Crusaders looking to go to 2-0
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STEUBENVILLE -- Catholic Central will look to go 2-0 for the first time since 2018 when it welcomes Strasburg Franklin, one of three new opponents on the 2023 schedule, to Harding Stadium Saturday.
The opening kick is set for 7 p.m.
Eric Meek's Crusaders got their season rolling with a dominating 37-6 road victory at Wellsville. The Tigers, meanwhile, were blanked by Rittman, a Division VI school based in Wayne County, 27-0.
"I was happy with our physicality, our intensity, our enthusiasm and for the most part, our execution," Meek said when discussing the Wellsville game. I was extremely proud of our defensive effort and our defensive coaches. They put together a great game plan. Our kids were very well prepared. We took away Wellsville's main threat. We contained Wellsville and held them to six points.
"I thought we were dominant on special teams and offensively, we moved the ball very well. The only downfall was the three fumbles we lost. That needs to be corrected and corrected fast."
Central's defense held Wellsville to 168 total yards, recovered two fumbles and picked off two passes. The Crusader offense put up 269 yards, 169 on the ground and 100 through the air. Senior quarterback Tyler Ialenti accounted for 176 of Central's total, running for 76 and completing six of his 13 passes for 100 more. Ialenti, who also had a solid defensive game, scored three times on runs of 12, 50 and 4 yards.
"I thought the effort was there by every kid who went on the field," Meek said. "Guys were hustling on and off the field and we looked like a football that was there to take care of business.
"We want to be humble and hungry and just do the best we can. We must work hard in order to keep getting better and play with class and excitement.
"Defensively, I thought we played very good in pass coverage and our special teams were very solid the entire night (sophomore Matthew Sprochi gave the Crusaders a huge boost when he returned the second half kick 67 yards for a touchdown).
"It's nice when people tell the kids how proud they are of them and we appreciate that very much. Our kids know they need to keep getting better -- there still are a lot of things we need to improve upon."
Strasburg, which has not had a winning season since 2013, is coached by Jimm Morris, who previously guided the Tigers from 2008-2013. In the loss to Rittman, the Tigers were held to just seven total yards of offense. Rittman, on the other hand, finished with more than 300 yards of offense.
They have a young quarterback (Kaden Thomas," Meek said. "He's a big kid and when he starts running with the football, he will try to run you over. They run out of the spread mostly with all four-wide sets. Defensively, they run a 3-4 set.
"Strasburg is going to present a huge challenge for us. I know they are going to come into our stadium excited and hungry to get that first win. They will be ready to play and we better be ready to play. We need to focus on getting better each week.
"I was very, very pleased with our first game. You take away those three fumbles and we played a pretty solid football game. I was proud of the effort, the hustle and the intensity. We have to stay focused, play hard, continue to improve and stay healthy."
Senior BJ Fallon added 56 rushing yards for the Crusaders, who will start a three-week stretch of home games Saturday. He also caught two Ialenti passes for 31 yards and recorded an interception on defense.