Derrick Webb, Managing Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
THE PLAINS — Call it divine or call it coincidence, but Friday night seemed to be meant to be for Nelsonville-York.
In a game where they looked dominant from start to finish, the Buckeyes had their way with arch rival Athens in hostile territory.
When the dust settled, Nelsonville-York (10-0, 6-0 TVC-Ohio) had scored 27 points to claim the storied program’s 27th TVC championship — a 27-12 victory to put a cap on an undefeated regular season.
“It feels great to win, especially against Athens,” Buckeyes quarterback Cameron Sullivan said. “We’ve got a love-hate relationship with them. We love them outside of the field but on it, we’re enemies.”
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
Nelsonville’s Austin Gautier was public enemy number one on Friday. Athens simply had no answer for the shifty senior running back.
En route to a 28-carry, 144-yard night alongside a touchdown, Gautier extended drives, lowered his shoulder and moved the chains on multiple occasions and lived up to his reputation.
Put simply, as he’s been all year, he was the driving force behind the victory. He ends the regular season with 163 carries for 1,239 yards and 15 touchdowns.
“I just know that there’s a lot of people who look up to me,” Gautier said. “When you’re a leader, others are going to do what you do. So I just try to set a good example. That starts with that offensive line. We can’t do anything without them.”
Much of the first quarter centered around each team’s defense.
While Athens (9-1, 5-1 TVC-Ohio) forced multiple stops, the Bulldogs also couldn’t get out of their own way. Penalties halted each of their first two drives and, late in the first quarter, it bit them when they were forced to punt, setting up Nelsonville-York at Athens’ 40-yard line.
Two minutes and 13 seconds later, the Buckeyes had cashed in on a golden opportunity with a one-yard touchdown plunge from Sullivan, going ahead 6-0 after a missed PAT.
On the ensuing kickoff, Athens continued to shoot itself in the foot.
A fumble gave NY the football back, and at the Bulldogs’ 29-yard line to boot. Two plays later, Sullivan found a wide open Alec Thompson for a 27-yard touchdown toss, extending the lead to 14-0 following a successful two-point try.
PHOTOS: Images from Nelsonville-York’s win over Athens
“‘I’m also the kicker and I kicked it towards the young kid,” Sullivan said. “He’s got a little bit less experience and I knew that. In my head, I was thinking, ‘I’m kicking it to him and, hopefully, he makes a mistake.’ That’s what happened.”
Athens was finally able to bounce back late in the first half.
With a steady dose of Anthony Sutton, the Bulldogs managed to piece together a quick 39-yard drive and find the end zone with 18.8 seconds remaining. Daniel Heightland put an end to the drive, scoring from a yard out and cutting the deficit to 14-6.
But while it seemed like Athens may have momentum coming out of the break, the Buckeyes made sure it was short-lived.
Nelsonville-York started the second half with a methodical, time-consuming drive and Gautier led that charge. So it was fitting that he ended it with a seven-yard touchdown run to push his team’s lead to 20-6.
“It’s all a mental game. You have to know who’s been out there the longest and who hasn’t,” Gautier said. “We’ve been having a little bit of a penalty problem all year, but tonight, we cleaned it up. They had some turnovers and penalties that hurt them a little bit and we capitalized off of those.”
And then came the final gut punch.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Bulldogs put the ball on the ground — again — and the Buckeyes pounced. With 11:52 left in the contest, Sullivan found Thompson once more to cash in, this time for an eight-yard touchdown strike, to make it 27-6.
“The passing game opens up because of our running game and our line’s blocking,” Sullivan said. “All of our passes are pretty much counter-boots. I take what I get. Coach [Rusty] Richards always tells me to take the easy pass instead of the long bombs. It’s less of a completion percentage.”
Athens’ responded with a five-yard touchdown pass from Heightland to Briar Thomas with 7:13 to go, producing the night’s eventual final.
But when Nelsonville-York got the ball back, they turned to Gautier, who bruised his way to first down after first down, milking the clock in the process.
Statistically, following Gautier’s numbers was Sullivan, who finished 3-of-7 passing for 45 yards and a pair of touchdowns alongside seven carries for 34 yards and a score. Thompson caught all three completed passes.
Defensively, Caeleb Layton helped tremendously, racking up 12 tackles — four for a loss of yardage — and three sacks.
The Bulldogs were led by Sutton, who had 22 rushes for 116 yards. Heightland finished 10-of-19 passing for 92 yards and a touchdown while Weston Wheatley caught four passes for 39 yards.
Both teams are playoff-bound.
Athens, a No. 11 seed, will travel to Buckeye Valley this coming Friday. Meanwhile, the Buckeyes will have the chance to enjoy a week off, drawing a bye. They’ll await the winner of Africentric and Belmont Union Local in Week 12.
“It’s a week where we can get healed up,” Gautier said. “I know we’re going to be sore tomorrow. But we’ll still hit the field next week [for practice] and maybe have a Friday night off to go watch someone else play. So it’ll be a nice weekend to get a little break and let our bodies heal. We’ll be ready to go [in Week 12].”
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