Hitchcock powers Jefferson into state semifinals
Nov. 20—NILES — There are now four Division IV teams in Ohio still playing football.
The Jefferson Falcons are one of them.
Grant Hitchcock ran for four touchdowns, passed for another and returned a punt for a score on his way to compiling more than 300 all-purpose yards and leading the Falcons to a come-from-behind 41-37 Region 13 win over West Branch at Bo Rein Stadium on Saturday night.
Jefferson will meet Cleveland Glenville (13-0) on Saturday, Nov. 26 at Canal Fulton Northwest. The Tarblooders beat Van Wert, 42-33, in the Region 14 final on Saturday night.
When the clock hit all zeroes and the dream of playing in the state semifinals was a reality, the Jefferson players, especially the seniors, let the emotion built over four tough years come out.
"It's unbelievable," said senior Trent Hodge, who had a huge reception in the fourth quarter. "From 1-9 when we were freshmen, to 3-7, then 4-6, we've been grinding through. We knew we had it in us, everyone kept showing up. We did it, man."
Hitchcock added, "This is insane. I can't believe we're going to the state semifinals. There's four teams left in the state and we're one of them. It's amazing."
What was really insane, though, has been the postseason performance Hitchcock put on once again.
The senior quarterback 71-yard punt return in the third quarter gave the Falcons (11-3) their first lead of the night at 34-30. West Branch (12-2) answered on its next possession with an eight-play, 75-yard drive capped by a 12-yard run by quarterback Dru DeShields.
But Hitchcock was not to be outdone.
Facing third-and-10 at the Jefferson 36, he took the snap and ripped through an opening on the right side of the line and into the Warriors secondary on his way to a 64-yard touchdown to give his team the lead for good.
With Hitchcock on the field, the Falcons aren't out of any game.
"Never," Jefferson coach Brandon Hanna said. "It doesn't matter if he is on the field, we have a strong argument that the kid has to be one of the best players in the state. He does everything."
West Branch jumped out to a 12-0 lead to start the game, but Jefferson fought back to within 24-20 by the half.
In the second half, Hitchcock did just about everything one player could do, but his supporting cast did their jobs as well as the Falcons stuck with what got them to where they were.
"What a tremendous effort by our offensive line, defensive line, our linebackers, our secondary, " Hanna said. "We didn't adjust at halftime. We trusted in the process, we stuck with the plan and the second half we came out and executed when we needed to."
After the 64-yard touchdown run by Hitchcock, West Branch had the ball back for two more possessions with a chance to regain the lead, but both times the Falcons defense was able to get off the field.
The Jefferson offense then put the game away on its final possession, converting a gutsy fourth-and-9 call with a 17-yard completion from Hitchcock to Hodge.
"All I could think was, 'Don't drop it,'" Hodge said with a laugh.
The reception gave the Falcons a new set of downs at the Warriors' 29-yard line with under 3 minutes to play.
Two more first downs and they were in victory formation on their way to the state semifinals.
West Branch hadn't lost since its season opener, but saw its 12-dame winning streak snapped. The Warriors were the region's top-seeded team.
Sixth-seeded Jefferson was 0-2 in the playoffs all-time when the 2022 postseason began, but has since beaten Poland (14-13), Girard (26-20), Canton South (49-35) and West Branch.
"I don't have the words to describe this," Hanna said. "There is no greater group of young men that deserve this. This senior class has stayed the course, trusted the process. I just couldn't be more proud."
