Oct 1, 2021 4 min read

CANONSBURG — Canon-McMillan might not be in the WPIAL’s upper class yet.

Losses to Peters Township (29-7) and at Mt. Lebanon (37-7) earlier this season showed that coach Mike Evans’ squad is still a work in progress.

The Big Macs might not be elite, but they aren’t boring.

In Canon-Mac’s four wins, it has averaged 47 points per game. In the past two games, Canon-Mac has scored 106 – 61 last week at Baldwin and 45 in Friday’s 45-27 win over Hempfield in the Class 6A Quad County Conference.

Running back Ryan Angott was the Big Macs’ (2-1, 4-2) shining star on offense, finishing the night with 113 yards on 22 carries and two scores. The coach’s son, quarterback Mike Evans, threw two touchdown passes, and Anthony Finney took a punt back 85 yards, making noise on special teams.

Coach Evans was happy with the win but knows the program is still growing. Last week’s 61-7 win over Baldwin was like a steamroller running over a birthday cake, but this one was a little more dicey, with a 28-7 Big Macs lead turning into 28-19 entering the fourth quarter thanks to two Hempfield scores in 85 seconds.

“Listen, we still have a lot to clean up,” he said. “It’s 45 points, but we have a lot to clean up. Our defense set up a lot of those touchdowns. We have a big film session tomorrow, and we have a lot of work to do.”

Hempfield (0-3, 2-4) was the one who fired the first shot. On the first play from scrimmage, Elijah Binakonsky ran 73 yards for a score.

Canon-Mac answered on its first possession when Evans hit Lamont “Duece” Lyons for a 10-yard score. The Big Macs cashed in again on their next possession, capped off by a 3-yard run from Angott. Canon-Mac made it 3-for-3 on the next drive, and again, it was Angott who capped it off on another short run, this one from two yards. When Finney returned a pouch kick 80 yards for a score, the Big Macs were firmly in command.

Evans credited his veterans for that response.

“We have good senior leadership,” Evans said. “They don’t let that kind of thing bother them. They know it’s one play at one time. Every play has a life and death of its own, and we let that play die.”

In the third quarter, Hempfield began to claw back. Quarterback Jacob Phillips took it himself for 11 yards, and after a fumble recovery deep in Canon-Mac territory, Phillips found Ian Tuffs in the end zone to make it 28-19. On the ensuing possession, however, the Big Macs made it a three-score game again on a 6-yard by Evans. This effectively completed the fall of Sparta. When Evans hit Kent McMahon for a 12-yard score on the Big Macs’ next drive, the deal was sealed.

Hempfield’s first-year coach Mike Brown was pleased with his squad’s brief charge but knows his team must learn to put it together for a full 48 minutes.

“We fight,” Brown said. “We’re not going to give up. We have to start getting our first and second quarter under control.”

Evans appreciated the opponents’ scrap and feels that it will benefit his squad down the road.

“We’re going to get a lot out of this game because we were challenged tonight,” Evans said. “They just kept coming back, and we made mistakes, and they did a nice job.”

Although Hempfield is still winless in conference play, Evans likes what he sees from Brown in year one.

“I want to give credit to Hempfield,” he said. “Mike Brown’s doing a great job with that program. They were very tough tonight. We kept trying to get up and get them out and get our foot on their necks, and they just kept coming back. So he has those guys believing over there.”

For Hempfield, Bonkonsky rushed for 131 yards and the opening touchdown on 12 carries.

“We just have to keep working,” Brown said. We’re not going to stop. We’re going to get back to lifting, watching this film tomorrow, and then its time for us to get ready for Baldwin.”

Canon-Mac will look to keep it rolling next week at Seneca Valley.

Last year, the Big Macs turned it over six times in a 31-17 loss.

“Hey, listen, every time we take the field, we expect to win,” Evans Sr. said. “I’m sure they do too. So I’m looking forward to a real competitive game against a team that I don’t know when the last time is we beat them.”