News Archive
Eagles Rally, Knock Off Wolves In Their Den
Milford rallied from an early 20-0 deficit, then sealed the comeback with a pair of late interceptions in knocking off rival West Clermont 27-26 in the next to last regular season contest of the year. Jacob Smith and Robby Mickler came up with the picks on the last two Wolves drives to turn away the WC attempt at retaking the lead.
The night got off to a super rough start for the Eagles as West Clermont marched 58 yards in nine plays on its opening drive to take the 7-0 lead. Milford’s first offensive snap resulted in a tipped pass and interception that West Clermont quickly turned into another score and a 14-0 lead. Freshman phenom Chris Henry, Jr. stretched the WC lead to 20-0 near the five minute of the second quarter with a short TD reception.
Milford finally got on the board on the ensuring kickoff when Reece Davis became the second Eagle this season to return a kickoff for a touchdown when he raced 84 yards to paydirt. But the score held 20-7 Wolves at the half.
The Eagles looked like a different team in the second half, especially on the defensive side of the ball as they were able to climb back into the game. Davis scored his second TD of the night early in the third quarter on a five-yard strike from Austin Hardin. With the Milford defense tightening up, the offense came to life too and tied the game on a perfectly executed flea flicker that saw Luke Ray haul in a 26-yard TD throw from Hardin.
Henry, the son of the late Cincinnati Bengals receiver, took matters into his own hands on the next Wolves drive as he turned a short reception into a runaway 67-yard score. WC’s failed two-point conversion attempt left the score 26-20 with all but 17 seconds of the fourth quarter to play.
Milford had an answer on its next drive, culminating when Hardin connected with Ashton Warther from 26 yards out for the final score of the night. The exciting conclusion started when Smith picked off Bryson Earley with just under eight minutes left but the Wolves forced a punt and set up for their next drive on their own two-yard line with 5:08 to play. WC got moving to midfield but on fourth-and-eight, Mickler intercepted a deep ball from Earley with 47 ticks left wrapping up Milford’s win.
It wasn’t a pretty offensive night for the Eagles who held a 281-279 edge in total yards. Natwan Webster rushed for 87 yards, while Hardin connected on 15 of 24 passes for 170 yards and three touchdowns. Ray led the receivers with four catches for 57 yards and a TD. Magnus Boben, in his most extensive action of the season on the d-line, finished with a team-best 10 tackles.
Milford will wrap up the regular season next Friday night, travelling to Turpin before its OHSAA Playoff opener in two weeks.
Click here for final game stats.
