The Muskingum football team opened its spring season against Mount Union on Friday night at Zanesville High School. The Purple Raiders handed the Muskies a 51-15 setback in a physical season-opener for both teams.

The Basics

• Records: Muskingum (0-1), Mount Union (1-0)
• Location: Sulsberger Stadium - Zanesville High School
• Attendance: 300

Inside The Numbers

• Junior Jordan Garrett led the Muskie offense throwing for 229 yards and two scores. He completed 20-of-33 passes with one interception. He also rushed for 18 yards.
• Freshman Travis Roberson led the team with 75 yards receiving on four grabs with one touchdown.
• Freshman Gannon Unger had a team-high five grabs for 11 yards and one score.
• Freshman Travanti Keitt and sophomore Ja'Lin Goodman each had three receptions. 
• Senior Cameron Near led the rushing attack with 32 yards on five totes.
• Senior Brian Brown led the Muskie defense with 13 tackles and one forced fumble.
• Senior Nehemiah Bowie added 12 stops and one sack.
• Sophomore Yo-Vonne Roberts had nine hits.
• As a team, Muskingum churned out 293 yards of offense on 70 offensive plays.
• Braxton Plunk led Mount Union, going 20-of-26 for 314 yards and six touchdowns. 
• Josh Petrucelli rushed for a game-high 108 yards on 11 carries.
• KJ Redman added 103 yards rushing on nine totes.
• Jaden Manley led the receivers with three touchdowns.
• Carson Kovath led the Purple Raider defense with nine hits and two tackles for loss.
• Mason McMillen added six stops with 1.5 sacks.
• Mount Union ended the outing with 596 yards of offense and 29 first downs.

The Game

• Mount Union scored the first 21 points to grab the early momentum.
• Muskingum trimmed its deficit after an eight-play, 77-yard drive that culminated with Garrett hitting Unger for a 10-yard touchdown.
• Mount Union tallied the final 14 points of the half to take a 35-6 lead into the break.
• The Purple Raiders scored first after halftime to extend its margin to 42-6. 
• The Muskies kept battling, and Garrett found Roberson for a 15-yard touchdown toss early in the third quarter, and junior Gavin Costello made a 29-yard field goal in the opening second of the fourth to round out the Muskie scoring.

Up Next

• The Muskies next play at Baldwin Wallace on Friday, March 26. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.