High School Akron Garfield Rams

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GARFIELD
"Rams"
Akron


scout.com (free)

10/19/05

Wells had TD runs of 45, 21, 32 and 43 yards in a 56-14 rout of Akron East this past weekend.

 

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10/27/05

Buchtel vs. Akron Garfield

What, when, where: City Series game, 7 p.m., the Rubber Bowl, George Washington Blvd. Call 330-773-3468.

Records: Buchtel 7-2, 5-0; Garfield 5-4, 4-1.

What to watch: Three months ago this game was an anticipated whopper, with City Series and playoff implications for both teams. Now it is important only because Garfield can cause a three-way tie for the City Series championship with a victory. Ellet can make it a threesome by beating North. Buchtel appears to have its 12th playoff spot locked up as it stands in fourth place in Division II, Region 5. A victory would enhance the Griffins' chances of hosting a first-round game.

 

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10/28/05

Buchtel vs. Garfield

More than pride at stake for City Series rivals

[SIZE=-1]By Michael Beaven[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Beacon Journal sports writer[/SIZE]

Many Northeast Ohio football fans are eagerly anticipating tomorrow afternoon's game between Canton McKinley and Massillon at Fawcett Stadium.

For good reason, each Stark county school is 9-0 and set to host a first-round game in the state playoffs.

However, area fans don't have to wait until Saturday at 2 p.m. to see two rivals battle. They can watch two City Series rivals play today at 7 p.m. at the Rubber Bowl.

Buchtel and Garfield take the field with a lot at stake. Buchtel can claim the City Series championship and also host a first-round playoff game.

Buchtel (7-2, 5-0) assured itself of a share of the title with a 21-6 win over Ellet last Saturday. Garfield (5-4, 4-1) is out of the playoff picture, but a win would give the Rams a share of the title.

Ellet (7-2, 4-1) could make it a three-way tie with a win over North because of a 19-7 win over Garfield on Sept. 23.

``This is a big game in Summit County,'' Buchtel coach Claude Brown said. ``A lot of people are excited about McKinley and Massillon and they should be. This is our big game. We need the city of Akron to come out and fill up the Bowl.''

Buchtel and Garfield each had high hopes entering the 2005 season. The Griffins won the City Series championship last season, and each team qualified for the playoffs.

This season, the Griffins, ranked No. 4 in Div. III, Region 9, have continued to be successful. Senior Earnest Pitts leads Buchtel as a tailback and kicker.

Pitts has rushed for 778 yards on 106 carries and has 16 touchdowns. He has made 22 extra points, 10 two-point conversions and three field goals. Pitts' 147 points is second in the area behind Copley's Delone Carter (222).

``One thing Earnest does well, is he has great balance,'' Brown said. ``He is deceptively strong and powerful breaking tackles.''

Garfield has had a slightly disappointing season, though it has played several underclassmen. The Rams are ranked No. 20 in Division II, Region 5.

``We have a lot of respect for Garfield and coach (Bob) Sax,'' Brown said.

``They lost heartbreakers to Hoban and GlenOak earlier in the season.''

Sax said he was proud of the way his team has fought back.

``After the Ellet game we had a pretty rough week,'' Sax said.

A turning point came at halftime of a 42-18 win over Kenmore, a week after the Ellet loss.

``That was a big moment for the team... sure they're frustrated, but I respect them because they stuck to it and righted the ship,'' Sax said. ``They have dominated the last four weeks.''

Garfield senior tailback Chris Wells, an Ohio State recruit, leads the Rams with 1,779 rushing yards on 187 carries. He is second in the area behind Carter (2,159) in rushing yards and fourth in scoring with 23 touchdowns. Carter has 37.

``He is a specimen on the field,'' Brown said of Wells. ``We have to tackle, because if he gets a head of steam he can take it to the house.''

 

[bucknut11]

Akron Beacon Journal

Buchtel captures City title

Griffins able to overcome stellar performance by Rams' Wells

[SIZE=-1]By Michael Beaven[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Beacon Journal sports writer[/SIZE]

The City Series showdown Friday night at the Rubber Bowl between Buchtel and Garfield was filled with exciting plays made by outstanding athletes.


In a tremendous back-and-forth duel, Buchtel prevailed 42-28 and claimed the outright City Series championship. A possible home game in the state playoffs also awaits the Griffins (8-2, 6-0).


``This was a great team effort,'' Buchtel coach Claude Brown said. ``We answered everything they did. We answered the bell and like a prize fighter got up every time.''


Buchtel had the best collection of talent, but the most talented player on the field was on the Golden Rams' (5-5, 4-2) side -- senior tailback Chris Wells.


Wells, an Ohio State recruit, rushed for 355 yards on 36 carries and scored four touchdowns in his final high school game.


``We're not going to see another back in life like Chris Wells,'' Brown said.
Wells opened the game with a 72-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage to give the Rams a 7-0 lead.


Buchtel came back on its opening possession with a hook-and-ladder play that gained 46 yards. Senior quarterback Rayshon Dent passed the ball to senior receiver Teon Stallworth, who flipped the ball to senior Marcus Ferguson. Five plays later, senior tailback Earnest Pitts scored on a 1-yard run, but the extra-point kick was blocked.


Following a Rams three-and-out, Ferguson scored on a 29-yard run and the Griffins converted a two-point conversion to make the score 14-7.


Garfield put together a 14-play drive that included two fourth-down conversions by Wells, who scored on a 4-yard run to tie the score.


Throughout the game, Garfield was plagued by the lack of a passing game.


``They put pressure on us and we couldn't get anything downfield,'' Garfield coach Bob Sax said. ``That was a killer.''


Buchtel took the lead early in the second half, when several Griffin defenders combined for a sack and a fumble. Buchtel senior David Lewis recovered the ball and ran 35 yards for a touchdown. Lewis was penalized for celebrating, and the extra point was missed.


Twenty seconds later, Wells responded on the next play from scrimmage and sprinted 78 yards to put the Rams back in the lead 21-20.


Following a Buchtel turnover, Garfield got the ball back with an opportunity to extend the lead. Wells was stuffed on a fourth down, and Buchtel gained possession 39 yards from the end zone. Seven plays later, Pitts (28 carries, 126 yards) scored on a 1-yard run to give Buchtel the lead. Dent and senior Donald Garth connected on a pass for the two-point conversion to put the Griffins ahead 28-21.


Yet again, Wells had an answer two plays into the next drive, a 53-yard touchdown run to tie the score.


Buchtel regained the lead when senior quarterback Glenn Campbell passed to Ferguson for a 5-yard touchdown. Dent connected with Lewis on a two-point conversion pass for a 36-28 lead with 9:44 left.


Garfield had one final chance to claim a share of the City title, but was forced to punt. Pitts added a 4-yard score with 1:24 left in the game.


Sax said he was very proud of Wells.


``Nobody can ever question his heart,'' Sax said. ``He got pounded, taking several hits on each carry, but he put on a show and showed why he's going to Ohio State.''


Brown looked forward to hosting a playoff game at the Rubber Bowl.


``We don't want to be outsold by our opponent.... the city of Akron needs to come out and back Buchtel,'' Brown said.

 

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bn (free)

11/1/05


Quote:
Photo Gallery - Chris Wells Against Buchtel

Chris Wells

By Gary Housteau

Date: Nov 1, 2005

It wasn't the kind of senior season that Chris Wells was dreaming about over the summer but he managed to end his high school career in style by running wild on the Buchtel Griffins who are headed to the postseason. Despite the 42-28 loss, Wells' individual performance in the game was about as good as it possibly could get. Wells will now prepare to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl on Jan. 7 before he enrolls at Ohio State in time to play spring football in 2006.

Photo Gallery - Chris Wells In Action Against Buchtel

Wells busts a 72-yard run right up the middle on the very first play of the game for a touchdown on this play.

Wells is still pumped just seconds after he ran for the long score to open the game.

Wells up to turn up field and go 4 yards for a touchdown on this play.

Flips the ball away after he scores the touchdown.

It takes as many as 6 Buchtel Griffins to bring Wells on this play.

The end!

 

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ABJ

Ellet all business in win

Chad Keppler throws TD, runs for another; Paris Wicks gains 99 yards

By David Lee Morgan Jr.

Beacon Journal sportswriter

Ellet's approach to Friday night's City Series game against Garfield was absolutely businesslike.
Coach Joe Yost and his staff prepared Ellet to play focused from the start and the Orangemen effectively carried out the game plan in a 24-19 win against the Rams. Running back Paris Wicks, who was bothered by an ankle injury, still managed to carry the ball 19 times for a game-high 99 yards.
The win for Yost was the third time in his 28-year career he has defeated Garfield (1-5 overall, 1-1 in the City Series) in back-to-back seasons. He did it in 1991 and in 1995.
Orangemen junior quarterback Chad Keppler said preparations during the week paved the way for the win.
``We had a great week of practice,'' he said. ``Our focus this week was to come together as a team.''
Yost liked the way his team started the game, but was hoping for a better finish.
``Was it pretty? No,'' Yost said about the win. ``Did Garfield beat our butts half the time? Yes. But, did we beat their butts half the time? Yes. We just played a little better than they did.''
Ellet (4-2, 2-0) led 17-0 at halftime on a 5-yard touchdown run by Keppler with 50 seconds left in the first quarter, a 6-yard touchdown pass from Keppler to Scott Boyd with 9:21 left in the second quarter and a 35-yard field goal by Alex Knezevic 12 seconds before halftime.
``We didn't do anything different offensively this game than we have all year,'' Keppler said. ``It just came down to execution in the first half.''
The Orangemen extended the lead to 24-0 on a 1-yard run by Josh Lewis early in the third quarter.
Garfield scored next on Josh Suddeth's 16-yard run late in the quarter to cut the lead to 24-6.
Suddeth rushed for a career-high 203 yards last week, but found the yards tougher against the Orangemen. He finished with 92 yards and a touchdown.
``We knew coming in (Suddeth) was a good running back,'' Ellet linebacker Andrew Pelfrey said. ``We needed to play with a lot of heart, which we did.''
Garfield quarterback Lorenzo Sanchez was 10-of-14 for 153 yards. His 75-yard touchdown pass to Jerome Beasley cut Ellet's lead to five points with 1:26 left to play, but the Rams never got the ball back.
After Beasley's touchdown, Garfield had just one timeout to stop the clock.
``We had to burn a timeout in the third quarter because we didn't have enough guys on the field on defense and that hurt us,'' Garfield coach Bob Sax said.
For the second consecutive week, the Rams racked up more than 300 yards of total offense.
``But the difference between last week and this week is that last week, we were still hungry,'' Sax said. ``We were still looking for our first win and we got it. We came out flat (tonight) and Ellet is a good team.
``We were down 17-0 at halftime and you can't dig yourself a hole like that against a team like Ellet. But I'm proud of the way our guys rallied in the second half.''