Cashion Goes Back To Back In Dramatic Fashion

<strong><em>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</em></strong> Cashion and Ringling have been the top two teams in Class A for the majority of the season and this game certainly lived up to the hype coming into the week. In a rematch of 2019’s title game, Cashion got the better of Ringling this time around to capture a second consecutive state championship. And after a stalemate for the majority of the second half, senior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="52273" first="Ben" last="Harman"] connected with senior wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="53312" first="Mason" last="Manning"] on a 9-yard touchdown with just eight seconds left to put the Wildcats up and would give Cashion their second straight state championship. It was fitting that it was Harman connecting with Manning for the game-winning touchdown. Those two were the majority of the Cashion offense on Saturday afternoon. Harman finished 18-33 for 285 yards and two touchdowns. Manning had 14 of those 18 completions and had 195 yards and both touchdowns. Manning also finished with 11 tackles on defense and finished the title game with 2 tackles for a loss. Cashion’s offense had no problems with the big play early on but stringing together consistent drives became a problem for both teams. Cashion nearly had disaster strike as a forward pitch on third down would end up in the hands of Ringling’s Julius Koons and he would take what appeared to be an interception all the way to the Cashion 6. Eventually, the referees changed their call and would rule it an incomplete pass, which was the correct call. Cashion would then take advantage of new life and score on the first of two Harman to Manning touchdowns as the senior hauled in a 31-yarder to put Cashion up 7-0. Ringling took about three minutes to respond as they marched right down the field behind a strong rushing attack and finished it off with a 12-yard touchdown run from Kaden Barron. The Blue Devils would do almost all of their damage on the ground. They finished with 236 yards on the ground while only having 13 yards in the air. However, Ringling started to put together some momentum after the touchdown by forcing a Cashion three-and-out. But then late in the second quarter, with the ball near midfield, Ringling would fumble it away and Cashion’s [player_tooltip player_id="52787" first="Max" last="Brown"] would take the loose ball 50 yards for a touchdown to go up 14-7. A good punt return from Ringling would set them up with great field position halfway through the second quarter. They would take one play for Ringling running back Coltin Fincher to go 25 yards to tie the game up at 14. Fincher ended up being the star of the Ringling offense as he finished with 149 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries. The two teams would head into the halftime locker room tied at 14 and it would remain tied at 14 until the final eight seconds of the game. Both teams really clamped down on defense in the second half and put together stop after stop. And finally, Cashion would march 67 yards in 9 plays and scored with 8 seconds left on the clock. Harman was magnificent leading the Wildcats right down the field. He was 5-5 on the final drive and 21 of his 33 rushing yards came on that final possession. And with Ringling relying almost exclusively on the running game, there was just not enough time for them to do anything with eight seconds remaining. The Blue Devils would get a good return to their own 41-yard line but the hail mary attempt was batted down by Manning, who finished off his spectacular championship performance by forcing the incompletion. Cashion finished off their season at 14-1, winning 14 straight after a season-opening loss to Rejoice Christian. The loss on Saturday afternoon would be Ringling’s only defeat of the 2021 season, also finishing with a 14-1 record. <hr /> <table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 49.8819%;"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 16.6667%;"><strong>CASHION (14-1)</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.45543%; text-align: center;"><strong>14</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.92495%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.45548%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.80753%; text-align: center;"><strong>7</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.57283%; text-align: center;"><strong>21</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width: 16.6667%;"><strong>RINGLING (14-1)</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.45543%; text-align: center;"><strong>7</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.92495%; text-align: center;"><strong>7</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.45548%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.80753%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.57283%; text-align: center;"><strong>14</strong></td> </tr> </tbody> </table>