CLARION, Pa. (EYT/D9) — Jase Ferguson was at it again.
But the Central Clarion junior quarterback had plenty of help.
(Pictured above, the Hager Paving Incorporated Players of the Game for Central Clarion were, from left to right: Matt Alston, Jake Smith, Hayden Hindman, Brady Quinn, Coleman Slater and Jimmy Kerr)
Brady Quinn caught a touchdown pass and also rushed for 86 yards and a score, and Ferguson spread the wealth with five receivers catching touchdown passes as the Wildcats jumped out to a huge halftime lead and cruised to a 63-18 win over Brookville at PennWest Clarion to win the District 9 Class 2A championship.
It was the second consecutive title for Central Clarion (11-0).
“It’s just huge,” said Wildcats’ coach Dave Eggleton. “This group of kids two years ago had a really rough season. They just decided at the end of that season that that wasn’t going to be what Central Clarion football is gonna be about.”
Central Clarion football coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Redbank Chevrolet and DuBrook.
What’s it’s been about this season is scoring points in bunches.
And Central Clarion did that again thanks to its high-powered offense — and defense, too.
It was quickly 14-0 after Ferguson found Tommy Smith for a 12-yard touchdown pass and a fumble recovery in the end zone by Jesse Siwiecki.
The onslaught continued in the second quarter when Hayden Hindman hauled in a 23-yard pass from Ferguson to extend the lead to 21-0.
Brookville had a glimmer when Hayden Freeman returned the ensuing kickoff 94 yards for a score, but Central Clarion got a 10-yard run by Noah Harrison for a TD and a 2-yard pass from Ferguson to Mason Burford for a 35-6 lead at the break.
Jack Pete kept things interesting for Brookville with a 5-yard TD reception from Charlie Krug to trim the Central Clarion lead to 35-12 midway through the third quarter, but the Wildcats are explosive and rattled off two quick touchdowns when Quinn scored on a 4-yard run and Ferguson found Dawson Smail for a 6-yard TD to balloon the cushion to 49-12.
Pete again found the end zone on a 14-yard pass from Krug to make it 49-18, but Central Clarion closed the game with a pair of TDs on a 7-yard reception by Quinn from Ferguson and an 11-yard run by Brendan Wright.
Ferguson was 13-of-20 passing for 230 yards and five touchdowns. He also rushed seven times for 46 yards.
Quinn had three receptions for 42 yards, Smail three catches for 23 yards, Smith three catches for 45 yards, Hindman two grabs for 61 yards and Burford 45 yards on two receptions for Central Clarion.
Quinn led the ground game, which used seven different players to amass 278 yards.
Central Clarion will get a rematch with District 8 champion Westinghouse next week in a PIAA subregion game. Last year, Westinghouse ended the Wildcats’ season.
“We know we’re gonna have to be multiple and we’re going to have to be a very balanced to beat a team like Westinghouse next week,” Eggleton said. “We have to be able to move the ball with short passes, long passes — everything’s got to be on point and you don’t get to have mistakes.”
The Wildcats will also be challenged on defense.
They answered the call against Brookville, which came in on a nine-game winning streak and with an offense that has been rolling up points and yards.
But Central Clarion largely stymied the Raiders, holding Anthony Ceriani to 45 yards and intercepting Krug three times.
Krug finished 9-of-30 for 138 yards and two touchdowns.
Brookville had just 51 yards rushing.
“We’re pretty stout up front, even with our three front with those three D-linemen in there and just kind of dominate the front,” Eggleton said. “It happened last week against Redbank and it happed tonight. It’s happened all year. We wanted to make sure our guys stepped up to the challenge and they did.”
(Steve Smail contributed to this report)
Central Clarion football coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Redbank Chevrolet and DuBrook.
