Cover Photo Courtesy of Brady Stidham.
Loveland hosted the Anderson Raptors this Friday night in an ECC conference battle, both teams' first conference game of the season and a rivalry game that’s commonplace in the Eastern Cincinnati conference. The Raptors started off hot and stayed that way, taking this one 42-0.
Anderson was coming off a loss where they gave up 61 points to Princeton in a game where their defense was torn to shreds by the rushing attack of the Vikings. The Raptors responded by stacking the box against the Tigers, only allowing 72 yards on 29 carries, resulting in a measly 2.5 yards per carry. The Raptors’ defense rallied together and recorded their first shutout of the season, with Chandler Starks and Will Karswich leading the way. As for the offensive side of the football, Griffin Scalf proved why he is the best quarterback in the ECC and one of the best in Southwest Ohio, as he threw for 466 yards and 4 touchdowns, also tallying a touchdown on the ground. Scalf showcased his ridiculous arm, connecting on a number of deep balls, including a 46 yard touchdown and 79 yard touchdown to senior wideout Santos Alvarez. Alvarez finished with 4 catches for 154 yards and 2 touchdowns, finishing with a career high in receiving yards and showcasing why he is a deep threat for any team, as he averaged nearly 39 yards per reception.
The game was back and forth for the first couple minutes, but Anderson drove down the field and punched it in from 3 yards out as Scalf took it himself. Just 2 and a half minutes later, Scalf connected with Alvarez from 46 yards to up their lead to 14. From there, the Raptors really started to catch fire, as Scalf connected with Alvarez and tight end Caden Piening before the half, making it 28-0 at the intermission. Scalf threw one more touchdown near the end of the game to Piening and Brodey Berg plunged into the end zone from two yards out to cap the night off for the Raptors triumph. The Tigers struggled to move the ball on offense, only recording 177 total yards. Jake Svitovich (12) showed signs of life (14/29, 105 yds), but struggled to move the ball down the field.
The Tigers will have all of this week to get ready for a huge rivalry game across the Cincinnati football landscape as they visit Milford this coming Friday for a shot at the Miami Township Victory Bell. Milford is led by senior quarterback Austin Hardin, a dual rushing attack in Natwan Webster and Tofa Luani, and a loaded receiving core led by Reece Davis and Luke Ray. Their defense is stout as well, with James Teegarden leading the way in the trenches, Nick Scally at the middle linebacker position, and Jacob Smith in the secondary. This should be an interesting rivalry game with lots of tension and it’s an important game to set the tone for the rest of the Tigers’ season as the ECC playoff push continues.