Late Touchdown earns Central Catholic a Title

Written by: Dean Beers on Saturday, December 18th, 2010. Follow Dean Beers on Twitter.

By Dean Beers, D11Football.com

Hershey –  Brendan Nosovitch and his team have had big plays all throughout the playoffs. The Vikings needed a big one being behind 27-21 with less than 3 minutes to go in the game.

They got one. A 70-yard pass from Nosovitch to senior tight end Jack Sandherr (5 catches, 128 yards) took the Vikings (16-0) from their own 12-yard line to the Bishop McDevitt 18 –yard line.

One play later, Viking junior quarterback Nosovitch went up the middle 18 yards for the go ahead score, for a lead they would never relinquish. The Vikings would earn their 3rd PIAA State Title with a 28-27 win over the Crusaders of Bishop McDevitt. The Vikings also won PIAA State Titles in 1993 and 1998.

The Crusaders took the first lead of the game on their first possession. They drove 65 yards on 7 plays, capping the drive off when McDevitt senior quarterback Matt Johnson threw a 28 -yard touchdown pass to Brian Lamelle (4 catches, 82 yards). An extra point  gave the team a 7-0 lead.

Central Catholic would answer right back.  Nosovitch completed passes of 8, 16 and 31 yards on the drive, but ended the drive with a one-yard touchdown run to tie the game at seven all.

After both teams exchanged punts, the Crusaders had half the field to work with.

Crusader (13-3) senior running back Jameel Poteat (19 rushes, 71 yards) scored the first of his two touchdowns on a 22-yard touchdown run. An extra point gave the Crusaders a 14-7 lead.

It wasn’t until midway through the second quarter when the Vikings’ scored again. The Vikings’ defense had pinned the Crusaders back at their own eight-yard line, when they forced a McDevitt punt which only went 17 yards.

On second down and 11, Nosovitch fumbled the ball but Nathan Roberts recovered the ball for the Viking on the 25 yard line. On the next play, Nosovitch scored on a 25-yard touchdown run. The game was tied at 14 going into halftime.

Central Catholic’s first possession of the second half gave them the lead. The Vikings drove 73 yards on 6 plays, with the big play coming on a Nosovitch to Kevin McKellick (3 catches, 45 yards) 29 – yard pass to the Crusaders 35 yard line. Four plays later, Nosovitch threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Kevin Gulyas (7 catches, 61 yards). The Vikings lead 21-14.

After a series of exchanged punts, Crusader Miles Williams intercepted a Nosovitch pass and returned it to midfield. It took McDevitt six plays to score on a Matt Johnson 9nine–yard run. The game was tied at 21.

After a Central Catholic turnover on downs, McDevitt drove 57 yards to retake the lead. Poteat did most of the work on this drive, rushing for 25 yards including a three-yard touchdown run. The kick failed, and the Crusaders led 27-21 with seven minutes to go in the game.

Nosovitch finished the game passing 16 for 27 and a touchdown, with 236 yards. He also rushed for 47 yards and 3 touchdowns. We believe he is also the first quarterback to throw for over 3,000 yards and rush for over 1,000 yards in a season.

Johnson, a Bowling Green recruit, completed 18 passes in 34 attempts, with 235 yards. He also rushed for 5 yards and a touchdown.

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2 Responses to “Late Touchdown earns Central Catholic a Title”

1. adam says:
   December 25th, 2010 at 1:01 am

   awesome game! ACC a lil exploited tho not having enough blockers up front…props to McD for a great game plan… hope to see this again next year

2. Looken4it says:
   December 21st, 2010 at 7:06 pm

   This was a great game played by two talented teams. I am a ACC fan but must applaud the McD team and the players. We could see the same match up next year, hopefully with the same results. Have a great season McD, we will see you in the finals !