2015 Chenango Forks Varsity Football

Devilish defense carries Forks past Greene

Rob Centorani
rcentorani@pressconnects.com
Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin 

TOWN OF CHENANGO Sometimes it takes a possession or two, a little poking and prodding for an offense to find its rhythm.

Once Chenango Forks founds its gear, the two-time defending Class C state champions rolled up 21 points in a six-minute span of the first half against Route 12 rival Greene.

That all but decided Saturday's Section 4 Football Conference Division IV game, one the Blue Devils won, 35-12, in warm, summer-like conditions.

Dylan Studer, L.J. Watson and Cody Lamond scored touchdowns in rapid succession and Tony Silvanic converted extra points after each one in the first half.

Given the way the stingy Blue Devils' defenders were playing, those 21 points were all but insurmountable as Forks improved to 3-1 overall and 2-0 in division.

"Pretty sound up there," Forks coach Dave Hogan said of this defense. "That front seven seemed to control the line scrimmage. When you can do that, things usually work out pretty well."

Unlike its offense, from snap one Forks’ defense smothered the Trojans. Practically any time a Greene ball carrier approached the line of scrimmage, a swarm of defenders arrived to deliver punishing hits.

Greene's first four possessions went three-plays-punt, three plays-punt, three plays-punt and three plays-punt. By halftime the Trojans had mustered 37 yards from scrimmage and two first downs.

Guys such as Trevor Borchardt, Ryan Ehrets, Jake Osterhout, Dustin Gould, Brandin Paulhamus and David Chochishvili clogged running lanes for the better part of three quarters before giving way to reserves.

"We knew they had some strong kids in the backfield," defensive back Watson said, "but we were tough up front. It gives us a lot of freedom in the secondary, so we can come up and help out."

After making one first down during its opening two possessions, Forks took over at its 29 for its third possession. The initial first down of the drive came on a fourth-and-1 from the 38, when Watson got the Trojans to jump offside.

One play later, Studer raced around the right end for 16 yards before Watson lofted a perfectly thrown ball to tight end Borchardt on the left side for a 37-yard gain to Greene's 2. Studer scored standing up on the next play, finding a massive hole to the right and Silvanic's PAT made it 7-0 with 30 seconds left in the first quarter.

Three Greene rushes netted 3 yards on the next drive, and Forks took over Greene's 48. A holding penalty pushed the Blue Devils back to their 40 on first down, setting up the play of the day.

Forks lined up with an empty backfield and five receivers. Watson received the shotgun snap and headed left. About 4 yards into the play, Watson ran torso-to-torso into a Greene defender, spun off him and toward the left sideline. He met more resistance about 15 yards from the end zone but broke another tackle before weaving back inside and into the end zone for a 60-yard scoring run.

"He had me on the line, but he had a hold of the ball," Watson said of his initial move. "I spun off it, got some space and just turned on the jets."

Hogan knows he's fortunate to have a talent such as Watson, who transitioned from running back to quarterback this season.

"We're pretty spoiled, aren't we?" the coach said. "That was a sweet run. It's great to have him."

Two yards in three running plays forced another Trojans punt and this time Forks took over at Greene's 40. Two plays later, Lamond received an option pitch from Watson and sped untouched down the left sideline for a 28-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter.

Lamond and Watson scored on short runs in the second half as Forks' lead grew to 35-0.

"We started off a little slow today, but we got it going," said Watson, who finished with 96 rushing yards and 47 passing yards. "That will help us work harder to get where we need to be."

Luke Erickson, who had 88 rushing yards, scored on a 12-yard run and Lucian Austin caught a 42-yard scoring pass from Zach Orzell late in the fourth quarter for Greene (2-2, 0-1).