HS WEEK 1 WRAPUP
Central Catholic and Springfield Central could meet again in December and not many fans would be disappointed.
Two years after Central Catholic defeated Springfield Central, 52-42, the two schools waged another assault on the scoreboard. And once again, Central Catholic had a few too many weapons at their disposal and won, 67-52.
“We knew it was going to be this type of game based on what happened two years ago,” said Central Catholic coach Chuck Adamopoulos. “If you were on defense, you really felt helpless at times.”
The maestro of the offense was quarterback Ayden Pereira. After piling up 303 yards and five touchdowns in 2019, last Friday he hit 24of-30 passes for 448 yards and seven touchdowns to go with 162 rushing yards and three more scores.
“I didn’t even know the stats until (offensive coordinator) John Sexton told me he threw and ran for 10 touchdowns,” Adamopoulos said. “We really get spoiled because we see Ayden in practice every day and that’s how he practices. I’ll say that in my 38 years of coaching, it’s the best athletic performance I’ve ever seen.”
Yet for a half, it was not good enough.
Springfield Central’s star quarterback William Watson (407 total yards) led his team to 40 points in the first half. Adamopoulos was full of praise for Watson, but got on his defense at the break.
“We were making way too defensive mistakes as far as not doing the things we were supposed to be doing,” said Adamopoulos. “In the second half, we played with much more composure and forced three turnovers. I give my kids a lot of credit for showing a lot of character and sucking it up in the second half.”
CC’s senior wide receiver Justice McGrail, a co-captain with Pereira, caught seven passes for 158 yards and three touchdowns, including a game-opening 85-yarder.
“Justice is a great kid, he’s someone who buys into the team aspect,” Adamopoulos said. “He’s a natural leader, he’s someone who really cares about all his teammates. You’ll see him in the weight room getting the other kids motivated, he’s always walking around talking to the younger kids in the program.”