Blue Devils get defensive in opening win

The smothering, physical defense of the Old Forge football team transferred over to the basketball court on Friday night as the Blue Devils held Wyoming Area to single digits in each quarter on their way to a 50-21 victory in the 18th annual Badger Game held at Wyoming Area.

The Badger Game honors the late Anthony Marseco, an Old Forge graduate and member of the 1992 PIAA championship baseball team and DIstrict 2 Class 1A champion basketball team, and former Wyoming Area basketball coach. The Blue Devils now lead the series, 12-6.

Old Forge (1-0) forced 14 first-half turnovers and limited the Warriors to just four field goals in the first 16 minutes as it took command. The Blue Devils also racked up six steals on the night.

Wyoming Area’s Mike Carey got Wyoming Area to within 5-4 with 3:30 left in the first quarter, but it would be the Warriors last bucket for the next six minutes as Old Forge went on a 14-0 run to take a 19-4 lead with 6:17 remaining in the second quarter.

Junior sharpshooter Jimmie Aversa spurred the run with eight points - including two three-pointers to get the Old Forge offense in gear.

The lead could have been bigger for the Blue Devils, but the visitors struggled from the free throw line in the first half, shooting just 1-for-8 from the charity stripe during the first two quarters.

Brian “Bubba” Tomasetti added eight of his 12 points in the first half - six in the second quarter - as Old Forge took a 23-10 lead at intermission.

Wyoming Area would get no closer as the Old Forge lead ballooned to 47-17 with 3:!5 left in the game. The Blue Devils outscored the Warriors, 27-11, in the second half. 

Aversa and Tomasetti each finished with 12 points to lead Old Forge. with Aversa burying three triples. Tomasetti added six rebounds, two steals and two assists.

Brenden Wahl added seven points, three rebounds and two assists for the Blue Devils, and Jake Manetti chipped in with six points, four rebounds and two steals. Jorden Sekol pulled down 12 rebounds for Old Forge.

The Blue Devils will host Northwest on Monday night, and East Stroudsburg Notre Dame on Wednesday. Old Forge the travels to Valley View on Saturday to take on the Cougars. That game will be broadcast on www.vvcougars.com.

Blue Devils blocked by Bucks

(Publisher’s Note: Yes it has taken me a little of four weeks to come to terms with writing the final chapter in the 2012 Old Forge Blue Devils Football Season. And it has taken me that long because a certain team is still playing and will be playing for a state championship on Friday. Yes we all know it easily could have been the Blue Devils, yet it is not. So it is with great pride and satisfaction that I pen - er type - this final edition of the Big Blue Wrecking Crew Chronicles for 2012).

The rematch between Old Forge and Dunmore was nothing short of what was expected between the two small school foes, however for Blue Devil fans, it came up short - one point short - of what was expected to be a second straight home-field coronation for the defending District 2 Class 1A champions.

The Bucks used a second-quarter Daiqaun Buckley touchdown - and a blocked extra-point - to edge previously unbeaten Old Forge, 7-6, in front of crowd of 4,000-plus at Veterans Memorial Stadium to dethrone the Blue Devils for district gold.

The game got off to an auspicious start for Old Forge (11-1) as the Blue Devils were flagged for illegal participation on its first play from scrimmage after Anthony Piccolini returned the opening kickoff 35 yards to the Old Forge 45.

The penalty was a sign of things to come as the Blue Devils made mistakes at crucial intervals of the contest - something they hadn’t done all season.

The teams played scoreless football during the first 16 minutes of action as both teams chewed time of the clock in each of their first two possessions. After Old Forge punted on its first possession, Dunmore chewed four minutes off the clock with an eight-play, 33-yard drive before punting the ball back to the Blue Devils.

Old Forge took over at its own 12, and after quarterback Brenden Wahl completed four passes for 35 yards - including a hookup with Piccolini for 30 yards, the Bucks buckled down and forced another Blue Devils punt.

Dunmore chewed up four more minutes on its next possession but only gained 25 yards as linebackers Jorden Sekol and Shane Schuback combined for six tackles. Sekol and Piccolini stopped Buckley on third-and-7 to force another punt.

The Blue Devils then went to the air.

Wahl hooked up with Jake Manetti on first-and-10 from the OF 30 for 11 yards and a first down. The 1,600-yard passer then found Mike Vieira for a 23-yard gain and Old Forge was in Dunmore territory at the 36.

That’s when things fell apart.

A 16-yard completion to Shane Schuback was nullified for Old Forge having an illegal man downfield, and on the following play, Wahl was flagged for intentional grounding to push the Blue Devils back to the 50 with a second-and-24. Dunmore forced two incompletions and ultimately another Old Forge punt.

The Big Blue Wrecking Crew stood tall on the ensuing possession but a special teams mistake proved to be the costliest of the game.

Schuback and Tony DeSando stopped Austin Seamon for a one-yard gain on first-and-10, and then Sekol sacked Dunmore QB Brandon Kujawski for a three-yard loss. Old Forge then forced an incompletion and the Bucks to punt on fourth-and-12 from its own 22.

But a personal foul roughing the kicker penalty was called on the Blue Devils after Piccolini had fair caught the 28-yard punt on the 50, giving the ball back to Dunmore.

Three plays later, Buckley trucked through three tackles before sprinting 57 yards for the only Dunmore touchdown in eight quarters of play against Old Forge in 2012. Mike Boland’s extra-point was good, and the Bucks led 7-0 with 5:10 remaining in the second quarter.

Old Forge responded by moving to the Dunmore 33 on six plays, including four rushes by Bubba Tomasetti for 17 yards, a scramble by Wahl for eight yards and a 15-yard personal foul face mask penalty on the Bucks.

But on second-and-8 Wahl’s intended pass to Piccolini over the middle sailed and was intercepted by John Rinaldi to turn the ball over with 2:05 left before halftime.

With all three timeouts left, Old Forge was able get the ball back one last time after holding Dunmore to just four yards on three plays forcing another punt.

Tomasetti returned the 33-yard punt to the Dunmore 43 and the Blue Devils had another shot before halftime.

Wahl found Tomasetti in the flat for nine-yard before spiking the ball on second down with 45 seconds left in the half to set up third-and-1 from the 34.

This time bad luck struck the Blue Devils.

While scrambling away from defenders trying to find an open receiver, Wahl headed back toward the home sideline and toward the line of scrimmage with at least 20 yards of open field ahead of him. But when the signal-caller avoided the last would-be Bucks defender, the official whistled the play dead, thinking Wahl had been downed as he kept his balance with his hand on the ground.

The play cost Old Forge at least a field goal attempt before the half expired, or a shot at tying the game with the touchdown. Wahl’s incompletion on fourth down ended the half.

Old Forge needed to start the half by changing momentum and it got the break it needed when Joey Bruno recovered a fumble at the Dunmore 38.

Wahl hooked up with Schuback for 11 yards and Tomasetti followed with a 12-yard gain on the ground to move the Blue Devils into the redzone. Three plays later, Tomasetti cashed in from three-yards out for a touchdown to electrify the Blue Devils faithful.

But the excitement was short-lived as Dunmore burst through the right side of the Old Forge offensive line on the PAT attempt to block Matt Mancuso’s kick. Still the Blue Devils were within 7-6 with 9:34 showing on the third quarter clock.

Dunmore then played keep-away, keeping the ball on the ground on 12 of its next 13 plays as they registered four first downs as it moved to the Old Forge 17. 

The defense came though again for Old Forge, stopping Seamon for zero yards on his next three carries to set up fourth-and-10. On fourth down, Bruno came up big again for the Blue Devils - sacking Kujawski for a 10-yard loss.

Wahl went back to the air but was stymied on first and second down before throwing a second interception on third down. Old Forge got the ball back three plays later when Buckley fumbled while trying to gain extra-yardage and Tomasetti recovered at the Blue Devils own 11.

Tomasetti - Old Forge’s all-time single-season rushing leader - carried three straight times for 16 yards to move the Blue Devils out of a hole. But on second-and-8 Old Forge’s dip into the playbook backfired and Manetti was sacked while trying to throw a pass on an end around. Two plays later Old Forge punted and the Bucks went into the playbook as well.

After Seamon was stopped on first down for a two-yard loss, Dunmore went to the air with Kujawski finding Josh Zilla for two straight seven-yard gains to set up a first down at the Old Forge 31 as time ran in the fourth quarter.

The Bucks moved to the 12, but Piccolini shot through the line to drop Seamon for a four-yard loss on third-and-5. 

Back-to-back offsides penalties on the Bucks moved the ball back to the 26, and on fourth down, Manetti and Tomasetti broke up a pass in the endzone to give the Blue Devils one last shot.

Taking over on its own 26 with 3:54 left, Old Forge opened its last gasp with an incompletion on first down and a nine-yard gain on second down Wahl found Schuback over the middle.

The Blue Devils then turned to Tomasetti.

Tomasetti carried six straight times for 22 yards to push Old Forge into Dunmore territory with 1:57 remaining.

On second-and-eight, Wahl scrambled for six yards to put the ball at the Dunmore 37 before the Bucks stopped Tomasetti for no-gain on third-and-2.

Dunmore then made the play of the game.

Old Forge fed Tomasetti again on fourth-and-2 but the Bucks were up to the challenge and held the 1,800-yard rusher to no gain to regain possession and claim the title.

Tomasetti finished with 89 yards on 26 carries to lead the Old Forge ground attack. Wahl completed 9-for-19 for 100 yards. Schuback caught four passes for 33 yards to lead the receiving corps.

Devil dominate Vikings

If he wasn’t emphatic enough about who the best player on the field was the first time Old Forge and Riverside met on the gridiron, Brian “Bubba” Tomasetti put forth a repeat performance as the Blue Devils smashed the Vikings, 42-7, in the opening round of the District 2 Class 1A playoffs on Friday night at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

Tomasetti rushed for 200 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries to become the OFHS single-season rushing and touchdown leader with 1,728 yards and 30 TDs respectively. The senior also picked off two passes and returned a kickoff 70 yards to set up a score.

The game started precariously for the Blue Devils as Mike Vieira injured his ankle on the opening kickoff, but the senior continued to play during the first quarter.

And he made a difference.

After Tomasetti rushed for five yards on first down from the OF 32, Vieira took a speed sweep for nine yards and a first down.

Two plays later hauled in a 29-yard pass from quarterback Brenden Wahl for a touchdown. Matt Mancuso banged the first of his six extra-points on the night and Old Forge (11-0) led, 7-0 with 9:52 showing on the first-quarter clock.

It didn’t take long for the offense to get back on the field as linebacker Jorden Sekol picked off his first pass of the season when he intercepted Riverside quarterback Nick Dranchak at the Vikings 28-yard line.

A 23-yard toss from Wahl to tight end Shane Schuback for a touchdown was nullified by an illegal motion penalty, but a 13-yard scramble by Wahl on third-and-12 set up the Blue Devils in the red zone on the 14-yard line.

Two plays later, Jake Manetti took the speed sweep out of the spread formation nine yards into the end zone for a 14-0 lead with 7:24 left in the opening stanza.

The Vikings picked up its first first down of the game on its next possession, but the Blue Devils forced a punt and took over at the Riverside 43.

Old Forge moved to the Riverside 20 as Tomasetti carried four times for 22 yards and Wahl picked up six on a scramble. But a two holding penalties forced a punt, giving the ball to the Vikings at the 15.

The teams traded the next two possessions, and Riverside caught a break when Manetti fumbled a punt at the Vikings 44 which Jim Tucker recovered for Riverside.

On the next play, tailback Dave Sweetman took a flare pass 37 yards down the visitors sideline to the Old Forge 19. Only a touchdown-saving tackle by Anthony Picoolini kept the senior speedster from getting to the end zone.

The tackle by Piccolini proved to be a huge turning point as the Big Blue Wrecking Crew kept the Vikings off the board when Schuback stepped in front of a Riverside receiver at the goal line for an interception that he returned to the Vikings 15.

A completion from Wahl to Schuback for 17 yards on third-and-8 moved Old Forge across its own 30, and two plays later Tomasetti put the highlight reel in motion.

Tomasetti took a handoff to the right, bounced off right guard Paul Papi before reversing field to the left where he found a hole that he sprinted to. The only 1,700-yard rusher in a season in school history for the Blue Devils then stepped over a defender grasping for his shoestrings and galloped 57 yards to paydirt for a 21-0 Old Forge lead with 4:56 to go before halftime.

Riverside had another chance to get on the board before the end of the first half after Schuback shanked a punt for just eight yards from his own 11. But the junior linebacker atoned for his first bad punt of the season by leading the defense in forcing incompletions on third and fourth down from the 13. Sekol almost had his second INT of the game on fourth down, getting his hands on a pass at the goal line.

The top scoring defense in all of District 2 held the Vikings to just 72 total yards in the first half – 37 of which came on one play. Old Forge forced Dranchak – who had throw for over 2,500 yards coming into the game – into a 4-for-15 first half for just 15 yards with two interceptions.

Riverside did not quit at the half.

The Vikings came out in the third quarter and went 69 yards on five plays for its first – and only – score of the game.

Dranchak hooked up with Nico Munley on third-and-9 down the Old Forge sideline for a 58-yard touchdown with 10:08 showing on the Big Board. Mat Lucas drilled the PAT, and the Vikings were with in 21-7 and built some momentum to start the half.

But Tomasetti would once again impose his will on the Blue Devils arch-rival.

Subbing for Vieira who did not play the final three quarters because of his injury, Tomasetti took the ensuing kickoff on his own 25 and returned in 70 yards to the Riverside 5 to set up his second touchdown of the game. It was the first time this season Tomasetti had been on the field to return a kick.

Two plays later, Tomasetti was in the end zone and Old Forge regained momentum and command with a 28-7 lead with 9:17 left in the third period.

On its next possession, Old Forge opened with two carries by Tomasetti for 20 yards before turning to Manetti.

Manetti carried once for 16 yards then hauled in a short pass from Wahl before turning the dump off into a 29-yard touchdown for a 35-7 lead less than four minutes later.

Riverside tried to answer after Dranchak connected on two passes for 19 yards, and the Blue Devils were flagged twice for personal foulds. The series of events put the Vikings on the Old Forge 30-yard line. But on first down outside linebacker Warren Welsh recovered a Dranchak fumbled to give the ball back to the Blue Devils.

The Riverside defense forced a punting situation on the ensuing series, but on fourth down, Schuback – the punter – saw an opening and audibled to a direct snap to Tomasetti.

Tomasetti – who again was replacing Vieira on a special teams unit – took the snap and went up the middle untouched for a 63-yard touchdown. Kyree Toomey threw a crushing block at about the 30 on the Riverside return man to spring Tomasetti to the end zone.

The PAT was good and the Mercy Rule was invoked as Old Forge led 42-7 with 1:05 left in the third quarter.

Riverside tried to answer by going to the air, and after Dranchak hooked up with tight end Mike Loftus on a 29-yard completion in front of Tomasetti, the senior cornerback got even.

Tomasetti would intercept Dranchak’s next two passes – one in the end zone, and one at the OF 35 – to end two Riverside drives.

Old Forge then ran most of the remaining time off the clock with Brandon Yescavage picking up 35 yards and Toomey running for 33.

Devil Details….

• Old Forge has outscored Riverside, 143-20, in their last three meetings – including two playoff victories - to take a 33-30-4 lead in the all-time series.

• Tomasetti racked up 200 yards for the fourth time this season. His two-game total against the Vikes in 2012 was 50 carries, 422 yards, 9 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions.

• Wahl’s 75 yards passing put him over the 1,500-yard mark for the season at 1,529. The senior became just the third QB in OFHS history to pass for over 1,500 yards. He also added to his school-record for touchdowns in a season with two more to give him 21.

Video evidence the Blue Devils rock!!!

Devils win LFC Division III Crown

It didn’t take long for Old Forge to get on top last Saturday afternoon at Susquehanna Community High School. And it took even less time to put the game away.

The Blue Devils scored on their first play from scrimmage and added two more touchdowns within 26 seconds during the end of the first quarter as they ran away with a 49-6 victory over the Sabers to claim the Lackawanna Football Conference Division III title for the second consecutive season, and the fifth time in seven years.

Anthony Piccolini put Old Forge (10-0) on the board when he took a screen pass from Brenden Wahl and sprinted 29 yards down the visitor’s side line for a touchdown. The two-point run failed but the Blue Devils led 6-0 just 2:46 into the game.

A penalty and an interception on a trick play cost Old Forge a chance to score one possession later. But the Blue Devils again struck quickly on its ensuing possessions when Wahl hit Jake Manetti for a 3-yard touchdown pass with 38 seconds remaining in the first stanza.

Wahl hooked up with Piccolini with 14 yards, and Shane Schuback for 41 during the three-play drive. Matt Mancuso took the two-point conversion into the endzone on an option play and Old Forge led 14-0.

Paul Papi recovered a fumble for Old Forge on Susquehanna’s next offensive snap to give the Blue Devils the ball on the Sabers 34.

After scoring twice through the air, the Blue Devils went to the ground and handed the ball to Brian “Bubba” Tomasetti for a 24-yard gain before the senior tailback scored from 10 yards out with 12 seconds left before the second quarter. Mancuso booted the extra-point and Old Forge led, 21-0.

Mike Vieira snatched an interception on Susquehanna’s next possession, and the Blue Devils went back to the air.

Wahl found Schuback for a hookup at the 10, and Old Forge’s junior tight end did work the rest of the way, finding the endzone for a 31-yard touchdown. Mancuso’s PAT was good and the Blue Devils led 28-0 with 9:42 left before halftime.

The defense continued to dominate for Old Forge forcing a punt after Kyree Tomey, Paul Papi and Jorden Sekol sacked Sabers QB Cole Mallory. The Blue Devils then got a piece of the punt, and took over at the Sabers 10.

Two players later, Tomasetti scored from 10-yards out to put Old Forge ahead, 35-0, after Mancuso’s kick.

Tomasetti then got into the act defensively with his seventh interception of the season, and two plays later, the 1,500-yard rusher scored from 11 yards out for  42-0 lead with 4:33 before haltime.

The touchdown also tied Tomasetti with Bob Rinaldi Sr. for the OFHS single-season rushing touchdown record with 27.

Susquehanna tried to get on the board against the Blue Devils second team defense to end the half, but the Sabers had a 71-yard touchdown run by Mallory called back because of an offensive facemask.

At the half, Old Forge had held Susquehanna to minus-23 yards rushing on 18 carries.

The starters took the second half off with the exception of an extra-point after senior Tyler Salerno went 30 yards for this third touchdown of the season with 11:00 left in the game.

Tomsetti finished the day with 78 yards to give him 1,528 for the season – the fourth best single-season mark in school history.

Wahl also moved into fourth position for passing yards in a season after finishing 5-for-7 for 117 yards. His total of 1,453 trails leader Benny Pritchyk by 306 yards for the school record for passing yards in a season. Pritchyk threw for 1,760 in 1996. Wahl’s three TD passes moved him into first place for touchdown tosses in a season with 19 as he surpasses Corey Hodick who had 18 in 2008.

Old Forge creams Crusaders

Another slow start did nothing to impede Old Forge's quest for a ninth victory as the Blue Devils throttled an undermanned Holy Cross squad, 55-8, in the last regular-season home game last Friday night at Old Forge Veterans Memorial Stadium.

The Crusaders took a page out of Carbondale's offensive playbook, milking the play clock while keeping the ball on the ground to keep the pigskin away from he Blue Devils offense.

Holy Cross ran six plays before Old Forge stopped them on fourth-and-1 from their own 46. But the Blue Devils gave the ball back after a Brian Tomasetti 13-yard run when Brenden Wahl threw just his fifth interception of the season on first down from the Holy Cross 33.

The Crusaders again took the play clock to close to zero on each snap running four more plays before punting the ball back to Old Forge with almost eight minutes gone in the first quarter on the Big Board.

It didn't take long for the Blue Devils to put a crooked number on the scoreboard though as Tomasetti jaunted 55 yards up the middle for a touchdown. Wahl added the two-point conversion and Old Forge led, 8-0 with 3:55 remaining in the first quarter.

The Big Blue Wrecking Crew got another stop, forcing a three-and-out as Mike Vieira and Brandon Yescavage each registered two tackles. Then on fourth down, the Holy Cross punter dropped the snap and was tackled for a 15-yard loss to give Old Forge the ball at the Crusaders 11.

On the next play, Tomasetti sprinted in from 11 yards out for a touchdown. The two-point pass was incomplete, but the Blue Devils still led, 14-0, with 1:22 left in the opening stanza.

Yescavage continued his assault on the Holy Cross offense, blocking a punt which Vieira recovered on the Crusaders 2. On the next play, Wahl followed center Tyler Clark into the endzone for the score. The PAT was blocked and Old Forge led 20-0 just eight seconds into the second quarter.

Holy Cross completed its only pass of the game on its next series but on second down from the HC 38 Jorden Sekol forced a fumble which Shane Schuback recovered. The Dynamic Duo linebackers totaled 22 tackles on the night with Sekol registering 12 and Schuback 10.

Schuback then got into the act on offense, hauling in a 35-yard scoring strike from Wahl to put the Blue Devils ahead 27-0 after Matt Mancuso banged his first extra-point of the game with 7:52 showing on the second-quarter clock.

Jake Manetti then gave the ball right back to the offense with his first interception of the season on the ensuing play from scrimmage. Two plays later, Tomasetti surpassed the 1,400 yard rushing plateau when he went 24 yards for a touchdown. The two-point pass failed and Old Forge led 33-0 less than one minute later.

Holy Cross got on the board when Connor Callejas returned the ensuing kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown. Eric Gatto hit Dan Barmes for the two-point conversion and the Crusaders were within 33-8.

Old Forge came right back when Wahl hit Anthony Piccolini on in stride over the middle for a 53-yard touchdown toss with 5:21 left before halftime. Mancuso's kick was good and the Blue Devils went ahead, 40-8.

Tomasetti had a 43-yard touchdown run called back to open the third quarter, but on he next play Yescavage went 35 yards untouched to paydirt behind new right tackle Sekol. The kick was good by Mancuso and the Mercy Rule went into effect with the 47-8 lead.

The Crusaders put together a 12-play drive that travelled just 21 yards from the HC 6 to the HC 27 after a botched punt gave Old Forge the ball back.

The Blue Devils had a 27-yard touchdown run by Matt Trotta nullified by a penalty on its next possession, but Tyler Salerno would get in from the same distance one possession later with Trotta adding the two-point conversion to finalize the scoring at 55-8.

Tomasetti ran for 156 yards and three TDs on just nine carries to put him over the 1,400-yard mark for the season. The Blue Devils gained 248 yards on the ground on just 18 carries while Holy Cross rushed for 75 yards on 54 carries. The Crusaders ran 57 offensive plays to Old Forge's 21.

Sekol led the Big Blue Wrecking Crew with 12 tackles and a forced fumble, while Schuback racked up 10 tackles and forced a fumble. Tony DeSando added a season-high seven stops, as did Mike Vieira who had six tackles.

B&G Blog Player of the Game: Brian Tomasetti. All Bubba did this week was average over 17 yards per carry on his way to three touchdowns and 156 yards rushing. He would have went over 200 for the third time this season but a 43-yard TD run was called back after a holding penalty occurred after the senior had picked up 17 yards.

B&G Blog Player who is not Bubba Player of the Game: Shane Schuback. Suga Shane caught one pass for a 35-yard touchdown, recovered a fumble and registered 10 tackles in a do-it-all performance for the Blue Devils.

B&G Blog Defensive Player of the Game: Jorden Sekol. Sekol totaled a team-high and season-high 12 tackles and also forced a fumble to lead the Old Forge defense in limiting Holy Cross to only 90 yards of total offense, including just 75 yards on 54 carries.

B&G Blog Play of the Game: The opening kickoff. When Jorden Sekol leveled Holy Cross kick returner Connor Callejas on the opening kickoff it sent the message early that the Blue Devils were not there to fool around. The Crusaders were able to run more than twice as many plays, but Old Forge scored on 8 of its 21 offensive plays and delivered more hits on defense that normal. And it all started with Sekol setting the tone.

B&G Blog Coaching Move of the Game: No offense to Coach Schuback and his staff, but there was not much coaching needed to be done once the whistle blew to begin the game. The game plan on both sides of the ball was flawless so the CMotG goes to the preparation part of the Week 9 game. Kudos to the staff for its work during practice.

Wahl, Piccolini charge offense in victory

Carbondale came into Friday night’s game on the rain-soaked turf at Old Forge Veterans Memorial Stadium with a solid game plan.

Milk the play-clock on offense to keep the ball away from the Blue Devils high-octane offense, and prevent Old Forge tailback Brian “Bubba” Tomasetti from running wild as he had all season.

However the Chargers did not count on one thing – the play of quarterback Brenden Wahl and his stable of play-making receivers.

Wahl and his six receivers peeled the Carbondale secondary for 267 yards and four touchdowns as the Blue Devils pulled away from the Chargers in a 35-8 victory to remain undefeated and in control of the Lackawanna Football Conference Division III and District 2 Class 1A race.

The game started with a squib kick by Carbondale that was recovered by the Blue Devils, but on the first play from scrimmage, Tomasetti lost the slick pigskin to give the ball back to the Chargers.

Carbondale couldn’t move the ball it is first possession, nor on any other possession in the first half, as the Big Blue Wrecking Crew – led by middle linebackers Shane Schuback and Jorden Sekol – held the Chargers to minus-4 yards on 23 snaps in the first 24 minutes.

Old Forge mustered only five yards on its second possession, but the Blue Devils got going with 6:31 showing on the Big Board in the first quarter with a nine-play, 51-yard drive. The trip into the Carbondale red zone was capped by a 26-yard field goal from Matt Mancuso to give OF a 3-0 lead with 2:27 remaining in the quarter.

The drive was highlighted by a 17-yard run by Tomasetti – his longest of the game – and a 28-yard completion from Wahl to Anthony Piccolini on a slant to put the ball at the CA 3-yard line.

Defensive ends Kyree Toomey and Brandon Yescavage sacked Chargers QB Joey Gigliotti for a 15-yard loss on third down and an errant snap on fourth down forced the Chargers punter to run out of the end zone before being tackled by Michael Vieira to turn the ball back over to Old Forge at the CA 7.

Wahl and Piccolini hooked up on a slant on the very next play for a 7-yard touchdown to give the Blue Devils a 9-0 lead with 49 seconds left in the first.

Carbondale picked up its first two first downs on its next drive, but Schuback and Sekol put a stop to the drive by combining on tackles on second and third down to force a punt.

Old Forge came up short on a fourth-and-4 from the Carbondale 48, but Schuback and Joey Bruno sacked Gigliotti for a 12-yard loss on third down, forcing another punt.

Starting on its own 35 with less than three minutes remaining in the second quarter, Old Forge handed the ball to Tomasetti three straight times for 17 yards before going to the air.

Wahl hit Vieira on a quick five-yard out on first down from the CA 49, then after an incompletion found Jake Manetti in the middle of the field where the junior wide out made an outstanding grab for a 22-yard completion and a first down with less than 1:20 left in the game.

On the next play, Wahl hit Tomasetti in the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown and a 16-0 lead that the Blue Devils took into halftime.

Carbondale opened the second half with a simple four-yard gain on a dive, but the Chargers then went into their bag of tricks and on a perfectly executed flea flicker, Gigliotti connected with Jason Martin for a 42-yard touchdown. A halfback option from Brandon Sales to Mike Scotch worked for the two-point conversion and Carbondale was within 16-8 with 11:01 left in the third quarter.

Old Forge responded two possessions later.

After Wahl converted a fourth-and-1 by calling his own number on a sneak from the CA 49, the senior signal-caller hit Piccolini on the home sideline and the senior wideout ran past two defenders – one who was crushed on a block by Manetti – to the end zone for his second touchdown of the game, a 46-yard scoring play. Mancuso nailed the extra-point and the Blue Devils led 23-8 with 6:30 left in the third stanza.

The play of the defense forced yet another punt, and after an illegal man downfield penalty pushed Old Forge back to its own 49, Wahl went back to work.

Wahl completed two passes to Schuback for 20 yards, then hit Warren Welsh across the middle for a 39-yard gain to the Carbondale 1. The first-year starter then called his own number and crossed the goal line for a touchdown, giving the Blue Devils a 29-8 lead with 3:19 left in the third.

A 12-yard kickoff return by the Chargers, and a 15-yard personal foul penalty by the Blue Devils, set Carbondale up at the Old Forge 39. But the defense forced an incompletion on fourth down to give Wahl one more shot.

The 1,000-yard quarterback was sacked on second down for a seven-yard loss but connected with Piccolini for 22 yards on third-and-12 before hooking up again with his favorite receiver for a 55-yard scoring strike and a 35-8 ld with 10:06 left in the game.

Wahl – who had never taken a varsity snap before this season – went over the 1,000-yard mark passing during the game, finishing, 12-for-19 for 267 yards and four TDs in the air.

Piccolini caught five balls for 158 yards and three touchdowns, and Manetti and Schuback each made two catches each.

Tomasetti was held to a season-low 73 yards on 20 carries and was kept out of the end zone on the ground for the first time this season.

The defense, led by Schuback’s 15 tackles, held Carbondale to 40 yards rushing on 34 carries and just 91 yards passing on 18 attempts.

The B&G Blog Player of the Week: Brenden Wahl. Wahl was fabulous against the Chargers, often throwing under pressure or from outside the pocket and CONNECTING on those throws. Wahl has over 1,200 yards passing this season and has been a perfect compliment to the dominating Old Forge running game.

The B&G Blog Defensive Player of the Week: Shane Schuback. Suga Shane has steadily become a wrecking ball in the middle of the Old Forge defense. Schuback made a career-high 15 tackles against Carbondale and seemed to be in on every play let the charge (pun intended) of forcing the Chargers QB into 11 incompletions.

The B&G Blog Play of the Week: Wahl’s pass to Piccolini where the latter split two defenders before racing to the end zone for a 46-yard scoring play gave the Blue Devils a two-touchdown cushion after the Chargers closed to within one score to begin the second half. It was the first time since Week 1 that a team was within a touchdown of the Blue Devils in the second half.

The B&G Blog Coaching Move of the Game: Unlike myself who would have panicked by putting tight end Shane Schuback at right offensive tackle this week to replace stud two-way tackle Ryan Paulish who went down with an injury, late in last week’s game against Trail, Coach Mike Schuback went all Mike Tomlin on us and employed the “Next Man Up” Theory by placing sophomore Corey Souryavong into the starting lineup on Friday night. All Souryavong did was provide a solid replacement for the Blue Devils and a look to the future in being another good offensive lineman for Old Forge.

Old Forge express rolls through Tunnel Hill

In what was hyped to be a clash of the top teams Lackawanna Football Conference Division III, turn out to be just another walk in the park for Old Forge has the Blue Devils steamrolled Lackawanna Trail, 35-14, at Lions Pride Stadium on Friday night in Tunnel Hill.

The game started with the promise of a defensive battle as the Lions held Old Forge twice on its first two possessions, allowing just one yard on its first seven plays.

But the Blue Devils defense turned the tide as Anthony Piccolini picked off a  Zach Goodrich pass and returned it 13 yards to the Trail 32.

Two plays later Brian “Bubba” Tomasetti scampered untouched up the middle for a 28-yard touchdowns for a 6-0 lead with 4:57 left in the opening period.

The Big Blue Wrecking Crew continued its dominance as Shane Schuback recorded two tackles for no gain around a Jorden Sekol tackle after two yards to force a Lions punt.

It took Tomasetti only two plays again to score, this time going 47 yards after a nifty move past a linebacker before racing to the pylon for a touchdown. The two-point run failed, and Old Forge (7-0) led 12-0 with 1:45 remaining in the first quarter.

Liam Dougherty returned the ensuing kickoff for Trail to the Old Forge 39. But after moving to the 13, the Lions self-destructed with an offsides penalty before three straight incompletions turned the ball back over the the Blue Devils.

On the next play, Tomasetti followed tackle Ryan Paulish, over the left side and sprinted 83 yards to paydirt with just 2:19 gone in the second stanza. Matt Mancuso drilled the extra-point and Old Forge led 19-0.

The Lions answered with a 10-play drive to the Blue Devils 35, but Schuback broke through the line untouched and sacked Goodrich for a 13-yard loss on fourth-and-6 to put the explosive Old Forge offense back on the field.

Again, it did not take long for the Blue Devils to find the endzone.

On the ensuing play, quarterback Brenden Wahl rolled to the home sideline and lofted a perfect pass the Anthony Piccolini on a backside post for a 52-yard scoring strike. Mancuso was true again on the PAT to give Old Forge a 26-0 lead with 4:10 left before halftime.

The Blue Devils were not finished scoring.

Despite starting at its own 5-yard line after forcing a Trail punt, Old Forge moved to the Trail 21. Wahl found Jake Manetti twice on 35-yard and 25-yard completions, and scrambled for a 23-yard gain to get the Blue Devils within field goal range.

After an offsides penalty on the Lions, Mancuso tucked a 33-yard kick inside the right upright to give Old Forge a 29-0 cushion at intermission.

Trail finally responded out of the locker room with a 15-play scoring drive, aided by a fake punt on fourth-and-4 and a questionable spot on a fourth-and-4 play on the Old Forge 35. The Lions cashed in on the 66-yard drive when Jeremy Greenley scored from 1-yard out to cut the deficit to 29-7 with only 3:41.

The Blue Devils came right back as Wahl connected with Warren Welsh for seven yards on second-and-6 before scrambling for eight yards on two carries to set the stage for yet another big play.

On third-and-2, Wahl hit Schuback on a quick out to the home sideline. Schuback evaded one would-be tackler, then ran through two more before sprinting past the goalline for a 47-yard touchdown play and a 35-7 lead with 35 seconds left in the third quarter.

Welsh ended the following Trail drive with an interception but Wahl gave it right back to set up the Lions second score of the game, a 3-yard run by Greenley with 4:47 left in the game.

Tomasetti made sure that Trail got no closer, busting through for a 24-yard gain on fourth-and-1 to salt the game away.

The senior tailback finished with 205 yards on 14 carries to push him over the 1,200-yard rushing mark for the season. Tomasetti also added three touchdowns to his totals, giving him 21 rushing scores on the season.

Wahl went over the 800-yard passing mark for the year, connecting on 7-of-12 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns. The first-year senior signal-caller connected with five different receivers.

B&G Blog Player of the Game: Bubba Tomasetti. Bubba has been unstoppable this season between the tackles and on Friday night he showed he has some jets to go with his brute strength. Tomasetti had scoring runs of 83, 57 and 28 yards to go with another 24-yard run as he totalled 205 yards on just 14 carries. He also recorded six tackles on defense.

B&G Blog Player who is not Bubba Player of the Game: This award recognizes that I have probably slighted Bubba too much the past few weeks in order to get some recognition for some of the other members of the Blue Devils. Well, that all stops today with the creation of a new award, the PWINBPOTG!!! The first PWINBPOTG is Anthony Piccolini. Picc started his big night defensively with an interception to push momentum in the Blue Devils favor. He also added four tackles from his outside linebacker position. On offense, Picc reeled in a 52-yard scoring strike from Brenden Wahl to put Old Forge ahead 26-0.

B&G Blog Defensive Player of the Game: Warren Welsh. Welsh Welker had his best defensive game of the season with eight tackles and an interception. This Buckeye Booster also made two catches for 11 yards - both picking up first downs for Old Forge.

B&G Blog Play of the Game: The Wahl to Piccolini connection for a touchdown really put the nail in the coffin for the Lions. With Wahl on a designed rollout to the short side of the field, Piccolini ran his back side post pattern to perfection. Wahl’s pass was perfectly lofted to the middle of the field where Picc simply ran under the football and into the endzone after the catch.

B&G Blog Coaching Move of the Game: Backed up to his own 5-yard line with just 1:40 left in the first half, Old Forge Head Coach Mike Schuback decided he had nothing to lose. So after handing the ball to Tomasetti on first down, Schuback called for a play-action pass which Wahl delivered to Jake Manetti for a 35-yard gain to set the Blue Devils up at their own 43. The move set up Matt Mancuso’s 33-yard field goal at the buzzer.

Blue Devils shower Meteors

It didn’t take long for the Old Forge football team to take control of Friday night’s matchup with Montrose.

One minute to be exact.

Shane Schuback recovered a fumble on the Meteors second play from scrimmage, and on the next play quarterback Brenden Wahl scampered 18 yards for a touchdown to ignite a 21-point outburst during the first 5:16 as the Blue Devils made easy work of Montrose in a 49-7 win at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Senior Parents Night.

After the first of Matt Mancuso’s seven extra-points put Old Forge ahead, 7-0, with 11 minutes left in the first quarter, the Big Blue Wrecking Crew continued its domination this season holding Montrose to four yards on its next possession.

Brian “Bubba” Tomasetti then went to work, rushing for 24 yards on his first three carries. But after a holding penalty and a loss on a completion from Wahl to Jake Manetti, Old Forge hit pay dirt again when Wahl hit Mike Vieira for a 42-yard touchdown strike with 7:24 in the first period showing on the Big Board.

Warren Welsh and Brandon Yescavage then caused a fumble on the ensuing kickoff which the Blue Devils recovered, and two plays and 40 seconds later Tomasetti went 10 yards into the end zone for a 21-0 lead.

Old Forge, winners of 11 straight regular-season games, again stopped the Meteors, this time after the visitors from the Northern Tier returned the ensuing kickoff 48 yards to the Montrose 46.

But again, Schuback and Jorden Sekol led the defense in holding Montrose to just four yards on four downs, and the undefeated Blue Devils went on the attack again.

Tomasetti carried four yards before an incompletion and a Wahl to Schuback connection for eight yards. Then on first-and-10 from the 38, Tomasetti continued his break-neck season with a 38-yard run to the end zone for a 28-0 lead with 3:28 left in the opening stanza.

On Old Forge’s next possession, Tomasetti carried three times for 33 yards and Wahl hit Schuback for a 22-yard strike to set up a 1-yard sneak by the Blue Devils senior signal-caller to push the lead to 35-0 to start the second quarter.

Schuback then got into the act defensively, stepping in front of a pass for an interception before returning the pick 40 yards for a touchdown to put Old Forge ahead 42-0 with 7:37 remaining before halftime.

Another defensive stand almost saw the Blue Devils score their first special-teams touchdown of the season, but Anthony Piccolini’s 50-yard punt return for a score was nullified by a holding penalty to hold Old Forge to a six-touchdown lead at the half.

The Blue Devils opened the third quarter by handing the ball to Tomasetti until the senior went over the 1,000-yard mark on his 18th carry of the night - an 8-yard gain - to give Old Forge a first down. 

From there, Yescavage carried once for 17 yards and Bobby Rinaldi rushed twice for 15 yards before Coach Mike Schuback fed the pigskin to senior Tyler Salerno five straight times for 10 yards before the first-year running back found paradise with a 2-yard run to paydirt to put the Blue Devils a 49-0 lead.

The Meteors finally got on the board after a 12-play, 40-yard drive against the reserves for the final, 49-7.

Tomasetti finished with 175 yards and two touchdowns to push his season totals on the ground to 1,009 yards and 18 TDs.

Wahl ended 5-for-8 for 95 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

B&G Blog Player of the Game: Brenden Wahl. Stop the online presses!!!! Two weeks in a row and the POG is not Bubba??? Well as I am sure Bubba would acknowledge, its time to start spreading some of the credit around. And where no better a place to start then the quarterback. Wahl rushed for two touchdowns, including, an 18-yard scamper on the Blue Devils first play from scrimmage, an threw for another as he eclipsed 800 yards passing for the season with 95 yards on 5-for-8 passing.

(Editor’s Note: The B&G Blog wishes to acknowledge to Bubba, that this is all truly done in satire, and that he truly could have been named the offensive player of the week the past two weeks. But if you are indeed offended Bubs, then USE THIS FOR MOTIVATION!!!)

B&G Blog Defensive Player of the Game: Shane Schuback. With under eight minutes left in the second quarter, Schuback dropped into his curl zone from his linebacker position on a pass play on third-and-8. The junior then was hit right in the breadbasket with the pass from the Montrose quarterback, and returned the pigskin 40 yards to the endzone for a touchdown - the Blue Devils fifth score from the defensive side of the ball on the season. 

(Editor’s Note: I must say, Shane looked much better running down the sidelines to the endzone than his father did 23 years ago in Pottsville during the Eastern Conference Title victory in 1989.)

B&G Blog Play of the Game: It was the second play from scrimmage when a host of Blue Devils tackled the ball literally, and ripped it from the Montrose ball carrier for Shane Schuback to recover and give the explosive offense the ball jut one minute into the contest. Wahl scored on the next play as Old Forge released the hounds from that point on.

B&G Blog Coaching Move of the Game: Two moves stand out in Friday night’s blowout win, and none had to do with X and Os. First, leading 42-0 with 5:51 to go in the  first half, Coach Mike Schuback called a pass play. The reason, Schuback wanted to get senior backup tight end Phil Vahey - who has battled a knee injury all season - a reception on Senior Night. Vahey hauled in a quick out and took off for a 14-yard gain. Then to finish off the first drive of the second half, Schuback called first-year senior running back Tyler Salerno’s number five straight times to allow the player known as T-Sal to experience the warmth of scoring a touchdown. Kudos to Coach Schubie!!!

Devil Machine destroys Riverside

Call them a juggernaut.

Call them a buzzsaw.

Maybe even call them the best Old Forge football team in 25 years. But don't call them champions just yet, because the way the Blue Devils go about their business on the gridiron, they know it's one-day-at-a-time before they can wear the crown.

Still, the Big Blue Wrecking Crew has the look of a champion after dismantling arch-rival Riverside in a record-setting, 54-7, victory on Friday night at Taylor Veterans Memorial Stadium in front of over 3,500 fans.

Playing with a focus and an intensity not seen in decades, Old Forge continues to bring it's lunch pail every Friday night as it wears down opponents by dominating the line of scrimmage.

And Riverside was just another check mark on a list goals the Blue Devils seek to accomplish in 2012.

The Old Forge defense started the game with its backs against the wall as Riverside quarterback Nick Dranchak completed two passes to Jim Tucker for a total of 23 yards around a rush for 19 yards to give the Vikings a first down at the Blue Devils 29.

But the Big Blue Wrecking Crew stood tall, forcing Dranchak into three incompletions, including one on fourth-and-5 from the OF 24, to turn the ball over to tailback Bubba Tomasetti and the Old Forge offense.

Tomasetti carried the ball three times for 19 yards to start the drive before quarterback Brenden Wahl connected with Anthony Piccolini down the seam for a 27-yard gain to the Vikings 35.

Tomasetti went for nine yards on the next play and then electrified the crowd on his next carry.

The senior took the handoff and followed fullback Jorden Sekol through a hole created by Ryan Paulish, Paul Papi, and Shane Schuback on the right side, before cutting left off a punishing Sekol block and sprinting 26 yards to the end zone for the first of his school record six touchdowns.

Matt Mancuso drilled the extra-point, and Old Forge took a 7-0 lead with 6:30 left in the game.

Riverside came right back as Dranchak hit Nico Munley across the middle and the senior wide out outran the Blue Devils defense to the end zone for a 70-yard touchdown. The point after was good and the game was tied 7-7 just 32 seconds later.

Riverside committed a personal foul penalty on the ensuing kickoff to put Old Forge at the Vikings 42 and five plays later Wahl hit Piccolini in the back of the endzone for a 18-yard touchdown play that saw the senior wideout hold onto the pigskin after taking a big hit.

The PAT was blocked but the Blue Devils were back on top, 13-7, with 2:58 left in the first.

On the next play from scrimmage, momentum snowballed for Old Forge.

Riverside tried to get those six points back quickly but Tomasetti made an acrobatic interception at his own 10 and returned it 57 yards to the Vikings 33.

Brandon Yescavage gave Tomasetti a break on the next play and the offense didn't miss a beat. The junior went 24 yards over right tackle to give the Blue Devils first-and-goal at the 9.

Two plays later, Tomasetti bulled in from four yards out and followed with a two-point run for the 21-7 lead with 1:50 left in the first, and the rout was on.

On Old Forge's next series, Tomasetti carried four straight times for 40 yards to end the quarter and put him at the century mark after just one stanza.

Yescavage spelled Tomasetti again and took the next snap 28 yards for the score. But the play was nullified on a holding penalty.

After the penalty, and a loss on the following play, Wahl hooked up with Jake Manetti for a 39-yard gain to set up first-and-goal at the 4.

Tomasetti went over right tackle again to the endzone, and after Mancuso drilled the PAT, the Blue Devils led 28-7 just 2:43 into the second period.

The Big Blue Wrecking Crew held the Vikings to just four yards on its next three series on the first half, and the offense added another score as Wahl hit Schuback for a 35-yard strike to set up a 4-yard Tomasetti touchdown with 54 seconds left in the half. The extra-pont was no good, but Old Forge took a 34-7 lead into the locker room at halftime.

The carnage did not stop there.

Old Forge received the second-half kickoff and ran off an 11-play, 58-yard drive which Tomasetti capped with a 7-yard touchdown run to give the Blue Devils a 40-7 lead with 6:03 showing the the third quarter clock.

A defensive stand on fourth-and-1 from the RV 44 handed the ball back to the Old Forge offense.

Wahl found Schuback for 15 yards on second down, and two plays later Tomasetti galloped 29 yards for his sixth touchdown of the night. Mancuso was true on the extra-point, and the Mercy Rule went into effect as the Blue Devils took a 47-7 lead with 3:37 left in the third.

Riverside tried to answer as Dave Sweetman carried three straight times for 48 yards, but the Old Forge defense stiffened and forced a turnover on downs at its own 32 yard line.

From there, Tomasetti carried one last time for 15 yards before turning the toting over to Yescavage who rushed seven straight times for 53 yards, including a 2-yard touchdowns with 5:28 left for a 54-7 lead.

Tomasetti finished with 222 yards on 30 carries, while Yescavage finished with 86 yards on the ground. Wahl needed the night 7-for-11 for 147 yards, and Piccolini caught three balls for 56 yards.  

B&G Blog Player of the Game: Ok this is getting quite ridiculous. So with apologies to Bubba (You cannot win this award every week!!!), the B&G Blog POY is Jorden Sekol. Sekol was a bulldozer on Friday night, leading the way for Tomasetti's record-setting night in the end zone. From his fullback position, Sekol punished the Riverside defense, clearing the way for his tailback's 222-yard, six-touchdown night.

B&G Blog Defensive Player of the Game: The Old Forge defensive ends. Tony DeSando, Brandon Yescavage, and Kyree Toomey harassed RV quarterback Nick Dranchak into a 5-for-21 night by putting continual pressure on the four-year stater and keeping him in the pocket for most of the night.

B&G Blog Play of the Game: The play of the game was Brenden Wahl's perfect toss to Anthony Piccolini in the back of the endzone to give the Blue Devils the lead for good. Piccolini hauled in the pass despite knowing he was going to take a big hit from either a defender or the post of the uprights as he caught the ol pigskin right in front of the right post a split second from getting knocked down.

B&G Blog Coaching Move of the Game: The coaching move came before the game started as Coach Mike Schuback had his defense giving the Riverside offense multiple looks by rotating up to 11 different players among his front 7 as the Blue Devils had guys flying around the field from all angles.

The Bucks stop here! Devils WIN!!!

In front of what might have been the largest non-Riverside crowd in almost 25 years, the Old Forge football team gave their fans what they have been longing to see - a victory over a state-ranked, former Big 11 team.

And it was a convincing victory at that.

Playing before a paid crowd of 4,487 the Blue Devils posted a 21-0 shutout of Dunmore at Veterans Memorial Stadium last Friday night to remain undefeated on the season.

Anthony Piccolini opened the game with a 29-yard kickoff return to set Old Forge (4-0) up at their own 31. Brian “Bubba” Tomasetti rushed five times for 34 yards on the first five snaps of the game, but an incomplete pass on third down forced the Blue Devils to punt.

On the punt, Bobby ‘BR3” Rinaldi forced a fumble by the punt returner and junior Jake Manetti was there to pounce on the loose pigskin at the Dunmore 14.

Tomasetti picked up where he left off, and on his fifth straight carry, the senior tailback followed guards Paul Papi and Tony DeSando, and center Tyler “Tippy” Clark into the endzone for a 2-yard touchdown. Matt Mancuso blasted the extra-point, and the Blue Devils led, 7-0 with 6:06 showing on the Big Board.

Tomasetti carried the ball on 10 of the Blue Devils first 12 plays, including the punt, for 48 yards.

Defensively, the Big Blue Wrecking Crew set the tone on Dunmore’s first series - and they needed to.

Mike Kolcharno returned the Old Forge kickoff 55 yards to the Old Forge 32. But Jorden Sekol and Tony DeSando made sure the Bucks would get no further, stopping Dunmore for a 2-yard gain, and a 2-yard loss on first and third down. 

In between, the Bucks gained five yards on a shot pass and jumped offsides for a 5-yard loss. A fourth down pass then fell incomplete and Old Forge took over.

The Dunmore defense was just as tough, but it would be the Blue Devils who shined on that side of the football, holding the Bucks without a first down until the third quarter.

After the teams traded possessions, Old Forge was stopped on three downs. But punter Shane Schuback was run into on fourth-and-12 so the Blue Devils elected to punt again from their own 28. 

Schuback kept the snap and tried to run for the first down, but Dunmore stopped the Old Forge TE/LB on his on 26 to take possession.

On first-down, Piccolini tipped a pass behind the line of scrimmage and Schuback scooped up the fumble and returned it to the Old Forge 40 to give the Blue Devils the ball right back.

Old Forge picked up four first downs on the possession, but with first-and-goal from the 9, the Blue Devils stalled and Mancuso missed a 27-yard field goal after a bad snap.

Taking over at its own 20, Dunmore went a quick three-and-out, and after Mike Vieira returned the ensuing punt 16 yards to the Bucks 29, Old Forge went back to Tomasetti who rushed four straight times for 32 yards.

But on third-and-6 from the Dunmore 7, Old Forge quarterback Brenden Wahl was flagged for illegal grounding which resulted in a loss of down. The Blue Devils again sent Mancuso on the field to attempt a 34-yard field goal, but the kick was short after a bad hold mistimed the kick.

Old Forge held the Bucks once again, and Wahl took a knee as time expired in the first half.

The Blue Devils completely dominated the first 24 minutes of action, limiting Dunmore to just 19 yards of total offense on 14 play. Meanwhile, Old Forge gained 154 yards of total offense with 94 coming from Tomasetti who had 20 carries.

The Bucks looked like a different team after the break, gaining two quick first downs before Joey Bruno and Sekol stopped Kolcharno for no gain on second-and-8 from the Dunmore 41.

Momentum changed on the next play.

Tomasetti intercepted a Mike Kujawski pass in front of the Dunmore bench at the Old Forge 35, came back across the field at the 50 toward the home sidelines before picking up a block from Piccolini at the Bucks 40 which paved the way to the endzone for a 65-yard touchdown return.

Mancuso drilled the PAT and Old Forge led 14-0 with 9:13 remaining in the third quarter.

Three plays later the Big Blue Wrecking Crew forced another turnover. Sekol recovered an errant pitch to give the Blue Devils the ball at the Dunmore 40.

Old Forge went back to Tomasetti, giving the powerful back the ball six straight times before No. 21 found the endzone for a 2-yard touchdown with 5:37 left in the third quarter. Mancuso added the extra-point and the Blue Devils led 21-0.

Dunmore tried to respond but DeSando came up with a crushing sack on third-and-2 for a 6-yard loss, and a fourth down incompletion gave Old Forge the ball back at its own 27 yard-line.

Old Forge ran the final three minutes off the clock in the third quarter, and then forced Dunmore into an incompletion on fourth down after the Bucks drove inside the Blue Devils 30 on 12 plays.

On the next series, Wahl hit Piccolini for a 46-yard completion on third-and-7 to put the game away as they ran the clock down to under three minutes before giving the ball back to the Bucks.

Sekol led the defense with 14 tackles, a sack and a fumble recovery. Schuback added seven tackles and a fumble recovery and Piccolini added five tackles and forced a fumble.

Tomasetti also checked in with five tackles to go with his interception, and DeSando added four tackles and a sack.

B&G Blog Player of the Game: Brian Tomasetti. This award is going to have to be renamed the way Tomasetti has been playing. Bubba dominated the game on both sides of the football, carrying the Old Forge offense on his back and turning the momentum of the third quarter in the Blue Devils favor with his INT return for a touchdown.

B&G Blog Defensive Player of the Game: Ryan Paulish. I did’t have Paulish for an official tackle in the game, but the Big Boy did his fair share on the defensive front. Paulish - along with his mates on the DL - dominated up front allowing BBWC linebackers Jorden Sekol, Shane Schuback, Anthony Piccolini, and Warren Welsh “Welker” to run free and collect 28 tackles. Paulish neutralized Dunmore stud tackle Mike Boland, allowing the Blue Devils to hold the Bucks to just 74 yards rushing.

B&G Blog Play of the Game: This week’s play of the game is obviously Bubba Tomasetti’s 65-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter which gave the Blue Devils a 14-0 lead. But it was the play within this play that should get the recognition. After Tomasetti crossed the 50, he needed one block to spring him to the endzone. Enter Anthony Piccolini. Piccolini, a generous 5’8, 170 pounds, sacrificed his body to get in the way of hulking Dunmore tackle James McHale - all 6’6, 285 pounds of him. The block allowed Bubba to get to the house.

B&G Blog Coach’s Adjustment of the Game: Coach Mike Schuback did what every coach is supposed to do in the big game - feed the ball to his horse. And that’s what Schuback did by giving the pigskin to Bubba Tomasetti a career-high 29 times as the Blue Devils kept control of the game by keeping the football on offense.