COLUMBUS
There’s a reason why Columbus East went into Friday night’s football game against Seymour with 77 straight Hoosier Hills Conference wins.
There’s also a reason why the Olympians are the reigning state champions and why East was ranked in the polls this week despite not having a win.
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Click here to purchase photos from this gallery“This is a great program,” Seymour coach Mike Kelly said. “I know that people think ‘East is down. They are 0-2.’ They are not down. They are a good football team.”
East, ranked No. 10 for Class 5A, pummeled No. 14 Seymour 42-6 at Stafford Field on Friday night.
The Olympians had 499 offensive yards to the Owls’ 214.
East (1-2, 1-0 HHC) scored on its first five possessions in the first half. They had six possessions total.
East junior quarterback Cole Gilley threw three touchdown passes in the opening half.
The Olympians used six plays and just under two minutes to go 70 yards on its opening series.
Gilley first got the Olympians on the board with a 17-yard pass to Isaac VanCuren, putting East up 7-0 with 10:14 on the clock.
After a three-and-out by the Owls, East went 51 yards on six plays for another score. This time, Gilley hit Zach Pierce with a back shoulder throw in the back left corner of the end zone, putting the Olympians up 14-0 with 6:20 on the clock.
The Olympians forced another three-and-out on the Owls’ next possession and again capitalized. On the opening play of the third offensive possession, Gilley found Cody Horner for a 58-yard score.
At the 3:29 mark in the first quarter, the Olympians led 21-0.
Seymour finally got its offense moving on its third possession, as a 23-yard pass from Brendan Smith to Jack Roberts got the Owls to East’s 35.
At the end of the first quarter, the Owls trailed 21-0. Gilley had 188 passing yards through 12 minutes of play.
The Owls were able to convert on a fourth-and-6, moving to East’s 12, to start the second quarter, but a fumble recovery, an incomplete pass and a pair of sacks led to a turnover on downs.
East used eight plays to score on the next possession, which was capped by a 51-yard touchdown run from Mark McDonald.
The Olympians led 28-0 with 4:58 before halftime.
After a three-and-out by the Owls, East started on the Seymour 11 in part of a short punt and penalty by the visitors. The Olympians used two plays to score, with Lance Greiwe hit the end zone from 9.
Seymour ran the ball five straight times with Nathan O’Mara on the ensuing possession, getting to their own 47, but an interception by Smith stalled the momentum.
The Owls’ defense finally stopped the Olympians on the next possession, as Evan Dover intercepted Gilley in the end zone with 56 ticks on the clock.
East led 35-0 at the break.
At half, Gilley had 218 passing yards. Seymour had 100 total yards of offense in the first half.
Out of the break, the Owls were forced to punt after three plays. East drove to the Owls’ 23, but Seymour forced a turnover on downs to repossess the ball.
Each team punted on their next offensive series before East added seven more points.
With 1:21 left in the third quarter, Horner ripped a 28-yard run for a score.
The Owls took the ball into the fourth quarter and would finally capitalize on the drive.
On a fourth-and-5, Smith got behind a pair of tackles and broke free for a 15-yard touchdown run to put the Owls on the board.
Neither team would score again the rest of the way, as the Olympians held on for the win.
O’Mara finished with 127 rushing yards on 33 attempts, and Smith had 22 on eight runs. Smith finished 5-for-9 through the air for 50 yards with an interception.
Gilley finished 12-for-19 for 246 yards through the air. McDonald led East’s rushing attack with 116 yards on the ground.
“(Gilley) had an awful long time to sit back there and throw the football,” Kelly said. “We need better pass rushing. We also need to do a better job of staying in pass coverage. We’ve got to do a better job in terms of our overall game plans. We need to make sure we put our kids in a position of success.”
Kelly said the penalties need to get cut down next week and that the offense needs to play smarter.
“Against a program like this, you need to have first downs and make sure you make them matter,” Kelly said. “We need to play smarter than what we did. (Penalites) are a crux that we’ve had all season long. It’s all mental focus. Us as coaches need to make sure we get it corrected.”
The Owls haven’t beaten East since 2005. East hasn’t lost a share of the HHC in 14 seasons.
Seymour will look to get back to form against Floyd Central next week.