Speedy Thunder receivers do damage against Cincinnati

By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Cincinnati Jungle Kats' inability to keep pace with speedy Thunder receivers propelled Mahoning Valley to its third straight af2 victory.
Saturday at the Chevrolet Centre, quarterback Glen Gauntt completed six touchdown passes -- and just missed a seventh -- as the first-place Thunder (3-0) rolled to a 54-20 victory before 4,798 fans.
Gaunt credited scouting for the offense's dominance.
"We saw on film ... their techniques and we could go right on by," said Gauntt, who completed 23-of-37 passes for 267 yards. "They play aggressive, for the short pass."
The TD receptions
DeMarcus Mathes caught three touchdown passes while Chris Archie and Kenneth Johnson had two each.
Johnson, who made the catch of the game with his 21-yard scoring reception in the second quarter, said he was surprised at how open the Thunder receivers were.
"We kept running hitches to set them up and guys just went running past them," Johnson said.
With 5:22 remaining before halftime, the crowd was buzzing after Johnson raced into the corner of the end zone, hauled in Gauntt's pass and slammed into the corner board with his stomach, falling forward but hanging on for a 21-yard score and 20-7 lead.
"I just go after the ball," said Johnson of running along the wall. "They've got soft padding on the wall.
"You feel it when you first make contact," Johnson said. "It's an exciting game. I had to show the ball because I went over the wall."
Mathes, who caught eight passes for 155 yards, was wide open on his first two scores (a 24-yard reception in the second quarter and one of his two 40-yard catches in the second half).
What ran through his mind when he knows he's all alone?
Had to concentrate
"Just don't drop it," Mathes said. "I knew I had to keep concentrating. We ran the same play twice and they did the same thing."
Thunder coach Mike Hold said switching some of their pass routes "caused some confusion for them and we were able to take advantage."
In the fourth quarterback, backup quarterback Mike Schneider hit Mathes with a 40-yard strike.
"Our receivers made some great catches tonight," Gauntt said. "As far as I know, they ran all the right routes."
When the game began, a romp was anything but certain as the Jungle Kats needed just two plays to take a 7-0 lead on quarterback Kelvin Robinson's 29-yard scramble.
The Thunder responded by scoring on their first three possessions.
Facing fourth-and-17 and trailing 7-6, the Thunder gambled and took the lead for good when Mathes raced unguarded through the Cincinnati defense and caught a 24-yard touchdown pass.
First-half finish
Both teams scored in the final minute of the first half, something that didn't please Hold.
"Blown coverage," said Hold of Hassan Brockman's 31-yard touchdown reception five seconds before the half. "Those first two touchdowns should have never happened. It should have been zero at half."
Two minutes into the second half, Mathes raced alone down the sidelines and caught Gauntt's pass for a 40-yard touchdown and 32-14 lead.
The Thunder defenders limited the Jungle Kats (0-3) to 162 net yards. Robinson completed 16-of-21 passes for 151 yards.
williams@vindy.com