COVINGTON – Arcanum opened its 2026 football season in a non-conference game versus Covington, but not before enduring a 55-minute weather delay. The Trojans trailed 10–7 at the break and never got on track in the second half as the Buccs scored 21 unanswered points to hand Arcanum a 31–7 setback.
Arcanum comes into the 2026 season with optimism and an eye on competing for a league title. The Trojans return seven offensive and eight defensive starters from a team that finished 7–4 overall and placed fourth in the WOAC last season.
The Trojans were competitive and showed grit in the first half when things didn’t go their way, but the second half would be all Covington.
Arcanum went three-and-out after taking the opening kickoff and was forced to punt, giving Covington the ball at its own 35-yard line.
The teams traded punts, giving the ball back to the Trojans on their 25.
Arcanum then moved the ball to the 45 on a couple of runs and passes, but on fourth-and-short was stopped, giving the Buccs a short field.
Covington took advantage, scoring five plays later on a four-yard touchdown run by Jordan Miller, and Filip McMaken’s extra point gave the Buccs a 7–0 lead with 59 seconds left in the first period.
Arcanum struck back quickly on its ensuing possession when sophomore quarterback Weston Schmidt connected over the middle with a wide-open Talan Stone, who took it to the house for a 67-yard score to tie the game 7–7 at the end of the first quarter.
Covington and Arcanum traded multiple possessions in the second frame.
The Buccs finally got something going, driving into the red zone, but Arcanum forced a fumble and recovered to stop a scoring threat.
Covington got the ball back with 43 seconds left on its own 43-yard line after Arcanum went three-and-out.
With time running out, McMaken drilled a 28-yard field goal to close out the half and give the home team a 10–7 lead.
The Buccaneers put points on the board to start the second half as well, with Jordan Miller setting them up with a 40-yard kickoff return.
Covington moved the ball inside the 10 and faced a fourth-and-goal at the six-yard line.
Arcanum pressured Covington quarterback Landin Cassel, who scrambled right and then threw across his body to the left. Somehow, Miller snagged it inches from the ground just over the goal line for a six-yard touchdown as the Buccs jumped ahead 17–7 with 7:44 left in the third.
There would be no second-half comeback for Arcanum. When things started to go wrong, they compounded — and that’s exactly what happened over the final two quarters.
Covington had the momentum and a strong ground game going, with Cassel rushing for 122 yards on 17 carries. He capped the Buccs’ next possession with an eight-yard touchdown run after they forced a Trojan fumble to extend the lead to 24–7 with 1:40 left in the third period.
Jordan Miller also rushed for 81 yards on 8 carries for Covington, and he added an interception in the fourth quarter.
The Buccs scored one more time on a five-yard touchdown run by Rider Robbins for the final margin of 31–7.
It was a disappointing loss for coach Matt Macy and his team, which dominated in two preseason scrimmages and expected to compete for a WOAC league title.
“I told the guys this reminded me of two years ago when we played here where everything that could have went wrong, went wrong. We just couldn’t get out of our own darn way. It’s hard to win games when you can’t,” Macy said. “Covington’s a good team and you can’t make mistakes. Every time we tried to run the ball, we fumbled the snap. Every time we tried to throw, we whiffed on a block. It was just a calamity of errors at times.”
“We played really well in both of our scrimmages and didn’t have any adversity in either, so this game humbled us quite a bit. I think we needed a little — well, maybe not that much humbling.”
“Maybe this will help get their attention and our focus dialed in. We’ll get better. We’re going to overcome those mistakes.”
“All of our goals are still in front of us. The things we’ve talked about all summer, they’re still there,” Macy concluded.
Arcanum finished with 210 total yards of offense — 158 passing and 52 rushing. Weston Schmidt completed 19 passes for 158 yards and a touchdown. MJ Macy led the ground game with 50 yards on 8 carries, while Talan Stonehauled in 6 receptions for 98 yards and a score.
The Trojans now turn the page to WOAC play as they host Tri-County North next week. The Panthers opened their season in dominant fashion, shutting out Riverview 62–0, setting up an early league test for an Arcanum team still aiming for a conference title run.
