Bulldogs make memories, and a statement, in beating Mustangs
Rivalries are all about settling scores and creating memories.
Brady Gibble and Wilson’s other seniors remember all too well the painful feeling of walking out of Mifflin Stadium two years ago in defeat.
They were determined to ease that memory.
“That (loss) really put that chip on our shoulder,” said Gibble. “We really wanted to come out here and get a win at their house.”
The Bulldogs didn’t just get a win Friday night in Shillington, they made a statement with a 61-14, take-no-prisoners victory.
They’re a powerful, multifaceted football team and they will be a tough out.
“It’ll be interesting to see who can beat ‘em,” said Gov. Mifflin coach Jeff Lang after his side absorbed one of the worst beatings in the storied history of the series.
The Bulldogs (2-0) pounced early and never let up.
They scored on each of their first eight possessions to build a 61-0 lead early in the final quarter.
They got three early touchdowns from bullish running back Avanti Lockhart and three touchdown passes from Kaleb Brown, two to Gibble.
They got touchdowns from guys on the second and third lines of their depth chart and saw their fourth-string quarterback complete a pass.
It was as one-sided as a football game can get and goes down as one of the biggest blowouts in the 65-year history of the series.
The 47-point margin-ofvictory is topped only by Wilson’s 49-0 win in 1989.
The 61 points are the most ever scored by a team in the series, and the second-most ever allowed during Mifflin’s 66-year history.
Only Manheim Central, in a 62-13 win in 1994, put up more on the Mustangs.
“It was just a disaster from the get-go,” said Lang, whose team was penalized for holding on the opening kickoff, started its first possession from the 7, then saw a fumble and a loss back to the 2 on the second play from scrimmage.
“From there it was just downhill,” said Lang. He wasn’t exaggerating. Lockhart took a pass in the left flat and raced through some arm tackles for a 29-yard touchdown on Wilson’s first possession.
Brown started the next drive with a 37-yard keeper and Lockhart finished it with a 16-yard run.
Lockhart was in the end zone again a few minutes later on a 3-yard run, set up by Brown’s 44-yard strike to Gibble, a 6-2 wide receiver with a nose for the end zone.
The Bulldogs were so dominant up front they could’ve pounded away all night but they wanted to show they could throw the ball, too, and they did that, constantly taking deep shots down the field.
Brown found Gibble on a deep post the next time they had the ball, good for a 41yard score.
“He put some (throws) right on the money for me,” said Gibble, who scored again with three seconds left in the first half for a 42-0 lead when he took a screen to the house from 17 yards out.
It was just as lopsided when the Mustangs (0-2) had the ball.
They were down 35-0 before they earned the second first down. The Bulldogs came crashing in from every direction and gave Berks rushing champ Nick Singleton nowhere to go. He was limited to 15 first-half yards on three carries and 35 yards for the game.
“Their front eight just totally dominated us,” Lang said. “When you’re getting pushed back your (skill) athletes can’t do anything.
“We had some option situations where we wanted to pitch it to (Singleton). The idea was to get him on the perimeter more, it just didn’t work out.”
The Mustangs had just 64 total yards in the first half. They were down 61 points before they got on the board, scoring a pair of
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touchdowns in the final six minutes, the second when Cam’Ron Stewart blocked a punt and recovered it in the end zone.
The highlights were few and far between for the Mustangs.
“It’s very disappointing,” said Lang, “because I thought we were a little better up front than we were. It just showed that they were that much stronger than us.”
It was appropriate at the end that offensive linemen Adam Vanino and Nate Keller were lofting the Gurski-Linn Trophy because it was the guys up front who set the tone.
That group, which includes guard Anthony Koper and Jean-Carlo Ventura and tackle Sal Pugliese controlled the game from start to finish.
“All credit to our offense line,” said Gibble. “They were dominating every single play.”
It goes down as a great night for the Bulldogs, one they’ll treasure for years.
“This,” Gibble said of the victory, “will stick with me forever.”