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Shelby coach Chris Solis feels the Fostoria signal caller deserves that kind of exposure after watching his Whippets get picked apart during a 35-6 loss Friday night at W.W. Skiles Field.
During the battle of Northern Ohio League co-leaders, the undefeated Redmen exploded for three scores — all on plays by Hyde — in the closing 4:40 of the first half to break away from a 6-6 deadlock.
“He’s quite a competitor and a great high school football player,” summed up Solis. “He’s one of the best spread quarterbacks and has a nice arm. He’s elusive and makes you miss. Someone’s going to get a nice player at the next level.”
The big blow in Fostoria’s 23-point second quarter came on the last play of the half when Hyde delivered a 52-yard strike to Derrick Pullom on the fly.
After the Whippets turned the ball over downs at the Fostoria 18 with 40 seconds showing, Hyde immediately went to work. Two passes advanced the ball to the 48 with 3.1 seconds remaining. Then Pullom got behind the SHS secondary for the demoralizing score. With Hyde running in the PAT, the score was 29-6 at the break.
“I’m just glad he’s graduating,” said Solis of Hyde, who rushed 20 times for 79 yards and completed 12-of-16 passes for 206 yards. “I’m looking forward to seeing him go to the next level and make someone else’s life miserable.”
Avoiding the short field was imperative for Shelby to be successful. Unfortunately, the hosts surrendered field position at the end of their first series when a shanked punt sailed five yards and out of bounds at the 30.
From there the Redmen struck quickly. Hyde’s three-yard run at the 6:17 mark made it 6-0.
The Whippets had an answer on their ensuing series when they marched 67 yards on 14 plays. The touchdown — on a fourth-down call — was a 26-yard pass from Zach Strine to Josh Ingle to tie the game at 6-6 with 11:06 on the timer.
Pinning SHS deep in their own territory, Fostoria forced the hosts to punt. The Redmen took advantage of great field position and covered 27 yards in lightning-like fashion with Hyde going the final 18 yards for the score at the 4:40 mark. It was a lead that would not be surrendered.
After James Rickman picked off a pass, he lateraled to Hyde, who darted 35 yards for the score at the 2:43 mark. He would tack on a six-yard dash in the third stanza to complete the scoring.
“The second quarter killed us and the wheels fell off,” said Solis, citing a lack of discipline by his club and Fostoria’s big-play ability.
Shelby finished with 154 yards in offense and had no answer for Redmen nose tackle Jon Ramirez. Kyle Bailey had 14 carries for 60 yards in the loss and Strine was 12-of-21 passing for 68 yards.
“We had trouble blocking their nose guard. They dominated the line of scrimmage,” said Solis. FHS also had an advantage in quickness and played more physical, noted the Whippet coach.
“They are a good all-around team,” said Solis of the Redmen. “They’re 6-0 for a reason.
Leading tacklers for the red and gray were Bailey (13), Brendan Argo (9), Jon Champer (8), Tyler Grove (7) and Matt Kauffman (7). Bailey and Champer had 1 1/2 sacks and Kauffman was credited with one. Colton Rhinebolt recovered a fumble.