Double dose

Crusaders' duo helps steal Little Lions' thunder in second half

Guy Cipriano

- gciprian@centredaily.com

STATE COLLEGE — Bishop McDevitt players are instructed to do everything together during the moments before and after football games.

CDT/Michelle Bixby

State College's Colby Way, left, tries to take down McDevitt's Matt Johnson (11) during the Bishop McDevitt at State College varsity football game Friday, Oct. 30, 2009. CDT/Michelle Bixby

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The ritual must include praising other players.

As a group left the locker room Friday night, a few joked about the possibility of never facing State College’s Dom Mills again.

The feeling of relief was mutual.

It’s unlikely these Little Lions will encounter the caliber of skill players they faced during a 28-17 loss at Memorial Field.

Jameel Poteet rushed for 153 yards on 31 carries and quarterback Matt Johnson completed 9 of 14 passes for 185 yards as the Crusaders (9-0) handed State College (7-2) its first home loss in two years.

Bishop McDevitt sealed a perfect regular season — the Crusaders have a bye next week — by embarking on a 12-play, 98-yard touchdown drive that culminated with Jon Duckett’s 2-yard touchdown plunge with 7:23 remaining.

The drive started immediately after Mills inflicted physical harm to the Crusaders for a second straight year. A head-first effort to score a go-head touchdown in the waning seconds of the third quarter resulted in Bishop McDevitt stopping Mills, who knocked Johnson out of last year’s game, at the 2 on a fourth-and-goal play originating from the seven.

Bishop McDevitt’s Fred Dietz and Brandon True wobbled off the field. The collision even opened a wound on True’s face.

Instead of trailing 21-20 — a 24-yard field goal is a chip shot for kickers Zak Zhayat and Kevin DiSanto — State College never scored again.

The ensuing drive illustrated the challenges associated with stopping Bishop McDevitt’s offense. The march took 5:17 as Johnson completed a 14-yard screen to Aaron Sye, Dan Leonard made a fingertip catch on a 45-yard bomb and Poteet carried the ball seven times for 39 yards. Poteet gained 109 yards in the second half, including 35 on a third-quarter touchdown run.

“They can throw and they can run,” State College coach Al Wolski said. “We did a pretty good job of containing Poteet. He’s a good enough back where he’s going to break one somewhere along the way. You kind of expected that.”

You also expect a State College- Bishop McDevitt game to include some interesting twists. This one certainly had a few.

The Crusaders scored 14 points during a five-minute stretch in the first half to take a 14-0 lead. The Crusaders’ second touchdown drive started when they recovered a fumbled kickoff and ended with Johnson throwing a 15-yard touchdown pass to Pitt-bound wide receiver Salath Williams

State College then displayed a resolve that should prove beneficial during the postseason.

Khayat’s 34-yard field goal trimmed the lead to 11 with 3:25 remaining in the first half. In a show of offensive confidence, Bishop McDevitt tried scoring again before halftime. The Crusaders moved the ball to State College’s 35 before linebacker Brad Holzwarth sacked Johnson for a 17-yard loss. Bishop McDevitt stayed aggressive, and Johnson dropped back and looked for Williams over the middle. The ball bounced off the receiver’s hands and Alex Kenney returned it 68 yards for his 19th touchdown of the year, trimming the lead to 14-10 with 1:47 left in the half. The interception was only John-son’s second of the season.

“Of all people that lands into Kenney’s hands,” Bishop McDevitt coach Jeff Weachter said.

The Crusaders fumbled twice in the first four minutes in the second half. The first one led to nothing, but State College parlayed the second one into Mills’ 21-yard touchdown pass to Shane Dorner on a screen.

Trailing 17-14 with 8:56 left in the third quarter represented a first for Bishop McDevitt. The Crusaders led for the final 40 minutes of their first eight games.

“We weren’t worried,” Poteet said. “We knew we had to get through it.”

Playing the Crusaders, who outscored their first eight opponents 352-71, proved little solace for the Little Lions.

“We weren’t about keeping it close,” Mills said. “We were out there to win the game. It’s not what happened before. It’s all about the game right now.”

Bishop McDevitt’s defense held State College to a season-low 130 rushing yards. Kenney gained 58 yards on 10 carries, but his longest run went for just 10 yards. The senior entered Friday averaging 8.6 yards per attempt.

Mills completed 3 of 10 passes. State College kept its first scoring drive alive when Aaron Sallade completed a 17-yard pass to Colby Way on a fake punt. State College kept the game close despite being outgained 365-174 in offensive yards.

“We have a gutsy group that’s not going to quit,” Wolski said. “We told they can hurt for two days, come back Monday and get ready for the rest of the season. There’s a good portion of the season left.”

Way is another player the Crusaders don’t want to see again. The 6-foot-3, 235-pound senior caused problems for Bishop McDevitt’s massive offensive line throughout the game. Late in the first half, Way sacked Johnson for a 12-yard loss as 6-foot-5, 285-pound tackle Justen Garlic held his back.

“He had a great game,” Weachter said. “He’s good on offense, but we had to change blocking protection schemes against him and we did some things in the run game in the second half just because of him.”