Massillon knocks off Middletown (Delaware) without DaOne Owens

Without starting quarterback DaOne Owens, Massillon defeated Middletown behind Jalen Slaughter's big night

MASSILLON, Ohio - The Massillon Tigers were without starting quarterback DaOne Owens on Friday night, but that didn't slow down the Tigers, as they defeated Middletown (Delaware) 41-7.

Owens, who missed the game due to an eligibility issue being investigated by the Ohio High School Athletic Association, was replaced by  Jalen Slaughter, who helped lead Massillon to the state semifinals as a sophomore last season as the starting quarterback.

Slaughter wasted no time in getting in the groove, finding Braylyn Toles for a 53-yard touchdown pass on Massillon's first offensive play of the game.

.@jiggy_j12 to @braylyn_toles for a 53 yard @MTigerFB TD.

Massillon leads Middletown 7-0 with 938 left 1Q. pic.twitter.com/ThdWSMpSLo

— Ryan (@Isley23) September 22, 2023

And then on the second drive of the game for the Massillon offense, Slaughter connected with Jacques Carter, who made several defenders miss for a 48-yard score.

In the second quarter, Slaughter found Emy Louis, Jr. in the left side of the end zone for for a 21-yard touchdown after Louis, Jr. dragged his foot inbounds to give the Tigers a 28-0 lead. 

.@Jiggy_j12 with the pass, @EmyLouisJr1 with the catch and the toe drag swag for a @MTigerFB TD.

Massillon leads Middletown (Delaware) 28-0 with 719 left 2Q. pic.twitter.com/DqKzODAIRv

— Ryan (@Isley23) September 22, 2023

Slaughter finished the game 15-of-29 with 293 yards passing and three touchdowns.

Dorian Pringle scored three 1-yard touchdowns for the Tigers and had 32 yards rushing on six carries. Defensively, Pringle had two sacks and 1.5 more tackles for loss.

.@Dorian_pringle with the TD run for @MTigerFB.

Massillon leads Middletown (Delaware) 21-0 with 1157 left 2Q. pic.twitter.com/js4wQmmYVw

— Ryan (@Isley23) September 22, 2023

Ja'Meir Gamble led Massillon with 77 yards on 13 carries. Carter led all receivers with eight catches for 142 yards.

Middletown came into  the game ranked as the No. 1 team in Delaware according to MaxPreps, making it the second week in a row that Massillon knocked off the top team in a state.Last week, the Tigers took down St. Edward, who had been the top team in the SBLive Ohio Power 25 all season and has been a mainstay in the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 this year. 

The Middletown offense accumulated just 133 yards in the game and only 23 yards in the second half. The only score for the Cavaliers came on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Austin Troyer to Matthew Priestley with 40 seconds left in the second quarter.

-- Ryan Isley | ryan@scorebooklive.com | @sbliveoh 

Photo of Massillon quarterback Jalen Slaughter by Jeff Harwell