Oct 5, 2018 4 min read

CANONSBURG – Knowing his group had a tall order in front of them, Canon-McMillan coach Mike Evans had to take some risks if the Big Macs had any chance for success against one of the premiere programs in the WPIAL.

Though they had their chances early, the Big Macs had no answers in the second half as Pine-Richland showed the Homecoming crowd why they are one of the top teams in the state with a 38-7 win Friday night at Memorial Stadium.

The Rams upped their record to 6-1 overall and 5-0 in Quad County play while the Big Macs fell to 2-4 overall and 1-4 in conference.

The Big Macs went for it on fourth down twice in their own end early in the contest. Though Jon Quinque threw interceptions to Pine-Richland’s Chance Boyd ending Big Mac drives, the hosts served notice they were playing without fear.

“That’s probably the best team in the state we played tonight,” Evans said. “We knew we weren’t going to beat them punting the ball back to them and kicking field goals.”

Drew Engel looked to give the Big Macs some momentum in the third quarter, when he returned a Pine-Richland punt 50 yards to the Rams 30. Four plays later, that momentum was squashed when Miguel Jackson stuffed Gerrit Nijenhuis on fourth-and-one at the Pine-Richland 21. Three plays later, Luke Meckler was outracing the Big Macs defense on the way to a 48-yard touchdown that gave the visitors a 28-7 lead midway through the third quarter.

The Meckler Show continued in the quarter when he fielded a Canon-McMillan punt, sidestepped three tacklers, turned the corner and raced down the sidelines 70 yards to the Big Mac 10. Three plays later, Cole Spencer raced five yards into the end zone for a 35-7 lead, effectively salting the contest away.

Meckler finished with 126 yards rushing on 12 carries for the Rams.

Canon-Mac’s offense was stuck in neutral much of the second half. Leading rusher Joshua O’Hare (89 yards on 16 carries) did not play in the second half.

“He’s had a bit of a knee issue since camp,” Evans noted. “Structurally, there is nothing wrong with it. He’s OK. We were being cautious with him.”

Pine-Richland’s pass rush swarmed the Big Macs in the second half. Jackson led the assault with three sacks of quarterback Quinque.

Mason Pruhs added a 31-yard field goal, stretching the Rams advantage to 31 points with seven minutes remaining in the contest.

Canon-Mac went for it on fourth down on the fourth drive of the game – this one was a fourth-and-1 from the Rams 6. Quinque was sacked for a loss of eight, squashing the drive and giving momentum back to the Rams that they used to take the lead in the second.

“That’s a play we felt would be a touchdown for sure,” Evans said. “It’s hard to get a yard against them when they are expecting the run. It just didn’t work.”

Marching 86 yards in six plays, the Rams broke on top first following the fourth down stop when Meckler ripped off a 37 yard touchdown run. Pruhs kick was true, giving Pine-Richland a 7-0 lead midway through the second quarter.

Undaunted, the Big Macs responded with a 79-yard drive that finally ended in points. Nijenhuis capped the march with a five-yard burst up the middle for a touchdown. Josh Byers kicked the extra point, knotting the score at seven apiece.

But the Rams began flexing their muscles as the second quarter wore on.

On their next possession, Pine-Richland showed some mettle by going for it on fourth-and-one on its own 38. Meckler somehow burrowed forward for the needed yards and kept the march going.

A 53-yard Cole Spencer-to-Meckler connection two plays later put the Rams close. Anthony Cerminara capped the drive with a three-yard scoring run, giving the Rams a 14-7 late in the half.

Pine-Richland struck again on its next drive as they moved 52 yards in five plays. Meckler took an option pitch from Spencer and scampered the final two yards to give the Rams a 21-7 lead at the half.

Canon-Mac’s defense did get off to a strong start, holding the powerful Rams offense scoreless in the game’s opening quarter. The Big Macs also limited the Rams to one first down and 31 total yards in the first quarter.

David Cooper led the charge, sacking Spencer twice in the first quarter and was an overall force in the pass rush. He finished with four sacks.

”We came out and really took it to them early,” Evans said. “But that’s a well-coached team over there and they are better than we are at this point.”