High school football: Nolan Good outstanding as Avon gets impressive win over Glenville

AVON — Nolan Good was great Friday night. Avon's junior quarterback said he had a rough week of practice leading up to the marquee matchup with Glenville, but made great decision after great decision in throwing for 250 yards and three touchdowns and leading the team with 86 rushing yards as the Eagles won 24-16 over the Division IV defending state champion Tarblooders. "He was wound so tight for this big game," Avon coach Mike Elder said. "I told him that this was a (Week) 14, 15, 16 opponent, the kind of guys you play in the Final Four, semifinals or state championship. But I said the good news is it doesn't matter. We're playing them in Week 3 and then playing for a (Southwestern Conference) championship. "He relaxed, settled in and then played lights out." Good had several designed runs that he turned into solid gains and a few scrambles that went for big yards. His favorite target through the air was senior running back Jakorion Caffey — the pair connected five times for 96 yards with several screen plays coming up big — and he had a perfect strike to a wide-open Cole Kepner in the end zone during the second quarter that put Avon up 14-0. "My guys trusted me and I trusted them," Good said. "They just made plays. Matt Maxey had a huge catch against (Glenville defensive back and Ohio State commit) Bryce West, JC was able to make plays and my line was able to protect me." It was all about the defenses on the game's opening drives as Avon defensive lineman Jeremiah Kelly hauled in a deflected pass for an interception before West made an acrobatic interception in the end zone on the Eagles' first drive. Avon's defense continued to shine with stops on Glenville's next two drives, a second interception by defensive back Charlie Kimmich and forcing a turnover on downs late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. "I'm going to remain cautiously optimistic (about our defense)," Elder said. "We had one returning starter coming back on defense this year and those dudes have played lights out all season long. So I think I've got a pretty good defense and I think Coach (Jared) Cecchetti is doing a great job of that. And that's a blessing because we're just going to keep getting better on offense, too." After Avon took the two-touchdown lead with scoring passes to Caffey and Kepner, the Tarblooders clawed their way back into the game with a 45-yard touchdown pass from Ruel Tomlinson to Jamari Townsend late in the second quarter and a 32-yard pass from Tomlinson to Damarion Witten early in the fourth. Running back T'Shawntae Jones was successful on both conversion runs to give Glenville a 16-14 lead. It took Avon just three minutes and eight plays to regain the lead — on a Owen Warrick 26-yard field goal — before the Eagles came up with the play of the game. Glenville, which was called for 13 penalties worth 90 yards, was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct on the field goal attempt. Elder decided to take the penalty on the ensuing kickoff, placing the football at Glenville's 45-yard line. Warrick executed a perfect onside kick, jogged alongside the bobbling football and pounced on it after it traveled 11 yards. Two plays later, Good connected with Paul Leftrict for an 18-yard touchdown to push the lead to eight points. "We watch a lot of film, we study a lot of film, so we knew it was there," Elder said. "It was the right moment in that situation and our guys had been working hard at it and Owen Warrick kicked the perfect ball. I mean, that's a pressure kick right there. My man stepped up today and did some wonderful things for us in the kicking game. So kudos to him and our special teams guys for having it ready." Good was a defensive starter last season when Avon lost a heartbreaker to the Tarblooders, who went 15-0 and won the program's first state title. He said his time on the other side of the ball benefited him Friday night. "It really helped me understand the whys of what we call because of what we're going to see on the defensive side of the ball," he said. "I knew some of their guys returning were really good players that we needed to cap, so I trusted my (defensive) guys and they were able to make plays all night long." Contact Shaun Bennett at (440) 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him @ShaunBennettct on X.