Whipkey keys McGuffey in shutout win over Charleroi
McGuffey’s Nick Haynes (18) successfully battles Charleroi’s John Arnold for an interception to end Charleroi’s drive in the second quarter Friday night.
Jim McNutt / Observer-Reporter McGuffey’s James Duchi (23) breaks through the line leaving Charleroi’s Chad Waggoner (80) diving for him unsuccessfully and a host of others in his dust in the second quarter at Charleroi High School Friday night.
CHARLEROI – Nate Whipkey is no longer the mystery guy in the McGuffey High School football team’s offensive backfield. The word is out about the quarterback.
The kid can beat you with both his arm and his feet.
Whipkey had a big all-around game Friday, accounting for five touchdowns, and McGuffey’s defensive rebounded from a shaky performance in its season opener to blank Charleroi 45-0 in a Class AA Interstate Conference game.
While the Highlanders’ defense had a night of retribution, earning a shutout and holding Charleroi’s offense to minus-one yard rushing, it was Whipkey’s game.
The senior completed six of 11 passes for 153 yards and three scores, and rushed for 86 yards and two more touchdowns on 13 carries.
If opponents were planning to key on James Duchi, McGuffey’s 1,000-yard running back, they might have to redesign those plans. Whipkey, who missed half of last season after suffering a break in a small bone in his leg, is healthy and the guy who directs what has been a high-scoring offense this season.
“He’s good,” McGuffey coach Ed Dalton said. “He’s clearly in charge.”
Don Militzer agreed.
“He’s good,” the first-year Charleroi coach said. “When we crept up to stop the run, he hit us with the pass.”
Without Whipkey early last season, McGuffey’s offense was one-dimensional and inconsistent. With him, it’s been high-powered with the potential to score from anywhere on the field. The Highlanders are 6-2 with Whipkey as a starter, according to Dalton.
Duchi also had his usual strong game. He ran for 140 yards and two touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving. Duchi caught only two passes, but they netted 93 yards and led to 10 points.
Week 2 is a little early to play important football games, but there was no denying both the Highlanders (1-1) and Cougars (0-2) had a sense of urgency after suffering this-close losses on the road in their respective opener. This week, McGuffey cleaned up many of its defensive mistakes and kept Charleroi quarterback Matt Carr on the run most of the night.
“We played better defensively. We were physical. We hit,” Dalton said.
The game was close until McGuffey scored three touchdowns in the final six minutes of the first half to open a 24-0 lead.
“One bad thing happened and then everything went downhill,” Militzer said. “The same old things crept back in. One bad thing led to another.”
After Charleroi downed a punt at the McGuffey one-yard line, the Highlanders used 10 plays on its opening possession to reach the Cougars’ 2 before being pushed back by a sack and a holding penalty. Teague Nicolella kicked a 31-yard field goal and McGuffey settled for a 3-0 lead. The key play in the drive was a 43-yard pass from Whipkey to Duchi on third-and-one at the Charleroi 35.
McGuffey’s offense had 158 total yards midway through the second quarter, but had only the three points to show for it. The Highlanders finally found the end zone when Whipkey connected with wide receiver Adam Narigon in the middle of the field for a 32-yard TD pass on fourth-and-two with 5:11 left in the first half.
“Nate has turned the corner in the passing game this summer,” Dalton said. “Both of his touchdown passes were to receivers who weren’t his first option. Narigon even adjusted his route on that one.”
McGuffey free safety Nick Haynes, who had an interception early in the second quarter, recovered a Charleroi fumble at midfield on the Cougars’ next possession. One play later, Duchi took a perfectly executed middle screen from Whipkey and raced 50 yards to make it a 17-0 score.
The Highlanders took over following a Charleroi punt with 3:12 left in the half. Without the benefit of a timeout, McGuffey needed only six plays to go 50 yards and score. Whipkey rolled left, broke containment and ran through two tackles for a 17-yard TD run and 24-0 lead.
“I honestly thought we (had a good team),” Militzer said. “Not in a million years did I expect this. Give McGuffey credit, though. They beat us.”
The Highlanders scored touchdowns on three consecutive second-half possessions to push their lead to 45-0. Duchi ran untouched on a sweep for a 20-yard score, and Whipkey passed 20 yards to Jared Whirlow and ran 15 yards for the game’s final score late in the third quarter.
Carr, who was chased out of the pocket many times by an array of McGuffey blitzes, completed eight of 15 passes for 89 yards. The Cougars also couldn’t generate a running game to slow the Highlanders’ pass rush.
Charleroi committed six turnovers and faked a 31-yard field goal in the first quarter that resulted in a 12-yard loss.
“It’s gut-check time for us,” Militzer said. “We’ll play the guys who want to play next week. It doesn’t matter if they’re freshmen or sophomores.”