VW’s Treece, Jackson shine vs. Elida

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

Owen Treece tossed five touchdown passes and ran for another score and Van Wert opened the 2020 high school football season with a 55-20 Western Buckeye League win over Elida at Eggerss Stadium on Friday.

In addition, running back Nate Jackson scored a pair of rushing touchdowns and caught two touchdown passes, and the defense recovered three Elida fumbles and intercepted two passes.

“It was definitely a good season opener,” Van Wert head coach Keith Recker said. “Even the last couple of years we haven’t been great at creating turnovers, but I was proud of our defense getting us going there and giving our offense good field position.”

“We didn’t take care of the ball very well,” Elida head coach Kyle Harmon said. “We’ve been preaching ball security but in the end that falls back on me.”

Jackson scored on a 51-yard run at the 10:11 mark of the first quarter, but Damon McCracken’s PAT was blocked. Elida took a 7-6 lead on a 35-yard touchdown run by Andrew Etzkorn and the ensuing extra point by Tyler Long with 6:12 remaining in the opening period.

From there, the Cougars scored 35 unanswered points. Jackson’s one-yard run and McCracken’s PAT put the Cougars ahead for good 13-7, followed by a 12-yard by Treece and a two-point conversion. Jackson grabbed a five-yard touchdown pass from Treece to put Van Wert ahead 28-7 early in the second quarter.

“It’s so good to have him, obviously he got hurt last year in Week No. 1 against Bryan but as a sophomore he was showing some things that he could do and now as a junior he’s bigger, faster and stronger,” Recker said of Jackson. “He’s a guy we need to make sure gets carries and gets touches on the edge.”

Jackson finished with 66 yards on seven carries and had four receptions for 52 yards.

Treece lobbed a perfect 35-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Maddix Crutchfield with 3:36 left in the second quarter, then the junior quarterback connected with Jackson again, this time from 21 yards out, giving the Cougars a 41-7 halftime lead.

“He does a really good job of spreading the ball out – we have four or five guys we want to get the ball to and I think he understands what we’re trying to do,” Recker said of Treece. “He’s such a competitor and a good athlete, and I think he’s going to continue to get better each week because he puts so much work into it.”

Elida opened the second half with an eight-play, 67-yard drive that ended with a 10-yard run by quarterback Larkin Henderson. However, Treece responded by firing his fourth touchdown pass of the game, a 23-yarder to Ian Cowan, who wrestled the ball away from a defender in the end zone, putting the Cougars ahead 48-14 and triggering the running clock rule for the remainder of the game.

Elida fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Treece followed up by firing an eight-yard strike to Aidan Pratt with 11:11 left in the game. Treece finished the night 18 of 23 for 257 yards, and 14 carries for 55 yards. Connor Pratt caught four passes for 63 yards and Dru Johnson had three grabs for 48 yards.

Elida’s Tyler Carter scored the game’s final touchdown on a three-yard run with 2:53 left.

While pleased with the win, Recker noted there’s room for improvement and he said the offensive line will be a focus of practice next week.

“We need to solidify a rotation a little bit more,” Recker explained. “With fewer scrimmages we were rotating a lot of guys in, so with each week we’re going to continue to grade film and see what gives us the best opportunity. Finding the right mix will be big.”

The Cougars will host Defiance on Friday night.

Scoring summary

1st quarter

VW – Nate Jackson 51-yard run (PAT blocked)
E – Andrew Etzkorn 35-yard run (Tyler Long PAT)
VW – Nate Jackson 1-yard run (Damon McCracken PAT)

2nd quarter

VW – Owen Treece 12-yard run (2-point conversion good)
VW – Owen Treece 5-yard pass to Nate Jackson (McCracken kick)
VW – Owen Treece 35-yard pass to Maddix Crutchfield (McCracken kick)
VW – Owen Treece 21-yard pass to Nate Jackson (PAT failed)

3rd quarter

E – Larkin Henderson 10-yard run (Tyler Long kick)
VW – Owen Treece 23-yard pass to Ian Cowan (McCracken kick)
VW – Owen Treece 8-yard pass to Aidan Pratt (McCracken kick)

4th quarter

E – Tyler Carter 3-yard run (PAT failed)