'Big Uglies' beautiful in FH Homecoming win

By: Chris Appel

CUMBERLAND — When the Fort Hill offensive line meets this Tuesday for their weekly dinner Raen Smith, Troy Banks and Sentinels Coach Todd Appel will be buying their steaks.

Porterhouses. Tenderloins. New York Strips. Nothing is too good for the unheralded heroes of Fort Hill’s 48-13 Homecoming victory over Allegany Saturday at Greenway Avenue Stadium.

If running backs are the lifeblood of a team, then the line is its heart and the Sentinels showed just how big theirs was by riding tackles Gabriel Logsdon and Richard Hess, guards Brayden Conley and Holden Sibley and center Noah Bunner for 53 rushes and 311 yards.

Fort Hill went the smash-mouth route beginning in the second quarter and continued to pound the Campers through the second half, leaning on Smith and Banks after Allegany successfully committed to shutting down Brayden Brown.

Smith had 99 yards on 14 carries, all in the second and third quarters, and Banks added 82 on 13 touches. Quarterback Nathaniel Graves, who was named Defensive Player of the Game after two interceptions, gained 67 yards on 10 carries.

Fort Hill started slow and simple, but after throwing some jabs at the Campers during the first quarter, Conley said the Sentinels came with the bigger blows in the second.

“We came out at the beginning and our offense wasn’t as aggressive as we normally are because we were trying to see what they were going to do,” said Conley. “We came out in the second half with a better idea of what we were doing and we took it to them. We got a lot more physical as the game went on.”

Sibley also believes that the Sentinels began to wear down the Campers, giving credit to physical and mental conditioning in being able to stay strong.

“Coach Appel said all week that we need to be able to play all four quarters with them and that’s what we were able to do. We kind of outlasted them.

“I felt that game was going to depend upon how well we played up front,” added Sibley. “We knew they were good. We knew they were strong and physical, but we had to come out and be more physical than any team they’ve played before.”

Smith, who was selected as the Offensive Player of the Game, credited his blockers for grabbing the moment early in the third quarter by becoming more physical.

“We came out with a bang in the second half, and everything really started clicking,” he said. “With our line leading the way we were able to start shoving it down their throats and when we put one in the end zone I think that helped us finish the game out strong.”

“This is an amazing win,” Smith added. “We work so hard for this and for the game to go down like it did is an unbelievable feeling. For it to be as close as it was at halftime, only for us to come out and put it away pretty quickly, it shows what we can do as a team.”

Hess agreed that the Sentinels stepped up the effort in the second half, and like a good teammate, he threw some love back towards Smith and the other members of the Fort Hill backfield.

“We weren’t really moving them off the ball as much in the first half, but in the second half we took control of the line. Our backs run hard — very hard — and they did a great job for us.”

Hess noticed that as the line got more physical, the rest of the team seemed to follow and everything snowballed from there. The defensive line also improved in the second half as well, limiting Allegany to just 33 yards after halftime.

“We all got more physical,” Hess continued. “That was the difference. We didn’t change the game plan. We just got more physical as the game went on.”

The Sentinels threw for 53 yards, including a 23-yard touchdown pass from Graves to Brown on fourth-and-21 where Brown took the ball away from an Allegany defender. Fort Hill was carried by its running game, though, and the line carried the running game. That weight is never too heavy for the linemen because they bear the brunt together. Each one works with the other four as a family-within-the-family that is Fort Hill football.

“We love each other,” said Sibley. “We have a family dinner each Tuesday. We go out and eat, and just have a good time. The whole line is one big family.”

Hess gave the same humbling review of his peers, “We are very close. We do a dinner every week together. That’s very special to me. Those guys are like family.”

The next Fort Hill family reunion is Friday at Greenway when Northern visits in the opening round of the Maryland 1A Playoffs.