September 10- The Bishop McDevitt Crusaders made quick work of Red Land this morning at McDevitt field, racing to a 28-0 first half lead before settling for a 42-14 victory. The Crusaders, now 2-0 (and 2-0 in the Mid Penn Commonwealth Conference), were considerably sharper and more focused than they were in the opener against State College, scoring at ease against an outmanned Patriot squad. Red Land (1-1, 0-1) was virtually helpless against the McDevitt offense, which needed only 14 plays to complete 4 touchdown drives. Similarly, the Crusader’s starting defensive unit pitched a shutout and collected 4 sacks and an interception along the way. Defensive linemen Sebastian Sullivan, Matt Dietz, Dave Dunn, Jason Kates, Dave Seiple and Brian Weisser stuffed the Red Land power running game and made life miserable for Patriot quarterback Skyler Hunt. Linebackers Pat Berry, Leon Black, Dave Onorato and Keith Davis looked quick and mean, and the secondary of Aaron Berry, Vince Comasco, Eric McGovern and Matt Vargo blanketed the Red Land receivers.

On offense, quarterback Jeremy Ricker directed an efficient, balanced attack, completing 9 of 12 passes for 165 yards and 2 scores. Aaron Berry had 7 catches for 144 yards and a touchdown, and Brandon Brown contributed 2 catches for 21 yards and a TD, as well as a number of fine downfield blocks. Tailback LeSean McCoy continued his relentless assault on the record books with a 222 yard effort on 18 carries, with 3 touchdowns. The offensive line of Kates, Sullivan, Black, Ryan Finney, Carlos Mera and Tucker Baumbach came out aggressive and set the pace for the Crusader attack.

Red Land started its initial possession at its own 26 and punted 3 plays later, thanks in part to a 2 yard sack by Kates. The short Patriot punt went out of bounds at the RL 48, and Ricker ignited the fireworks by firing a bullet to Berry for an 11 yard gain. Shady took a handoff on the next play and circled left end behind Seiple’s bone-jarring block and blasted by 2 Red Land defenders on the way to the game’s first score with 8:57 left in the opening quarter. Mike Comasco, perfect on every PAT so far this season, added the first of his 6 points of the morning. The next Red Land series was another 3-and-out, followed by a 29 yard punt to the McD 45. McCoy ran for 9, and then Ricker and Brown connected for 10 yards to the RL 35. McCoy then cruised through the middle of the Patriot defense for a too-easy 35 yard scoring run, but a holding penalty brought the ball back to the 45. McCoy then ran for 5 before Ricker launched an impressive 22 yarder to the sure-handed Berry. On the next play Shady rounded the left corner and was forced out of bounds at the RL 7, where the Patriot’s Brennan Dougherty delivered a cheap shot about 4 yards past the sideline. The referees marched off a half-the-distance penalty to the 3 as the McDevitt faithful howled in fury and McCoy shuffled to the sideline for a brief rest. Then sophomore running back Aaron Johnson, running out of the power “I” formation, blasted into the end zone for his first varsity touchdown and the lead stretched to 14-0 at the 4:20 mark. Again, the Patriots were stuffed on 3 plays, and the ensuing punt rolled dead at the McD 44. This time the Crusaders needed only 3 plays to find pay dirt. First, Berry made an acrobatic catch of a Ricker bomb for a 43 yard gain. Then, after a 2 yard McCoy run, Ricker patiently waited for Brown to get open and then threw an 11 yard rope for the tally. It was now 21-0 with 1:21 still remaining in the first stanza. The second quarter began with a McGovern interception at the McD 47, but a Crusader fumble gave Red Land new life. The Patriots managed a first down to the 35, but a dazzling 9 yard sack by Davis forced another punt. In fact, the two teams traded punts before McDevitt regained possession at its own 36 late in the half. McCoy broke off a twisting 33 yard run to advance the ball deep into Red Land territory, and then sophomore Mike Jones was dropped for a 2 yard loss. Ricker then waited for Berry to slip behind the Patriot secondary before delivering another accurate throw, good for a 34 yard score with 3:42 left in the half. A facemask penalty helped Red Land move into scoring position in the waning moments of the half, but a Vargo sack and a fine defensive play by Mike Comasco in the secondary kept the Patriots off the scoreboard.

The third quarter started as a snoozer, as the defenses dominated and both teams punted twice. McDevitt regained possession at its own 37 with 5:28 left in the quarter when Head Coach Jeff Weachter decided it was time to hitch a ride on the Shady train. The first run went for 12 yards and a first down, followed by short gains of 5 yards and 1 yard. Then McCoy erupted from the Crusader backfield and squirted through the Red Land defense for a 43 yard touchdown. The score and subsequent PAT made the score 35-0 with 3:45 left in the third quarter and invoked the “mercy rule”. The quarter ended with the McDevitt defensive starters thwarting Red Land for the final time of the game, forcing a punt to the McD 35. The final quarter began with a 15 yard Ricker-to-Berry hookup. McCoy then finished his productive morning with a final 50 yard touchdown run, which featured a head-shaking move at the RL 45. With a 42-0 lead and a running clock, Weachter emptied the sidelines as a number of McDevitt reserves got hard-earned varsity playing time. Seniors Brett Quigley, Adam Malatestinic, Mike Modica and Daricus and Daryl Releford; juniors Vince Lochetto, R.J. Hetrick, Stephen Dixon, Hector Cabrera and Justin Knox; sophomores John Koury, Tristan Rosato, Jordan Knox; and freshman Dante Ushery among others, saw varsity action as the game moved toward its conclusion. Two backup quarterbacks, Todd Gelbaugh and Jon Wilson, took their first varsity snaps. Red Land scored 2 late touchdowns to make the final score 42-14.

McDevitt’s next contest is against the Golden Tigers of Hollidaysburg High School, on Friday, September 16th. The game, which will be played at Hollidaysburg, starts at 7:00 PM. A bus is available for fans who wish to attend the game. The cost is $20.00 per seat. For more information, please call 554-0743.

QUOTES

Head Coach Jeff Weachter

I was real happy today. We didn’t have a good week of practice before State College and the players knew it. We had a much better week this week, a much better tempo. We weren’t happy with the way our line was coming off the ball and today they improved on that. Jeremy was very sharp and the passing game was sharp for the first time all year. When we can come off the ball like that and be sharp in the passing game it’s tough to stop this offense. We talked about some things in our staff meeting last Sunday, things we needed to do. We had a nice long chat with the team on Monday. We told them that we, as coaches, let them down last week because we let them practice poorly before the State College game and we guaranteed them that we weren’t going to let them practice poorly again. So each member of the coaching staff stepped up this week and really made the practices very good. I do think all of the distractions had something to do with it. We were really tight last week and, like I said, we probably did too much up at Penn State. This week we just relaxed, worked hard, had fun and played football. I was very happy with the defensive line; I thought they played very well. And the secondary covered pretty well. Coach Berry has done a great job of polishing up that defense. He’s got bad elbows right now because he’s been polishing so hard, but it’s getting there! Any time that you can get everybody in the game it’s good so I was happy with that. But I just told that second group of guys that they have to step up and play a little bit better when they get in.

Assistant Coach Lamar Banks

We practiced a little harder this week. The attitude was better. We were pretty much issued a challenge from Red Land, from their coaching staff, basically, so I think our kids stepped up and answered that challenge today. We did lose a little focus in the second quarter but that happens. You get out ahead of a team 21-0, 28-0 and sometimes you get lax because it’s getting pretty easy. So we had to get refocused, retooled, and we came out and put it to them again. Now we know Hollidaysburg has some athletes. We didn’t get to play them last year because of the rain and the hurricane, but they’re 2-0. They had a big game last night and they won, so we have to get prepared to go up there and take them out.

DT David Dunn

We came out strong today. They were talking all this stuff about how they were going to shut Shady down, so we just came out strong and, as a defense, we did a lot better today. There might have been a little bit of bad feelings between the two teams but it sure didn’t bother us. The move to defensive tackle has been fun for me. I wasn’t that fast at defensive end but I’m faster and stronger this year playing tackle so I like it.

LB Pat Berry

We worked a lot harder this week, a lot more intense and more physical practices. Red Land didn’t really surprise us with too much, except for that one reverse they ran. We were prepared for their plays. There might have been a little bit of bad blood but guys get over that as soon as we start playing.

S Matt Vargo

On my sack I was supposed to be in coverage but I saw that there were no receivers near so I just came up and made the play. After last week against State College I got a lot of support from my teammates and the coaches. I just have to keep my head up and keep good spirits. I mean, we won the game so that’s all that matters. Kickoff team is a lot of fun. We just try to get the crowd and the team all riled up and start the game off with a bang.

WR Brandon Brown

On the touchdown, well, Coach Weachter called the play for the back side and that’s what I’m good for, the back side slant. It’s open all the time so it was a good play call. The guy almost took it from me, too, but I came down with it. I like the receptions but I’m actually happier with my blocking. It’s great to see Shady running by you, down the sidelines. Last year my blocking wasn’t that good but this year the receivers really have stepped it up. That’s something I’m really taking pride in, blocking down field and letting Shady do his thing. That’s what I like.

QB Jeremy Ricker

We worked on our timing and rhythm this week because last week we really didn’t execute that well. Our linemen picked up all of the blitzes; just like State College, they blitzed a lot. Most of the credit goes to the linemen. On the throw to Brandon, well, we kept throwing hitches so they started playing up. The back moved up and I saw him so I pump faked, and Brandon kept moving and he was wide open. We have two great receivers in Brandon and Aaron, but we have a lot of guys with good hands.

OT Carlos Mera

I’m glad I decided to play football this year because it’s fun. I’m looking to improve every week. I just come to practice, do my thing and keep working. I know that I have a lot to learn but I’m going to keep on learning.

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