Russells left mark in All-Star game for New Lex
Many around Muskingum County probably were unfamiliar with the Russell boys before last Friday’s Muskingum-Licking All-Star Game.
Those in attendance got an eye full.
Tommy Russell, a true all-purpose player under coaches Bill Nutt and David Rupe in his career at New Lexington, was the linchpin for a Muskingum defense that dominated in its 21-6 victory at Tri-Valley’s Jack Anderson Stadium. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Player.
Collin Russell, his cousin, showed his dual threat ability at quarterback, leading a first-half scoring drive while rushing for a game-high 79 yards. His 48-yard burst in the fourth quarter was the longest play of the game.
Tri-Valley coach Justin Buttermore, who improved to 3-0 coaching Muskingum Valley teams, came away impressed.
“He’s a tough kid to deal with when plays break down,” Buttermore said. “He wasn’t as comfortable as Brock (Fargus) was throwing it, but as far as the running game, he did it to us several times in practice where he just beat us. I don’t know what his 40(-yard) dash time was, but he’s got the burst where he sees the seam and can hit it and go.”
These revelations, of course, were nothing new to Panther fans.
The team never reached its past glory while they were there, finishing with 5-5 records the past two seasons, but it was mostly due to a lack of supporting cast. Tommy and Collin were often reliable playmakers.
With a supporting cast, the havoc they created was often eye-popping.
Tommy, used only on defense, did most of his damage blitzing as an edge rusher. He also stymied the run playing on the perimeter. All told, he had three sacks and two other tackles for losses.
In the first quarter, when Licking reached the Muskingum 18-yard line, he recovered a bad shotgun snap after a well-timed blitz left him unblocked.
“Tommy is going to be Tommy,” Collin said. “We know he’s going to make plays. He’s an animal.”
The defensive activity was a theme Tri-Valley’s Johnny Alford and many of his Muskingum teammates saw coming.
“I could have told you after the first couple of practices that he was going to be the MVP,” Alford said. “He’s was everywhere out there. ... The way we ran our defense with a five-man front, in practice, he was smacking guys around.”
Ironically, it was his four punts — of 41, 55, 51 and 64 yards — that dealt the most crushing blows to Licking’s comeback attempt.
That wasn’t expected.
“He didn’t even punt for us (at New Lex), he was our backup,” Collin Russell said of Tommy’s special teams contributions. “He was really inconsistent (leading to the All-Star game). He’d punt one to the end zone, and the next one he’d punt about 10 yards.”
Buttermore came away impressed with all of the New Lex contingent, which also included Tiffin-bound lineman Blake Darnell.
“Tommy is kind of a goofball, but you can tell that he’s the kind of kid that when it’s game time, he’s got a motor that’s just going to go,” Buttermore said. “He’s a kid whose motor never stops.”
In the end, it showed there’s still some talent in the Perry County seat.
“With Tri-Valley being (Muskingum Valley League) champs and having 10 guys, and New Lex only to have three, for us to be able to do that was pretty sweet,” Collin said. “It was real nice to be able to play out there again.”
sblackburn@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com
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Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR