Canton McKinley gets comeback road win over Dublin Coffman

DUBLIN, OHIO - Keaton Rode didn’t panic or lose his composure.

Even after the Canton McKinley senior quarterback threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown en route to his team falling behind by 14 points early in its game Friday at Dublin Coffman, Rode remained calm and poised.

Instead of letting that mistake or McKinley’s early struggles rattle his confidence, Rode bounced back to complete 11 of 20 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns and run for 61 yards while guiding the Bulldogs to 24-14 come-from-behind victory.

With the win, McKinley improved to 2-1 overall, while Coffman dropped to 2-1.

“This group has matured a lot, myself included, and we never started pointing fingers or lost our focus,” Rode said. “When I threw that pick, my teammates were there to pick me up, and that probably wouldn’t have happened last year.

“We have a next-play mentality, and I couldn’t wait to get back in there to make some plays for my team. We’ve been in this position before (down 14-0 at Uniontown Lake) last season and we came back to win that game (36-26), so we just stayed positive and kept making plays together, because we knew we could win this game.”

Rode started the rally by feathering a pass 20 yards downfield between two Coffman defenders and into the arms of wide receiver Keith Quincy, who outraced the Shamrocks’ secondary for a career-long 63-yard touchdown reception.

“I saw their corner come down, so I threw it in the hole, between their corner and safety,” Rode said. “We have a lot of weapons, who can make big plays in space, and once (Quincy) caught it, I knew no one was going to catch him.”

Quincy said he was relieved when he crossed the goal line with four Coffman defenders behind him in hot pursuit. Rode’s extra point cut McKinley’s deficit in half with 4:43 remaining in the second quarter.

“(Rode) threw it right into the gap, and as soon as some space cleared in front of me, I just got on my high horse and hoped they wouldn’t catch me,” said Quincy, who finished with four catches for 126 yards and one touchdown.

After Coffman pinned the Bulldogs back at their own 1-yard line with an excellent punt with 1:14 remaining in the second quarter, Rode quickly guided his offense down to Coffman’s 9 and capped the drive by booting a 31-yard field goal with just 12 seconds left before halftime.

“I wanted to go for it (on fourth-and-9), but that’s the first field goal I’ve kicked in a game, so I’m glad it went through,” Rode said with a chuckle. “That gave us a big boost going into halftime.”

Rode sparked the long drive with a 35-yard scramble, followed by a 42-yard completion to Quincy, who sped his way deep inside Coffman’s territory.

“I was more of a pure passer my sophomore and junior years,” said Rode, who is a third-year starter at quarterback. “This year, we’re implementing a lot more run-pass-option stuff, and it’s been really effective.”

On the first play from scrimmage in the second half, Rode connected with Xavier Harris on a 43-yard pass. That play set up a 7-yard touchdown run by Shaukeer Hatcher just five plays later, which put McKinley ahead 17-14 just 2:05 into the third quarter.

“That little bubble pass to Xavier Harris that put us in scoring position was a great way to start the second half, because it lit a fire under us,” McKinley head coach Antonio Hall said. “I don’t know if it was the long bus ride, the heat or the long walk to the field, but we were sluggish in the first quarter. But once we woke up, we really turned it on.”

Coffman quarterback Quinn Hart later engineered a 10-play, 63-yard drive to move the ball to McKinley’s 15, before Quincy intercepted the ball at McKinley’s 6 and returned it all the way to Coffman’s 40.

“They ran the same play twice, and their quarterback looked me dead in the eye, so I knew where the ball was going,” Quincy said. “Dante McClellan tipped it and I was there to intercept it.”

Four plays later, Rode scrambled to his left, then scrambled back to his right, before gunning a 21-yard touchdown pass to Harris to make it 24-14 with only 7:32 remaining in the game.

“I knew Keaton was going to be fine (after his interception),” Hall said. “He’s a tough kid who plays with a chip on his shoulder, and he likes to run people over. He’s a fast, athletic kid, and he’s a 5.0 student who is as smart as they come.

“Keaton made plays with his arm and feet all night.”

Coffman jumped out to a 7-0 lead after defensive back Zach Beckman intercepted the ball and returned it 46 yards midway through the first quarter.

On the Shamrocks’ next possession, they put together a 77-yard, 18-play drive, which was capped by a 1-yard run up the middle by senior fullback Carson Cox. Matthew Schramm’s extra point put Coffman ahead 14-0 with exactly five minutes remaining in the second quarter.

Hart was 12-for-24 passing for 120 yards and rushed for 84 yards on 21 carries, while Daven White rushed for 60 yards on 11 attempts.

Coffman coach Geron Stokes was less than pleased with his squad’s performance.

“This was just undisciplined football,” Stokes said. “When you’re slower and less athletic than your opponent, you can’t be undisciplined like we were tonight. This was embarrassing.”

Running behind the offensive line of left guard Kae’lub Edwards, left tackle Dior Garner, center Mekhi Mack, right guard Antonio Creger and right tackle Braeden Earley, tailback Stephon Thomas rushed for 63 yards on 11 carries and Hatcher finished with 46 yards on six attempts.

“Our offensive line did a great job in the second half of keeping our quarterback clean and opening holes,” Hall said. “Our defense played very well, too, especially Ja’Diss Jackson at linebacker, Keith Quincy at safety and Dior Garner at nose guard. Our cornerbacks (Jordan McElroy, Damere McClellan, Geno Kelly and Cortez Dorsey) also didn’t give up many big plays over the top, which is a big challenge against Dublin Coffman.”