Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
NELSONVILLE — With Vinton County in a postgame huddle, surrounded by family, fans and community members, Vinton County coach T.J. Carper couldn’t help but cry.
They were tears of joy, fueled by the emotions of realizing what his team had just accomplished. It simply took over the third-year coach.
“These kids, especially our seniors, have sacrificed so much over the years and I couldn’t be happier for them,” Carper said. “This is a program that’s built on love, trust, toughness and doing the right things. These guys have had one goal in mind since January 1, and they said this was going to be their year to win the TVC.”
The Vikings (8-1, 5-0 TVC) have heard all of the talk for the last 24 years about how they couldn’t win the “big one” and get the job done.
With a 13-7 victory over Nelsonville-York on Friday, that narrative has changed and, for the first time since 1999, Vinton County can call itself the TVC football champion.
“Seeing the community run onto the field and celebrate with us, that meant everything,” Vinton County’s Matt Hembree said. “It made people so happy. They’re literally crying and this is something we, as a program, haven’t done in a long time. So it’s incredibly rewarding.”
Hembree helped spearhead a defense that arguably played its best game on the biggest stage in a long time.
He finished with two of the Vikings’ three interceptions, and helped hold the Buckeyes (7-2, 4-1 TVC) to just 56 yards of total offense.
“Our defensive coaches put together one heck of a game plan. The guys lined up correctly and executed to near perfection,” Carper said. “We still had some mental mistakes that we need to correct, but the kids were in the right spaces and places at the right time. Nelsonville is a good team. But we did our job tonight.”
After a scoreless first quarter, one that saw Vinton County eat up over eight minutes of clock, it was clear both teams had no intentions of making the game a shootout.
The Vikings’ defense kept the Buckeyes off the field throughout the second, allowing them to run just five offensive plays.
Meanwhile, VC’s offense found a little steam in the running game as Garrett Brown continued to find gaps.
Using his 6-foot-2, 210-pound frame, he bulldozed his way down the field, ripping back-to-back runs of 20 and 17 yards to get the ball down to the NY 1-yard line.
Three plays later, Layne Haybron paid off the drive with a one-yard plunge to put the Vikings ahead 7-0 at halftime.
“Our offensive line is one of the best in Southeast Ohio, and I’ve said that since before the start of the season,” Brown said. “There’s nothing special that I did or anyone else. It’s all those guys up front.”
Nelsonville attempted to find some footing early in the third, however, Hembree stepped in front of a fourth down pass for his second pick of the game.
Still, the Buckeyes managed to fight back. Following a Viking punt and a personal foul call that set the Buckeyes up at VC’s 17, they cashed in with a one-yard run from Gavin Richards to tie the game at 7-7 with 3:03 to play.
There was no sense of panic, though. The Vikings trotted back out and handled their business.
Facing a pivotal third down on the drive, quarterback Parker Shonborn scrambled and went deep, connecting with a diving Haybron for a 47-yard catch to extend the drive. Shonborn later scored on a seven-yard touchdown run to go up 13-7.
From that point on, all eyes were on the Vikings’ defense as it continued to overpower the Buckeyes.
NY had one final chance to extend its final drive and try to equalize, but a fourth down pass was overthrown and the Vikings ran out the clock, celebrating their biggest win in 24 years.
“This means the world to us as seniors, and we are the new standard now for other teams to follow,” Brown said. “It’s not just for us, it’s for the community as well and it’s just amazing to be in this spot.”
“They did it, and to do it in the fashion we did was getting back to the roots of Vinton County,” Carper said. “It elevates our program and this is how it has to be moving forward. We still have one more game, but this feels so good to finally have.”
Brown finished the game with 19 carries for 104 yards while Shonborn had 17 rushes for 74 yards and a touchdown.
Haybron finished with three catches for 42 yards alongside a rushing touchdown.
While Nelsonville-York travels to Athens in Week 10, Vinton County goes for the outright TVC title as well as an undefeated conference season at home against Wellston.
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