Upsets are the reason many people watch the sport of football. There’s something about a team that is down on their luck beating a team rolling through their competition. The thought of Cedarville beating Mansfield on Friday, October 18th may have crossed a few folks’ minds as the Tigers sat tied with Booneville for the top spot in the 3A-1. This game was a highly anticipated rivalry game not too long ago so fans on both sides of the field were prepared for what could be another epic clash. Mansfield could have looked past Cedarville and been unprepared for the game at hand giving Cedarville the opportunity for a huge upset. Could have but didn’t. Instead, the Tigers showed why they are a true contender for the 3A State Championship by sinking the Pirates 46-6.
The Tigers kicked off the game on defense and quickly forced a three-and-out against Cedarville’s pass-happy offense with heads-up plays by linebackers Zander Walters, Jeremy Strozier, and Samuel Burton. Cedarville’s punt sent the Tigers back to the 41-yard line setting the Tiger’s offense up in prime territory. This is where many Tiger fans would think that an explosive run or two would earn Mansfield a quick score, but Cedarville’s defense wasn’t going to just hand a score over. Instead, it took Mansfield nine plays to drive downfield to set up an eight-yard score by Daniel Burton. The Tigers tacked on a two-point conversion to turn on the scoreboard with an 8-0 lead, but the word “upset” crossed a few fans’ minds with Mansfield’s unexpected slow start. It only took Cedarville two plays on their ensuing possession to make it to midfield which again made fans have a flashback to a few years back when this matchup was a growing rivalry. The Tigers’ defense finally woke up as Samuel Burton swatted down a 3rd down pass setting up a 4th down attempt by the Pirates. The attempt was ill-advised for Cedarville, but a dream come true for Dakota Deer who flew into the backfield untouched for a massive quarterback sack and a turnover on downs. With the Tigers’ defense warming up, the weight of the game was on their offense. With that in mind, Mansfield kept to their game plan but this time executed much better as Samuel Burton took a quick pitch for a 44-yard Tiger touchdown to roar their way back onto the scoreboard. Mansfield’s two-point conversion failed, but the score was still bumped up to a 14-0 Tigers lead. Mansfield would add another touchdown on their next possession when Daniel Burton found a gap in the Pirate’s defense and darted downfield for a 62-yard Tiger touchdown. The extra two-point play was good, giving Mansfield a commanding 22-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
With the Mansfield Tigers offense firing on all cylinders, the defense wanted to earn some respect too. Ethan Martin and Dakota Deer had a pair of big sacks on Cedarville’s offense in the first quarter, but the defensive dominators needed something else to hang their hat on. Cue Samuel Burton. Burton had two deflections that could have been interceptions in the first quarter, but both ended up as mere knockdown stats. Samuel Burton again tipped a pass early in the second quarter but this time, he capitalized on the tip for a 49-yard pick and score. Another successful two-point conversion extended the Tigers route to 30-0. Cedarville may have been down on the scoreboard, but the fight in the Pirates was still alive as the Pirates drove 22 yards on seven plays in their next offensive series. But on a fourth down and five-yard attempt, Cedarville was met with a face full of Ethan Martin who sacked the quarterback 13 yards behind the down marker for a turnover on downs. With a commanding lead, the Tigers’ offense decided to take the ball out of the hands of their starters and cruise with some new players. On the first snap on their new drive, Mansfield quarterback, Jeremy Strozier, found defensive lineman Matthew Burton (yes, defensive lineman) and completed a 50-yard pass to Burton for a Tiger touchdown. Senior running back, Trey Powell, added a two-point conversion to extend the Tiger’s lead to 38-0. The show wasn’t over yet for Mansfield’s defense as Zander Walters picked off a Pirates pass to give the Tigers yet another shot at the endzone. Just three plays and 36 yards later, the Tigers made their shot count with another Tiger touchdown by Samuel Burton. Another two-point conversion and a 46-0 lead going into halftime, was all the Tigers needed to secure their blowout bid over the Pirates. Cedarville would put up an offensive score in the second half, but the game was already in hand at that point as Mansfield’s dominance on both sides of the ball led to a 46-6 victory.
Mansfield now sits with a 5-2 overall record and an undefeated 4-0 conference record. The Tigers have rattled off 260 points in their seven games this season while holding their opponents to 113 points scored. With stats like that, one would expect there to not be very many teams in the state that can give Mansfield a run for their money. But the next game on Mansfield’s schedule is not only the defending State Champions, but they’re also currently undefeated across the board and ranked as the number one team in the State. That team is the Booneville Bearcats. Booneville will come into next week’s game against the Tigers with an unblemished 7-0 overall record and 4-0 conference record all while dominating every opponent with a combined 275-61 score. Comparing the two teams’ stats, looking at the aura that has surrounded Booneville for decades, and the fact that Mansfield has never beaten the Bearcats in high school football, one could say that Mansfield should just lay down and let the Bearcats win, right? Wrong. Sure, the Tigers’ roster numbers are much lower than Booneville’s, they’re not ranked in the state’s Top 10, and they’ll be a huge underdog going into the game, but this isn’t a lay-down Mansfield Tigers team. Mansfield’s players and coaching staff believe that stats and history are made for just hype. It’s the game itself that matters and that is what they are all focused on. With a Conference Championship and 1Seed going into the State Playoffs on the line, Mansfield will host the Booneville Bearcats on Friday, October 25th for what could be for all the marbles. You won’t want to miss this epic 3A-1 showdown.
