Brockington's historic night propels Tornadoes by Arrows

After Damien Brockington tallied 1,742 yards and 28 touchdowns rushing last year as a first-year starter for Columbian, there wasn't much room for improvement. But that's not Brockington's style. The sensational senior tailback entered the Division III playoff opener against Ashland Friday night with 1,691 yards and 26 touchdowns this year.He ended the game with 11 carries for 195 yards with four touchdowns … and intercepted a pass on defense. That fourth TD set the school record for touchdowns in a season as the Tornadoes dominated the Arrows 49-14. "In my mind before the season I set a goal and this was it, but just to see all the great running backs coming through here and for me to be on top with that record it means a lot to me," Brockington said. "I just come out here and try to do me. I feel like I'm a good running back and the offensive line gets me going and we came out there and got the win. That's all we wanted, was 1-0."Coach (Judd) Lutz emphasizes winning all three phases — four with the sideline — but just be hyped and get the job done. We just have to keep focus. This game is done, so we think about the next one and come out and win. We win by one or by 100 … it doesn't matter."Similarly to the Clyde game earlier this season, Brockington got things going right away taking the second play of the game to the end zone for a 69-yard TD. On the ensuing drive, Ashland (5-6) drove to TC's 23-yard line, but Brockington picked off a Nathan Bernhard pass. "He'll be the first to tell you that it's a team thing with it being five guys in front or even six, seven or eight some times in front of him, but he's electric," Lutz said. "He's the real deal. He's put the work in. Obviously, he's blessed with great ability from God, but he's made the most of it the last several years and that's what is most important. "Everything he gets he's earned for sure and I cannot say a bad thing about him. I can't. I'm proud of him, to say the least."Besides Brockington's record-breaking night, Columbian (9-2) couldn't have played a much better first half. The offense was on fire moving the ball up and down the field as Brockington had six carries for 148 yards and quarterback Brayden Roggow went 12 of 13 passing for 176 yards just at the half. His first touchdown went to Brady Gooding for a 20-yard strike to make it 14-0 TC at the end of the first quarter. The Arrows tried to respond, driving to TC's 4 on the ensuing drive, but Bernhard was stopped a yard short on a fourth down.The Tornadoes then went 94 yards to make it 21-0, capped by Brockington's 3-yard score. After an Ashland three-and-out, Brockington took the first-play handoff 48 yards for a score. With 7:40 remaining in the first half, TC led Ashland 28-0. The Arrows gave up 28 points only once in a whole game all season.Brayden Roggow then made it 35-0 at the break after finding twin brother Bryce Roggow for a 16-yard TD. "I thought the impressive thing was how we blocked on the perimeter," Lutz said. "Those dudes block for each other and they've done that all year. They really set the tone on the perimeter, manhandling the defense and blocking for each other and making some special things happen after the catch. Brayden is special and did a great job running when he should've and handing it off when he should've, making a handful of really big plays tonight. We rolled up front too, so great win."The running clock didn't last too long out of the half as Bernhard, a 6-foot-5 sophomore who has several big-time Division I offers, finally got things going. He drove the Arrows down the field on the opening possession and ran in a 4-yard TD. The momentum didn't last that long as Brockington sped past Ashland defenders for a 29-yard TD. Ashland got back within 42-14 when Tyler Sauder took the ensuing kickoff back to the house for an 85-yard TD. However, after a late third-quarter pick from Jack Koerper, he was the beneficiary of a wide receiver reverse that he took the end zone for a 22-yard score in the fourth.Bernhard capped the scoring with a 13-yard rush midway through the fourth.Bernhard was just 23 of 38 passing for 188 yards and had 11 carries for 55 more yards. His leading receiver was Michael Franz with six grabs for 99 yards."We missed a couple tackles early and that was frustrating because we had the runner for a loss or a minimal gain," Lutz said of the his defense. "Some pass drops were pretty good, but we have to contain (Bernhard) when he takes off on the ground, he got some chunks there. We always have things to work on, but overall we did some really good things. "Any time you want to do something special you have to take it one day at a time, one snap or rep at a time and that's our intention. We hit the reset button. Right now it's win-or-go-home season and we're up for it. We're battle tested we feel like and continue to search out the best version of us. I'm excited for how it's coming along."Brayden Roggow finished 16 of 18 for 210 passing yards. Gooding hauled in five catches for 69 yards, Koerper added five catches for 63 yards and Bryce Roggow finished with five grabs for 60 yards. Next week, the Tornadoes will host old NOL foe Ontario (10-1).