tactics Smith was looking for the end zone.
"Once I started running I knew I could take it to the house," he said.
His father was certainly excited to see him 'ad-lib.'
"He kind of did his own thing like he does, and just made a great play because he's a good athlete," coach Smith said.
Gavin Lykon-Leffler split the uprights on the point after to put Troy up 25-24 with 1:15 left in the game.
"I try to block everything out, because that's what happens when I miss," Lykon-Leffler said. "I just think too much."
He made a point to pick himself up after his first miss earlier in the game.
"I thought it was my fault, but I was told it wasn't, so I just kind of went with a better attitude," Lykon-Leffler said.
Troy credits themselves on their good attitudes, even when the chips are down.
"Everyone one of these guys, none of them are negative," Teribury said. "They're all positive, Someone gets their head down on the sideline, someone picks them up."
The drive was a tough one for Troy, they needed to score to go ahead, but didn't want to leave the red hot Central Clarion offense too much time to work with.
"It was a little tough," Gilliland said about the drive. "You've got to be careful with your play calls, and working the clock as far as staying in bounds. It was a little tough but we eventually got to the end zone."
It was the first time since week two against Dover Troy had been down, and the first time since week one back with Sayre that they had a back and forth with a team.
"It was a little different," Woodward said. "I knew we just had to stay persistent and we'd give ourselves a chance."
Ferguson would give Central Clarion new life, returning the ensuing kick-off to the Troy 46-yard line, stopped by Lykon-Leffler.
That began the longest defensive possession in Troy program history, even if it was just 1:03 on the game clock.
Ferguson had been hurting them with his arm, but after that run, Troy's defense knew they couldn't let him loose, either.
"It was just corral, corral, corral," explained Sens. "Even on pass, run, it was to corral. Whoever got the ball, and who was getting it."
Things started off strong with a Reed Palmer sack on first down, followed by a Burbage tackle for loss as the Wildcats tried a wide receiver screen.
An incompletion set up fourth-and-13 at the 50, but Ferguson found Buford for 17-yards and a new set of downs at the Troy 33.
With 14 seconds left Ferguson took a shot at the end zone, but Chimics batted it away.
"First I wanted an interception to seal the game," Chimics said. "But as soon as I knew it was a little under thrown I could stop and come back, and so did the receiver. I was just worried about getting the ball on the ground."
On the next play it was Teribury stepping up, forcing a high pass as he rushed Ferguson.
"It's like a motor, it takes every single piece of the motor to work," Teribury said about Troy's defense. "That's what happened. This game was not won by one person, it was won on the line, in the secondary, everywhere. Everybody did their job."
That's when Central Clarion brought out Uckert, who was 61-for-61 on extra points, and 4-for-4 on field goals with a long of 40 coming into the game. He missed his first extra point of the year earlier, but had a chance to make up for it with game winner that would be a career long.
This was 50-yards in freezing temperatures and a solid cross wind. He gave it everything he had but just couldn't get it between the uprights.
"It was a little nerve-racking, but we knew we had it," Burbage said. "We came out, we played, we knew what we had to do, and we did it."
The win was a testament to the team's believe in themselves, and each other.
"We just had to stick to our game plan," Gilliland said about the second half. "Our confidence may have been down a little bit, but we said, keep pushing, and our offense had to keep working. And that last drive was perfect. We worked the clock way down to a minute, and did a great job on defense to get that last stop."
For coach Smith, it's a testament to his players' focus and determination to see the season through.
"It's more than about just having good athletes," he said. "You've got to have people that can just weather the storm. Back home, the last few weeks it's been 20 degrees, and we've got 5-6 inches of snow on the ground here and there. It's hard to practice when winter sports are going, a lot of these kids are watching their buddies do that, and there's all sorts of distractions, and their bodies are really beat up right now, and I'm just so proud that they're able to gut through this."
It's also not just about Troy, but Smith felt they were playing for the league as a whole.
"We have a league that sort of not been very respected over the years, and over the last 10 years the level of play has jumped up substantially," he said. "Not just us but our rival Canton showed us it was possible with a couple state semifinals here."
These Troy seniors played those Canton final four teams as freshmen and sophomores, giving Smith hope they'd be able to emulate them.
"We knew that, when these kids grew up, we'd have a chance," Smith said. "We sort of set our goals high after watching them succeed like that, and so to be able to do this, and finish it, it just shows the rest of the league that things like this are possible, and to dream big, and not be afraid to set your goals high."
Troy has reached the highest goal, a state title, and an undefeated 16-0 season.
"This team is never going to lose a football game," Teribury said. "Ever."
