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Celina's Adam Jacob brings down Ottawa-Glandorf quarterback Tanner Vogt during Friday's Western Buckeye League battle of unbeatens in Ottawa. The Titans held on to defeat the Bulldogs 22-20.
OTTAWA - If April showers bring May flowers, Celina will hope that its damp Week Nine loss against Ottawa-Glandorf will lead to growth in the postseason, as the Bulldogs' late rally from a 19-7 deficit came up just short in a 22-20 loss in a battle of Western Buckeye League unbeatens at Titan Stadium in Putnam County.
"It's gonna be a pretty tough pill to swallow. It was a lot of self inflicted wounds," said Celina coach Brennen Bader. "I was proud of the way our kids fought, they never gave up and gave us a chance at the end, just fell a little short."
The win gives the Titans, who finished 0-10 a season ago, at least a share of the WBL title, their first since 2016.
Celina could not have drawn up a better start with the ball. Quarterback Jett Warner found Dalen Limon for a 20-yard gain on third down to move into Titan territory. Two plays later, Warner lofted a pass to Trey Anderson deep over the middle, and the receiver did the rest to find paydirt. Bridon Jeffries' point-after was good, and Celina had a 7-0 lead just under two minutes in.
Celina quarterback Jett Warner (7) tries to find the open receiver.
The Bulldog defense did its job on the Titans' opening drive, but the elements came to play as a muffed punt return gave the ball back to the hosts on the 33. After another defensive stop, Celina looked to build up its lead.
Facing a third down, Warner rolled out and tried to fire the ball for a first, but Carson Yaeger jumped in front for the pick. The return brought the Titans down to the one, where quarterback Tanner Vogt powered it in for the score. A muffed extra-point kept Celina in front, with just one minute left in the quarter.
O-G quickly got the ball back after a Celina three-and-out, and wasted little time moving the ball. Oscar Salsburey powered the team with five straight carries to enter Celina territory. Vogt scrambled for 15 more, and he hit speedy Jordan Schumacker on a swing pass with blocks. Schumacher took it paydirt easily for the score, but the two-point attempt failed to keep it at 12-7.
The teams traded stops as penalties killed Celina's momentum and wiped out a potential Warner TD run, and the teams went to the locker rooms with OG ahead 12-7.
It took little time for the Titans to strike again. While fans were still running to their seats, Schumaker was running to the end zone on a 98-yard kick return. The extra point was true, and the host's lead grew to 19-7 just 18 seconds into the second half.
The score gave the fans a false sense of a shootout, as the teams traded scoreless drives for the next six combined drives, as Celina took over down 12 as the game entered the fourth.
The final frame could not have started worse for the Bulldogs, as Brodee Schulte-Arnold's reverse went in reverse for a loss of seven. Facing a second and 17, Warner found Anderson twice to set up a fourth and 3 at the Titan's 27.
On a pivotal play, Warner's quick strike to Schlater in the flats worked like a charm. The downfield blocking freed up the junior, who took it the distance for the score, and the deficit was 19-14 with 9:16 to go.
Celina's Bridon Jeffries tries a field goal against Ottawa-Glandorf.
O-G found some success on its next drive and Vogt found Gage Bellman for a 37-yard pass, and a fourth down conversion of their own set up the offense at the Celina 6. A pair of incompletions set up a fourth down decision, and the kicking unit came out. The kick snuck into the uprights to push the lead to 22-14, and Celina needed a response with 5:38 left.
Warner used runs of seven and 27 yards to move the Bulldogs into O-G territory, where a defensive holding call set up first down at the 24. After the sophomore quarterback missed Schlater on the first attempt, his second throw was right on the money as Schlater out-muscled a defender in the back corner to draw Celina closer at 22-20.
Celina's Caleb Schlater (9) goes up to catch a two-point conversion attempt during Friday's game at Ottawa-Glandorf.
The two-point attempt was a familiar play, as Warner seemed to find Schlater in the perfect spot, but a late pass breakup caused the ball to fall to the turf. The Bulldogs needed a stop on defense and had all three timeouts with 3:38 left.
Vogt, who ran it three times to seal a win last week over Van Wert, was the target again for the Titans. He ran it three times over the next four plays, and with a dive near midfield he picked up the crucial first down to ice the game.
"It's too many small mistakes that added up and cost us unfortunately, but hopefully we use it as fuel and finish out the regular season on a high note and go into the playoffs and make a run," said Bader, whose team travels to Defiance next week.
