Vikings face ‘Herculean’ task
Pine-Richland enters game averaging nearly 50 points and more than 500 yards of offense
It was as if Dave Fleming was watching a horror movie and the monster was a little too scary.
“At times, I just shut off the film and said, ‘What am I supposed to do if he makes plays like that?” said Fleming.
But it wasn’t a horror movie that Fleming was watching. It was simply some Pine-Richland game films. The monster was Pine-Richland quarterback Phil Jurkovec.
Fleming is Central Catholic’s longtime defensive coordinator. His gargantuan task this week, along with Central Catholic head coach Terry Totten, is to come up with a plan to possibly slow down Jurkovec and Pine-Richland’s offense. Central Catholic (102) plays Pine-Richland (12-0) for the WPIAL 6A championship at 2 p.m. Saturday at Heinz Field. The game will be televised live by AT&T SportsNet.
Pine-Richland racks up points by the dozens and yards by the hundreds. The Rams are averaging 49 points and 516 yards a game. Jurkovec, a senior and a Notre Dame recruit, is having a season for the ages.
He has completed 75 percent of his passes for 3,003 yards. He also has rushed for 805 yards on 84 attempts and last week set a WPIAL playoff record for yardage when he had 539 (432 passing and 107 running) against North Allegheny.
This statistic tells what a nightmare Jurkovec is for defensive coordinators: Whenever he throws or runs, Jurkovec averages 12.1 yards per play, and that total includes incompletions.
“The biggest challenge in facing Pine-Richland is their quarterback is totally confident and poised every time he touches the ball,” said Fleming. “When you get a 17- or 18-year-old in big-time games, that isn’t always the case. This kid is poised and doesn’t get rattled. I watch film, see the throws he makes and know he’s a big-time talent. God willing, nothing happens to the kid, and he goes on and plays on Sundays. But we hope Saturday afternoon, he’s off a little bit.”
Pine-Richland also has Jordan Crawford, who has rushed for 975 yards, and Kenny White, who has 563 yards. Between Jurkovec, Crawford and White, they average 10.4 yards a carry. At receiver, Jason DeFrancisis has 54 catches for 898 yards. Ray Falcone has 36 catches, but has missed the past two games with a knee injury. He might be back for Saturday’s contest. .
As good as this PineRichland offense is, Central Catholic’s offense last year was comparable. Not necessarily in style, but in points produced. Central Catholic averaged 47 points a game heading into the WPIAL championship game.
This is the fifth consecutive season that Totten has guided Central Catholic to the title game. It is a terrific achievement, considering the only other team that has made it to the championship in the largest classification five consecutive seasons is Upper St. Clair from 1991-95.
Like Pine-Richland, Central Catholic also has a seasoned quarterback. Senior Troy Fisher doesn’t throw as often as Jurkovec and doesn’t run as well, but Fisher has started 43 of Central Catholic’s 44 games over the past three seasons. Directing an offense that was filled with inexperienced players at the start of the season, Fisher has completed 106 of 176 for 1,346 yards. In three seasons, he has thrown for 4,531 yards and rushed for 1,670.
Central Catholic’s leading rusher, Khalil Weathers, sustained an injury a few weeks ago and will not play. Sophomore Dontre Jones is now the starter.
On defense, Central Catholic features tackle David Green, a Pitt recruit. Brian Dallas, a junior defensive end, has 22 sacks.
For Pine-Richland, winning has come relatively easy this season. But that’s why coach Eric Kasperowicz is busy working on his players’ minds as much as X’s and O’s.
“That’s all I worry about is complacency,” said Kasperowicz. “The biggest worry is they think they’re too good. They’re teenagers and constantly our message is to keep them grounded, don’t be overconfident and respect every opponent. Our biggest worry right now is ourselves.
“We’ve got to keep guys focused and grounded and they have to realize they’re not untouchable. It’s like the same thing Nick Saban said at Alabama. There’s that rat poison out there [from the media] about how good you are. But you have to go out and play.”
Pine-Richland already owns a 47-17 victory against Central Catholic on Sept. 29. Pine-Richland led at halftime, 47-3.
“We were walking into a buzzsaw that game. I don’t know if we were quite ready to win that game,” said Fleming.
“I will say this, we’ve gotten better defensively since that game. Our front seven has made tremendous gains. … I like the way we’re playing. I think our team is confident, but it’s a Herculean task ahead of us.”