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Greenville
senior Codi Byrd runs the ball against Sidney during second
half action Friday at
Harmon Field. Byrd scored one of two Greenville
touchdowns as the Wave topped Sidney,
13-12 on senior night. CNO Photos
by Dylan Knoop
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Greenville tops
Sidney on senior night
Wave will retain Little Brown Jug
By George Starks
GREENVILLE- It hasn’t exactly been a stellar year for Wave football.
Greenville has experienced more downs than ups in 2015 but Friday was
one of the up nights for the Wave.
Greenville sent its seniors out on a high note, squeaking out a 13-12
victory over the visiting Sidney Yellow Jackets in a game that had more
twists and turns than a daytime soap opera.
For Wave coach and alum, Aaron Schaffer, it was a sweet victory that
capped off a 4-6 season.
“It’s really nice to get the victory and to see our kids playing the
way they did,” said Schaffer. “This was a tough, physical game against
a tough, physical football team. They have some athletes and some kids
that can really play the game. It was a great win for the seniors and
for the team to bring home the jug.”
To make things even sweeter, former New England Patriot and three time
Super Bowl Champion, Matt Light, was in attendance.
“It was nice to have Matt in town,” said Schaffer. “He said it was the
first game he’d seen since being home. Matt came into the locker room
and talked to the kids, telling them what it meant to be able to wear
the green. I think that inspired the kids. I’m glad we were able to
pull one out in an exciting way for him and the community.”
It all boiled down to the final 2:45 of the game.
After senior Wave quarterback Clay Guillozet hit junior Bradley Mead on
a 20 yard passing score with 9:53 left in the game, the two teams
swapped before Sidney shot itself in the foot.
As the Jackets were driving, the Wave defense stood tall then, it all
fell into place for Greenville.
With 27 seconds remaining, Sidney was at the Greenville 30, looking to
retake the lead.
Then, for Sidney coach Adam Doenges, the unthinkable happened.
With 12 seconds remaining, sophomore Justin Beard was flagged for a
holding call.
That mistake sealed the deal for Greenville as Sidney was faced with a
2nd and 30 from the 50.
Sidney was able to gain 12 yards on the following play but time expired
giving the wave a one point margin of victory.
“They (Sidney) have a really good defensive front. Their front seven is
really strong,” said Schafer. “Defensively, we were able to contain
their big kid (freshman QB Andre Gordon), we’re going to have our hands
full with him for the next three years we were able to contain him for
the most part but I’m really proud of the way our defense played
tonight.”
Greenville drew first blood at the 3:45 mark of the opening quarter
when senior Codi Bryd punched the ball in from two yards out.
Jordon Ernst tacked on the extra point and the Wave held a 7-0 lead.
Sidney would find the end zone at the 2:19 mark of the half on a 52
yard pass play from Gordon to junior Allec Gordon.
But the extra point attempt would fail and Greenville would go to the
break, up 7-6.
That missed PAT would eventually be the difference in a Wave win and
possible overtime.
With Sidney holding a 12-7 lead heading into the final frame, Guillozet
would hook up with Mead for the game winning score.
Winning the game meant winning the battle of the turnovers and
Greenville owned Sidney in that department and Schaffer said it was
huge.
You have to win the turnover battle in a defensive struggle,” said
Schaffer. “If you don’t, you lose the game. By being able to take care
of the football and force turnovers, we were able to end up on top,
13-12.”
With the win came a few spoils for Greenville.
At the break, Light presented the gold football to Greenville in honor
of the 50th year of the NFL. Also, Light presented Greenville a 10,000
dollar check from the Bill Bellichick Foundation to help in the
building of the new football stadium.
Watch CNO tomorrow for the Matt Light interview as well as comments
from coach Schaffer.
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As
is tradition at Greenville, when the Wave gets a victory, the victory
bell is rung.
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For the second year in a row, Greenville claimed the traveling trophy
that goes to the winner of the
game with the Yellow Jackets. Greenville
will keep the coveted Jug for at least one more year.
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Greenville
coach Aaron Schaffer stands with his 2015 seniors with the
Jug after a hard fought victory over Sidney.
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