ROCK RENAISSANCE: Salem crushes rival Cobras, 61-6
Salem senior Kyle Candito stops Canton running back Augustus Guoin in the backfield during Friday night’s P-CEP rivalry game.
The tides have turned in the Canton-vs.-Salem football rivalry — not gradually, but with a tidal wave of shifted momentum.
Canton, which owned the Rocks for close to two decades prior to 2023, suffered its worst gridiron loss in possibly forever Friday night, 61-6, to a revived Salem program that has now outscored its first three foes in 2025, 135-41.
Salem dominated play on both sides of the line of scrimmage, scoring on all seven of its first-half drives to carry a 47-0 lead into halftime.
The Rocks’ defense was also impressive, holding Canton to minimal yardage while forcing four Cobra turnovers and blocking a quick-kick punt to force a running clock throughout the second half.
(Check out video highlights of the Rocks’ defensive effort by clicking here.)
Cool Hand Luke
Salem senior quarterback Luke Creighton, who recently received an offer to play collegiate football at Northwood University, engineered the beatdown with five touchdowns (three passing and two running).
Among the winners’ defensive standouts were senior linebackers Kyle Candito and Landon Garrett, both of whom piled up stops with fearless pursuit and textbook tackling.
Prior to 2023 — the year the Rocks’ current three-game victory streak over Canton started — the team formerly known as the Chiefs had outscored Salem, 264-65, during the rival programs’ previous six meetings.
“Our coaches talk about it all the time, about how Canton used to bury Salem every year,” said Salem senior Drew Eisenbeis, who snatched five Creighton spirals for 149 yards and two touchdowns. “Now we’re on a three-game winning streak against them, so it feels pretty good.”
(Click here to watch a perfectly executed TD pass from Luke Creighton to Drew Eisenbeis.)
Great team to coach
Salem Head Coach Landon Garrett, the father of the Rocks’ leading tackler, said leading the Rocks has been every coach’s dream.
“The best thing I can say about this team is they’re coachable and they’re always ready,” Garrett said. “They come in and do their work. When they make a mistake, they work to fix it. What we talk about all the time is how iron sharpens iron.
“The key to our turnaround was when this senior class came in as freshmen along with our new coaching staff. They’ve done everything we asked of them. They do the work in the classroom, at home, at school — they’re just creatures of the game. And our coaching staff is incredible as well. It’s hard to build high school football coaching staffs these days, but we have a great one.”
They lead by example
Garrett had high praise for his two team leaders: Creighton, who threw for over 300 yards, and his son, who anchors the Rocks’ undersized-yet-swarming defense.
“Luke is such a fierce competitor,” Garrett said. “He wasn’t thrilled we took him out for the second half, but he understands. Although he’s just 17, 18 years old, he holds himself accountable and his teammates follow his lead. He’s like a coach on the field.
“Landon is a great example of the old adage, ‘It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog’. Like one of our defensive coaches told me, he makes tackles he shouldn’t be making. He’s smart and he’s not afraid of contact.”
Garrett also said the defense has been bolstered by the return of senior defensive lineman Curtis Crittenden II, who missed time last year after suffering a torn ACL.
“He’s probably 5-9, 200, but he plays bigger than that,” Garrett said. “Like my entire defensive line, Curtis is a wrestler and everyone knows how tough wrestlers are.”
Family bond
Salem’s younger Garrett said playing for his dad has made him a better player.
“He probably pushes me a little harder than everyone else, which has been good for me,” linebacker Landon Garrett said. “I spend at least four hours every week in the film room, too, which I think gives me an edge.”
The Rocks led 27-0 before some fans had found their seat at the P-CEP’s East Turf Stadium.
Creighton and Eisenbeis connected on two quick TDs — one a 40-yard beauty that was well-defended by Canton cornerback Jayden Nesheiwat. Creighton ran in two scores from 5 and 1 yard out.
“Luke told me last year he wanted to run the ball more and I told him not at 165 pounds, his weight as a junior,” Coach Garrett said. “So he worked his butt off during the off-season and came in at 187 (pounds), which is one reason he’s running more now.”
Crazy catch by Chinyadza
Salem’s Caleb Chinyadza made a spectacular TD catch with Canton DB Augustus Guoin covering him like Saran Wrap and the Rocks tacked on another first-half TD when Creighton hit Nye Turner with a 70-yard bomb on a sideline route.
(Click here to watch video of Caleb Chinyadza’s amazing TD grab.)
The Rocks’ capped their first-half scoring explosion with a 5-yard run by Braylen Bowie.
Candito, Salem’s back-up QB, scored on an 80-yard keeper to open the second half.
After Canton broke its goose egg on the scoreboard on a 3-yard TD run by Alex Ryce, Salem capped the game’s scoring on a short run by Finn McMaster.
The lopsided score was not due to a lack of effort by the Cobras, who played hard to the final snap. The Rocks were just a little bit faster and stronger, which added up to the 55-point victory.
“I like where we’re at after three games,” Creighton said. “Our goal is to make the playoffs, so we still have a lot of work to do.”
Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@socialhousenews.com.
