TREMENDOUS TEN! Late punt return touchdown pushes Massillon past Canton McKinley in tumultuous confrontation

TEN FOR THE TIGERS. Massillon players Jaxson Perry, William Hymes, Aamir Jones, and Jacob Matako stand in front of the Victory Bell after Massillon's 21-14 victory over Canton McKinley Saturday afternoon at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton. (Keno Sultan/Stark County Prep Press)

 

TREMENDOUS TEN! Late punt return touchdown pushes Massillon past Canton McKinley in tumultuous confrontation

By Keno Sultan

Stark County Prep Press writer

www.starkcountypreppress.blogspot.com

CANTON--Near the end of game 1 of the 1997 NBA Finals, Chicago forward Scottie Pippen whispered in the ear of Utah's Karl Malone that "the mailman doesn't deliver on Sundays."

Massillon wide receiver Deontay Malone is no relation to the former Jazz forward but he delivered a Saturday package that came just in time for the Tigers.

The junior wide receiver fielded a Thomas Mankowski punt from his own 45 yard line, sprinted to the left sideline and then punctured a gaping hole through Canton McKinley's punt coverage untouched for the biggest play of the game and the eventual decisive score of the 136th installment of the storied rivalry as the Tigers along with their vaunted durable strength on the offensive line were able to secure an unprecedented tenth straight conquest of their eastern Stark Country rival in front of a raucous crowd by virtue of a 21-14 victory at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

Saturday's game was nearly a carbon copy of the 2017 game that Massillon needed to rely on the durability of their offensive line to wear down the Bulldogs and capture a 16-15 win. Only eight years later, it was a special teams play that provided the winning edge for Massillon once again in their rivalry with the Bulldogs.

"That was a great ball game and it was back-and-forth and it seemed that we had a lot of momentum there at the start but we gave it away a little bit but you have to give the Bulldogs credit too, they played hard and their defense made it really tough for us in the second half as well," Massillon head coach Nate Moore said. "The punt return by Malone was huge, otherwise we still would be playing right now, we would either be in overtime or double overtime right now, who knows. It was a huge play and anytime you have an opportunity to make a play like that, make it and Deontay was able to find the end zone."

SAVIOR OF MASSILLON. Savior Owens is congratulated by teammates Marcus Garner Jr., Logan Allman, Manny Patterson, and Robert Blakely after his second touchdown of the day handed Massillon a 14-0 lead in the second quarter. (Keno Sultan/Stark County Prep Press)

Such a finish did not seem likely in the first half as Massillon took advantage two early first half McKinley turnovers that running back Savior Owens transformed into Tiger touchdowns of four and 14 yards in issuing the visitors a 14-0 lead.

Any plans Massillon had of a second blowout of the Bulldogs in three years evaporated in just three plays on the Bulldogs third possession. Sophomore standout running back Kyelin West broke free for two runs, one a 37-yard run to put the hosts in Tiger territory and the second one, a 45 yard jaunt in which he outran the secondary for a much needed touchdown that truncated their deficit to a single touchdown.

At that point, it became very lucid that this was not the McKinley team that melted down badly in a 35-0 loss in the same stadium. After forcing a Massillon punt, the Bulldogs turned to their running game to edge their way back into the contest. It seemed their drive stalled when Mankowski missed a field goal but Massillon linebacker Ja'Dyn Williams was charged with hurdling through the McKinley kicking unit and it allowed the Bulldogs a second chance. They made the most of it when Shad Davis turned the left corner and scored an easy 10 yard touchdown run and both teams went to the locker room deadlocked at 14-14.

That set the stage for a defensive second half in which defenses dictated the second half which led to Malone's knockout blow, allowing Massillon to conclude the regular season at 7-3 while McKinley on the other hand saw their seven-game winning streak terminated as they wrapped up their regular season 8-2.

Both teams are likely to obtain first round byes into week 12, Massillon in Division II and McKinley in Division I. The playoff pairings will be determined Sunday.

Massillon's dominance in the rivalry now sits at 10 games and not to mention they are a flawless 5-0 against McKinley at Benson Stadium, not to mention 6-2 overall.

DEJECTED BULLDOGS. Canton McKinley defensive players Andrew Parker and Jamarice Owens walk off the field dejected as the Bulldogs bid to end a nine-game losing streak to rival Massillon came up short 21-14. (Keno Sultan/Stark County Prep Press)

McKinley first-year head coach Renzy Parnell is the fourth out of the last five head coaches to lose their first rivalry game against the Tigers at home. Only Dan Reardon was the last one to win his first game against Massillon 10 years ago in the last game at Fawcett Stadium. From 2016, Moore went 3-1 against Reardon, 2-0 against Marcus Wattley, 4-0 against Antonio Hall and now 1-0 against Parnell.

A game like that today may prove beneficial for Massillon and if they make a deep run in the Division II playoffs, their win over McKinley will have something to do with it, the same as the 2017 season and it may be a portent of something to arrive.

"You never know how it's going to go until you get out there but the things that we do, run the ball and chew up clock and hopefully we can lean on teams. You have to give McKinley credit, their front seven played really well and we were trying like heck to lean on them and get some seams there in the second half and fourth quarter," Moore said. "It was a great game."

Scottie Pippen told Karl Malone that "the mailman doesn't deliver on Sundays." A mailman delivered on Saturday for the Massillon Tigers just in time and Deontay Malone's punt return was just the present the Tigers wanted and received. 

Keno Sultan is a writer for Stark County Prep Press. He can be reached at 330-445-4575 or email at KenoSultan@hotmail.com.