Panthers rebound: How Euclid football turned a lopsided loss into a 56-21 win over Lorain

Euclid High answered a lopsided loss in Toledo with 32 unanswered points, turning a 24-21 third-quarter lead into a 56-21 nonconference road win over Lorain on Sept. 11.

Seven days earlier, the Panthers had left Toledo with a 32-6 nonleague loss to St. John’s Jesuit. The second-half surge against Lorain delivered the response Euclid needed.

Euclid High School head football coach Damion Creel described the problem plainly: “We’ve come out flat in the second half in every single game we’ve played.”

A one-score game

Lorain struck first when Leonard McCall connected with Amari Neal for a 21-yard catch-and-run touchdown. McCall later found Tyler Chapman for a 39-yard touchdown pass.

Cameron Elston opened Euclid’s scoring with a 27-yard touchdown run and added another touchdown before halftime. Tyvier Williams returned a strip-sack fumble for another Panthers score. Euclid took a 24-14 lead into halftime.

Lorain tightened the game early in the third quarter. Chapman scored after a muffed punt, pulling Lorain within 24-21.

Creel said the Panthers had emphasized finishing and expected Lorain to keep coming. “So we talked about finishing, we talked about how Lorain wasn’t going to lie down, and they didn’t.”

The final 32

Euclid responded by scoring the game’s final 32 points. Kei’Shjuan Telfair scored twice after halftime, including a 57-yard touchdown run that restored a double-digit lead.

Tyjuan Hill’s interception helped swing momentum back to Euclid, while Antonio Robinson added a rushing touchdown. Sincere Hamilton scored twice, once on a reception and once on a rushing play.

Creel credited the unit that helped Euclid put the game away. “Our defense has been out of sight all year,” he said.

Lorain football coach Jeremy Leyva took responsibility for his team’s turnovers. “And that’s a direct reflection on me. I’ve got to clean up the practices. I’ve got to demand more efficiency, more effort, and that’s how we clean up the turnovers.”

Strongsville comes next

Euclid’s 56 points against Lorain came one week after the Panthers scored six in Toledo. That makes the win a needed reset after St. John’s Jesuit, not a final verdict on Euclid’s season.

The next conference measuring stick arrives Sept. 18, when Euclid’s official schedule brings Strongsville to Euclid Community Stadium. Strongsville is a Greater Cleveland Conference opponent.

The next test is whether the finishing that produced 32 unanswered points against Lorain follows the Panthers home to Euclid Community Stadium.