The game started as a defensive battle, with neither offense able to score in the opening quarter. The Saginaw defense was flying around all afternoon long, staying in their gaps and making tackles.
The offense was led by quarterbacks Roman Morales and Giovanni Petrella who split reps, and Morales converted a fourth down play on the game's opening drive, but the drive ended in a missed field goal that went just wide right.
After another defensive stop, the Saginaw offense put together a drive at the end of the first quarter. Petrella threw a perfect pass to Frankie Harris who made the catch with defenders draped all over him. Petrella found the endzone on a seven-yard run to put Saginaw ahead 6-0.
The Saginaw special teams came through on the ensuing kickoff, recovering the kick. The drive stalled, and the defense put together another stop giving the ball back to Saginaw. Morales pump faked and found a wide open Aiden Collier for the 37-yard touchdown. Meschac Ntuaremba converted the two-point conversion, and Saginaw went into the locker room with a 14-0 lead.
"I didn't think we executed as well as we should've in the first half," Head Coach Mike Peters said. "At halftime, I challenged the guys to come out, and play two great quarters."
In the second half, the Rough Riders answered the challenge from the coaching staff. Ntuaremba got behind the defense, and scored from 39-yards out, to push the lead to 21-0.
The Saginaw special teams got in on the scoring, following another dominant defensive series. Riley Devries broke through and blocked the punt, and Isaiah Quinones scooped it up for the score. Four plays later, Mike Williams returned an interception for a touchdown for the 35-0 lead. The defense forced a fumble, that led to a field goal and pushed the lead to 38-0. Frankie Harris nearly had a touchdown on that drive, but a penalty negated the score. He found the endzone on the ensuing series, scoring from 37-yards away. Ethan Corbin added a score late after South Hills put a drive together in the fourth quarter, and Saginaw finished off the win.
"To come out defensively, and spark the team the way they did in the second half was awesome," Coach Peters said. "I'm really proud of our team. They played probably their two best quarters of the season in the second half."
Reflecting on the season, Coach Peters praised the Rough Riders' commitment. He said his team had 100 percent attendance for essentially the whole season, worked hard all season, and praised their desire to want to win. Lastly, he spoke very highly of his young quarterbacks and his seniors.
"Both quarterbacks have made great progress, and they both have different sets of skills," Coach Peters said. "We also have a freshman quarterback, so we should have a good battle come next year. As for our seniors, they set the tone for everything, and the things they do. These young kids see that, and when they see them grind then they'll do the same."
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