The Ross defense put on its finest performance of the season in limiting Northwest – one of the top rushing attacks in Cincinnati and the FAVC leader at 290.3 yards per game – to a paltry 84 yards for the game.
The Rams defense also snapped Northwest running back Frank Turner’s streak of 100-yard rushing games in the process.
“We heard through the grapevine that people were saying we were soft and that we hadn’t played anybody, so we were really fired up,” said Ross coach Brian Butts.
“Ross is a physical team,” Northwest coach Chad Murphy said. “I know they wanted to stop (Turner), and for the most part, they did.”
Ross scored first when quarterback Tyler Noonan hit wideout Brennan McGuire with a short screen pass at midfield that McGuire turned into a 50-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead with 8:05 left before halftime.
“I was talking to our offensive coordinator and I said, ‘I want to see a middle screen this series’,” Butts said. “We got a big first-play run and I thought ‘Man, right now’s the perfect time’ and we got it off and Brennan made a nice play. We’re starting to hit on some cylinders we weren’t hitting on earlier in the year.”
The Rams added to their lead when Dunn scampered for a 15-yard TD to make it 13-0 with 5:02 left in the first half. Northwest got back into the game with a 2-yard touchdown run by quarterback Cory Roberson to close the gap to 13-6 at the 8:26 mark in the fourth quarter, and the Knights had a chance to tie at the end.
But Roberson’s pass intended for wideout DeQuan Render fell incomplete in the end zone with no time remaining.
“We consider ourselves in the (playoff) hunt until someone eliminates us,” Butts said. “We’re 6-1. We think we’re in the hunt just as much as anyone else. In our thoughts, someone has got to beat us to keep us out.”
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