By Tim Rogers
Special to the Beacon Journal
JACKSON TWP.: Questions, questions, questions. Stark County football seems to have a bunch.
How has GlenOak managed to succeed with all its injuries? How is Canton McKinley getting along without a stadium of its own?
And, two of the most important: Is Jackson for real? Is Lake for real?
Answers for the latter two were provided Friday in Robert Fife Stadium.
Jackson is for real, for sure.
So, too, is Lake. Perhaps the only difference lies in the size of the respective schools. The bottom line is that both Federal League teams are going to win a bunch of games as we enter the second half of the regular season.
Jackson, led by quarterback Jaret Pallotta, running back Jack Dear, Mr. All-Purpose Dillon Dingler, and a defense that permitted very little breathing room, hit the halfway mark 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the Federal League with a 23-13 victory over the previously unbeaten Blue Streaks (4-1, 0-1).
Jackson, ranked sixth in the Associated Press state poll in Division I and second in the all-important Division I, Region 1 computer rankings, scored on three of its first five possessions in building a 20-6 halftime lead.
Pallotta, taking over for his older brother Jake, now at Dartmouth, accounted for two of the scores. He uncorked an on-the-money 62-yard bomb to Dingler, his favorite receiver, on the first play of Jackson’s second possession, and bulled his way from inside the 1-yard line on a sneak play that helped provide the 14-point halftime lead.
“The first touchdown was really important and our defense took over after that,” said Dingler, who caught two passes for 65 yards but made his presence known in many other ways as a safety, part-time quarterback, punter and placekicker. “It was important to get a score on our first or second possession and get out in front. Then our defense forced them into a bunch of 3-and-outs or 4-and-outs. It was great momentum.”
Dingler, a 6-2, 195-pound senior who will attend Ohio State on a baseball scholarship, caught two passes for 65 yards, gained 31 yards on four rushing attempts, punted eight times for a 39-yard average — with a long of 51 yards — and kicked a 38-yard field goal.
Junior Zach Beaulieu — pronounced Boyer — led the team with six receptions for 46 yards and the hard-running Dear had 124 yards on 22 carries.
Lake, ranked fourth in the Division II state poll and first in the computer, refused to wilt after a slow start. The Blue Streaks scored on their second possession of the second quarter when quarterback Owen Goodheart fooled the Polar Bears with back-to-back quarterback draw plays, capping a six-play, 50-yard drive set up by a 43-yard punt return by senior Nate Champagne.
Goodheart, who completed 16-of-24 passes for 135 yards but suffered two interceptions, gained 30 yards on the two draw plays, going 10 yards for the score.
However, Lake did not score again until 2:24 remained when Joel Francis went 5 yards.
Jackson held the workhorse Francis to 37 yards on 16 carries, which Jackson coach Tim Budd said he felt was the key.
“We played solid defense against the run and we ran the ball well ourselves,” said Budd, whose team faces GlenOak and McKinley in the next two weeks. “When that happens, you usually have a good result. We felt if we were able to contain their running back we’d be OK.”
Budd was quick to point out that the victory needed to be taken in stride.
“We have five tough games left,” he said. “All we did tonight was guarantee ourselves of going 5-5.”
The Jackson front line of Billy LaMothe, Nate Horton, Hayden Junker and Gary Parsons, made life difficult for the Lake offense, which was able to generate just 221 yards and fell short of its 30.5 points per game average.