Taking a different Angle

Published 2:37 am Wednesday, September 23, 2009

The Logan Chieftains are unbeaten because they always take the right Angle.

Logan is 4-0 and has won 29 straight Southeastern Ohio Athletic League games because of Patrick Angle, the first team All-Ohio senior quarterback of the league favorites.

Angle will be the straw that stirs the Logan chances as they face the underdog Ironton Fighting Tigers Friday at Tanks Memorial Stadium in a key SEOAL game.

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The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Angle is the Logan offense. He is not only 78 of 158 passing for 1,040 yards and nine touchdowns, but he leads the team in rushing with 158 yards on 29 carries for a 5.5 average.

“The Angle kid is a heck of an athlete, not just a good quarterback,” said Ironton coach Bob Lutz. “He’s one of the better quarterbacks we’ve seen over the years. He’s got a strong, accurate arm and he’s a big, strong kid who can pull it down and run.”

The Chieftains were 10-0 last season en route to winning the league title and return 20 lettermen and have 19 seniors on the roster.

Angle has a plethora of receivers at his disposal including second team All-Ohio slot back Mason Mays (5-11, 175) who has 19 catches for 296 yards and four touchdowns.

But Mays isn’t the team’s top receiver. Zach McDaniel has 28 receptions for 411 yards and four TDs. Complimenting the duo is Jordan Rutter with 18 grabs for 149 yards and a score.

Other receivers include slot back Brandon Graham (6-1, 195) and flankers Korey Swaim (5-11, 170) and Ryan Sigler (6-3, 190).

The fullback is Michael Snider (6-0, 200) who can run but is an excellent blocker for Angle.

“They’ve got a bunch of athletes. We had a lot of trouble with them last year,” said Lutz, referring to Logan’s 35-10 win last season.

Up front the Chieftains have three returning starters that include center Bobby Russell (6-2, 250), left guard Jeff Murphy (5-11, 210) and left tackle Tim King (6-1, 215). The right guard is Ralph Robinson (6-0, 200) and the tackle Brock Thompson (6-1, 230).

“They don’t have great size up front, but they’re all pretty athletic and do a good job protecting their quarterback,” said Lutz.

While the offense has racked up 163 points this season, the defense has allowed just 48 points making Ironton’s task on offense even tougher.

The key to the Logan defense is linebackers Mays, Graham and Snider in the 5-3 alignment.

Robinson and Sigler are the ends with Thompson at one tackle while Russell and Nathan Chandler (6-2, 215) share the other side.

The secondary has Swaim and McDaniel at the corners with Angle and Rutter sharing the free safety spot.

“”Their defense is quick and they swarm to the ball. This is the best defense we’ve seen so far this season,” said Lutz.

Logan’s 29-game winning streak in the SEOAL is the third longest. Ironton had an unbeaten string of 34 from 1971-77 and a 44-game stretch from 1977-84.