USC Blows Past Shaler 49-0 In Opener

Shaler starting quarterback Ryan Mincher lost his jersey on the way to the game.  That was only a sign of things to come as he injured his right knee during his team's second series and had to leave the game for good.

USC's starting quarterback Dakota Conwell also left the game early— in the second quarter, however that was because of the lopsided score. The Panther star completed four of seven passes for 87 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 23 yards on only four carries.  On a hot and muggy night that would have tested the attrition of any athlete, especially one that plays both offense and defense, it was a pleasant circumstance for Conwell to deal with.

The score was 14-0 after one quarter, and 35-0 at halftime. The flip side of USC's good fortune is that head coach Jim Render was unable to get his starters the workout he may have wanted.

"They have to learn to play in the fourth quarter," said Render after the game.

This certainly wasn't the game to test Conwell on his fourth-quarter prowess. The Panthers may not get tested next week either when they host Norwin, but there will be a point in the season the Panthers will be tested late in a game.  It will be fun to watch how Conwell handles that situation.

USC forced Shaler to punt after its first three plays of the game netted only 2 yards. Rori Blair blocked a punt by J.P. Holtz and AJ McGuire fell on it in the endzone.  Just 1:11 into the game, USC had a 7-0 lead.  Shaler head coach Neil Gordon prides himself on special teams, but clearly there was a gaffe here as Blair was in front of Holtz immediately and basically had to pull up and wait for the ball to be punted.

Things went from bad to worse for Shaler after the ensuing kickoff.  On the second play of the next series, Titans QB Ryan Mincher kept the ball off left tackle for a nice 10-yard gain, but then appeared to be in great pain as he held his right knee.  After a few minutes, he was helped off the field and was later seen walking very gingerly on the sideline.  His night was done. The extent of the injury will not be known until later in the week.

After another Shaler punt, USC and Conwell went back to work.  On 3rd and 3, Conwell rolled right, then completely reversed field and found Jack Schwaba for a big 10-yard first down catch.  Later in the drive on third and 17, Conwell found Gibson Carleton for a 17-yard catch and a first down by inches.

The drive appeared to stall at the Shaler 24-yard line when the Panthers decided to go for it on fourth down.  Conwell dropped back to pass and hit Mike Wilcox in stride in the endzone for a 24-yard TD pass and catch to make the score 14-0 after one quarter of play.

"Wilcox can stretch the field, that will send a message," said coach Render who saw the bigger picture a play like that can provide later in the season.

Shaler continued to struggle getting first downs.  In fact, they would manage only one all game compared to the 14 first downs for the Panthers.

The next time USC touched the ball, Conwell surged for 20 yards, his biggest carry of the night.  AJ McGuire capped off the drive with a 2-yard score that made it 21-0.

After another Shaler fumble, the Panthers took only two plays to score again.  Conwell hit Wilcox for a 31-yard score, their second touchdown connection of the game and it was 28-0. That would be the last play of the game for Conwell. In all, USC would use five quarterbacks.

Sophomore running back Phil Saracco would cap the first half scoring sneaking in from one yard out with 2:01 remaining in the quarter and provided USC with their 35-0 halftime lead.

Saracco was expecting just a few carries on the night but said it felt great to get seven of them for 44 yards and 2 scores.  Coach Render was openly not very pleased with the team's performance this preseason, but Saracco felt they proved something to him Friday night.

"I think we did, I think we stepped up tonight," said Saracco after the game.

The two second-half scores came from Saracco in the third quarter from 19 yards out and Trevor Morrow added a 4-yard TD with 4:00 left in the game that made the final score 49-0. USC outgained Shaler 381 yards to just 55 for the Titans.

The final score may have been toughest on Panthers marching band drum major, Chris Farabaugh. As a ritual, each time the team scores, he does one push-up for each point the team has accumulated. Friday night he ended up doing 196 push-ups.

Coach Render had to look hard for anything to be displeased about in Friday's opener.  He called Wilcox over for a short discussion on the sideline after the senior let a punt bounce an extra 20 yards instead of calling for a fair catch or gaining possession earlier.

"I know we've got things to correct, we'll be back to work on Monday," Render said, searching for the motivation his team may need.

Shaler came into Friday's game already banged up and it was a big blow to lose Mincher in the second series of the game.

"We're off to a good start, but it's a little misleading with all the injuries they're dealing with," said Render.

The Panthers host Norwin next Friday, then they take to the road for very challenging games at North Allegheny and West Allegheny.