Harsch Helps Hornets Hammer Athens

By: Lee Ed Thomas II  /  September 5, 2001

Derek Harsch is well enlightened when it comes to the "Team." Although Harsch rambled for 334 yards of Wellsboro's 409 yards of total offense Friday night in the Hornet's season opener against Athens, he knows one man can't do it alone.

Harsch knows, as well as Wellsboro skipper Russ Manney knows, there is no running game without men just as dedicated as Harsch making the blocks and powering open the lane for the running backs.

"Five of the six starters on the line are underclassmen and they did a great job," Wellsboro head coach Russ Manney said. For Harsch to be able to rush for 334 yards, the line did an outstanding job."

But there was no doubt that Harsch was the rushing leader of the night by scoring each of the Green Hornets four touchdowns that led to a 26-13 Northern Tier League win over Athens.

Those men who preformed their blocking orders well in the opening game of the season made it a night for the Wellsboro backfield to school the Athens secondary, once the big boys were out of the way.

The linemen also had a little help from the backfield blockers Matt Priset and Brad Smith, making Manney pleased with the effort of Wellsboro backs.

In their season opening game debut, the duo of Priset and Smith may have only accumulated 46 and 25 yards rushing, respectively, but their blocking was key in leading the way for Harsch's productive night.

"The way the other backs blocked proved it is a team effort on offense. Harsch is one player that did a lot on his own but it was once he got away that his speed and power overcame their secondary," Manney said. "Like I told the other paper, when he got into the secondary he was a man among boys, and that's key."

Although the Hornets suffered a few penalties, a few in key situations which kept the Hornets from completing early scoring opportunities, Manney was happy to witness the line's devotion.

"We had a couple of penalties to keep us from scoring but the key is we kept our composure, did the little things right, took over the offensive line and dominated the defense," Manney said. "But we've got to get better on offsides calls and a bumble here and there. We can't have dumb penalties."

After a scoreless first quarter for both teams, the Wellsboro confidence could have been crushed when Athens' Aaron Raupers pounded the ball in from four yards out with 4:55 remaining in the second quarter for the lead. But the Hornets regrouped and answered back when Harsch took the ball, hit the gap and ripped through the Athens defensive secondary on a 55 yard scamper to pay dirt.

Pat Coolidge booted the extra point and knotted the game, 7-7, with 2:29 remaining in the second stanza.

Wellsboro wasn't able to utilize the pass as much as they would have liked to loosen up Athens' stacked defense according to Manney.

"We didn't throw as much as we would like to catch them by surprise," Manney said.

Will Osgood was 2-of-6 for 48 yards passing and one interception in the sophomore's premier as Wellsboro's signal caller. But those two passes were pulled in by Harsch who added 48 yards receiving to his one night tally.

Once the Wellsboro offense settled into the scheme of the night's blocking duties, Harsch began to run rampant over the Athens defense.

Harsch capped Wellsboro's only scoring drive of the third quarter with a one yard plunge across the goal line. The two-point conversion failed but Wellsboro held a 13-7 lead with 1:03 remaining in the frame.

"The key to our defense was that we shut down the run," Manney said. "They did a nice job but still have to work on the pass rush and I think defensively we had our backs to the wall with bad field position on a muddy field."

According to Manney, another major key in Wellsboro's ability to dominate the second half was the decision to put the Wellsboro second team defense in the game in an effort to give two way players a chance to rest up.

"The second team did a nice job, held the line and didn't give up any points until late in the second half," Manney said. "It was a good call from coaching. When they came back on offense with a fresh line we had them moving and drove down field."

Manney makes no qualms about his belief in the saying, "Defense wins football games." Wellsboro followed their skipper's beliefs well by holding Athens scoreless until late in the fourth quarter.

Wellsboro dominated the third quarter scoring two touchdowns while the team's commitment was even evident with the second string defense which held Athens scoreless through the third frame.

They were also key to the Hornets domination of the game by giving the first team an entire quarter of rest.

When the first team returned on offense in the final frame they exploded for two quick touchdowns for a 26-7 lead. The defense turned in a well executed stint and held Athens to 113 yards rushing on the night.

To prove how refreshed the Wellsboro offense was after a third quarter recess, they quickly scored two touchdowns as Harsch ripped his way through the Athens defense.

The first was a 53 yard run in the opening seconds of the final frame. Coolidge followed with a successful extra point attempt to build a 20-7 lead.

Four minutes later, Harsch rocketed down field on another touchdown run. This time it was an 86 yard ramble to highlight his impressive night.

Greg Masters scored Athens final touchdown of the night on a 51 yard scamper to pay dirt with five minutes remaining in the game.

Manney hopes Wellsboro's offensive game will be an even more productive one in terms of blocking and scoring drives on a dry field when they travel to Sayre Friday night. The returning head coach is looking for Priset and Jones to add even more power to the Wellsboro offensive effort.

"I'm looking forward to what they will do on a dry field," Manney said.

As far as the team, Manney feels they are in tune with the overall goal of the program. "I think they realize what we are doing. We're working to build confidence," Manney said. "To us, we're working harder to get better, play with more enthusiasm, block a step farther on offense and get more men to the ball in order to be good football team."

The team will need that added pressure when they travel to Sayre Friday night.

Manney is looking for the defensive line to put more pressure on Sayre quarterback Andy Bortle in hopes of hindering their passing game. Bortle passed for 87 yards in their 49-0 loss to Muncy. He is what Manney considers one of Sayre's leading offensive threats.

"They run a 5-3 defense and are a pretty scrappy team. Last year we scored a lot against their defense. We know they throw the ball and Matt Wayman is their go to guy," Manney said. "We're going to do something different with him. Like we say, it's hard to throw off your back."

There are no major changes scheduled in the Hornets offensive scheme for Friday's league match up. According to Manney, it will be business as usual for the Wellsboro offense with the hopes that better field conditions will improve the potency of the entire Wellsboro backfield.

Kickoff for Wellsboro's second league outing at Sayre is set for 7:00 p.m.