BY: Will Fairfax, Sports Writer
For many years, the opening night game against Anderson has been much more than a game. A victory is more than just a win and defeat would feel worse than a normal loss. This was proven Sept. 1 as Taylor defeated Anderson 46-0 to capture the Wagon Wheel for a fifth straight year. "I feel so blessed to have the Wagon Wheel for the past four seasons," said senior quarterback Nick Freeman. "Not only do we get the Wagon Wheel for the year, but more importantly it means that we start our season off with a victory. Making it evident to our team that all the off-season training and practices paid off." Taylor annihilated Anderson gaining 489 yards on offense compared to Anderson's 25 yards. Taylor amassed 225 yards on the ground compared to Anderson's minus 11. The Trojans were 7 of 15 on third down compared to Anderson, who went 0 for 11. Taylor quarterbacks completed 21 of 27 passes compared to Anderson's four total completed passes. The game started slowly with the Trojans opening the scoring with a 42-yard field goal by freshman kicker Alec Eickert. The defense dominated all game and held the Ravens to minus 11 yards on their first two possessions. Early in the second quarter, Taylor scored its first touchdown when sophomore Jake Fidler ran through a big hole to give the Trojans a 9-0 lead. Taylor's next drive was the longest of the night, covering 87 yards and finishing with Freeman connecting with senior Darvon Blackmon on a 40-yard double move down the right sideline. Senior Jared Perkins capped off an impressive first half when he out-jumped a Raven cornerback in the end zone to catch a 4-yard Freeman pass. The touchdown was Taylor's third straight drive with a touchdown and gave them a 23-0 halftime lead. On Taylor's second possession of the second half they drove 74 yards and concluded with a Freeman-to-Fidler 9-yard touchdown. Senior Isaac McGaughey helped preserve the shutout when he grabbed an interception deep in Taylor's territory. Sophomore Robbie Robbins scored a 36-yard touchdown after he caught a short pass from Freeman and broke two tackles on the way to the end zone. The 80-yard drive gave the Trojans a 37-0 lead. Later in the fourth quarter, the second string defense forced a safety by causing a fumble in the end zone. On the ensuing kickoff, junior Chris Stutzman used his speed to give the Trojans their final touchdown of the night for a 46-0 victory. The Trojans' running attack was led by senior Taylor Johnson, who totaled 67 yards, Fidler with 63 yards and freshman Andrew Sheard with 37 yards to help give the Trojans 225 yards on the ground. Freeman lit it up through the air, finishing 20 for 24 with 260 yards and four touchdowns. Robbins had six passes for 82 yards, and Blackmon snagged five catches for 78 yards. It was a total team effort for the defense. The leading tacklers were McGaughey and senior Jordan Bradford with five tackles each. Junior Taylor Kinzer, sophomore Adam Sauder and senior Brett Currens each had three tackles. "The reason that we were able to win by such a large margin was because we were determined and focused to play a complete game," Freeman said. "Our defense dominated throughout the entire game which helped give the offense favorable field position to put points on the scoreboard." Taylor's defense held Anderson to 25 total yards. "(Defensively) we came away with the shutout," said Head Coach Ron Korfmacher. "Offensively, you would begin again up front with the o-line, but what spun out of that was Freeman, his execution and performance." Freeman emphasized that, though it was exciting to get a big victory, it is paramount that his team not stay complacent with its performance. "Anderson was just one game," Freeman said. "We are excited about the dominating victory, but as a team we realize that we have opponents coming up on our schedule that will be much more challenging. Looking at the game, we realize there are many areas that we must improve on to become a better team so we can make a run at the conference championship." The Trojans look to continue their winning streak at 1 p.m. Sept. 8 during their home opener against Iowa Wesleyan.
