Strong ground game lifts Liberty to outright TAC-8 championship

By BOB ROTH
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
LIBERTY -- The Liberty High football team rode a bruising ground game to the Trumbull Athletic Conference championship, defeating Girard 35-24 Friday at Leopard Stadium.
Liberty (8-2, 6-1) churned out 282 yards on the ground as the Leopards' rushing attack outlasted Girard's air game and the tactics of offensive coordinator Nick Cochran.
"Our guys on both sides of the ball tonight came up big at the right time and we won a championship playing championship football," Liberty coach Jeff Whittaker said.
With Girard Matt Zuppo suspended after last week's ejection, the quarterback role went to senior Brandon Gardner, who didn't miss a beat. Gardner was 22-of-46 passing for 331 yards and two touchdowns.
"He has been a dedicated performer since he was in the eighth grade and tonight he stepped in and showed the results of that dedication," Cochran said.
Liberty's Mike Marvin, with a workhorse performance, along with running mate Bradley Fletcher were a huge difference for the newly-crowned TAC champions. They each scored two touchdowns.
"Bradley and Mike complement each other as well as any two backs can," Whittaker said.
Fletcher's 1-yard touchdown run with 5 minutes, 4 seconds remaining proved to be the clinching score. He ran for 91 yards on 20 carries, and also added a key first-half interception.
"All night long, our offense just kept on opening big holes for Mike and me," Fletcher said.
Marvin added 159 yards on 21 carries while recording seven solo tackles, many in the fourth quarter, from his linebacker position.
"Early on we had some offensive communication breakdowns, but later on I had some great lead blocks and the vision to see ahead of me and make some good cutback runs," Marvin said. "On defense, I had some big hits in pass coverage, which I thought were more important than my running game."
The Indians finished their season with a 6-4 record, 5-2 in conference play. They fell just short of defending their TAC title.
"Our kids were in the game until the end," Girard coach Bud McSuley said. "Liberty just made more plays than we did."
Gardner's 26-yard touchdown pass to Bobby Hepfner and Jon Raidel's 27-yard field goal gave Girard a 10-0 lead with 7:53 remaining in the first half.
Following the field goal, Liberty's Anthony Fortner returned the ensuing kickoff 35 yards to the Girard 43.
Then Marvin went to work. His 28-yard run keyed a three-play 43-yard drive. Fletcher put the Leopards on the board with a 14-yard scoring run for the first of his two touchdowns.
The defense again arose to the occasion with key sacks of Gardner by Dan Mohler and John Humphrey. Then came the turning point in the contest when Fletcher intercepted a Gardner pass and returned it 10 yards to the Girard 35 with 4:20 left in the first half.
With Fletcher and Marvin sharing the ball, the Leopards went ahead for good with Marvin scoring from a yard out.