Great Scott, It’s Alemany

They played with bloody noses, cut hands and sprained ankles. They hit and hit, then got back up and hit again.

It was No. 1 vs. No. 2 in the game of the year in which more than 4,000 fans filled every bleacher seat and hundreds more stood mesmerized in both end zones.

“It was awesome,” lineman Fernando Arteaga of Alemany said. “I’m going to remember this for the rest of my life.”

In a game that lived up to the hype, No. 2 Alemany used 249 yards rushing and two touchdowns from tailback De’Andre Scott, then survived a fourth-quarter comeback bid to defeat top-ranked Notre Dame, 24-21, on Friday night at Notre Dame.

The Indians (4-0) did everything they had to do to win. The offensive line protected quarterback Casey Clausen, who was sacked only once and completed 14 of 23 passes for 169 yards.

The defense made life miserable for quarterback Jonathon Brewster of Notre Dame. Chased from sideline to sideline, Brewster completed eight of 24 passes for 139 yards with one interception. The Knights (3-1) couldn’t run the ball, gaining only 63 yards on the ground.

Scott, a junior with Justin Fargas-like speed, carried the ball 24 times. He scored on an 80-yard run in the second quarter and also broke off runs of 51, 30 and 31 yards.

“He’s unbelievable,” Coach Jim Bonds of Alemany said.

Bonds was the one most relieved afterward because his team saved him from several second-half decisions that were admittedly foolish in hindsight.

“We almost lost it,” Bonds said. “Going for it on fourth down was the stupidest thing.”

Twice on short-yardage, fourth-down plays, the Indians were stopped. Add to that, Clausen’s pass was intercepted by Michael Luderer with 4:34 left. Luderer returned the interception 23 yards for a touchdown. After a two-point conversion run by Brewster, Notre Dame was within 24-21.

The Knights forced Alemany to punt and took over on their own 44 with 2:50 left and the game on the line. The stadium noise level was loud, the players were pumped and it came down to Alemany’s unsung defense trying to hold on.

When Brewster’s fourth-down pass bounced off receiver Daniel Browne’s face mask on the five-yard line with 1:49 left, the Indians had survived.

“It was just amazing,” Indian safety Frank Geraty said. “We did everything well. We were all brothers out there. We had better athletes than they did. We could take them one-on-one all day.”

Alemany cornerbacks Derek Goodman and Lanard Heath covered their receivers without any help, freeing linebacker Paul Fusano and lineman John Emelio to go all out after Brewster.

“They did a great job on defense,” Coach Kevin Rooney of Notre Came said. “We couldn’t get it going running or passing.”