Before Madonna had even run a play from scrimmage Saturday night, it had a 7-0 lead. With the way the Blue Dons play defense, it was almost enough to ice the win.
Max Nogay passed for two touchdowns and ran for a third as Madonna captured its first state title since 1987 with a 27-7 victory over Man in the Class A championship game. A chilled crowd of about 3,000 was on hand at Wheeling Island Stadium.
"It's just an overwhelming feeling,'' said longtime Madonna coach Bob Kramer. "When I took this job 12 years ago, I never thought I'd make it to the state championship game. To win one is a dream come true for me.''
The unbeaten Blue Dons (14-0) saved face for the No. 1 seeds at Super Six weekend. The other two unbeaten No. 1s, Brooke (AAA) and Wayne (AA), both lost in the state finals.
Man (12-2), the No. 2 seed, was playing in the title game for the first time since 1984 when it was a Class AA school.
The Hillbillies really didn't beat themselves - they had just one turnover and one penalty early in the fourth quarter, but trailed 27-0 at the time. They never really had an answer for Madonna's calling card, its suffocating defense.
Man managed just seven first downs and 196 net yards and didn't score until Evan Riggins made a fingertip grab of a Ryan Crum pass on a 13-yard TD play with 5:31 remaining.
"They just had an excellent ballgame tonight,'' Hillbillies coach Harvey Arms said of the Blue Dons. "They were the better team. They just outplayed us. They have an excellent defense.
"We had a great season, but we didn't do what we intended to do tonight. After halftime, we came out and raised the intensity a little bit and held on there and at least got a tie [in the second half]. The kids stepped up liked we've asked them to all year long.''
Man's TD was just the sixth allowed by Madonna's defense in 14 games - and a couple of those came against the second string. The Blue Dons outscored their four playoff foes 131-20.
That's why it looked bleak for the Hillbillies just 101 seconds into the game when Connor Arlia returned a punt 70 yards for a TD. Madonna had yet to even take a snap from center.
"Connor Arlia is an explosive player,'' Nogay said. "I wouldn't doubt if he wins the Heisman one day. It was a great play, and it really set the tone for the game.''
Madonna's first two TDs on offense came directly after a pair of shanked punts by the Hillbillies. Jesse Crawford boomed a 57-yarder in the first quarter to pin the Blue Dons in a hole, but his next two boots traveled just 15 and 12 yards.
Jimmy Deter inhaled a 28-yard scoring toss from Nogay, and then Nogay bulled into the end zone from 10 yards out to give Madonna a 20-0 halftime advantage.
Nogay, who was selected as the Blue Dons' MVP in a media vote, completed 10-of-14 passes for 156 yards. Arlia had five of those catches for 65 yards, including a 30-yarder for a score to start the final quarter.
Madonna had perfect offensive balance, as it ran and passed for 156 yards each. Man, normally a ground-oriented team, put up a season-high 26 passes after it became apparent it couldn't run on the Blue Dons.
"What we were trying to do,'' Kramer said, "was get them out of their running game. As long as they could push the ball, they had a chance. That's why [Arlia's punt return] was such a big thing. It got points on the board and put us ahead. We knew they had a great defense, too.''
Defensive end-tight end Cody Owens was chosen as Man's MVP. He had a team-high nine tackles (21/2 for losses), caught two passes for 50 yards and ran a reverse for 6 yards and a first down and third-and-6.
Crum hit on 9-of-26 passes for 127 yards, with four completions going to Riggins for 49 yards.
