The Yellow Jackets returns two kicks for touchdowns and the Cardinals had another, as placing the ball on the tee signaled a big play on the horizon.
Norm Weber
Special to The Plain Dealer
BEREA, Ohio -- It was not a good idea to miss the kickoffs in Baldwin-Wallace's 35-34 win over Otterbein on Saturday.
With the Yellow Jackets returning two kicks for touchdowns and the Cardinals taking one kick all the way back at Tressel Field in George Finnie Stadium, placing the ball on the tee signaled a scoring opportunity for the receiving team.
In an Ohio Athletic Conference game filled with big plays, the last big play came with 2:02 left when B-W's Ryan O'Rourke hit Tim Miker with a 23-yard scoring pass.
The Parma native's score made it 34-34, which prompted Otterbein to burn one of its two remaining timeouts in attempt to ice kicker Brad Pollock from Brecksville. It didn't rattle him as he made the deciding point-after.
The return-fest started early. With B-W leading, 7-6, in the second quarter after an Otterbein TD, St. Ignatius grad Kevin Johnson returned the kickoff 94 yards for a score, tying the school mark for longest kick return for a TD, set by B-W Hall of Famer Larry Mills 31 years ago.
"Our goal every game is to return a kick all the way," said Johnson.
"I got a few good blocks and saw some light up the sidelines and went for it. My reason for going to school here was to become a part of a big turnaround. This is just the beginning."
After finishing 3-7 last year, B-W is 5-0 overall and 4-0 in the OAC, tied for first with Mount Union, while Otterbein fell to 3-2.
On the ensuing kickoff, Otterbein did the copycat act when Dom Jones returned the kick 81 yards for a score.
The Cardinals had a brief lead of 20-14 four minutes later -- brief as in 13 seconds of clock time as Midview High product Josiah Holt answered with a 90-yard TD return, making it 21-20 with 10:34 to go in the half.
"Kevin and I don't really compete on kickoff returns, but we help out each other," said Holt, also a freshman. "We changed sides on that kick, and it went to me. Kevin gave me a great block, a couple other guys did and I just turned on the jets. My mom went to school here, and I knew a long time ago I wanted to come here and be part of a winning program, even if it meant a turnaround."
B-W's fourth TD was also on a runback. Matt Bowen intercepted an Austin Schlosser pass and returned it 88 yards, making it 28-20 midway through the second quarter. The 88-yard return is two yards shy of the B-W record for longest interception return for a TD.
B-W scored first when O'Rourke, an Avon High grad, threw 20 yards to Josh Oswald early in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead. The Yellow Jackets clung to a 28-27 lead at the half.
Otterbein led for most of the second half after an early third-quarter TD. The final score came on a 90-yard drive, with B-W shuffling in three running backs -- John McGraw (North Ridgeville), Kyrell Crook and Miker.
"I think the only people who thought at the start of the season we would be 5-0 at this point of the season are the guys within the walls of that locker room," said O'Rourke.
B-W is 5-0 for the first time since 2004.
Norm Weber is a freelance writer in Lakewood.