Behind another huge night by Zacciah Saltzman, the Athens Bulldogs finished the 2015 campaign on a high note.
THE PLAINS — Powered behind running back Zacciah Saltzman, Athens High School hammered archrival Nelsonville-York 50-14 to cap off the 2015 season.
Saltzman, who played his last game as a Bulldog, powered through the Buckeye defense, rushing for 362 yards and five touchdowns across 38 carries.
With the big night, Saltzman surpassed 2,000 rushing yards for the season, ending the year with 2,117 yards on the ground and 37 touchdowns — just seven scores shy of Trae Williams' school record.
“It’s an amazing accomplishment,” Athens coach Ryan Adams said. “(Two thousand yards) is something that’s not seen. I don’t know too many guys anywhere in Southeast Ohio that can lay claim to that.
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"I’m tickled (for Saltzman) because (of) the amount of work I have watched (him) put in for the past three-plus years.”
The Bulldogs finished the season 6-4, missing the playoffs one year removed from their trip to the state title game in Columbus.
“(Sending the seniors out with a win) is huge,” Adams said. “Coming into the season, I knew it would be a difficult journey trying to take this team on after prior success. It was tough navigating...We could have gone a lot of ways at the beginning of this year, but we persevered.”
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