Stephenson runs wild as Indians roll past Elida

ELIDA - Shawnee running back Brandon Stephenson rushed for 182 yards and four touchdowns in Friday's Western Buckeye League game with Elida.

And that was all in the first half.

Shawnee (2-1, 2-0 WBL) rolled up 414 yards of total offense, en route to a 56-7 win over Elida at Kraft Memorial Stadium.

Shawnee did most of its damage on the ground as they rushed for 330 yards.

Stephenson set the tone early, breaking loose on the first play of the game for a 58-yard run off the right guard for a touchdown. Stephenson scored both of Shawnee's TDs in the first quarter as he rushed for 98 yards in the opening stanza.

By halftime, the Indians had built a 42-0 lead over the Bulldogs. Shawnee went into halftime with 268 yards of total offense. Elida, on the other hand, mustered just 17 yards of total offense. For the game, Elida recorded 92 yards of offense.

Elida (0-3, 0-2) did not help itself on offense, either. For the game, the Bulldogs fumbled the football six times, losing four of those.

"We shot ourselves in the foot tonight," second-year Elida coach Jason Carpenter said. "We had three drives where we killed ourselves. They forgot everything that we told them. We need to practice on snapping and handing off."

Shawnee coach Dick West said his team accomplished what it wanted.

"(Elida) did a nice job of stopping our fullback. We wanted to run our fullback a little more," West said. "So, Stephenson's number kept coming up."

Stephenson's running mate in the backfield, Isaiah Irons, rushed for 43 yards on five carries. C.J. Sewell added 44 yards on eight touches for the Indians.

For Elida, quarterback Alex McAdams completed 7 of 12 pass attempts for 83 yards and a touchdown.

McAdams connected with Matt Eilerman for a 9-yard TD reception with 6:36 remaining to play for Elida's lone score of the game.

Elida wide receiver C.J. Warren caught two passes for 51 yards.

Shawnee quarterback Josh Miller completed 3 of 4 passes for 84 yards and two TDs. Miller connected with Sheldon Hall for a 6-yard scoring strike in the second quarter.

Midway through the third quarter, Miller found Josh Tuck open for a 40-yard TD pass,

West said Miller gives his team another dimension.

"He's been getting better and better with his passing," West said. "This will definitely help us."

Shawnee's defensive unit is still without the services of second team All-District selection Zac Rosenbauer, who is still rehabilitating a broken collar bone he suffered in a preseason scrimmage.

West said he was not certain as to when Rosenbauer would return.

"He's doing some running right now, but we're not sure when he'll be back," West said.