Salem makes trip to Ohio more than a football game; Carr: ‘it’s way bigger than football, things they’ll never forget for the rest of their life’
By Paul Boggs
Ironton Tribune
IRONTON, Ohio — The Salem Rams made an eight-hour football business trip to the Tri-State, but as the Ironton Fighting Tigers often do, they simply took care of business.
That’s because Ironton opened by scoring the game’s first 28 points, quickly reached the threshold for the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s running-clock rule, made freshman Owen McDonald’s debut to high school football a difficult one, and simply smoked the Rams 55-14 on a sun-soaked Saturday afternoon inside Ironton’s historic Tanks Memorial Stadium.
In fact, this season is the 100th year of football for “The Tank” — as Ironton is, after all, even known nationwide for its gridiron success, history and tradition. The original tenants of the stadium went on to become the NFL Chicago Bears.
The Fighting Tigers (2-0) put on a display of what Ironton football is all about. They took care of what needed to be — starting with defense, then eventually offense, and also some special teams to reach the running clock for almost all of the second half.
“Any time you bring a team in from out-of-state, you see on them on film and film normally tells a lot, but it doesn’t tell the whole story,” said Ironton acting head coach Todd Knipp. “You’re gauging speed, gauging some of these kids’ athletic ability. They have a bunch of guys that are aggressive to the ball and can run and can move. We were able to weather the storm, then we got rolling offensively.”
Five of those guys – Tony Merendino, Kamal Chatum, KyVion Parsons, Quimere Bergen and Ahmad Tucker — were all extended offers by nearby Shawnee University, which is starting a football program in 2028 (top photo). The college exposure was a big part of the Rams’ trip. They had hoped to show the players West Virginia University and Marshall University during the trip, but the NCAA recruiting calendar prevented those visits from happening.
“This trip is huge for us; it’s a lot bigger than wins and losses,” Rams coach Kemp Carr said. “These kids got an opportunity to travel. You’re doing almost what colleges do. We came down the day before (Friday), stayed in a hotel, get ready and go play a game, the bonding that happens and the brotherhood that occurs.
“This ride made us closer. This is what we want to be. So you go find that. We don’t run from anything. We accept all challenges and experiences that come our way. These guys are bonding from this. We want to bring three teams back here from New Jersey. Football is the greatest sport in the world, but it’s also one of the greatest networks outside of golf. This was a beautiful thing and it’s bigger than wins and losses for us.”
As Ironton opens yet another season 2-0, as it has done so every year now since 2019, the Fighting Tiger defense held another opponent to minus yards in rushing — minus-20 on 22 attempts for the young Rams to be exact.
From the get-go, the Orange and Black attack overwhelmed McDonald — a freshman quarterback in his very first varsity game. Ironton’s blitzkrieg defense sweltered McDonald and the Rams’ rushing game, stymying Salem to minus-42 first-half yards on 16 carries. McDonald only completed three first-half passes on six attempts, resulting in minus-two yards for a minus-44 first-half total.
“We never got moving until late and we gave up short fields all day,” Carr said. “Early on, we made some stops, but you can’t keep stopping a good team and giving them the ball inside the 40-yard-line. You just can’t start the game that slow against a very good team. Getting out of the mud against that type of team is very hard.”
The Rams picked up the game’s first first down on an Ironton pass interference penalty, but they punted four first-half times in the first half. They never got beyond their own 42 until their final possession, which featured four first downs, seven plays and 75 yards — mainly against the Fighting Tigers reserves, as McDonald completed a 34-yard pass prior to the 14-yard touchdown toss to Bergen.
“I couldn’t be more proud of him,” Carr said. “He got tested and took a hell of a shot and got back up. Checked back in and kept fighting. That showed me more than anything as a freshman. He’s learning what this level is all about. Tough lessons against a really good football team but he never quit.
“I know days like this are what makes and builds good football players and he will be one.”
Ironton opened the scoring late in the first quarter on Tyson Harvey’s 6-yard touchdown run, then scored 21 second-stanza points as Salem punted twice and turned the ball over on downs at its own 34.
Wyatt Wolfe capped scoring drives of eight plays and 25 yards and three minutes and 46 seconds, and seven plays and 58 yards and a minute and 32 seconds, with scoring sneaks of two and three yards. The sophomore quarterback was 10-of-13 for 115 yards, throwing two incomplete passes in the second-half after 11 total attempts in the first.
The goal of the second half was to reach the running clock, and Easton Caudill’s carries to open the third quarter quickly accomplished that. He took the first snap for a 56-yard scamper, then ran in the touchdown from 10 yards out to get the running clock started.
The Rams averted the shutout following the Fighting Tigers’ sixth score as Adrian Alleyne returned the ensuing kickoff 84 yards to the house.
| SAL (14) | IRON (55) | |
| 5 | First Downs | 17 |
| 22-(-20) | Rushing | 26-158 |
| 6-12-1 | Passes (C-A-I) | 10-13-0 |
| 45 | Passing | 115 |
| 2-1 | Fumbles-lost | 1-0 |
| 5-32.0 | Punts-avg. | 2-41.0 |
| 10-53 | Penalties | 4-17 |
| Salem (0-1) | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8- | 14 |
| Ironton (2-0) | 7 | 21 | 14 | 13- | 55 |
SCORING SUMMARY
I-Tyson Harvey 6 run (Beckham Waginger kick), 0:17 1Q
I-Wyatt Wolfe 2 run (Beckham Waginger kick), 7:20 2Q
I-Kayden Edwards 30 pass from Wyatt Wolfe (pass failed), 4:49 2Q
I-Wyatt Wolfe 3 run (Kayden Edwards run), 0:37 2Q
I-Easton Caudill 10 run (Beckham Waginger), 10:39 3Q
I-Brycen Mullins 32 run (Beckham Waginger kick), 6:12 3Q
S-Adrian Alleyne 84 kickoff return (kick failed), 5:01 3Q
I-Ayden Justice 3 run (Barrett Waginger kick), 6:15 4Q
S-Quimere Bergen 14 pass from Owen McDonald (Sincere Cook-Reese pass from Owen McDonald), 1:10 4Q
I-Easton Caudill 83 kickoff return (no attempt), 0:00 4Q
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING — Salem: Adrian Alleyne 4-22, Izaiah Santiago 6-(-9), Owen McDonald 8-(-14), Cashmir Parsley 1-(-3), Quimere Bergen 1-1, Kevin Parsons 1-(-16), Team 1-(-1); Ironton: Easton Caudill 10-85-1, Tyson Harvey 6-26-1, Brycen Mullins 2-56-1, Kayden Edwards 2-5, Wyatt Wolfe 4-(-1)-2, Ayden Justice 1-3-1, Team 1-(-16).
PASSING — Salem: Owen McDonald 6-12-1-45-1; Ironton: Wyatt Wolfe 10-13-0-115-1.
RECEIVING — Salem: KaiSiere Muhammad 1-34, Quimere Bergen 1-14-1, Izaiah Santiago 2-1, Adrian Alleyne (1-(-1), Kevin Parsons 1-(-3); Tyson Harvey 3-37, Kayden Edwards 3-36-1, Bryson Kerns 2017, Easton Caudill 1-18, Bryce Mullins 1-7.
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