Neshannock pummels Western Beaver
Neshannock (55) vs. Western Beaver (8)
Written: Sep 02, 2012
 By Joe Sager
New Castle News
INDUSTRY — Fans were eager to see what the Neshannock High football team had to offer this year.
After all, the Lancers had a new head coach (Fred Mozzocio), almost an entirely new coaching staff and a new philosophy.
Saturday afternoon, those interested parties left Rich Niedbala Stadium impressed after watching Neshannock dismantle Western Beaver, 55-8, in a Big 7 Conference battle.
“It was really about making a statement because, with new coaches, everybody doubted us,” Neshannock junior quarterback Ernie Burkes said. “We wanted to come out and prove we’re a football school and a tough bunch of kids. I think we really did that.”
The Lancers (1-0 conference, 1-0 overall) set the tone from the start. Neshannock needed three plays to find the end zone as Burkes hit Alex Welker for a 32-yard scoring strike.
The team poured it on in the second quarter with four touchdowns. Neshannock’s defense forced five fumbles in the first half and parlayed four of them into touchdowns — all in the second quarter — to post a 33-0 halftime advantage.
“One of the things we talked about from the first day was raising the physicality here,” said Mozzocio, who was a New Castle assistant last year.
“We want to be one of the most physical teams in the Big 7 Conference. We know this is the most physical conference in Class A football. So, we want to get up there with the upper echelon and we need to raise our physicality. We started off doing that (Saturday).”
Burkes can verify that’s the case.
“I think we have some of the hardest hitting safeties in the league,” he said. “Everyone is hitting hard. That’s what these coaches expect.”
While Neshannock’s offense created the turnovers, Burkes and the Lancers had no problem translating them into points. Burkes finished 6 of 8 for 89 yards passing with four touchdowns. He collected another 99 yards and two TDs running with the ball.
“That’s what Ernie gives you. He can give you something with his arm. But, at the same time, if you fall asleep a little bit, he can burn you with the legs as well,” Mozzocio said. “It was a great job up front by our offensive line and receivers blocking for each other.”
Burkes was grateful for all the time he had to find open receivers as well as the gaping holes opened up for him to take off with the ball.
“When someone scores, it’s not that single person scoring, which is the beauty about football. It’s the line blocking and the receivers, too. It’s the whole team scoring,” Burkes said.
John Conglose hauled in three TD passes from Burkes, while Eli Owens had 101 yards rushing on 10 carries. The Lancers’ first touchdown of the second half enacted the 35-point mercy rule and all the team’s regulars were pulled. Yet, the younger players opened some eyes. Gianni Oliva and Rocco Fazio had TD runs, while freshman running back Robert Lindsey picked up 40 yards on three carries.
“The younger guys did a great job moving the ball at the end of the game. I was very pleased with what I saw out of them. They came in and picked up right where the other guys left off,” Mozzocio said. “It was nice. The kids came out right off the bat and executed. They were aggressive defensively, like we asked them to be. Offensively, other than some early penalties, we sort of got it together. I am proud of what they did.”
*****
NESHANNOCK W. BEAVER
17 First downs 13
311 Yards Rushing 84
6 Yards Lost 40
305 Net Rushing 44
8 Passes Attempted 12
6 Passes Completed 9
1 Passes Intercepted 0
89 Yards Passing 139
394 Total Yards 183
0-0 Fumbles-Lost 6-6
1-37 Punts-Average 1-37
5-25 Penalties-Yards 5-44
NESHANNOCK 6 27 14 8 — 55
W. BEAVER 0 0 0 8 — 8
Scoring plays
NESHANNOCK — Alex Welker, 32-yard pass from Ernie Burkes (Connor Richards kick failed)
NESHANNOCK — John Conglose, 15-yard pass from Burkes (Richards kick)
NESHANNOCK — Burkes, 13-yard run (Richards kick)
NESHANNOCK — Burkes, 39-yard run (Richards kick)
NESHANNOCK — Conglose, 30-yard pass from Burkes (pass failed)
NESHANNOCK — Conglose, 10-yard pass from Burkes (Richards kick)
NESHANNOCK — Gianni Oliva, 22-yard run (Richards kick)
WESTERN BEAVER — Billy Drear, 15-yard run (Eddie Doyle pass from Drear)
NESHANNOCK — Rocco Fazio, 6-yard run (kick failed)
NESHANNOCK — Safety, quarterback tackled in end zone.
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