The Garfield G-Men football team may have a new look this season, but they are still setting the tone that they are a force to be reckoned with in the Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Grey Tier. The G-Men recorded their first shutout victory of the year when they overpowered Champion 50-0 last Friday evening at Community Stadium in Warren.
“I have been saying the last couple of weeks we are getting a little bit better,” said Coach Mike Moser. “Our young guys are growing up, playing well and staying healthy so hopefully we can continue that way.”
Since joining the MVAC Grey Tier, the G-Men (4-1, 2-0) have dominated Champion by averaging over 55 points in four games to record a perfect record against the Golden Flashes.
“It is a new coach this year and they ran some different stuff,” said the 12th-year coach. “Sometimes you don’t have an explanation for it, but we see the match-up pretty well and have some familiarity with them.”
In addition to another dominating victory, it also marked the fifth shutout victory for Garfield in the past three seasons and fourth one in league play.
On Friday night, Garfield got off to a fast start in the first quarter by taking a 14-0 lead.
The G-Men scored on both of their possessions in the first quarter, highlighted by a three-yard touchdown run by sophomore tailback/defensive back Devin Bates and a four-yard touchdown reception by junior wide receiver/tailback/defensive Brandyn Bogucki.
In addition to engineering successful drives, the G-Men’s defense also gave the offense great field position by forcing a pair of turnover on downs in the first period.
According to Moser, it was one thing to successfully sustain drives but it was also just as important not to waste prime field position thanks to a defensive effort.
“That is the kind of stuff you work on all week,” Moser noted. “When you get the short field and you get the opportunity you have to make it happen and I am proud of our kids for doing that.”
Garfield continued moving the chains and scored touchdowns on their next three possessions, building a 35-0 lead at the half to trigger the running clock in the second half.
According to Moser, the offensive line got great push up front allowing the Garfield running game to dominate and take a commanding lead at the half.
In addition to dominating the line of scrimmage on offense, the G-Men’s defense also excelled.
“I am proud of the defense,’ Moser said. “They were flying to the ball and they were active, created turnovers and created field position for us and got off of the field so a lot of guys played really well on that side of the ball.”
Garfield’s defense continued to maintain its intensity in the second half en route to its first shutout of the season. Although it marked another shutout victory in MVAC Grey Tier play, it was the first shutout for a young Garfield squad that is continuing to build momentum week after week.
“Those are special and they don’t come around very often,” Moser said. “They are hard to get and you do not get a lot of chances at a shutout so I am happy for for the defensive guys. That is a goal and it is a tough goal to get but I am proud of them for getting it.”
The 6-foot Bates and senior tailback/linebacker Harper Troyer anchored Garfield’s rushing attack by combining for five touchdowns.
As Bates and Troyer have paced Garfield’s rushing attack for most of the season, Moser noted that the G-Men’s rushing game’s success has still hinged on the depth of options they have in the backfield.
“There are a couple of other kids like Brandyn, junior quarterback Jack Neikirk and freshman running back/defensive back Ryder Cain that are putting their name in there too so when we are running well or things are going well for us, there are four or five guys running the ball for us.”
Although the G-Men have had to usher in a new wave of talent on the offensive side of the ball, Garfield’s rushing game has remained as potent as ever.
“That is what we hang our hat on,” noted Moser. “We run the ball and that is what we preach all offseason and that is what we work on and that is us.”
Garfield will stay on the road and face newest MVAC Grey Tier foe and Portage Country rival Southeast at Freedom field in Ravenna on Friday at 7 p.m.
