Despite the preseason hype and expectations surrounding the Old Forge football team, the Blue Devils still had some major questions surrounding the opening of the 2012 high school grid season.
Could Brendan Wahl step in and succeed at being a spread quarterback?
Could Anthony Piccolini and the receiving corps replace an all-state performer?
Could Shane Schuback move to the middle of the defense and lead the Big Blue Wrecking Crew?
Well it may have taken 12 minutes to get rid of the opening-game jitters, but the Blue Devils emphatically answered all of the above questions with a 50-14 victory over Lake-Lehman on the turf at Eddie Edwards Stadium in Lehman Township on Friday night.
Old Forge trailed 7-0 after Black Knights fullback Dustin Jones rumbled for 53 yards on nine carries and a 15-yard touchdown on Lehman’s first drive of the game.
The Blue Devils gained first downs on each of its first two possessions, but an interception and an incompletion on Wahl’s first two passes stopped drives.
Junior punted Brandon Yescavage would set the Old Forge offense up with a 52-yard punt - the first of his career - to back the Black Knights up at their own 1.
The Blue Devils held Lehman on its next possession, and even though Old Forge (1-0) was stopped on four downs on its ensuing possession, the Big Blue Wrecking Crew was again up to the task.
Jorden Sekol sacked Lehman quarterback Bill Hillman for a 10-yard loss on second down, and Schuback and Kyree Toomey dropped Rob Donovan for no gain on third down to force a punt.
Six plays later, Bubba Tomasetti went 17 yards up the middle with 6:07 left in the first half to knot the score at 7-7 after Matt Mancuso extra-point.
Tomasetti rushed for 83 yards on 13 carries in the first half for the Blue Devils, but it wasn’t until Coach Mike Schuback called for the spread offense in the second quarter that Wahl got clicking with the passing game.
Wahl was 7-for-11 for 64 yards in the second quarter, hitting five different receivers.
And it was the senior signal caller who keyed the final drive of the first half with his arms - and legs.
Wahl completed four straight passes, two each to Mike Vieira and Jake Manetti, for 32 yards a Old Forge moved from its own 43 to the Lehman 34 with under three minutes to go in the second quarter.
After an incompletion and offsides penalty again the Blue Devils, Wahl scrambled for two yards avoiding a sack, and then hit Schuback along the home sidelines for a first down on fourth-and-4.
Another two-yard gain by wall, and a completion to Tomasetti, set up Mancuso’s 29-yard field goal with two seconds left in the half, giving the Blue Devils a 10-7 lead.
The defense then exploded for Old Forge.
Senior outside linebacker Warren Welsh picked off a pass on the third play from scrimmage to open the third quarter and returned the interception 37 yards to the Lehman five-yard line.
On the next play Tomasetti hit paydirt and Old Forge led 16-7 with 10:23 showing on the third quarter clock after the PAT snap was bobbled.
Three plays later, Tomasetti picked off Hill man at midfield and returned the pigskin 50 yards for a touchdown. The two-point pass for incomplete and Old Forge led 22-7 with 8:04 left in the third quarter.
And the defense didn’t stop there.
After the Big Blue Wrecking Crew allowed just 24 yards on the opening three Lehman offensive possessions of the second half, the offense went to work with Wahl completing two passes for 25 yards before hitting Anthony Piccolini in stride for a 54-yard scoring strike with 3:11 left in the third stanza.
Piccolini raced past his defender, caught the ball in stride, then carried the would-be tackler the last 15 yards into the endzone. The two-point pass was incomplete and Old Forge, led 29-7.
The defense struck again on the next possession as Piccolini picked up a fumble and went untouched for a 63-yard return to cap a 25-point third quarter for the Blue Devils. Schuback kicked the extra-point, to push the lead to 34-7 with 1:51 left in the third.
On its next offensive possession, Lehman turned the ball over once again as Manetti forced a fumble, and Schuback pounced on it at the Black Knights’ 26.
Tomasetti sandwiched two carries for 24 yards around a holding penalty before scampering 10 yards for a touchdown just six seconds into the fourth quarter. Schuback drilled the PAT and Old Forge put the game into the mercy rule at 42-7.
Lehman added a scored against the Old Forge reserves, but the Blue Devils second-team offense struck back when Yescavage went 64 yards for a touchdown with 6:16 remaining in the game. Yescavage added a two-point run for the 50-14 final score.
Tomasetti finished with 130 yards on 18 carries and three touchdowns to go with his 50-yard interception return for the TD. Wahl finished 10-for-18 for 143 yards and a touchdown. Vieira finished with three catches for 33 yards.
Sekol led the defense with 13 tackles, a sack and a fumble recovery. Schuback added 11 tackles and a fumble recovery. Welsh chipped in with seven tackles, an interception and a forced fumble.
The Blue Devils will take on Meyers on Friday night at Wilkes-Barre Memorial Stadium. The Mohawks are led by Hanover transfer Parrish Bennett who rushed for almost 300 yards against Holy Cross on Saturday in a 40-0 win.
B&G Blog Player of the Game: Brendan Wahl. When Wahl got comfortable in the passing game and started completing passes, the Blue Devils starting clicking on offense. Wahl completed 7-of-9 passes for 63 yards during Old Forge’s first two scoring drives.
B&G Blog Defensive Players of the Game: Jorden Sekol and Shane Schuback. Sekol dominated the first half with eight tackles and a sack. When Lehman started running away from Sekol, Schuback made sure nothing was doing on the other side with six tackles and a fumble recovery in the second half.
B&G Blog Play of the Game: Warren Welsh’s interception on the third play of the third quarter gave the Blue Devils a big momentum boost to begin the second half in which Old Forge put up 32 unanswered points to take control.
B&G Blog Coach’s Adjustment of the Game: After a big first quarter by Lehman running back Dustin Jones, Coach Mike Schuback moved 6-foot-3, 275-pound defensive end Ryan Paulish to defensive tackle, pairing him with Joey Bruno in the middle of the Blue Devils defense to give them added size in the middle, allowing the linebackers to roam free.
