Beck runs for 179 yards, 3 TDs as Zebras squash Squires

Susaraba pick, Vance fumble recoveries lead to 6th shutout in 12 games

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

Xavier Vance Brant Beck Kale Shotts

NORTH MANCHESTER — Brant Beck ran for 179 yards and three touchdowns, and Camden Susaraba intercepted a pass in his first career varsity game as the Rochester football team blanked host Manchester 36-0 Friday.

Xavier Vance added two fumble recoveries and a pass deflection that led to Susaraba’s pick as the Zebras notched their second shutout of the season and their sixth in 12 games since the start of the 2023 season.

Sophomore fullback Kale Shotts rebounded after losing a fumble in the red zone in the first quarter and added 91 yards rushing on nine carries, including a 32-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter and a 40-yard run up the middle that set up a Beck touchdown from the 1 on the next play.

Trenton Meadows also had a touchdown run in the second quarter, and Kye Murphy had seven carries for 64 yards, including a 44-yard run in the third quarter that set up a touchdown.

Rochester is 3-1 overall and 3-0 in the Three Rivers Conference. Manchester fell to 1-3, 1-2.

Rochester had 385 yards of total offense against Manchester’s defense, which often stacked the box with 10 or even 11 players to try and contain the Zebras’ wing-T ground attack.

“For us, it’s a block-down, kick-out thing,” Rochester coach Ron Shaffer said. “You know, you can put as many in the box as you want to. For us, we just want to make sure that we’re blocking and walling things off and kicking guys out. And then, we were able to get on the perimeter really well tonight with our jets and rockets. Brant really provided a lot of that with some really great blocking in front of him.”

The final 2:55 was played with a running clock, per the IHSAA Football Mercy Rule. This marked the 14th time in the Shaffer era that a Rochester win has ended with a running clock.

Manchester quarterback Rex Moore left with an apparent ankle injury with 1:39 left in the third quarter and did not return. Junior Dallas Martin played the rest of the game under center. Martin also received playing time at quarterback in the second quarter before Moore’s injury.

Manchester was already playing without injured starting quarterback Logan Eastgate.

Rochester’s first four plays from scrimmage resulted in 47 yards rushing from Beck before Shotts’ fumble from the 10. Mason Rooney recovered and returned it to the Manchester 28.

But after forcing a pair of Manchester punts, Rochester scored on their next two possessions, driving 81 and 88 yards.

The first drive consisted of runs of 18 and 28 yards from Beck and a 35-yard pass to Drew Bowers with Bowers adjusting to quarterback Carson Paulik’s deep ball as it floated toward the hash before being tackled at the Manchester 4.

Beck followed blocks from Callen Ferverda and Shotts and scored on the next play. He then ran for a two-point conversion to make it 8-0.

Beck was tackled for only a 1-yard gain on fourth-and-3 on the next possession, but a Manchester defender was called for grabbing Beck’s facemask, giving the Zebras a first down.

Beck then followed with a 15-yard reception and a 25-yard run around the left perimeter where he followed the block of a pulling Matt Crossland.

Beck praised his offensive line, including senior Liam Pinder. Pinder made his second start at left tackle, and Beck said “he’s gotten a lot better.”

“It’s blocking assignments,” Beck said. “I give credit for all my yards to them. They work their butts off in practice and in the games to get me the yards. It’s just assignment blocking. If we see something, Shaffer will call a timeout, and we’ll get it fixed, and we’ll reiterate it.”

Meadows scored two plays later from the 5, and Trevor Walley scored on a two-point conversion run to make it 16-0.

Manchester drove from their own 30 to the Rochester 6 on their final possession of the half. Eli Metzger outleaped Maddox Jewell for a 32-yard catch, and Mason Rooney caught a 14-yard screen pass on fourth-and-12 on the drive.

But on first-and-goal from the 6, Martin threw a pass that Vance deflected right into the arms of Susaraba, a sophomore defensive tackle playing his first varsity game. He then returned it 6 yards to the Rochester 14 with 1:09 left in the half.

“A lot, especially tonight,” Shaffer said when asked about Susaraba’s impact on defense. “He allows us to play Callen Ferverda on one side of the football is the biggest thing. And then, he’s relentless. That was his first varsity football game ever, and I’d have to grade it later, but it looked pretty good to me.”

Rochester also had an 88-yard touchdown drive on their first possession of the second half.

Murphy converted a third-and-3 with a 5-yard run. After a false start penalty, he had his big run of the night on a jet sweep to the right.

“They were kind of overloading the right side of their defense, our left side,” Shaffer said. “Kye hit a seam on a really nice jet and got really nice blocking on his side. He’s a long strider. He doesn’t look like he’s going very fast, but once he gets going, he can really make up some ground. Really nice run and got us rolling for sure.”

The drive would eventually finish with Beck scoring on fourth-and-goal from the 1. Shaffer called timeout before both the third down and fourth down plays. Rochester put two tight ends on the left side of the line and sent Meadows in motion. Beck followed his blockers into the end zone, and Paulik threw a two-point conversion pass to Meadows to make it 24-0.

Vance recovered a fumbled pitch with 9:55 left. Beck had a 21-yard run on a counter before Shotts went 32 yards untouched up the middle on a trap.

After another Vance fumble recovery, the Zebras drove 44 yards in four plays. Shotts converted a third-and-7 with a 40-yard run up the middle on a trap similar to the previous touchdown play, and Beck scored from the 1 on the next play.

Meanwhile, Rochester held Rooney, Manchester’s top running back, to just 41 yards.

“Our d-line were fullback only,” Beck said of the emphasis placed on Rooney in Manchester’s midline option attack. “Like they have to get that fullback down. Me and (Zakk) Parks were at the quarterback, and the safeties were on the pitch man.”

Rochester is one of three unbeatens in the TRC. Northwestern beat Lewis Cass 64-55, and Maconaquah routed Whitko 62-0 to also stay unbeaten.

Rochester 36, Manchester 0

Rochester 8 8 8 12 – 36

Manchester 0 0 0 0 – 0

First quarter

RHS – Brant Beck 4 run (Beck run)

Second quarter

RHS – Trenton Meadows 5 run (Trevor Walley run)

Third quarter

RHS – Beck 1 run (Meadows pass from Carson Paulik)

Fourth quarter

RHS – Kale Shotts 32 run (run failed)

RHS – Beck 1 run (pass failed)