Key takeaways from Crestview's 49-14 season-opening win over Loudonville in football
OLIVESBURG – For most of the first half, Crestview’s football team dominated Loudonville in nearly every facet of the game.
To their credit, the Redbirds kept battling despite quickly finding themselves in a deep hole.
The early deficit was too much to overcome, though, as the Cougars cruised to a 49-14 season-opening victory Thursday at Scott Bailey Memorial Field.
Here are some takeaways from the game.
Crestview shows flashes of its potential
With do-it-all running back Connor Morse gone to graduation, plenty of questions surrounded the Cougars offense entering the season.
Adison Reymer showed he’s more than capable of filling Morse’s shoes by his performance against the Redbirds. The senior rushed 21 times for 121 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 5.7 yards per carry.
Reymer is also standout on the track team, and he showed flashes of his breakaway speed. His big-play ability makes Crestview’s offense that much more dangerous.
Fullback Wade Bolin is a nice complement to Reymer. The junior did a lot of the dirty work against Loudonville, serving as the lead blocker for Reymer and Co. But Bolin also made the most of his touches, as he rushed for 34 yards and two scores on 10 carries.
“With Wade back and Adison and Clete (Rogers) and Michael (Mays), we feel very confident in giving the ball to (all of them),” Crestview coach Steve Haverdill said. “We just have to work that timing with the line still. It’s one of those things with the mesh. Now, we’re actually going live. With scrimmages, you’re just kind of seeing and playing vanilla.
“Now, we’re getting into our offense a little bit more, and we have to get that timing down, which we will a little bit more this week. Hopefully, it keeps improving like it did last year with Connor.”
Then there’s senior quarterback Hayden Kuhn, who showed plenty of poise as the leader of the offense. Kuhn had a strong 2021 season, earning All-Ohio honors, and he picked up right where he left off against Loudonville.
Kuhn completed 14 of 19 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. He spread the wealth, too, as six different receivers caught at least one pass. Shawn Bailey and Tyson Ringler were on the receiving end of his touchdown passes.
“I think we’re going to be more balanced this year, but we’re definitely a run-first team,” Kuhn said. “We’ve been that way for as long as I can remember. Connor was a really good back last year. Adison is going to be a really good back this year. He just has to get in the groove of things.”
Kuhn’s veteran presence under center helped the Cougars score on their first five possessions of the game to take a 35-0 lead with just under four minutes left until halftime.
“I thought we came out and looked really good in the first half,” Kuhn said. “We fell asleep a little bit at the end of the second quarter going into the third quarter, so we have to work on that next week. We have to put together a complete four quarters if we’re going to beat some of these good teams that we are going to play.”
Defensively, Crestview looked in midseason form.
The Cougars limited Loudonville to 199 yards of total offense on 52 plays.
The Redbirds had to battle for most of their yards, especially on the ground, where they rushed for a measly 32 yards on 23 carries.
Crestview also forced two interceptions, with Reymer returning the second one 57 yards for a touchdown to make the score 49-14 midway through the fourth quarter.
“I thought the defense played well,” Haverdill said. “We had some guys who were in different positions. We have experience there, but they are at different spots. Their reads are different than last year, and I think as time goes (we will get better).”
Loudonville has plenty to build on after loss
Down 35-0 late in the second quarter, it would have been easy for the Redbirds to go through the motions the rest of the game.
Especially after Crestview scored on its first five possessions and had the ball again.
Instead, Loudonville’s Aidan Wolford intercepted Kuhn in Cougars territory. Three plays later, quarterback Matt Sprang hit Micah Simpson for a 20-yard scoring strike.
And suddenly the Redbirds had life.
Crestview got the ball back with just over a minute left until halftime and drove deep into Loudonville territory, but the Redbirds again forced a turnover.
The Cougars got the ball to start the second half but turned it over on downs at the Redbirds 35-yard line. Loudonville then marched 65 yards for a touchdown, as Sprang hit running back Peyton Regan on a wheel route down the left sideline for a 39-yard score.
Crestview added two more touchdowns later in the half and held Loudonville scoreless the rest of the game, but the Redbirds were much more competitive in the second half.
“We know we can be good,” Loudonville coach John Battaglia said. “We have talent. The guys coming out battling and showing a little bit of heart in the second half gives us a little glimpse of hope.
“We’ll see how we respond next week.”
Sprang, a junior, showed plenty of poise despite being under duress nearly every time he dropped back to pass. He finished with 167 yards on 17-of-29 passing.
Look for him to become a big-time playmaker as the season progresses.
“(Matt) is going to college right now,” Battaglia said. “He’s a smart guy. He’s always on the same page as me. He gets the ball out quick. We have to protect him a little bit better. We had some guys who were open down field, but he didn’t have enough time to get the ball to them.
“I can’t praise him enough. He’s battling the whole game on defense. He’s playing the strong safety position. He’s taking on pulling guards, and then going out there at quarterback and getting everybody lined up.”
Regan did a little bit of everything for Loudonville. When he wasn’t carrying the ball or catching passes on offense, he was making tackles on defense. It seemed like every other play his name was called over the loudspeaker for making a tackle from his linebacker position.
Regan really came on down the stretch last season as the focal point of the Redbirds offense. The senior faced tough sledding against the Cougars defense, but he won’t face many other defenses with that kind of talent throughout the rest of their regular-season schedule.
“He’s a really good football player,” Battaglia said of Regan. “We have to open up a little bit more space for him on offense and get him rumbling. He’s cut a little weight. He’s faster than he was last year. He’s a good player and a good kid.”
Reach Chris at csnow@times-gazette.com
On Twitter: CSnow_TG
This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Top takeaways from Crestview football's win over Loudonville
