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Butler pulls away from Meadville @GTathletics1 @GTFBoosters @BGTfootball @Butler_Area_SD @MdvlFootball

Tagged under: District 10, Gameday Hub, News

| September 11, 2021

Butler – Cooper Baxter accounted for 265 yards of total offense and scored four touchdowns Friday night as Butler knocked off Meadville 27-13.

“It’s great to be able to get a win and to shake the rust off after not playing last week,” said Butler head coach Eric Christy. “Meadville’s a great team to go up against to get your swagger back because they have a great program.”

After not playing the prior week due to Covid concerns, the Golden Tornado restarted their season with a bang in their home opener at Art Bernardi Stadium.

Quarterback Cooper Baxter ran an option keeper 69 yards for a touchdown on the game’s first snap as Butler raced out to a 7-0 lead.

“That play was a pleasant surprise because we were trying to nickel and dime it down the field,” said Christy. “That was an electrifying play that gave us momentum and the early lead.”

Meadville answered right back as Brady Walker scored from 11 yards out.

The Golden Tornado took the lead back, following back-to-back turnovers on Baxter’s 11-yard touchdown pass to Braylon Littlejohn, capping a 30-yard drive.

 

“We did again, with stupid penalties and fumbling the football,” said Meadville head coach Ray Collins. “We were able to create some turnovers tonight, but I’ve been saying for three weeks that we’re a team of sophomores and juniors that are still figuring things out.”

The Bulldogs got the ball back with just under five minutes to play in the first half.

Faced with a second-and-goal at the 4-yard line with 12 seconds to play and no timeouts, the Bulldogs elected to run the football with Griffin Buzzell, who came up a yard short of the end zone.

“We’re better than what that scoreboard shows,” said Collins. “We are capable of playing much better football than we did tonight. Butler is a great team and very much improved. However, we continue to make mistakes at the most inopportune times.”

Meadville was unable to get lined up and get the snap-off in time as Butler escaped taking a 14-7 lead into the locker room.

Butler then extended their lead on their first drive of the second half on Baxter’s 4-yard run.

The Golden Tornado then put the game on ice when Baxter scored his fourth touchdown of the night on a 10-yard run with 8:07 to play.

“I felt like one of the big differences in the game was that we had more bodies,” said Christy. “Their guys stayed on the field. They wore out a little bit. We got them tired. We were able to keep fresh players in the game.”

Baxter finished the night with 16 carries for 131 and three touchdowns while completing 12-of-17 passes for 134 with a touchdown and an interception.

“He’s the senior captain for a reason and a three-year starter,” said Christy. “He never played quarterback until his sophomore year, but he does an outstanding job leading the team. He leads by example and also plays the middle linebacker.”

Meadville closed the scoring with a 74-yard run by Khalon Simmons with 25 seconds to play. Thanks to the long run, Simmons rushed for a game-high 150 yards on 14 carries.

 

Griffin Buzzell added 91 yards rushing on 14 attempts while adding one catch for 26 yards, Brady Walker chipped in with 54 yards rushing and a touchdown.

Both teams are in action again next week as Butler travels to McDowell and Meadville visits Harbor Creek.

“It’s always one week at a time for us, ” Christy concluded. “Next Saturday up in Erie, we get McDowell. That is a very tall order. Bo Orlando does a great job with that program. We’re going to take this week to come up with a game plan and get ourselves ready.”

Game Highlights:

 

Butler 27 Meadville 13

Score by Quarters

Meadville – 7 0 0 6 – 13
Butler – 7 7 7 6 – 27

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

B – Cooper Baxter 69 yd run, (Max Giannesli pat), 11:40

M – Brady Walker 11 yd run, (Khalon Simmons pat), 7:21

Second Quarter

B – Braylon Littlejohn 11 yd pass from Baxter, (Giannesli pat), 4:55

Third Quarter

B – Baxter 4 yd run, (Giannesli pat), 5:27

Fourth Quarter

B – Baxter 10 yd run, (kick failed), 8:07

M – Simmons 74 yd run, (bad snap), 0:25

Individual Stats

Rushing: Meadville – Walker 15-54, Simmons 14-150, Griffin Buzzell 14-91, Gavin Longstreth 1-5. Totals: 44-300. Butler – Baxter 16-131, Landon Dubyak 3-13, David Graef 3-22, Lance Slater 1-1, Landon Lacey 1-(-1), Mac Schnur 1-(-5), Team 1-0. Totals: 26-161.

Receiving: Meadville – Buzzell 1-26, Simmons 1-0. Butler – Littlejohn 3-41, Ethan Trettel 2-20, Slater 3-36, Isiah Kelly 1-11, Charlie Kreinbucher 2-11, Lacey 1-15.

Passing: Meadville – Longstreth 2-for-9, 26 yards. Butler – Baxter 12-for-17, 134 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception.

Interceptions: Meadville – Buzzell.

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