The game may not have counted toward the SSAC playoff ratings and it may not have affected the win-loss record in any way, but it was business as usual for the Class AAA No. 6 Indians in Friday's exhibition game against East Fairmont at Wayne Jamison Field.

 

BHS, which is 5-0 on the season, defeated East Fairmont 46-7.

 

The Indians finished with 507 yards of total offense, including 493 on the ground. A total of 14 different players had at least one rushing attempt. Defensively, the Tribe held East Fairmont to -17 rushing yards, a stat benefited greatly by a strong pass rush that came away with six sacks.

 

Most importantly, it was a night where a whole bunch of football players for BHS got to see significant playing time.

 

“I think you saw it early and often, we wanted to get other kids in there,” BHS coach Tyler Phares said. “We wanted them to prove to us that they should be on the field or prove to themselves why they probably aren’t on the field right now.

 

“We were pretty happy with the kids that went in there. Our twos made some mistakes, but that’s OK, some of our ones made mistakes too. We could have been sitting at home tonight but we came out did a good job and I’m happy the kids got to play.”

 

It was a short night for the majority of Bridgeport's starters but Cam Cole still finished with 86 rushing yards on six attempts and two touchdowns.

 

Zach Rohrig also had a a pair of touchdowns, including a 94-yarder in the fourth quarter and led the team with 152 yards on six carries.

 

Derek Starkey, Anthony Spatafore and Mark Biafore also had rushing touchdowns.

 

The buckshot lateral that the Indians ran to perfection a few weeks ago against Fairmont Senior worked again against the Bees as Cole got the call on the Tribe’s third play from scrimmage and went in untouched for a 72-yard touchdown run.

 

Taylor Thomas booted his first of four PAT kicks to make it 7-0 less than a minute into the contest.

 

“It’s a cornerstone of our offense,” Phares said. “There’s a rhyme and reason why we run it. We saw it early tonight and you are going to see the buckshot lateral my entire career.”

 

After being forced to punt on its first drive, East Fairmont’s defense forced a rare three-and-out for the Tribe and a punt that traveled about 20 yards.

 

The Bees took over on the Bridgeport 44 and put together a five-play drive predominately through the air. There was one play that goes down in the rushing column as Ian Crookshanks was sacked by Tate Jordan and Kameron Jones. After an incomplete pass on second and long, Crookshanks connected with Clay Hershberger for a 36-yard touchdown pass that tied it at 7.

 

The East Fairmont quarterback had a solid night throwing the ball, completing 18-of-30 passes for 132 yards and the one touchdown.

Overall the BHS defense defended the pass well as the linebackers and the secondary closed strong on the majority of the passes Crookshanks completed.

 

“That’s what we want,” Phares said. “We want to get behind the play, see the football and close on the play.”

 

Bridgeport’s second scoring drive lasted 11 plays and saw six different players carry the ball. Cole finished things off with a 1-yard TD run, his 11^th of the season to make it 14-7.

 

Derek Starkey and Anthony Spatafore added first-half touchdown runs. Starkey’s covered 14 yards and it capped an eight-play drive midway through the second quarter.

 

On the Indians’ final possession of the first half, they needed just three plays to get into the end zone. Starkey had a run of 14, Trent Haines nearly got into the end zone on a 17-yard run. Spatafore finished things off with the 1-yard plunge, making it 27-7.

Aidan Sparks notched his second sack of the first half on the final play of the first half.

 

The Indians defense began the second half in a fury, Charlie Brazier chased down a pass play in the flat for a minimal gain, Parker Vincent sacked Crookshanks and after an incomplete pass the Bees were forced to punt yet again.

 

Rohrig got the carry on the Indians’ initial play of the third quarter and nearly got into the end zone, settling for a 48-yard gain that put the ball on the 3. Two snaps later, and from the 2, he did indeed get his first TD of the season, making it 34-7.

 

With 8:26 to go in the fourth, after a defensive stand by the Indians forced a turnover on downs deep in the red zone, Rohrig came up with the longest play from scrimmage this year for the Indians, busting loose right up the middle untouched for a 94-yard touchdown run that made it 40-7.

 

The BHS offense had one more big play as Mark Biafore took a sweep 53 yards into the end zone, making it 46-7.

 

The Indans return to action next week, which is also homecoming week, against Preston.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo shows Landyn Reppert making a tackle, middle photo is of Cole looking for running room and bottom photo is of Sparks poised to make a play. Photos courtesy of www.benqueenphotography.com