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NEW CONCORD - Marietta College scored 42 straight points to erase an early deficit and went on to post a convincing 49-28 win over rival Muskingum University Saturday afternoon. The Pioneers reclaim the Shrine Trophy after Muskingum snapped Marietta’s eight game win streak in the series last year.
“Credit to Muskingum, they came out and played tough. We answered the bell at halftime and were able to pull away,” Marietta head coach Tom Hinkle said. “The beautiful thing about a rivalry game is you can throw the records out the window. We knew we were going to get their best shot. In the end we came out on top and that’s what matters.”
Marietta improves to 4-3 overall and 3-3 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. The Muskies fall to 0-7 on the season and 0-6 in the OAC.
Despite struggling to sustain drives on offense, Muskingum was able to use the big play effectively. The Muskies scored on the opening possession of the game with a 53-yard pass from Cavan Cooper to Tyler Whitacre. After Marietta tied the game, Cooper connected with Cade Searls on a 62-yard scoring strike for a 14-7 Muskie lead.
The Pioneers scored the next 42 points taking a commanding 49-7 lead in the fourth quarter. Muskingum added a pair of late touchdowns to make the final score look a bit more respectable. Backup quarterback Jacob Whitmore hit Searls for an 80-yard touchdown pass to close out the game’s scoring in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
Marietta quarterback Joe Tenta got the 42-point outburst started with three touchdown passes. He hooked up with his favorite target, Dalton Miller, for a 42-yard score then completed a 33-yard touchdown to Antwon Miller. Tenta and Miller connected on a 28-yard scoring strike as Marietta pushed its lead to 28-14 midway through the third quarter.
Benny Lewis and Zion Jackson-Wilborn sandwiched a pair of rushing touchdowns around a pick-six from Lukas Ratliff. Lewis scored on a 3-yard run, followed by Ratliff’s 60-yard interception and return for a touchdown. Marietta’s final score was a 29-yard run from Jackson-Wilborn.
Tenta completed 15-of-25 passes for 223 yards and four touchdowns. Miller caught two passes, both touchdowns, for 70 yards, while Johnson had four receptions for 62 yards and one score. On the ground, Lewis and Zion-Jackson finished with 114 rushing yards and one touchdown apiece.
“It was nice offensively to get back to dominating the ground game,” Hinkle said. “We need to have this balance moving forward if we want to finish the season on a high note. Multiple guys stepped up and it was nice to see that.”
Defensively, the Pioneers harassed Cooper all afternoon. Marietta intercepted three passes and sacked Cooper three times. The Pioneers once again held its opponent in check on the ground allowing the Muskies just 86 yards rushing on 37 carries, an average of only 2.3 yards per carry, and forcing one fumble.
“It was nice to be able to force some turnovers on the defensive side of the ball,” Hinkle said. “They have been playing great all year and today they made an impact in a big way.”
Marietta could have done more damage but fumbled the ball away four times in the game prompting Hinkle to add, “We need to take better care of the football. It was a very sloppy game and there is a lot to clean up. We will celebrate this one and then it’s back to work.”
Marietta plays at Heidelberg next Saturday at 2 p.m.