Wheeling Central Catholic Falls In Opener to James Monroe
Photo by Kristin Mazgaj Trending
WHEELING – Growing pains.
Mike Young has been coaching football for many a year with mega success. He realized that his Wheeling Central's charges would experience some tough growth this season as 75 percent of his squad is composed of freshmen and sophomores.
It didn't help matters that the Maroon Knights opened their campaign Friday night against 2022 Class A Super Six finalist James Monroe, which also entered the contest ranked No. 2 in this year's pre-season polls.
The Mavericks' vaunted ground game exposed Central's youngsters, posting a 45-32 triumph at Wheeling University. James Monroe also eliminated an injury-riddled Maroon Knights squad in the state semifinals last November.
Central lost a boatload of talent and experience from that team. As a result, the Maroon Knights' are rebuilding with a 45-player roster, boasting 32 sophomores and freshmen.
"We lost to a very good ball club. We knew they were strong coming into the game," Young noted. "We played a lot of young kids and we had problems stopping their running game. We will get better."
The Mavericks rushed for 379 yards while passing 101 via the air lanes.
While Central's defense had its collective hands full, Young's offense was a bright spot in defeat.
The Maroon Knights amassed 475 total yards. In the process, Young found himself a quality quarterback, a position which was a question mark this summer.
Junior Seth Cover acquitted himself quite impressively in his first varsity start as a signal caller. The 5-11,180-pounder completed 17-of-22 throws for 281 yards and three touchdowns while displaying a large dose of poise.
"Seth handled himself very well, especially considering it was his first-ever start," Young offered. "We moved the ball very well and he was a big reason why. It is a nice confidence-building experience for him."
Senior speedster J.J. White fueled the Central ground attack which totaled 184 stripes. White gained 83 yards, including a 70-yard scoring burst.
James Monroe drew first blood on the game's initial possession, marching 67 yards on 12 plays, capped by a 5-yard Cooper Ridgeway run. The Mavericks misfired on the PAT kick.
Central wasted no time in retaliating.
The Knights needed just four plays to travel 70 yards to paydirt. Cover speared junior dandy Braden McWreath with a 46-yard scoring strike. Clay Petry's PAT gave Central a 7-6 lead.
James Monroe came right back to regain the upper hand on a 11-yard pass from Ridgeway to Chaz Boggs. The conversion pass failed.
The Mavericks stretched their lead to 18-7 by taking advantage of a hostly disputed fumble recovery at the Knights' 40. Four plays later, Ridgeway scored from 7 yards out.
Another Central miscue enabled the visitors to up their lead to 25-7 as the Mavericks took possession at the Knights' 18 after a snap sailed over the punter's head. Boggs scooted in the the first snap before Ridgeway added the PAT.
The Maroon Knights placed themselves in striking distance with 2:30 left in the opening half. Cover and McWreath teamed up again, this time on a 10-yard scoring connection. The PAT was blocked.
Central cut the deficit to 25-20 on the first snap of the second half, courtesy of White's 70-yard gallop. Petry added the PAT.
On the ensuing possession, Monroe quarterback Layton Dowdy scampered 31 yards to paydirt on a fourth-and-one situation. Ridgeway's conversion made it a 32-20 reading.
Central refused to go away, however, needing only four plays to cover 63 yards. McWreath broke loose on a 55-yard scamper with 6:03 showing in the third quarter. The kick failed, leaving the Maroon down 32-26.
Central would get no closer the balance of the game. Ridgeway added TD runs of 1 and 24 yards, the latter coming with 7:18 to play, to stretch its advantage to 45-26.
The Maroon Knights scored a final TD on the game's last play as Cover found Noah Loy on a 1-yard hookup.
Central's inexperience raised its head in the realm of penalties. The Maroon was flagged 15 times for 85 yards.
Ridgeway was superb for the Mavericks. He rushed for 191 yards and four TDs.
"Two plays really changed the momentum in the first half. The fumble call and a bad snap really hurt us," Young said. "They (Monroe) never really stopped us in the first half. We also had way too many penalties.
"But we will get back to work and clean things up. We can learn a lot from this game," added the coaching icon. "We are going to be fine. We just need sometime to grow up."
Central returns to action Friday, hosting Perry (Pa.).