Spotlight shines on backs in Massillon-Hoover clash

Tigers’ Turner, Vikings’ Howard have futures at Division I colleges

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Chris Easterling, Massillon Independent

MASSILLON, OH — Football is obviously a team game, there’s no question about that fact. But forgive those

watching Saturday night’s Division I regional quarterfinal between Massillon and Hoover at North Canton Memorial

Stadium if they’re not drawn to the individual matchup between the Tigers’ J.T. Turner and the Vikings’ Erick Howard.

In Turner, Massillon has a 1,300-yard rusher who just happens to also be an All-Ohio-caliber performer at cornerback. In Howard, Hoover has a nearly 1,800-yard rusher who also is a pretty fair linebacker as well.

While Turner – a senior – has already committed to play at the University of Michigan, Howard still has another year to mull over his college choices. But that still hasn’t kept the likes of Ohio State, Southern Cal and Florida from drooling over the chances of the Viking junior choosing them.

“Both teams have a player who is just a Division I, top-notch, two of the better players in Stark County, without a doubt,” Massillon coach Jason Hall said. “It’s going to be exciting. It’s going to be who can game-plan the best. It’s going to be fun to watch those two go at it.”

And that’s just it, the two will no doubt see plenty of each other during the course of Saturday’s game. Howard is third on Hoover in tackle points with 126, while Turner – at a position not nearly as involved in many stops – has 26 tackles.

“Erick Howard is a great running back,” Turner said, “and we have a great running back. It’s going to be a great matchup. He plays defense, so he’s going to see me, and I’m going to see him.”

Saturday’s game may very well come down to which defense is able to keep the other team’s star tailback in check. It’s not likely that either team will completely stop the other tailback, but it is possible to keep one or the other relatively contained.

Neither team is denying that the other running back is also probably the toughest challenge it has faced from the running back position this season.

“Every time (Turner) touches the ball, he reminds you a lot of an O.J. Simpson or Robert Smith with the way he cuts back and the way he accelerates and how explosive he is,” Hoover coach Don Hertler Jr. said. “He’s just a great athlete and a great player. He’s a Big Ten player, and we haven’t seen a player like him all year. It’s going to give us a great challenge.

“Erick’s a year younger. He plays linebacker and running back. He’s a year younger and still coming along. He plays hard and he cares about winning.”

What the Tigers care about this week is making sure they remain fundamentally sound on defense to bring Howard to the ground. The 5-foot-11, 205-pound junior has already gained 1,795 yards on 285 carries – an average of 6.3 per carry and 179.5 yards per game – and does so with a physical style of running not entirely different from the kind Massillon saw out of Normandy’s Jake Squirek.

The difference between Howard and Squirek, though, may be breakaway speed. While the Tigers were able to track Squirek down in the secondary, if Howard gets loose, he very well could outrun the defense to the end zone.

“Just the way he runs,” Turner said. “He’s not that good running sideline to sideline, but if he turns his shoulders square, he can do some damage. We just want to not let him turn his shoulders square.”

The Tigers also do not want to have a repeat of the arm-tackling they did against Squirek in the Week Three win over Normandy. Squirek was able to run through the arm tackles of several Massillon defenders on his way to a 207-yard performance.

Since then, though, Massillon has done a much better job of tackling, especially against good running backs. Only St. Ignatius’ Kevin Johnson has rushed for more than 100 yards on the Tigers since then, although Monterae Williams did have 97 yards last week for McKinley.

No other back has gone for more than 85 yards on the Tigers since Squirek’s big game.

“We do a lot of hitting drills from the defensive backs’ standpoint,” Turner said. “We practice not using our arms, just wrapping up and gang-tackling, three-on-one tackling. That’s what we need to do this week.”

Turner, meanwhile, hasn’t been too shabby himself. He has rushed for 1,333 yards this season, including 200-plus-yard games in two of the last three weeks, with a 179-yard performance sandwiched in between.

His teammates certainly know about the tailback matchup, and are looking to do what they can to help him out.

“We like to kind of show him off, you know,” Tiger fullback Matt Patterson said. “We want to show them we have the better running back. We like to just keep working hard, so he can have the best game he can.”

Which could go a long way to the Tigers and Turner moving on, while the Vikings and Howard bow out of the playoffs.

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