The longest football rivalry in the history of Indiana also serves as the longest catfight. Since 1902, the Peru Tigers have faced Felix the Cat and the Logansport Berries in a heavily contested matchup. This feud surged tonight with both teams’ season openers, hosted at Logansport. The Berries showed up and showed out, aiming to repeat the claiming of the Baldini Trophy, named after former Logansport Head Coach, Don Baldini.
Both teams came out firing on all cylinders, but the Berries asserted dominance quickly in the first quarter. After winning the coin toss, the Berries scored a touchdown not even two minutes into the first quarter. This was the first of many touchdowns of the night for junior Elliot Baldini, grandson of Coach Baldini, and senior Dylan Hamm’s kick was good for the extra point. Defensively, in the first quarter, there were several stellar stops for the Berries, including All-State defensive end Loran Taylor.
The second quarter began with a score of 7-0, but the Berries quickly multiplied their offensive actions. Just short of a minute into the second quarter, Baldini carries another touchdown with a good extra point, advancing the scoreboard 14-0. Defensively, efforts from Jaxsyn Walker, Braiden Packard, Jackson Wicker and Larry Umholtz prevented the Tigers’ offensive line from advancing. With only a few minutes left before halftime, freshman Karsen Jackson intercepts a Peru pass and returns it to the endzone for a pick six, his first varsity touchdown.
“Having this opportunity to play with my brother tonight was really a dream come true” freshman Karsen Jackson said. “Playing for the Baldini Trophy was just a great experience; I feel very blessed. Defensively, we all put in our best work tonight, holding Peru all game just shows the amount of work we’re putting in on both sides of the game.”
The impressive touchdown of the freshman player made the crowd roar instantly, but there was more to come before halftime. With several defensive strides, most notably by Louis Rozzi’s clutch tackle with 17 seconds left on the clock, the Berries had yet another position to score before halftime. With just 1.3 seconds left, quarterback Bryson Herr launches a 35-yard pass to Quincy Jackson. Going into the half, the Berries had worked up a fiery crowd and put up 28 points on the scoreboard.
Coming into the second half, the Berries continue their efforts for lockdown defense, while advancing all the more on the offense. Four minutes into the third quarter, Baldini scores his third touchdown of the night, and shortly thereafter, sophomore Jaxsyn Walker adds six more to the score, making it 41-0. For Baldini’s fourth and final touchdown of the night, he ran the ball with only 18 seconds on the clock, updating the score to a whopping 48-0.
Overall, the Berries scored seven touchdowns, kicker Dylan Hamm was four of five from the 20-yard line and there were countless efforts from both sides of the line of scrimmage to keep the Baldini Trophy in Logansport’s possession.
“At the end of the game, looking at the trophy and the legacy within it, glancing at Baldini and his smile, it certainly does add importance to the game” senior Larry Umholtz said. “Looking back, seeing people hyped up and the stands full, it makes the experience more than just this is our home opener. This is Peru, this is the legacy.”
