Final observations on Crespi-St. Bonny
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On Thursday, Crespi Coach Jeremiah Ross hosted a movie night for his team, but there wasn’t any popcorn or Goobers involved.
Instead, it was all business as coach and team dissected Darrell Scott‘s performance from last year’s Southern Section Northern Division championship game between eventual Division I state bowl champs Canyon and Moorpark. It was a game in which the Cowboys held Scott (who transferred this season to St. Bonaventure) to a very mortal-like 118 yards rushing, and Ross knew his team could mimic that performance.
‘I wanted my guys to see that he could be stopped because Canyon showed it can be done,’ Ross said. ‘He’s a great back, but he’s not Superman.’
The Celts definitely proved that in their 25-9 victory Friday. They held Scott to 135 yards, a large chunk of which came on a 31-yard run with the victory already out of reach for the Seraphs. It was only the fifth time in 19 games Scott was held to less than 200 yards rushing.
All night I was waiting for Scott to break out on a big run, but it never happened.
He had a couple first-down carries at the start of the third quarter, but almost every time he was handed the ball from QB Tony Macarena, he was facing a flurry of defenders who had already penetrated the St. Bonny line. It got to the point where it seemed as if Crespi was reading straight out of the St. Bonny playbook.
‘These guys had something to prove after our game against Centennial,’ Ross said. ‘They were upset with how things went in that one and these guys showed they’re handling adversity better.’
Looking outside the Scott-stopping show, I was also impressed by Crespi’s offense. RB Austin Shanks rushed for 229 yards and a three touchdowns, but he did it without the help of fellow RB E.J. Woods, who saw limited playing time because of an injured foot.
QB Bryan Bennett also had a strong game in only his third start. He completed 11 of 20 passes for 159 yards.
Still, I’m a little surprised St. Bonny couldn’t pull itself into the game. I thought maybe the Seraphs were going to make a run for it at the end, like they did against Santa Margarita, but that wasn’t the case.
Instead, the Seraphs seemed to crack a little under pressure. Once it became obvious Scott wouldn’t carry the offense, Macarena wasn’t up to the task of leading the Seraphs through the passing game. He threw the ball too many times into highly-congested areas and he paid the price with two interceptions. Still, I think he’s a solid QB capable of being under center for a state-bowl caliber team.
As for Crespi, this team is definitely not a one-hit wonder. I’ll admit, after their game against Centennial, I thought the Celts’ season-opening victory over Birmingham might have been a case of catching the Patriots on an off-night. But they proved me dead wrong on Friday.
- Austin Knoblauch
