No average Job: Richman accounts for 5 TDs as Eastside shuts out Rochester in sectional final

Val T.

11 minutes ago

5 min read

Meadows runs for 81 yards, forces fumble, but Zebras remain without sectional since 2000

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

Trenton Meadows cut back to the left and ran 40 yards down the left sideline on the second play of the Rochester football team’s Class 2A, Sectional 34 final against Eastside Friday.

Would it be a trend?

Actually, it would be a small pothole for Eastside on a smooth road to a sectional title.

Senior quarterback Job Richman ran 13 times for 166 yards and three touchdowns, and he also threw a touchdown pass and returned the opening kickoff of the second half for a touchdown as the Blazers routed the Zebras 42-0 at Barnhart Field.

Freshman backup quarterback Blake Gerke also ran for a touchdown.

Eastside, ranked No. 4, improved to 11-0. They will host No. 11 Wheeler in the regional next Friday. Wheeler handled Knox 57-8 in the Sectional 33 final.

Meadows had 81 yards rushing for Rochester, who finished 6-6. Rochester has had 21 seasons of six or more wins since 2000, but that remains their most recent sectional title.

Eastside was already up 28-0 before Richman’s kickoff return. Tate Kitchen’s extra point kickstarted the running clock, per the IHSAA Mercy Rule, with 11:49 left in the third quarter.

Rochester finished with seven first downs, but five of them came after the running clock. Rochester took only four offensive snaps in Eastside territory, all in the first quarter. They never advanced the ball further than Eastside’s 28-yard-line.

How good was Richman? In addition to his exploits as a quarterback and kickoff returner, he punted twice, both of which plopped to the turf and stuck at the Rochester 2-yard-line.

The game’s first first down came from the Zebras on Meadows’ long run. Rochester coach Isaac Shaffer was mindful of where Eastside linebacker and leading tackler Ty Sebert was, and he said Sebert’s whereabouts affected his playcalling.

“He was just causing problems for us everywhere,” Shaffer said. “So we were trying to run away from him. I feel like that first one, he just overpursued it, and we got a good cutback, and he didn’t make that mistake again. I think it was more of a mistake on their end on that first one.”

But the possession would end when Meadows was stopped for 1 yard on fourth-and-4 on the Eastside 29.

The momentum shifted further.

Richman faked a handoff to tailback Ryder West and then cut up the middle through a huge hole. He cruised untouched for a 70-yard touchdown.

Eastside punted on their second possession and lost a fumble on their third when Meadows stripped Sebert as he tried to cut back from the left sideline after a 33-yard reception on a nifty pass from Richman.

Meadows stripped Sebert and then immediately fell on the loose ball.

Eastside nearly lost another fumble when Richman bobbled an Alex Chapman punt with 10:39 left in the half, but Richman won a scrum for the loose ball at the Rochester 39.

One play later, Richman turned the corner along the right sideline for a 39-yard touchdown run.

After a Rochester four-and-out possession in which Shotts was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-2 from the Rochester 35, Eastside took advantage of the plus field position and drove 35 yards in five plays.

Richman passed to Bo Martin who had run an intermediate route to his left. Martin turned inside and ran untouched for a touchdown to make it 21-0.

“Yeah, absolutely,” Shaffer said when asked if he took some chances on fourth down that he otherwise would not against a typical opponent. “Just as explosive as they are on offense, we thought our possessions were going to be limited, and we were going to struggle to put points on the board. So we just felt like it was four-down territory wherever we were.”

Another Rochester four-and-out in which they stopped Shotts on fourth-and-3, that led to an 8-yard Richman touchdown run to make it 28-0. Richman’s night under center was done with 1:45 left in the half.

“He’s just a really tough kid,” Shaffer said. “Really hard runner. A really great kid. You can tell that he’s just poised and just never too big for the moment and just a really good football player.”

Shotts had 177 yards rushing against Lakeland in the sectional quarterfinals and a career-high 198 against Central Noble last week in the sectional semifinals. Eastside held him to 46 yards rushing.

“Our guys saw a decent bunch of trap this week at practice,” Brandewie said, referring to a favorite play that the Zebras like to run for Shotts. “And we told the interior defensive linemen that this is your job. This is your responsibility to limit the interior run game as much as you can. The Shotts kid is a monster, and he runs really, really hard. I mean, we weren't of the opinion we were going to shut it down. He’s good enough you’re not going to shut it down. But can you limit the damage? Can you limit the number of times that trap squirts out the back side and goes for eight yards and just keep it to a three-yard gain? And if you can do that, you feel like you’re really doing something. A huge shoutout to (assistant) coach (Austen) Brow and our entire defensive line group because they did a heck of a job tonight.”

Afterwards, Shaffer was asked about his team’s dedication to the weight room.

“They are committed to it, and it shows in the way they play,” Shaffer said of Eastside. “Just physically and just their speed, everything. That’s something we have to continue to commit to. It can’t just be a 50-to-60 percent of the team doing it. It’s got to be everybody all-in for us to get to that level.”

Eastside won despite tailback Noah Dove not carrying the ball. Dove had strep throat and missed three days of school during the week. The only playing time he saw was as a holder on PATs. Dove averages 111 yards rushing per game on 11.3 yards per carry.

Instead, they relied more on Richman and team-wide dedication to the weight room. Brandewie thanked Eastside’s administration, saying they are “hugely supportive of athletics” and adding that all players take a weights class during the school day.

“He’s one of the best kids you’ll ever want to meet,” Brandewie said of Richman. “I guess the biggest compliment I can pay him is I have a 7-year-old son, and if he grows up to be just like Job Richman, I’ll be a very proud dad. And that’s who Job Richman is. He’s an unbelievable kid, and I could not be prouder of him.”

Eastside 42, Rochester 0

Eastside 7 21 7 7 – 42

Rochester 0 0 0 0 – 0

First quarter

ES – Job Richman 70 run (Tate Kitchen kick)

Second quarter

ES – Richman 39 run (Kitchen kick)

ES – Bo Martin 17 pass from Richman (Kitchen kick)

ES – Richman 8 run (Kitchen kick)

Third quarter

ES – Richman 72 kickoff return (Kitchen kick)

Fourth quarter