Missed it by that much, .0761

By Mark Carpenter

People’s Defender

Before last Friday night, it had been the most successful season in Manchester football history. The Greyhounds stood at 8-1, the most wins in school history, and were on the verge of legitimately qualifying for the OHSAA playoffs for the second season in a row. The Hounds came in holding on to the 12th and final playoff spot in Division VII, Region 28 and all they needed to do to secure the playoff berth was a win over the visiting Fisher Catholic Irish to punch their ticket to postseason play.

But alas, the football gods had other ideas. To put it succinctly, the Hounds picked a bad night to have a bad night, turning in what arguably was their worst performance of the season, struggling on both sides of the ball and being shutout for the first time in 2025, falling to the Irish by a final score of 25-0. After that loss, the computer rankings were updated and Manchester lost that final playoff spot to 5-5 Fort Recovery, and lost it by the narrowest of margins, .0761 points.

“It was a tough loss for us, no doubt about it,” said Manchester head coach Justin Schmitz. “We knew the stakes going in, and our kids fought their hearts out all night. The score doesn’t reflect the effort or the pride they played with.”

The opening series of the game set the tone for the Manchester offense for the night. A holding penalty and then a quarterback sack put the Hounds in a hole that forced an early punt. Manchester quarterback Amillion Brown was under constant pressure all night from a strong Irish defensive line and the Hounds played a lot of offensive snaps with large chunks of yardage to be gained.

“We found ourselves behind the chains too often,” said Coach Schmitz. “Missed opportunities and penalties put us in long-yardage situations that are tough to overcome against a good team like Fisher Catholic.”

On their first offensive drive of the game, the Irish drove into Manchester territory, a large part of that coming on a pass from quarterback Jacob Welsh to Damian Neal. The drive ended after a Mason Vaughn sack and then a fourth and 16 interception by the Hounds’ Joel Blythe and the first quarter ended in a scoreless tie.

After another Greyhound punt, Fisher Catholic cashed in with the game’s first score, getting a 56-yard touchdown run from Sam Tencza. Tencza took a pitch to the left and outran the Manchester defense down the sideline to paydirt. An extra point kick by Joey Ellis made it 7-0 Irish with 10:20 left in the first half.

The Manchester offense was then forced to punt ans the Irish were pinned deep in their own territory. On a fourth and18 from their own 9, the Irish chose to punt and Manchester’s Hunter Raines hauled in the kick and ran it all the way back for what looked like an apparent score, but the Greyhounds were flagged for roughing the kicker, nullifying the Raines return.

“That was a huge momentum swing,” said Coach Schmitz. “Instead of closing the gap, we gave them new life. We just have to be smarter in those weighty moments.”

Neither team could muster any offense for the remainder of the first half and the two teams went to the locker room on Senior Night with Fisher Catholic still holding the seven-point advantage.

The first Greyhound possession of the second half ended with Fisher Catholic’s Neal picking off a Brown pass and the Irish converted that turnover into points, driving 64 yards and getting an 11-yard touchdown run from Tencza. The extra point try was wide and the Irish held a 13-0, where it stood as the third quarter ended.

Early in the fourth, the Irish defensive pressure led to another Brown interception throw, this one picked off by Fisher Catholic’s Austin Brown. Again, the Irish took advantage of the giveaway and put another score on the board , a 26-yard run untouched through the middle of the Manchester defense by Brown. The two-point try failed bu with 8:19 to play, the Irish had the home team in a 19-0 hole.

The next Greyhound possession resulted in Brown’s third interception of the half, this time by the Irish’s Blake Wohrer. The visitors gave it right back on a fumble recovered by the Hounds’ defense but the offense could do nothing, a turnover on downs giving Fisher Catholic the ball at the Manchester 39. The final nail in the Manchester coffin came with 3:29 to play when the Irish got a 29-yard scoring jaunt from Anderson Crook to put the wraps on a 25-0 victory at Veterans Stadium.

“Our defense never gave up,” said Coach Schmitz. “They were on the field a lot, but they kept fighting every snap. The effort and energy they showed was outstanding. We made them earn everything — our kids were still hitting and hustling late in the fourth quarter.”

The disappointing defeat marked the last home game and the final career game for a solid group of Manchester seniors that included Maxx Hanson, Kaleb Hall, Joel Blythe, Braylon Rickett, Hunter Raines, Levi Hargis, Gage Stephens and Mason Vaughn.

“I can’t say enough about our senior class,” added Coach Schmitz. “They’ve been the backbone of this program this season. They played their last home game with heart and leadership that set the tone for everyone else. Mason, Gage, Braylon, Maxx, and Levi were flying around making tackles all night. Joel battled through an injury, but kept leading the charge on both offense and defense.”

Summing up the final game, Coach Schmitz said, “The final score doesn’t define who we are or what this group accomplished. We’ve built something to be really proud of here — and that’s because of the kids’ fight, their buy-in, their brotherhood, and especially our senior class.”