Columbiana's special teams launch romp

Tackle Chad Stouffer blocked two punts that led to Clippers' touchdowns.
BY ERIC HAMILTON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
COLUMBIANA -- It took Columbiana High about half a quarter to put the memory of last week's loss to rival Crestview to rest.
And once the Clippers gave Saturday night's Division VI playoff contest against Mathews their full attention, it was all over.
After Mathews drew first blood with a 21-yard field goal to go ahead 3-0 with 3:39 left in the first quarter, Columbiana had seen enough.
The Clippers rattled off 28 unanswered points in the first half, including a touchdown by Chad Stouffer after he blocked a Mathews punt, en route to a 49-9 victory over the Mustangs at Firestone Park.
Columbiana (10-1), the top-seed in Region 21, will face No. 4 seed Mineral Ridge at a neutral site next Saturday in a regional semifinal contest. The Rams defeated Dalton 14-6 in the first round.
"Give Mathews some credit -- they came here to play and you saw right away that they scored and got after us. All they've heard this week is how they don't belong here. They have done a great job with that program," said Columbiana coach Bob Spaite.
"But our depth and strength of schedule were the deciding factors tonight. We knew that turnovers and special teams would be the difference and we got those blocked punts that really helped us."
Stouffer comes through
With Columbiana off to a slow start, the Clippers' special teams -- led by Stouffer -- got things rolling. The defensive tackle blocked two Mathews punts in the opening half and recovered both loose balls.
The blocked punts were the sixth and seventh of the season for Columbiana.
With Columbiana in front 6-3, Stouffer knocked down a Mathews punt and pounced on the ball at the Mustangs' 5-yard line.
Mackie McGarry plowed in from 3 yards out two plays later, padding the Clippers' advantage to 12-3 with 11:55 left in the second quarter.
After a 20-yard Mathews punt, Columbiana marched 59 yards in five plays. Quarterback Mike Welce scored from 27 yards out. Beau Papania's two-point conversion run gave Columbiana a 20-3 lead.
Then the Mustangs' punting unit, backed up to its 4-yard line on their next possession, again was victimized by Stouffer. The senior blocked the punt attempt and recovered the ball in the back of the end zone for a touchdown, giving the Clippers a 28-3 lead at the half.
Stouffer also has 12 tackles
"We were still upset after losing to Crestview and Mathews went down and scored on us first," said Stouffer, who added 12 tackles , including a sack. "But our defense stepped it up and kept going hard and didn't let them do anything after that.
"On the punts I just lined up outside and went after them. Coach tells not to dive at the ball but to run into the punters foot and hold out our hands. I thought the ball was out of bounds on the touchdown, but I got up and they gave us six points."
Columbiana added 21 points in the second half to remove all doubt. The Clippers pulled their offensive starters after three quarters and the first team defense with three minutes remaining.