L-B dominates a star-studded opener against Elyria Catholic

Liberty-Benton head coach Scott Garlock will have his work cut out for him when he reviews film of his team's 45-14 victory over Elyria Catholic. It won't be the snuff film that most of his counterparts across the state are accustomed to after Week 1. Even for the victors, season openers can be humbling. Not this one. The Eagles (1-0), trotting out first-year starters on both sides of the ball, showed the type of cold-blooded execution that will play well in November. "We had a lot of holes to fill, but we have a great senior class with this group and you can tell they're hungry," Garlock said. "They want to prove something. They did a good job of stepping in and filling some of the roles that we missed." Mason Modd had arguably the largest shoes to fill at quarterback, replacing honorable mention all-Ohio selection Kam Garlock, but looked like a seasoned veteran picking apart the Panthers secondary to the tune of 168 yards, three touchdowns and only two incompletions before halftime. He finished the night 12 of 15 for 235 yards, four touchdowns and one interception — thrown after the game was already in hand. "I've got to give a lot of credit to my boys up front," Modd said. "They worked their butts off all week to help protect me and I was pretty safe back there. It helped me see things downfield and opened up things with our run game." Modd earned the starting role out of fall camp over junior Trevin Lieb, but described feeling as though the position was still up for grabs depending on his Week 1 performance. Having a weapon downfield in junior Brayden Lemire, who caught five passes for 141 yards and three touchdowns, certainly added to Modd's level of comfort. Trailing 7-0 following the game's opening drive, Modd connected with Lemire for a 46-yard strike to pull even, then found Seth Elchert on a screen pass that resulted in a 31-yard scoring play. Elyria Catholic (0-1) showed fight to make it 14-14 after the first quarter. C.J. Barbara then killed the visitors' momentum by knocking down a pass to force a punt, and L-B wore the Panthers down with back-to-back nine-play drives on both sides of halftime. Running back Anthony DeMartinis led Elyria Catholic with 10 carries for 162 yards. "I was on Twitter last night and I heard this little podcast thing going and they said Elyria Catholic was going to be a dark horse in their division," Lemire said. "To beat them feels absolutely amazing." The Panthers were a late add to the Eagles' schedule, after Leipsic dropped L-B from its ledger and left Garlock scrambling to find a game. The result was Ohio football royalty roaming the sideline outside Findlay on Friday night, with a first-year coaching staff led by Ohio State national champion offensive lineman Chase Farris, along with offensive coordinator Troy Smith and defensive coordinator Doran Grant. "It's like looking at your idols, and they were on the other side watching you score touchdowns," Lemire said. "It was awesome." It all felt like a perfect start on a gorgeous night at Eagles Stadium. Garlock will work hard to find some humble pie on the highlight reel. And there might just be something special brewing over at L-B this fall. Elyria Catholic&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;14&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;0&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;0&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;0 -- 14 Liberty-Benton&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;14&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;14&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;14&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;&ensp;3 -- 45 First Quarter EC -- Jayden Ramos 14 run (Sean O'Donnell kick) L-B -- Brayden Lemire 46 pass from Mason Modd (Garrett Nealis kick) L-B — Seth Elchert 31 pass from Modd (Nealis kick) EC — Darrell Shumpert Jr. 1 run (O'Donnell kick) Second Quarter L-B — Lemire 51 pass from Modd (Nealis kick) L-B — Miles Bailey 1 run (O'Donnell kick) Third Quarter L-B — Lemire 21 pass from Modd (Nealis kick) L-B — Zach Elchert 12 run (Nealis kick) Fourth Quarter L-B — Nealis 35 field goal