Season noted by win over Big Red

QB Jeff Morris led West Branch to a memorable win over Steubenville.
& lt;a href=mailto:todor@vindy.com & gt;By ROB TODOR & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR SPORTS EDITOR
In a season in which he experienced only winning, it was the prospect of a sobering reality that Jeff Morris remembers most.
"The last play," he said, "of the state championship game."
Morris, the quarterback of West Branch High's 1994 Division III state championship team, had thrown for 240 yards and four touchdowns, as the Warriors defeated Clyde 28-11 at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, completing a 14-0 season.
Yet, while preparing to take a knee and put away the final seconds of that game, Morris said he began to wonder.
"Was this my last game? My last play of football -- ever?" Morris recalled.
College
Turns out, it wasn't. Morris went on to start for four seasons at Muskingum College, but he noted one not-so-slight difference between his high school and college careers.
"We won [at West Branch]; that's what it's all about."
They did that -- Morris and his fellow seniors lost only twice in three years as varsity players.
"It was a team that had a lot of fun together," said then-coach Jim Laut, who retired earlier this year after compiling a 183-78-1 record in 25 seasons at West Branch.
"The players, the coaches, everyone, like being around each other. The players grew together. Even today, when guys from that team meet, they don't just shake hands, they hug."
Morris threw for over 2,300 yards and 33 touchdowns, and he also scored 11 touchdowns rushing and returning kicks.
"It started with Jeff," said Laut. "He was not very vocal, but he was really the toughest guy on the team. He only weighed about 180 pounds, but it took someone special to knock him down."
Pivotal game
Victories over rivals Salem and Louisville were crucial, but the game that is still talked about -- in both communities -- was the Warriors' 31-28 win over Steubenville in the state semifinal at Fawcett Stadium in Canton.
Steubenville led 21-0 early in the second quarter and 28-17 with less than four minutes remaining in the game. Morris scored his third touchdown of the game, but a two-point conversion try failed, leaving the Warriors behind 28-23. But Curtis Knoch recovered an on-side kickoff and a few plays later, on fourth down, Morris passed to tight end Bernie Berger from the 4 to give West Branch the lead with 53 seconds remaining.
"That was the most unusual game I coached in 38 years," said Laut. "They [Steubenville] were pretty good -- they could have been state champs."
"If we played them 10 times," added Morris, "they would have beaten us nine.
"Steubenville had a lot more talented players than we did, but we played as a team. That's the one thing you could say about us -- we were a group of guys who cared."
Passes do it
Clyde led early in the state final, 3-0, but Morris completed touchdown passes of 75 yards and 60 yards to Kyle Doak and 39 yards to Jeff Grove.
The game also provided an exciting and emotional conclusion to a storybook season. Dominic Panezott, a senior linebacker whose father, a popular figure in the community and the president of the booster club, returned an interception for a touchdown late in the second quarter. It would prove to be the team's last touchdown of the season.
& lt;a href=mailto:todor@vindy.com & gt;todor@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;