By Andy Close

BROCKWAY - The Port Allegany offense got them to the District title game, but it was their defense that stepped up Saturday when it mattered the most.

Leading 35-34 with 2:07 left in the game, the Gators’ defense stopped Clarion on four straight downs in Bobcats territory to lift them to their first District 9 Class A championship. The game was tied for the highest scoring game in District 9 Class A title game, but Coudersport’s 48-21 win over Curwensville in 2008 was nowhere near as dramatic as this one.

“We waited all season and work our butts off for this,” said junior quarterback Matt Bodamer. “It feels great.”

Great once again was the play of junior receiver and defensive back Nick Conway. While Conway hasn’t put up the big numbers some of Port’s other receivers have this season, he continues to come up big in postseason play.

With the score tied at 28-28 and the Gators (12-1) facing a third-and-4 at the Clarion 28, Bodamer was flushed from the pocket and hit Conway at the 15. Conway did the rest racing in for a touchdown on the last play of the third quarter.

“It was just an out route and I felt him (Clarion defender Cameron Kirkland) bringing a lot of pressure,” Conway said. “As soon as I caught it I just stopped and he slid right by me and I took off.”

Third-down conversions where something Port Allegany lived off of, as the Gators were 7 of 11 on third downs in the game.

“I think they threw some short routes and made them and got first downs from them,” Clarion head coach Larry Wiser said. “We knew if we played some press on them we would give up some stuff. There are some defensive calls I wish I had back, but I thought our defense played pretty well.”  

The touchdown pass was Bodamer’s 11^th in the last two games and his 46^th of the season, the second most in a season in District 9 history.

In a see-saw game that neither team led by more than seven points, it was Clarion’s turn to respond.

After the teams traded punts, the Bobcats (8-5) got the ball in great field position at the Port 37. T.J. Armstrong, who rushed for 138 yards, had three carries to get the ball down to the 11. From their Armstrong knew what to do taking a pitch around right end and racing into the end zone. Unfortunately, Tanner Klein, who had made his previous four extra point attempts and seven in a row dating back to last week, pushed his last one to the right, leaving the deficit at one.

“We were all fired up to block that extra point,” stated Conway. “We were able to put enough pressure on and he missed it.”

Wiser said a combination of Klein’s recent success and the fact that there was over six minutes left in the game convinced him to kick the extra point despite a success rate that ended up at 63.9 percent (23 of 36) on the year for Clarion in the extra point department when the ball was actually kicked.

“I thought there was plenty of time left in the game, and (even if we missed it) we would get another opportunity,” Wiser said. “Now that it’s over, I wish I had gone for two. That’s the hindsight part of it.”

Clarion’s last ditch effort on offense was also thwarted by Conway, as tipped away Brandon Heeter’s pass downfield on fourth and 17.

“I just jumped up high enough to get a hand on it and it went over their guy’s head,” Conway said.

Things started out well for Clarion after a long kickoff return of 52 yards by Damien Slike gave the Bobcats the ball at the Port Allegany 35-yard line to start the game.

It took six plays to move the ball to the Gator 2-yard line, but their Armstrong fumbled the ball and Brock Taylor recovered for Port Allegany.

 “We didn't make many mistakes, but the ones we did make came back and hurt us,” Wiser said. “It wasn't to be today, I guess.”

Momentum very quickly turned to the Gators favor. After a run and an incomplete pass yielded no yards, Bodamer dropped back on third down and, facing a heavy Clarion blitz, connected with Trevor Neal, who was behind the Bobcat defender. Neal then outran everyone down field for a 98-yard touchdown.

“That brought some momentum,” Neal said. “I was just thinking about how I looked running down the field. I know I looked slow.”

Wiser believed the blitz was a calculated gamble.

“You live by the blitz, you die by the blitz,” Wiser said. "We needed to back off there. We came with a pressure blitz.”

Clarion, though, responded thanks to Heeter, who finished off a very solid career by throwing for 116 yards on 6 of 20 passing with a touchdown.  

Port turned the ball over twice in the first half, and each time Heeter and the Bobcats made the Gators pay

After a snap went over Bodamer’s head and Clarion recovered, Heeter went to work. He found his leading receiver on the season, Cameron Kirkland, for a 19-yard strike that tied the game at seven.

Kirkland followed that up with an interception of Bodamer on the ensuing possession, just the sixth pick Bodamer has thrown this season.

The Clarion offense once again responded with Heeter capping an 8-play, 32-yard drive with a 2-yard run.

“I’m proud of the way our players played today and represented,” Wiser said. “They faced a lot of adversity but kept fighting back until the end of the game.”

It was Port’s turn to respond, as Bodamer hit Tyce Miller with a 31-yard pitch-and-catch down to the Clarion 3. Bodamer appeared to get in on second and goal, but was ruled down at the one. No matter, as he threw a touchdown pass to Rickie Bova two plays later, the first of the second quarter, to tie the game at 14.

The two teams then traded touchdowns before the half, with Armstrong scoring on a 2-yard run capping a methodical drive for the Bobcats, and Bodamer leading a quick seven-lay, 73-yard drive culminating in a 27 yard touchdown pass to Tyce Miller, once again facing a strong blitz. The drive took a mere 52 seconds.

“We ran a lot of quick routes,” Bodamer said, referring to the constant pressure Clarion brought. “When you blitz you leave people out in coverage. We hit the quick ones and just nickled and dimed them.”

The teams once again went back-and-forth in the third quarter. Armstrong scored on a 2-yard run, and Bodamer connected with Trent Neal on a 2-yard touchdown pass even though it appeared Neal was down at the one.

Clarion looked as if it was going to answer back, but Armstrong, who lost seven fumbles on the season, lost another one at the Port Allegany 39-yard line and the Gators responded with the go-ahead touchdown.

“Give Clarion a lot of credit, they are a really good, quick, athletic team,” said Port Allegany coach Mike Bodamer. “That is the fastest, quickest team we have played all year.”

Port Allegany will face District 10 champion Sharpsville (12-0) in the opening round of the PIAA playoffs next week. The Blue Devils beat West Middlesex 21-13 to win the District 10 crown Friday night. Date, time and location are still to be determined, although it will be at a District 10 site.

NOTES – Bodamer, who was 24 of 39 for 369 yards and five touchdowns, continued his assault on the record books. His 46 touchdowns are three shy of the single-season District 9 record of 49 held by Clearfield’s Chad Kroell (1994) and he is just four shy of the Pennsylvania state record of 50 set by Kyle Smith of Lancaster Catholic in 2009. He also passed Kroell and moved into second place in single-season passing yards in District 9 history with 3,530. He is 294 yards behind Brockway’s Derek Buganza’s District 9 and Pennsylvania record of 3,823 yards set in 2009 … Career wise, Bodamer passed Kroell (79) in touchdown passes to move into second place in District 9 history with 82. Buganza is the District 9-leader with 95. Bodamer also passed Smethport’s Mike Defilippi to move into second place in District 9 history in career passing yards with  6,762 trailing only Buganza’s state-record 9,752 yards … The 34 points scored by Clarion are more points than the Bobcats had scored combined in their previous five District 9 title game appearances (28) and was just 14 shy of the combined total of 48 Clarion scored in its first eight District 9 title game appearances … Port Allegany became the third Class A team in the past four seasons to win the title a year after losing the championship game. Clarion won in 2009 after losing in 2008 and Cameron County won in 2008 after losing in 2007. Overall, the Gators are the sixth team to come back and win the title a year after finishing in second place in Class A.

Editor’s note – Chris Rossetti contributed to this story

PORT ALLEGANY 35, CLARION 34

Score by Quarters

Port Allegany 7 14 14 0 – 35

Clarion 14 7 7 6 – 34

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

PA – Trevor Neal 98 pass from Matt Bodamer (Scott Brookens kick), 7:49

C – Camron Kirkland 19 pass from Brandon Heeter (Tanner Klein kick), 5:32

C – Heeter 2 run (Klein kick), 1:26

Second Quarter

PA – Rickie Bova 1 pass from Bodamer (Brookens kick), 11:57

C – T.J. Armstrong 1 run (Klein kick), 2:41

PA – Tyce Miller 27 pass from Bodamer (Brookens kick), 1:42

Third Quarter

C – Armstrong 2 run (Klein kick), 9:13

PA – Trent Neal 2 pass from Bodamer (Brookens kick), 6:23

PA – Nick Conway 28 pass from Bodamer (Brookens kick), 0:00

Fourth Quarter

C – Armstrong 11 run (kick failed), 6:29

            PA       C

First Downs    20        20

Rushes-Yards  26-58   52-253

Passing Yards 369      116

Passing: Comp-Att-Int            24-39-1            6-21-0

Total Yards     427      369

Punts-Avg       2-31     3-39.7

Fumbles-Lost  2-1       2-2

Penalties-Yards           6-57     9-70

Individual Statistics

Rushing – Port Allegany: Matt Bodamer 12-44, Trent Neal 7-38, Nick Conway 1-5, Garrett Drabert 2-0, Team 4-minus 29. Clarion: T.J. Armstrong 29-138, Camron Kirkland 8-70, Marcus Smerker 8-26, Brandon Heeter 4-13, Damien Slike 3-6.

Passing – Port Allegany: Matt Bodamer 24-for-39, 369 yards, 5 touchdowns, 1 interception. Clarion: Brandon Heeter 6-for-20, 116 yards, 1 touchdown. T.J. Armstrong 0-for-1.

Receiving – Port Allegany: Tyce Miller 7-132, Trevor Neal 4-126, Nick Conway 3-45, Charlie Buchanan 3-30, Rickie Bova 3-25, Trent Neal 2-14, Garrett Drabert 1-3, Matt Bodamer 1-minus 6. Clarion: Camron Kirkland 2-39, Damien Slike 1-45, Marcus Smerker 1-18, T.J. Armstrong 1-8, Antonio Troese 1-6.

Interceptions – Clarion: Camron Kirkland.