Central Catholic dominates
Defense on display as Vikings blank Emmaus, come away with 21-0 win
Earlier in the week, Allentown Central Catholic Tim McGorry was talking about Emmaus, and he said he thought the Green Hornets had the best defense any of his teams had faced in his three seasons as the Vikings coach.
McGorry might have to crank out some new superlatives for his own defense.
The Vikings became the first team to blank Emmaus in a game since 2012, stifling a Green Hornets team ranked sixth in the state in Class 6A in a 21-0 stunner at J. Birney Crum Stadium
Emmaus was held to 138 yards in total offense, including a net 32 yards rushing.
The defensive dominance allowed Tamlin Ferguson, making his first varsity start at quarterback, to get comfortable.
Ferguson, who was at Southern Lehigh before spending a year in North Carolina in 2020, threw two touchdown passes, and Matt Keyes came off the bench for another TD toss — all with Griffin Patridge on the receiving end — as Central Catholic got its first marquee win in what was supposed to be a rebuilding year after winning last year’s District 11 4A title.
It was the first time the Green Hornets were blanked in a game since a 6-0 loss at Wyoming Valley West in an Eastern Conference playoff game at the end of the 2012 season.
“We had a great week of practice and the things we talked about … effort, energy and making the choice to physical ... those are the kind of things every football game comes down to,” McGorry said. “I’m proud of our kids to come out here and play with all of those things.”
After scoring just two touchdowns in
a 14-7 win over Liberty, McGorry decided to make the change at quarterback and go with Ferguson, who attended Christ School in Arden, North Carolina last year. It’s a boys boarding school his father attended.
“Tamlin came to us from North Carolina and kind of got in here a little late and didn’t get a ton of reps in the summer,” McGorry said. “We didn’t really know. But we felt more comfortable with his understanding of the offense and he digested it really well. We trusted he’d make good decisions. He’s a phenomenal leader and the kids really want to play for him.”
On Central’s first series, Ferguson shook off an incompletion on the first play and completed three passes in a row, the last one over the top to Patridge for a 43-yard score.
Ferguson ran for 13 yards and completed two passes for 50 yards on the Vikings’ next possession. He went to the sideline and watched Keyes hit Patridge for a 6-yard TD to give CCHS 14 points in the game’s first 6:34, after Emmaus had allowed a total of six points in its first two games.
“Our O-line blocked for me and we had guys who made plays,” Ferguson said. “I knew if I just gave them a shot, they’d go up and get it. Really all the receivers and linemen made the plays.”
Ferguson, a 5-foot-11, 200-pound junior, finished 11-for-17 for 219 yards against an Emmaus defense that continually applied pressure up front.
He didn’t play in the season opener against Dieruff, but got some time in Week 2 against Liberty.
“I knew if I stayed strong and mentally tough and kept with it, I’d get a shot, and thankfully I did today,” he said. “My biggest key was making smart decisions and not turning the ball over. We did it once today, but we were just trying to take a shot. It’s all about getting the ball out to our guys.”
After the two first-quarter scores, the Green Hornets tightened up and held the Vikings scoreless in the second and third quarters.
But it didn’t matter, since Emmaus couldn’t get sustain any drives.
The Green Hornets’ best possession started at their own 8 with 6:10 left in the third quarter and carried to a first down at the CCHS 17.
However, an end-zone interception by Armonie Torres ended the threat.
The Vikings then put it away with Patridge’s 24-yard TD reception from Ferguson with 6:19 left.
“The O-line protected Tamlin well and he threw the ball well ... it was just a great team win,” Patridge, a talented three-sport athlete at CCHS, said. “I always knew Tamlin had this in him,
but it was just a team process to get him in and ready to go. He did well today.”
Emmaus, meanwhile, struggled with penalties and other mistakes while being overpowered by the CCHS defense.
“We didn’t play our best and they played very well,” Green Hornets coach Harold Fairclough said. “We were hoping to get something going up front offensively and run the ball to help Josiah [Williams, a sophomore quarterback] out. But we didn’t play well in key areas and we struggled in the pass game as well.”
As for what’s next, Fairclough said his team has no choice but to regroup as quickly as possible.
“Whitehall is next and they’re licking their chops to get after us,” he said. “We just have to respond.”
What’s next
Emmaus returns home to face Whitehall on Friday and Central Catholic visits Easton the same night.
The series
Emmaus entered Saturday’s game with six wins in its last seven against the Vikings and an overall series lead of 25-231. The series began with a 13-0 Emmaus victory in 1941.