By Mike Hutchens, Union City Schools Communications Director
Eighth-ranked Union City checked all the right boxes Friday night with its 48-8 mercy-rule win over Gleason in the Region 7-1A opener for both teams.
- The deeper and more talented Tornadoes scored on each of their first seven offensive possessions while controlling both lines of scrimmage.
- Save for a long opening kickoff return by the Bulldogs and a 26-yard touchdown pass on Gleason’s second snap, UC dominated defensively – surrendering less than 150 yards total for the second straight week.
- Firmly in control before halftime (41-6), the Twisters used reserves extensively over the final two quarters, getting young players valuable experience and coming out of the contest relatively healthy.
“Most of the things we wanted to have happen happened,” Union City head coach Nick Markle said after his squad did the expected against a game but outmanned Bulldog bunch, which entered the contest undefeated at 3-0. “Some of the guys we had leaned heavily on in the first three games had a little lighter workload tonight. We got Tayehari (Jones) going with some big plays, and we didn’t panic after we gave up a quick touchdown there early. We were very businesslike.
“I really liked that we were able to get some young guys in game situations and get some things on tape that will become teachable moments in film study. I think we built some confidence tonight with some of our back-ups, and I look for them to fill more prominent roles moving forward with them having gained this experience.
“And, of course, not having any significant injuries is nice. We had some guys banged up a little coming in, and we were able to play some of them on a limited basis, and others got basically the whole night off. That’s certainly a positive going into the middle of the season with important region games coming up.”
Jones scored on each of his three carries (37, 70, 20 yards) as the Bulldogs were no match for his elite speed on the edge. Every one of Union City’s TDs came on plays of 20 yards or longer as the Tornadoes averaged 13 yards per carry on each of their 28 rushing attempts while piling up 364 yards on the ground.
Quarterback Keaten Brown had scoring romps of 22 and 43 yards while carrying just three times, and fullback Jacob Arnold ripped off a 51-yard TD dash as part of his 10-carry, 88-yard effort. Brown also completed his first two passes of the season.
Freshman back-up QB Zakary Summers darted 41 yards on an option keeper to paydirt in the third period to cap the scoring for the Purple and Gold.
“I really do think that the good you saw tonight started in the third quarter of last week’s (Dyer County) game,” Markle continued. “We got back to who we are and doing the things we’re capable of doing.
“I was glad to see us get a couple of pass completions. That’ll certainly help our confidence and allow us to expand the playbook a little bit and build off that. We have more than just a couple of playmakers. We’re going to continue to find out what works best and fine-tune those things.”
The coach lauded the performance of several young players who got extensive time, including freshmen Kyle Price (linebacker) and linemen Alijah Simpson and Jaxson Jones. Sophomore defensive backs Andre Small and Adrian Crawford also got an affirmative nod from Markle, as did up-and-coming 10th-grade linebacker Aiden Reid.
“They all made some plays at different times. I think some things they did tonight will give them confidence moving forward, and it’d be great for our football team if they continue to come along,” Markle said.
Reid posted a team-high 11 tackles to pace the UC defense. Cohen Simpson was in on eight stops, and Jones was credited with seven. Alijah Simpson, Corbin Avery, and Brown had QB sacks, while Kirben Thompson came up with a fumble recovery.
The Tornadoes will celebrate homecoming next week against region foe South Fulton (2-2, 0-1).