Golden Eagles pound visiting Trojans

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November 4, 2006

By KERRY NAILOR The Tribune-Democrat Sat Nov 04, 2006, 01:23 AM EST

TYRONE — A game that meant nothing couldn’t have done more for the Tyrone Golden Eagles.

After two floundering victories, the Eagles unloaded on Johnstown in a season finale that both Tyrone coach John Franco and Trojan coach Bob Arcurio would have rather not played.

But with an undefeated regular season on the line, the Golden Eagles returned to their midseason form to deliver Johnstown a 35-7 defeat at Gray Veterans Memorial Field on Senior Night.

For Franco, whose team will host Chestnut Ridge next week as the No. 1 seed in the first round of the District 5-6 Class AA playoffs, such a performance came at just the right time.

“Any time you play a quality opponent, I think it is (a good tune-up for the playoffs),” said Franco. “That’s why we wanted to get this game. Both teams were using this to get ready for the competition of the playoffs. We needed that. We needed to beat a quality opponent.”

When the season began, both coaches thought the game would be a way to secure better postseason positioning, but two weeks ago they were informed that it would not count for points in the District 6 playoff races.

That still left a lot on the line for Tyrone, which extended its regular-season winning streak to 23 straight games. The Eagles (10-0) also nailed down the program’s 10th unbeaten regular season.

Quarterback Tyler Golden and receiver Justin Schopp were the architects of most of Tyrone’s big plays, connecting in the first half for touchdowns of 56 and 24 yards, while hooking up once more for a 35-yard completion to set up another score.

Golden finished the game 6-for-9 for 154 yards and two TDs, with Schopp hauling in four of his passes for 121 yards.

Senior Tyler Gillmen posted his fourth 100-yard game of the season, carrying 15 times for 105 yards and a pair of scores.

The Eagles’ defense, meanwhile, was able to bend without breaking against a speedy Johnstown offense that was averaging more than 25 points per game.

Trojans quarterback Brandon Hody completed 11 of 19 passes for 132 yards and a touchdown, but he also threw a pair of interceptions, one of which Tyrone converted into the game’s first touchdown.

“You can’t win games like that,” said Arcurio after watching his team commit five turnovers. “When you do that, nobody wins.”

The Trojans (7-3) advanced the ball as far as the Tyrone 11 on their first series of the second quarter after a blocked punt allowed them to start at their 47.

Hody had two big completions on the drive – one for 23 yards to Demetrius Young and one for 15 to Adonis Jackson – and Reed ran for 10 to the Eagles’ 14. But on fourth-and-7 from the 11, Jordan Good planted Hody as he released the ball into the end zone and the pass fell incomplete.

Johnstown posted its only score by driving 71 yards in nine plays to score with 6.2 seconds left in the half. Hody was 6-for-8 on the drive, including a 25-yard completion to Pete Babyak that put the ball on the Tyrone 35. Five plays later, Hody found Jackson in the back of the end zone for a 5-yard touchdown pass to draw the Trojans within 21-7 at halftime.

“We didn’t play two of our best kids tonight, and that hurt us,” Arcurio said.

“Now we have to see what these kids are made of – if they’re going to rebound. How bad do they want it?”

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