Clairton rolls past Laurel
Laurel (0) vs. Clairton (41)
Written: Aug 30, 2008
By JOE SAGER
ncsports@ncnewsonline.com
CLAIRTON — Many consider Clairton High a favorite to capture the WPIAL Class A football championship.
Laurel certainly found out why last night.
The Bears blitzed past the Spartans for a 41-0 mercy-rule win in nonconference action at Neil C. Brown Stadium in the season opener for both schools.
Clairton used its speed to produce big plays from its big players against Laurel. Tailback Deontae Howard reached the end zone three times, while Kevin Weatherspoon hauled in a pair of TD passes, including a 64-yard bomb. Quarterback Andrew Currington accounted for the other touchdown as he scrambled 13 yards.
“Their speed is incredible. They have a great football team here. They have a lot of weapons. Our defense played with them and then there’d be a big play that would hurt us,” Laurel coach Jerry Holzhauser said. “They had a lot of people out there that were impressive. But, I thought our kids played hard. It wasn’t like we were jogging around on the field. We’ll learn from it and get better next week. I just hope we heal up.”
The Bears, who lost to Springdale, 22-21, in WPIAL Class A semifinals last year, struggled to establish themselves early. However, Currington hit Weatherspoon in stride for a 64-yard TD strike late in the first quarter. Weatherspoon finished with five receptions for 104 yards – all in the first half. The 5-foot-11 junior receiver is drawing interest from numerous NCAA Division-I teams, including Pitt.
“If you don’t contain kids like that, you’re in for a long night, obviously,” Holzhauser said.
Clairton carried a 22-0 lead over Laurel into halftime. In the second half, the hosts quickly increased that advantage.
On a broken play, Currington tucked the ball, scrambled up the middle, broke left to the outside and raced free for a 67-yard score. On the first play of Clairton’s next possession, Howard bounced outside for a 33-yard TD.
“In the second half, I don’t know; I guess we came out a little flat,” Holzhauser said. “The mistakes we made are correctable. We should have been there. We had guys coming inside on the perimeter that shouldn’t have. They will see their mistakes on the film and learn from them.”
Howard’s long TD run enabled the mercy rule. He scored again on a 4-yard plunge to set the final score.
“We should be happy with a 41-0 win, but we’re making mistakes and not plying as a cohesive unit,” Clairton coach Tom Nola said. “You can’t be too disappointed with a 41-0 win, but there is room for improvement.”
Robert Jones led Laurel with 30 rushing yards. Tight end Shane Caldararo suffered a left leg injury late in the second quarter and did not return to the game.
LAUREL CLAIRTON
8 First downs 18
81 Yards Rushing 283
11 Yards Lost 10
70 Net Rushing 273
14 Passes Attempted 16
2 Passes Completed 8
2 Passes Intercepted 1
12 Yards Passing 142
82 Total Yards 445
2-2 Fumbles-Lost 0-0
4-32.5 Punts-Average 0-0
4-32 Penalties-Yards 9-75
LAUREL 0 0 0 0 — 0
CLAIRTON 6 16 19 0 — 41
Scoring plays
CLAIRTON — Kevin Weatherspoon, 64-yard pass from Andrew Currington (pass failed)
CLAIRTON — Deontae Howard, 13-yard run (Eddie Ball run)
CLAIRTON — Weatherspoon, 13-yard pass from Currington (Weatherspoon catch)
CLAIRTON — Currington, 67-yard run (run failed)
CLAIRTON — Howard, 33-yard run (Aaron Brown kick)
CLAIRTON — Howard, 4-yard run (run failed)
|