Football: Central Crossing Comets didn’t back down in ‘roller-coaster’ season

The Central Crossing football team entered the season with numerous question marks, returning a slew of untested players waiting for a chance to compete at the varsity level.

Fifth-year coach Trevor White said he was proud of the fight his players showed and their focus during the offseason. Those traits helped the Comets earn the 12th seed for the Division I, Region 3 playoffs and finish 4-7 overall, falling 35-6 at fifth-seeded Hilliard Darby in the first round Oct. 29.

“Things were really a roller-coaster this season,” said White, whose team finished 1-4 in the OCC-Buckeye Division, fifth behind champion Pickerington Central (5-0). “You have the emotional highs of the wins and the lows of things like injuries and having some COVID quarantines. Through all of that, they were fun to be around.”

Early on, the Comets lost three starters to season-ending injuries. Senior defensive lineman Lenard Barnhouse suffered a broken collarbone in the first scrimmage Aug. 7 against Westerville South. Senior two-way lineman Max Webb was lost to a knee injury in a 35-18 win over Northland on Sept. 3, and junior linebacker Nash Barrett suffered a torn elbow ligament in a 19-14 victory over Grove City on Sept. 10.

“We were thin coming in, and then suffering injuries like that really took its toll,” White said. “We lost three starters, but we had some guys step in and do a great job for us. That makes us excited for next year.”

Senior quarterback Alec Boyd (first-team all-league) led the offense, completing 68 of 139 passes for 941 yards with six touchdowns and nine interceptions and rushing for 606 yards and nine touchdowns on 122 carries. He also returned a kickoff for a score and totaled 29 tackles, five pass breakups and two interceptions as a defensive back.

Senior tight end Eli Fleshman (first-team all-league) caught 12 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns. He also had 77 tackles and a team-high three sacks at defensive end.

Senior defensive lineman Tatum Wallace (second-team all-league) had 27 tackles, including a team-high eight for loss, and one fumble recovery.

Senior Jae’V’on Pass (second-team all-league) had 148 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 20 carries as a blocking back. As a defensive back, he had 72 tackles, two interceptions, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and two blocked punts.

“(White) has taught me to go on with things and not really look at what happened on the last play,” Pass said. “You have to get back up and go to the next play. Don’t stay down for too long. You have to be tough.”

Senior wide receiver Isaiah Bridges (special mention all-league) led the Comets with 27 catches for 394 yards and one touchdown.

“The work ethic and attitude of our senior class was outstanding,” White said. “This was a group that bought in, and I would’ve liked to have won a few more games for them.

“From last winter on, they really committed themselves to getting themselves to be the best group they could be. I told the younger classes that if they wanted to know how to prepare for a season, just look to these guys. They committed themselves to the process.”

The Comets expect to return their leading rusher in sophomore Abdul-Malik Kamara (second-team all-league). He ran for 907 yards and seven touchdowns on 193 carries and had 41 tackles as a defensive back.

Junior defensive back Josh Codjoe (honorable mention all-league) had 39 tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery.

Also expected back are junior linebacker Kolin Hendricks (team-leading 91 tackles, 5 for loss), junior defensive back Jayden Vazquez (34 tackles, 1 interception) and sophomore linebackers Aaron Jenkins (24 tackles) and Luke White (28 tackles).

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CENTRAL CROSSING FOOTBALL

•Record: 4-7 overall

•OCC-Buckeye standings: Pickerington Central (5-0), Reynoldsburg (4-1), Lancaster (3-2), Groveport (2-3), Central Crossing (1-4), Newark (0-5)

•Seniors lost: Drake Albright, Shane Baas, Lenard Barnhouse, Deric Bauman, Alec Boyd, Isaiah Bridges, Brandon Burke, Braydon Farrell, Eli Fleshman, Gabe Hadler, Tra Helsel, Myles Keller, Bryce Kifer, Jae’V’on Pass, Justin Schailey, Liam Scott-Marable, Parker Sizemore, Nate Smith, William Taynor, Tatam Wallace, Max Webb and Keegan Wilson

•Key returnees: Nash Barrett, Josh Codjoe, Aaron Jenkins, Kolin Hendricks, Abdul-Malik Kamara, Jayden Vazquez and Luke White

•Postseason: Lost to Hilliard Darby 35-6 in first round of Division I, Region 3 playoffs

This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Football: Central Crossing didn’t back down in ‘roller-coaster’ season