Red Devils cruise in Coal Bucket showdown

BY D.J. WATSON (Harrison News-Herald Sports Writer)

ST. CLAIRSVILLE—A true David vs. Goliath story unfolded last Friday night in Belmont County. Unfortunately for the Huskies, the Red Devils “Goliath” performed as expected and commandeered the contest from start to finish. The 55-7 victory moved 20-year head coach Bret Mclean and his St. Clairsville program to 5-1 on the year. As predicted in the preseason, the perennial playoff power appears primed to make another deep run in the Division IV playoffs come the end of October.

Harrison Central head coach Anthony Hayes agrees with the postseason prospects of his team’s biggest rival. “Credit to them, they are a very good football team, and they are likely going to make a run in the postseason,” Hayes stated.

Harrison supporters were likely hoping for a remake of the 2019 Coal Bucket game, in which the Huskies entered Red Devil Stadium as 35-point underdogs and left with a 42-35 monumental upset. However, the magic simply wasn’t there this year.

The Huskies (2-4) were down 21-0 after the first quarter, and things never turned around from there. The Red Devils led 35-0 at the break.

“Obviously, it was not the outcome we were looking for. We tried multiple things to give us a chance, and they had answers for every one of our adjustments. Credit to our kids: We are short-handed and thin right now due to injuries, illnesses, etc., but our young kids are giving us everything that they have. We aren’t making excuses. That’s not who we are. We are trying to figure out how to grow. We will take whatever lumps that come along with that process and be better because of our effort and attitude,” Hayes explained.

In the early moments of the third quarter, Huskies defensive back Cameron Mcafee returned an interception for a touchdown for Harrison’s only score. Both the Red Devils and Huskies got plenty of playing time for the underclassmen in the second half.

The Red Devils outgained the Huskies 486-93, and much of the box score mirrors what one could expect from two teams so unevenly matched.

Week 11 is a foregone conclusion for the Red Devils, but even with the OHSAA expanding the playoff format to 16 teams per region, the same can’t be said for the Huskies. Harrison is currently sitting in 18th place in the Division V Region 17 rankings. After taking their bumps and bruises from the Red Devils, the Huskies can now look at the final four weeks with some optimism. Beaver Local, Edison, Indian Creek, and Buckeye Local remain on the schedule. It is fair to assume that in at least two, maybe three, of those matchups, the Huskies will be at or closer to the competition line. Indian Creek and Buckeye Local are a combined 1-8 so far this season.

All in all, Hayes and his staff remain goal-oriented. “No game is bigger than the present one. We are back to work getting focused on a very sound Beaver Local team.”