FRANKLIN FURNACE — The Green Bobcats, on Friday night, welcomed first Larry Hall back to the head coaching ranks —then welcomed the Federal Hocking Lancers back to football period.
In Hall’s head coaching debut for the young Bobcats, Green matched its win total from all of last season —shutting out the Lancers 42-0 in the non-league season opener.
Hall has been involved in coaching football for over 50 years, as 2024 marks his 20th season as a head coach.
He was last a head coach for one season at East in 2008, leading the Tartans to the Southern Ohio Conference Division I championship that year.
He followed the legendary Ed Miller at Wheelersburg in the 1990s, winning 64 games, seven SOC II championships and making six state playoff appearances in his seven seasons there.
He also coached at Preble Shawnee in the early 1970s for four years, at Ashland in Kentucky for four years following his seven at Wheelersburg, and at Northwest from 2003 thru 2005.
He spent the 2009 thru 2023 seasons assisting his son Andy Hall at Jackson, serving as the Ironmen’s defensive coordinator.
Hall’s head coaching record is now 127-75-4.
His Bobcats didn’t allow a point nor a single first down, as the Lancers —playing their first football game since an 0-8 campaign in 2021 —onside kicked to begin the game, and even ran not one but two fake punts.
It didn’t work.
Federal Hocking had 22 total rushes for minus-2 yards, and quarterback Brody Rutter threw for 27 yards on 5-of-9 with one interception.
The Lancers lost one fumble, and punted six times for only an average of 18 yards.
But while Federal Hocking was literally starting over on Friday night, so too in many ways was Green under Hall.
The Bobcats’ only 2023 victory was a 13-10 eking out of visiting Manchester.
Against the Lancers, senior Blake Smith scored rushing touchdowns of 16, 13 and seven yards —as the Bobcats tallied 21 points in each half.
Smith rushed for 75 yards on 13 carries, as his first TD and fellow senior Quincy Merrill’s extra-point kick gave Green all the points it needed for the win.
Those seven points came with five minutes and 54 seconds left in the opening stanza.
Merrill made four extra points in fact —including after all three of Green’s second-half scores.
He had the first of those —a 23-yard reception on a bootleg pass from senior quarterback Landon Kimbler, in which Merrill was wide open.
His second extra-point kick made it 28-0 —for the Bobcats’ only third-frame score.
Riley Cunningham, the senior transfer from Wheelersburg and whose father formerly played for Hall there, carried 14 times for 106 yards —and had a TD run of seven yards late in the second quarter.
Cunningham caught a Kimbler pass for 27 yards, as Kimbler capped the scoring —on a one-yard sneak with 5:07 remaining.
Kimbler completed 4-of-6 passes for 63 yards with one interception —made by Johnny Campanaro for Federal Hocking.
The Bobcats did not punt once, and gained 256 total yards with 193 of those on the ground.
They also amassed 17 first downs, and committed only one penalty for 10 yards.
The Bobcats will return home, and return to non-league action, against Division VI Grove City Christian on Friday night (Aug. 30).
* * *
Federal Hocking 0 0 0 0— 0
Green 7 14 7 14 — 42
G— Blake Smith, 16-yard run (Quincy Merrill kick), 5:54, 1st (7-0 G)
G — Blake Smith, 13-yard run (kick failed), 3:51, 2nd (13-0 G)
G — Riley Cunningham, 7-yard run (Riley Cunningham run), 2:11, 2nd (21-0 G)
G — Quincy Merrill, 23-yard pass from Landon Kimbler (Quincy Merrill kick), 7:42, 3rd (28-0 G)
G — Blake Smith, 7-yard run (Quincy Merrill kick), 7:10, 4th (35-0 G)
G — Landon Kimbler, 1-yard run (Quincy Merrill kick), 5:07, 4th (42-0 G)
Team Statistics
FH G
First downs 0 17
Scrimmage plays 33 42
Rushes-yards 22-(-2) 36-193
Passing yards 27 63
Total yards 25 256
Cmp-Att-Int. 5-11-1 4-6-1
Fumbles-lost 1-1 2-1
Penalties-yards 6-41.5 1-10
Punts-Ave. 6-18.3 0-0
——
Individual Leaders
RUSHING —Federal Hocking: Johnny Campanaro 3-7, Gabe Bray 5-1, Lucas Crow 7-17, Brody Rutter 5-(-26), Ty Walker 2-(-1); Green: Ryleigh Cunningham 14-106 TD, Blake Smith 13-75 3TD, Brandon Brannigan 5-14, Landon Kimbler 3-0 TD, Team 1-(-2)
PASSING — Federal Hocking: Brody Rutter 5-9-0-27, Carson Jarvis 0-2-1-0; Green: Landon Kimbler 4-6-1-61 TD
RECEIVING— Federal Hocking: Gabe Bray 1-9, Johnny Campanaro 1-6, Dylan Scott 1-5, Evan Hill 1-4, Ty Walker 1-3; Green: Ryleigh Cunningham 1-27, Quincy Merrill 1-23 TD, Mason Neal 1-10, Brody Stapleton 1-3
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