by Frank Aceto

Associate Sports Editor

Tallmadge --- After a devastating one-point loss and with its hopes of a fifth straight Suburban League title vanishing with each passing week, it would be easy to think the Tallmadge football team would be in total disarray.

Quite the contrary, as a matter of fact.

"We had a great week of practice," said Blue Devils head coach Joe Vassalotti. "A one-point loss like we had last week could have been devastating. I was proud of our seniors, who lead us. This could be the turning point of our season."

As a result, Tallmadge is back in the picture -- barely. The Blue Devils' hopes of getting that one for the thumb may be insurmountable, but not impossible.

Tallmadge took that crucial first step with a convincing 21-7 victory over Wadsworth Oct. 3 at Rossiaky Stadium.

If the Blue Devils, who were ranked 11th in a Division II Region 5 poll, lost to the Grizzlies, the rest of its season would have had little significance.

Tallmadge would have been facing a three-game deficit with three contests to go and its playoff hopes, which are breathing on a respirator now, would have been left for dead.

But now that the Blue Devils, who lost a heartbreaking 21-20 decision to Cloverleaf the previous week, upset a legitimate Division I program and the team that whipped Tallmadge 31-16 last year, the season still has a purpose.

"Anything can happen," Vassalotti said.

Anything can happen as long as tailback Tyler Fortner has the pigskin in his hands.

Against Wadsworth, all Fortner did was finish with a game-high 250 yards and three touchdowns on 31 carries en route to the win.

Fortner, who is being recruited by several Mid-American Conference schools, had TD runs of 71, 56 and 11 despite facing defenses with eight men in the box.

Thanks to Fortner's spectacular running, the Blue Devils controlled the clock throughout the evening.

"My approach is to get five or six yards at a time," he said. "I had some big runs earlier in the season, but it's tough to break big plays when you face teams that put eight guys in the box."

Fortner, who entered week eight with 1,364 yards and 13 TDs on 178 carries, proved he didn't have superhuman abilities on every play.

In fact, on three occasions, he showed he was very human. He fumbled three times.

Thankfully for the standout runner, only one of those miscues led to a Wadsworth score.

"I'm more concerned about the three fumbles," Fortner said. "I put our defense in a bad position. We should have had a shutout."

And Fortner didn't let himself off the hook.

After the game, the muscular senior punished himself by doing about 100 push-ups.

"He knows if he wants to be an elite back, he has to cut down on his fumbles," Vassalotti said.

In the long run, however, Fortner's slippery hands had little significance.

Tallmadge's defense, which has been the backbone of the team's success, dominated once again.

The Grizzlies only got inside the red zone just three times on the evening and the latter trip ended in a turnover when linebacker Kevin Kollar sacked quarterback Caleb Busson in the backfield.

Busson lost the football in the process and defensive tackle Andrew Roy recovered the loose pigskin.

That key play took place with a little more than two minutes left and it allowed the Blue Devils offense to run the clock out.

"Our defense has been solid all year," Vassalotti said. "We had four turnovers. We needed our defense to play well."

Fortner's 71-yard score took place with 7:58 remaining in the first half. James Plunket, who later saw a 42-yard field-goal attempt bounce off the upright, booted the first of his three extra points on the night.

The Grizzlies tied the game at seven early in the third quarter when Busson ran into the end zone untouched from 15 yards away. Wadsworth got the ball at Tallmadge's 23-yard line after Fortner's fumble.

On the very next possession, the Blue Devils made it 14-7 on Fortner's 56-yard run. He put the icing on the cake with his final score early in the fourth quarter.

Defensive back Craig Siesel, who shared a number of snaps with Patrick Pakan behind center, had two interceptions. His first pick gave Tallmadge all the momentum as the Grizzlies moved the ball inside the Blue Devils' 20 late in the first half.

Siesel jumped in front of the receiver on a short pass and returned it 55 yards. Tallmadge had a 7-0 lead at the time.

Siesel, who had four interceptions in his first two games, increased his total to seven in the team's first seven games. He is one pick away from tying the school record.

Nose guard Nick White led the defense with nine solo tackles, two assists and two tackles for losses.

In other Suburban League action Oct. 3, Highland (7-0, 4-0) gained sole possession of first place with a 31-8 win over Barberton and Cloverleaf (6-1, 3-1) fell into a second-place tie with Wadsworth after losing a 13-6 decision to Revere.

Editor's note: Results were first posted Oct. 3 on our Web site at www.tallmadgeexpress.com.

E-mail: faceto@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-686-3914