CENTRAL PLAINS 54, CENTRAL CHRISTIAN 0

BY JIM MISUNAS

jmisunas@gbtribunecom

HUTCHINSON — Central Plains center Tyler Holmes and quarterback Michael Laymon enjoy a "silent count," that only a center and quarterback would appreciate.

In Claflin, they call it "Oiler Magic."

Holmes snapped the football and Laymon sprinted 38 yards right up the middle for a touchdown Friday night. Laymon scored fourth touchdowns to cap a dominating 54-0 halftime rout over Hutchinson Central Christian. The game was stopped at halftime by the 45-point rule.

Laymon's surprise touchdown was triggered by Holmes, who snapped the football without a verbal signal.

"It's quarterback draw. It's a silent count that we ran right up the field," Laymon said.  

A virus-plagued start for the red-hot Oilers (4-1) is a distant memory. The Oilers executed a perfect first half with six touchdowns in six drives while limiting the Cougars to eight yards on 30 offensive snaps. 

Holmes joined guards William Laymon and Matthew Donecker and tight ends Karter Beck and Jacob Oberle with dominating offensive blocking. 

"Our blocking today was phenomenal. 'T' Holmes led the team in blocking," Laymon said. "We watched a lot of film. We knew what they were doing before they ran it."

Holmes contributed eight tackles and sacked Emilio Perez for a 5-yard loss. Michael Laymon contributed 12 tackles, two for losses.

"We had a lot of fun," Holmes said. "It was a pretty good football game. We were ready to go tonight. It's a good confidence boost."

The Oilers took advantage of a brisk south wind for a 32-0 first-quarter lead. The Cougars started drives from their own 2, 9 and 15-yard lines and trailed 24-0 after running seven plays.

Oiler Dawson McNeal forced an opening fumble that teammate Karter Beck recovered. Michael Menges converted back-to-back 4-yard touchdown runs after a 20-yard punt return by Michael Laymon for a 16-0 lead. Michael Laymon and McNeal converted 2-pointers.

Michael Laymon responded with four scoring runs — 14, 16, 38 and 1 yard. He finished with 123 yards on six carries. Dawson McNeal converted a 6-yard scoring dash. Karter Beck caught a pair of 2-point plays from Michael Laymon. Michael Laymon and Blaine Hickel added conversion runs.

Central Plains coach Chris Steiner said film work by the Oilers paid off with a perfect defensive game plan. Cougar quarterback Dawson Erwiller managed nine yards rushing and six yards passing. The Cougars' only legitimate play was nullified by a penalty.

"They gave us a lot of reads we expected," Steiner said. "We called their plays out and knew what was coming. We stayed really disciplined defensive football. They run a lot of misdirection and movement. Our guys stayed at home."

Central Plains (5-1, 3-1 District) is assured of an 8-Man Division 2 playoff berth, and will clinch a home playoff game with a victory over Wilson (4-3, 3-2 District) next week.

Central Plains 32 22 — 54

C. Christian 0 0 — 0

CP—Michael Menges 4 run (Michael Laymon run)—10:16

CP—Menges 4 run (Dawson McNeal run)—8:06

CP—M. Laymon 14 run (Karter Beck pass from M. Laymon)—4:31

CP—M. Laymon 16 run (Beck pass from M. Laymon)—1:59

CP—M. Laymon 38 run (run failed)—10:06

CP—McNeal 6 run (M. Laymon run)—7:34

CP—M. Laymon 1 run (Blaine Hickel run)—4:31

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—CP—16-160; M. Laymon 6-123; Menges 3-17, McNeal 3-12, Hunter Klima 3-6, Hunter Green 1-2; CC—17-2; Dawson Urwiller 10-9, T.J. Bessmer 4-3; Emilio Ibarra 3-(10)

PASSING—CP—M. Laymon 2-3-0, 24; CC—Urwiller 2-13-0, 6 

RECEIVING—CP—Beck 2-24; CC—Roberto Ibarra 2-6