The Garfield G-Men football team is rolling through the competition. Garfield stayed unstoppable when it dominated Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Grey Division rival Campbell Memorial 61-0 last Friday evening at JAG Field in Garrettsville.
“We were pleased,” said Coach Mike Moser. “The kids had a good week of practice. They were focused and came out and started fast and played very well on Friday night so we were very pleased.”
Since Garfield (6-0, 2-0) and the Red Devils became conference foes when the MVAC Grey Division came into existence in 2021, the G-Men have dominated the rivalry, outscoring Campbell Memorial by a 173-20 margin.
“Campbell has been going through a couple of rough years,” said the 10th year coach. “On Friday night I thought we were more physical and we took it to them a little bit but that can be different from year to year. Their coach is a new guy over there and he is just trying to get his system in play and I am sure they will improve as the year goes on.”
The Red Devils actually had Garfield on its heels at the beginning of the opening quarter, driving the ball to midfield but the G-Men’s defense forced a turnover on downs at their own 40.
On Garfield’s very first play from scrimmage, sophomore tailback/wide receiver/defensive back Brandyn Bogucki struck gold, scoring on a 60-yard touchdown run, pushing the G-Men ahead 7-0.
Garfield’s offense continued to be ignited by explosive plays, with senior quarterback/running back/defensive back Eric Geddes scoring on a 41-yard touchdown run, extending Garfield’s advantage to 14-0.
The G-Men hit Campbell Memorial with one more big play when senior running back/defensive back Leo Grandizio scored on a 47-yard punt return touchdown right before the end of the first quarter, stretching the lead to 21-0.
“You go in and have a bunch of stuff laid out about what you want to do and maybe you don’t get to do it all, but the end result is to get it in the end zone,” said Moser. “Whether it takes us two plays or takes a 10-play drive, we will take it either way.”
Garfield continued imposing its will on the Red Devils, outscoring its conference rivals 34-0 in the second quarter to take a commanding 55-0 advantage into the half, and triggering the running clock in the second half.
Campbell Memorial could not slow down the G-Men’s running game and Garfield ravaged the Red Devils’ defense, collecting 321 rushing yards on 30 attempts and scoring six touchdowns.
The 6-foot-3 Geddes threw only four passes in the game with Garfield’s stable of tailbacks doing the rest of the work.
“We hang our hat on being able to run the ball so everything we do will always start with that, so it is nice to have that in your pocket that is for sure,” Moser said.
Although the second string played the rest of the second half, they did not let up their defensive intensity paving the way for the G-Men’s defense to record their second consecutive shutout and third of the season.
“We won up front,” Moser added. “Although all of the stuff that everybody does by spreading it around and throwing it around, the game is still decided up front. Our front four beat their guys up front and that is where it all started.”
According to Moser, his team had the right balance of continuing to put their foot on the gas while avoiding the urge to run up the score against their opponents.
“The kids are going to be kids,” he said. “They want to play and it is tough to tell kids to back off so it kind of falls onto the coaches to make sure we are calling stuff and running things to make sure we have the desired outcome, but not also not breaking off big plays.”
It is the first time since the 2017 season that the G-Men have recorded three shutout victories.
Although Garfield is a Division V program, there is plenty of depth on the defensive side of the ball, something that several smaller programs yearn for but very few can achieve because of the usual small roster sizes.
“It is not easy,” acknowledged Moser. “You look at the scores that are being put up every week and a lot of people are scoring a lot of points but a lot of people are giving up a lot of points too. It is hard to be good on both sides of the ball and it is hard to be good continuously year in and year out.”
The G-Men will go on the road to face MVAC Grey Division foe Liberty at Leopard Stadium in Youngstown on Friday at 7 p.m.
