Chagrin Falls Rallies Past Jefferson for 14-7 Season-Opening Win

Chagrin Falls erased a halftime deficit behind two huge defensive plays and a second-half offensive surge to beat Jefferson, 14-7.

Cameron Palmer
By Cameron Palmer
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needed time to find its footing offensively Friday night.

Its defense and special teams made sure the Tigers had that time.

After trailing Jefferson 7-0 at halftime, Chagrin Falls capitalized on a blocked punt in the third quarter, took the lead on ‘s fourth-quarter touchdown run and then sealed a 14-7 season-opening victory with ‘s late interception.

“We’re a bend, but don’t break defense. There’s no question about it,” Chagrin Falls head coach said. “We have a lot of youth on the perimeter, so teams are going to complete passes, and we’re going to learn, grow, and get better each week.

“We did a pretty good job of putting pressure on the quarterback. is a returning starter, and he runs it well, so we knew he was going to be a little elusive. We just had to buckle up and play the next down.”

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Falcons Strike First

Neither offense generated much momentum during a first quarter dominated by punts, but Jefferson broke through in the second.

Kalil connected with for a 25-yard gain and added a 15-yard run during the drive before finding for an 11-yard touchdown with just over nine minutes remaining in the half.

The score gave the Falcons a 7-0 advantage they carried into halftime.

Chagrin Falls’ offense had struggled to generate sustained drives, but the Tigers entered the second half needing only one play to change the complexion of the game.

Staples Flips the Momentum

That play came from .

Staples broke through and blocked a Jefferson punt before recovering it at the Falcons’ 25-yard line, immediately giving Chagrin Falls its best field position of the night.

The Tigers took advantage.

Frankel carried for gains of five and four yards during the ensuing possession, and eventually finished the short-field drive by diving across the goal line for a touchdown.

The extra point tied the game at 7-7.

“It’s just one of those things that we just had to put our heads down and get after it. Just grind it out,” Scott said. “We were able to get momentum, and that’s the key in football. It’s a game of momentum, and once you have it, you’ve got to keep it. And I felt like we were able to do that the whole second half.”

Frankel Puts Tigers in Front

Chagrin Falls carried that momentum into the fourth quarter.

Kaas ripped off an 11-yard run on the Tigers’ opening possession of the period before Frankel went to the air, and climbed the ladder to haul in a 30-yard pass deep in Jefferson territory.

A few plays later, Frankel kept the ball and raced seven yards around the right side for the touchdown that put Chagrin Falls ahead, 14-7.

The Tigers had entered the game with plans to keep Frankel’s running ability in reserve, but injuries and the first-half offensive struggles forced Scott’s hand.

“We’re depleted a little bit. We lost our starting running back early, and we had to kind of adjust from there,” Scott said. “At halftime, we talked, and we knew Max Frankel was a good runner too, and they weren’t ready for it from the standpoint that we didn’t show it on film.

“We were very vanilla in our scrimmages. We didn’t run our quarterback, so we knew that was something that we had up our sleeve, and we just knew we had to go to it because he’s the guy who did it last year. He’s the guy that I trust, so I was going to put the ball in Max’s hands.”

Frankel finished with 46 yards and the game-winning touchdown on 12 carries.

Kaas added 41 yards and a touchdown on seven attempts, while led the Tigers with 71 rushing yards on eight carries.

Butler Slams the Door

Jefferson still had an opportunity to force overtime late in the fourth quarter.

The Falcons mounted their most dangerous drive of the second half, getting a 30-yard play from before finding themselves facing second-and-31.

Kalil and Fritzsche responded with one of the night’s biggest offensive plays, connecting for a 53-yard catch-and-run that put Jefferson inside the Chagrin Falls red zone.

Once again, however, the Tigers’ defense bent without breaking.

Butler intercepted Kalil to end the threat and give the ball back to the Chagrin Falls offense.

Hoopingarner then broke loose for a 49-yard run, allowing the Tigers to drain the remaining time and secure their first victory of the season.

For a Chagrin Falls team featuring several players stepping into expanded varsity roles, it was exactly the type of finish Scott wanted to see.

The Tigers didn’t need everything to be perfect. They needed enough plays in all three phases to get to 1-0.

They made them.

Falcons See Opportunities Despite Loss

Friday also marked the debut of first-year Jefferson head coach .

The Falcons controlled much of the first half but couldn’t maintain that momentum after the break, with penalties, the blocked punt, and other miscues helping Chagrin Falls turn the game around.

“It felt like we came out and we executed in the first half, and we took what was there, and we played for the most part with discipline in the first half,” Davis said. “I think that’s the biggest switch in the second half. We had a lot of penalties and miscues in the second half, including the blocked punt. I think those things really flipped the script.

“I think our defense played phenomenally, and really the times they gave up stuff were because the offense put them in a couple of bad positions. That’s really when the game flipped. Before that, it felt like the momentum was on our side.”

Even with those mistakes, Jefferson had the ball in the red zone with an opportunity to tie the game late.

For Davis, that left both disappointment over a missed opportunity and something for the Falcons to build upon.

“It’s tough when you see the opportunities are there, but credit to Chagrin Falls because they are definitely a little bit cleaner of a game overall,” Davis said. “It was a tale of two halves, a lot of penalties, but in this game last year we executed better, and we had fewer penalties, and we ended up winning that game.

“This game, it’s just flipped, and for us, we got to kind of regroup and clean some stuff up.”

Kalil completed 7-of-19 passes for 199 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also rushed 12 times for 52 yards.

Fritzsche accounted for 143 yards from scrimmage on six touches, while Miklacic caught four passes for 50 yards and Jefferson’s lone touchdown.

Up Next

Both teams return to action Aug. 28.

Chagrin Falls hosts Orange, while Jefferson travels to face Ashtabula County rival Conneaut.

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