Game Report: Columbus 32 Noblesville Lions, Ind 0


 

*Using the rosters off of Maxpreps.com

** The scoreboard was not working during the first half

My 37th game in 2026 took me back to Worthington Christian to watch the home school battle between the Noblesville Lions and the Columbus Crusaders. Entering the game, the Lions came in 3-2, while the Crusaders were 1-2. Their lone win was a forfeit win over Peebles. Columbus had two other games canceled, making for a strange start of the season.

First Quarter

Oliver MacCaughey coughed the ball up, and making the recovery for the Lions was Landon Shipman. From there Britton Siebert found Jack Hefton for 8 yards. The Crusaders blocked Hefton's field goal attempt, ending the drive. Devonte Evans scooped the ball up and looked to have scored from 61 yards out, but the Crusaders were called for a block in the back.

The ensuing drive ended when MacCaughey was picked off by Shipman. The turnover fest almost continued when the Lions' Micah Barton coughed the ball up, and leaping on it was his teammate Liam Altmann. The Crusaders would take a 2-0 lead when Hefton muffed the snap on a punt, allowing Mike Ewing, Christopher Wolfe, and Braxton Crouch to lay him down hard on the turf.

The last big play in the quarter came when Wolfe sprinted to a gain of 15 yards to keep Uncle Mo on the Crusaders' side.

Quarter two

Columbus would get a 16-yard run from Joe Kamara. A 9-yard loss for the Crusaders happened when MacCaughey was sacked by Cater Bell. Later in the quarter, MacCaughey was sacked by Lincoln Slate and Bell for a loss of fourteen.

When the Lions got the ball back, the Columbus defense was primed to shut them down, with the result being another safety, with Wolfe taking down Britton Siebert in the end zone, making this a 4-0 game.

Wolfe scored on a nice 45-yard run, followed by the P.A.T. from Couch out of the hold from MacCaughey, making this an 11-0 game. The drive totaled two pays and 45 yards. Columbus would go up 18-0 when Justice McFarland went 39 yards on another sweet run. The drive was the one play, totalling 39 yards.

The Dave Burnworth big hit of the game came from McFarland, who crushed Siebert for a loss of six. The teams would head to the locker room with Columbus leading 18-0 and outgaining the Lions 113 to minus 22.

With 8:43 left in the third, Shipman picked off MacCaughey as the rough day continued for the Crusaders junior quarterback. Defense continued to dominate the quarter this time, with 6:43 showing on the clock. MacCaughey was sacked by Anderew Spilker for a loss of sixteen. At times the Columbus offensive line seemed to forget they had to protect their quarterback, and he often paid a heavy price for it. MacCaughey shook off the latest Lions sack when he threw a strike to Wolfe from 20 yards out, making this a 25-0 game. The drive went for 52 yards, taking 5 plays.

With 19.6 seconds left in the one-sided quarter, the Lions tried a fake punt after a Columbus penalty. That decision turned out great for the Crusaders when Couch picked off Heften. Couch seems to be a player who is going to become a star for Columbus when he finds a starting slot.

With 10:57 remaining, the Columbus defense stung the Lions again when Wolfe got to Bell for a loss of five. Twenty seconds later the Columbus defense came up big when Tanner Goldsmith and McFarland threw Micah Barton down for a loss of one. At the 9:06 mark Hefton was picked off by McFarland. McFarland, a freshman, should have a bright future in front of him on the field. Columbus would give the ball right back to the Lions when Spilker recovered a Crusaders fumble, with 8:15 left.

Wolfe would sack Hefton for a loss of 10, with 7:50 left. On the ensuing drive, with 5:18 left, Goldsmith, a Columbus sophomore, scooted and boogied for a gain of 42 yards. The final points of the game came on a 5-yard touchdown run by Wolfe and the P.A.T. from Couch.

Unofficial Stats

Lions

41 plays

minus 24 yards

Passing 3-16, 2 Ints

Crusaders

43 plays

248 yards

Passing, 4-10 1 TD, 1 Int


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