Gibson's five touchdowns lead SMCC to 38-12 win

SANDUSKY — Having a player like Bryan Gibson on the field can be the difference. St. Mary Central Catholic has had that benefit for the past few seasons. With starting quarterback Grant Swain out with an injury, the Panthers have leaned on Gibson even more the past few weeks. That's OK with him. Gibson scored five touchdowns for SMCC on Saturday as the Panthers pounded Morenci (Mich.) 38-12 in non-league action at Strobel Field. "You're so involved in the game and calling plays that you don't even think about what he's done," SMCC coach Toby Hammond said. "He's just a weapon." Gibson finished with 10 carries for 172 yards and four rushing touchdowns on the ground. He added a kickoff return touchdown in the first half as SMCC improved to 8-1 on the season. Since Swain was hurt Sept. 20 against Danbury, Gibson has racked up 63 rushes for 559 yards and 13 touchdowns over the last four games. "I feel electric," Gibson said. "We had a great week of practice. I have to give props to the offensive line. They did a really good job preparing against a really tough Morenci team. Their record might not show it up, but Michigan football is different up there." It didn't take long for SMCC to get going. Cullen Dillard, who replaced Swain under center, picked up 18 yards on a third-down carry before Gibson exploded for a 33-yard touchdown run. The extra point was no good, but SMCC was up 6-0 just over 90 seconds into the game. The Panthers then forced a turnover on downs after the Bulldogs (2-6) took more than five minutes off the clock. SMCC didn't need quite as long as Dillard went for an 80-yard scoring run on the first play from scrimmage to make it 12-0. On Morenci's next offensive drive, senior Crew Trumpower recovered a Morenci fumble and again the Panthers struck quickly. Josh Will went for 13 yards on the first play before a 32-yard touchdown rush from Gibson. That pushed the lead to 18-0 with 1:10 to go in the first quarter. "We knew going into the game they were going to be physical," Hammond said. "Michigan 8-man football is really good. They play a tough schedule, so we knew we were going to have our hands full. They did a good job keeping the ball out of our hands. "Our defense really came up strong a couple times when they were inside our territory." The Bulldogs, a team that likes to run the ball more than 90 percent of the time, got on the board in the second quarter. Morenci guzzled yards and time off the clock, but faced fourth-and-4 at the SMCC 11. Talan Kruse hit Skyler Trent in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown. SMCC didn't wait to respond. Gibson struggled to bring in the ball on the ensuing kickoff, but once he did, he was gone. Gibson bobbed and weaved his way through traffic and into the end zone for a 60-yard touchdown for the immediate answer. That gave SMCC a 24-6 lead with 7:15 left in the first half. "I was almost ready to yell at him for picking it up and running it," said Hammond with a smile. "He broke it, so he's the only one allowed to do that." The Panthers again forced a fumble, recovered by Eian Etchill this time, to give themselves good field position. Starting at the Morenci 21, the Panthers needed just four plays to score. This time, it was a six-yard run from Gibson. He added the two-point conversion for a 32-6 lead at halftime. The Bulldogs used up nearly the first eight minutes of the second half, but turned the ball over on downs. Gibson finished his big night with a 79-yard spectacular run for the touchdown. It was his only run of the second half as the running clock chewed up most of the second half. Morenci ran 58 times for 259 yards. "I think we're pretty physical, too," Hammond said. "The main thing is just getting off blocks, keeping our head up and tackling. We thought we were quicker than they were." SMCC (5-1 Northern 8 Conference) wraps up the regular season Friday at Holgate (4-4, 3-3). The Panthers will play in league playoffs Nov. 1, but seeding will be finalized after the last weekend of games. SMCC has won three games in a row since a conference loss to Fremont St. Joseph on Sept. 27. "Like I've said before, that might have been the best thing for us," Hammond said. "The kids have come in focused in practice. You win games Monday through Friday in practice. Hopefully our young kids are coming up and learning what to do. We have another big game with Holgate." Morenci 0 6 0 6 — 12SMCC 18 14 6 0 — 38 SMCC — Bryan Gibson 33 run (kick failed)SMCC — Cullen Dillard 80 run (pass failed)SMCC — Gibson 32 run (run failed)M — Skyler Trent 11 pass from Talan Kruse (run failed)SMCC — Gibson 60 kickoff return (run failed)SMCC — Gibson 6 run (Gibson run)SMCC — Gibson 79 run (kick blocked)M — Kruse 4 run (run failed)