MASSILLON — The historic Massillon football program is on one of those runs again, and Mansfield Senior got run over on Friday night.
The highly-touted Tigers broke out early, rolled to a 21-0 first-quarter lead and never looked back to earn a 51-10 victory over Senior High at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
The Tigers’ record over the past five years is now 64-9, which includes five playoff trips, four regional championships and three state finals appearances.
In 2022, Massillon went 12-2 and reached the Division II state semifinals. A signature win came in Week 5 against eventual Division I state titlist Lakewood St. Edward.
Massillon features 8 starters on offense and 9 on defense from that squad, including linebacker Dorian Pringle (first-team All-Ohio), offensive lineman Evan Sirgo (honorable-mention All-Ohio), linebacker Cody Fair (honorable-mention All-Ohio), and highly recruited 6-foot-6 tight end Nolan Davenport.
That kind of talent was on display from the opening kick on Friday night.
Massillon (now 3-0) wasted no time jumping on the Tygers with quarterback Jalen Slaughter tossing a 32-yard touchdown pass to Emy Louis Jr. for a 7-0 edge with 9:18 showing in the first period.
The scoring came in rapid-fire fashion after that.
DaOne Owens ripped off a 72-yard scoring dash and Dorian Pringle added a 1-yard plunge for a 21-0 bulge.
Senior High (1-2) countered when Ja’Ontay O’Bryant returned a pick-six 27 yards to slice the deficit 21-7 at the end of the first 12 minutes.
Owens fired a 31-yard TD pass to Ja’Mier Gamble for a 28-7 advantage with 11:46 remaining in the half.
Quenton DeBolt’s 23-yard field goal pulled Mansfield Senior to within 28-10 at the 3:24 mark of the second quarter.
But Owens shook loose for a 23-yard touchdown dash to give Massillon a 35-10 spread at intermission.
The Tigers triggered a running clock midway through the third period when Michael Wright Jr. scored on a 1-yard plunge to make it 42-10 heading to the final 12 frame.
A punt situation gone awry led to a Massillon safety and a 44-10 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Slaughter capped it with a 28-yard TD strike to Jadyce Thingpen with 8:34 on the clock.
Massillon’s ground game was simply overpowering.
The Tigers ran for 320 yards on 37 carries and had two backs crack the century mark. Owens had 130 yards on just five carries. Peytton Mitchell added 113 yards on 17 attempts.
For Senior High, quarterback Duke Reese was 12-of-28 passing for 139 yards, while Amarr Davis snagged 7 aerials for 113 yards.
Next week the Tygers return to Arlin Field to face West Holmes. Meanwhile, Massillon plays host to Elkhart, Indiana.