Beaver coach scoring big points on sideline

Lucky or unfortunate? For Jeff Beltz, being part of two of the four highestscoring games in WPIAL history is all about perspective.

Beltz is the coach at Beaver, which defeated Keystone Oaks, 77-49, Friday. The 126 points are the most in the WPIAL in 60-some years. Scoring records are available only to 1952.

Three years ago, Beaver lost to New Brighton, 64-49, which tied for the fourthhighest scoring game in the WPIAL since 1952.

How ironic that, besides serving as head coach, Beltz was Beaver’s defensive coordinator three years ago. Friday, he was the Bobcats’ offensive coordinator.

So, three years ago he couldn’t stop the other team. Friday night, his team couldn’t be stopped.

“It’s definitely better being on the winning end, I’ll tell you that,” Beltz said. “The thing is, when you’re in the middle of it coaching, it just doesn’t seem that abnormal. Maybe from a spectator standpoint it is, but it’s different when you’re coaching.”

The fallout from the game was it took a toll on seemingly everyone.

“I felt like I played when I woke up [Saturday morning],” Beltz said with a laugh.

Keystone Oaks quarterback Alex Smith set a WPIAL single-game yardage record with 653 (450 passing and 203 rushing).

Smith and Beaver quarterback Darius Wise set a record for most yards by two players (1,149) in a WPIAL game. Wise ran for 403 and passed for 93.

One particular comment from Beltz tells the unusualness of this game.

“At one point, we were hunkered in to try and score 80 points in order to win,” Beltz said.

Correcting the stats

The official rushing total for Wise Friday was 403. The Post-Gazette first started keeping statistical leaders for the entire WPIAL in 1979. The “official” statistics are what each school has for its players. Beaver had Wise for 403, and not the 401 that was in Saturday’s editions.

One other mind-boggling statistic from that Beaver-Keystone Oaks game — Beaver had 11 touchdown drives, and eight of them were three plays or fewer.

Two more for D.J.

West Allegheny’s D.J. Opsatnik kicked two more field goals Friday to up his career total to 26. West Allegheny has five more regularseason games and then the playoffs.

The question is will Opstanik be able to kick enough field goals to have a chance at the WPIAL and state record?

Peters Township’s Bob Milspaw made 35 field goals from 1992-95. Milspaw also is tied for the state record.

Mr. Pick-6

For East Allegheny, there wasn’t much to write home about in a 50-22 loss to Neshannock, but East Allegheny’s Taivion Boynes did take an interception to the house again.

Boynes returned an interception 44 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter. It was his fourth return for a touchdown in only two weeks. A week ago, Boynes had interception returns of 31, 20 and 36 yards for scores — on successive possessions.

Also earlier this year, Boynes returned a fumble for a touchdown.

Check this out

• Clairton’s Lamont Wade is averaging 16 yards a carry. He has 577 yards on 36 attempts.

• Apollo-Ridge standout Duane Brown played for the first time this season Friday and had seven catches for 204 yards in a victory against Burrell. Brown, who set a WPIAL single-game rushing record with 460 yards in 2015, had not played this season because of a torn ACL in his knee. Brown sustained the injury in a 7-on-7 game in the spring.

• Pine-Richland quarterback Phil Jurkovec needs only 117 yards passing to reach 4,000 in his career, which has lasted only 17 games.

• Upper St. Clair is No. 1 in the WPIAL in scoring defense at 3.3 points allowed in a game, followed by West Mifflin (3.4) and Thomas Jefferson (3.5)

• Clairton is No. 1 in offense at 60.0 points per game, followed by Steel Valley (56.0) and Thomas Jefferson (55.8).