Second-half surge propels Central over St. Charles West

With his team trailing by one point at halftime, Central coach Nathan Norman wasn't pleased.

So he called his team out.

The Tigers' defense answered the call by holding St. Charles West scoreless in the second half, while junior wide receiver Al Young scored three of his five touchdowns to power Central's offense and lead the Tigers to a 41-21 victory over the Warriors on Friday night at Tiger Stadium.

"I challenged the kids at halftime, and they responded and played extremely well," Norman said. "The defensive line played well and closed it down, and I was happy with their play most of the game.

"The difference to me in the second half was the way our secondary flew to the ball, made tackles on the edge and obviously covered up the receivers. In the second half, our secondary played football like they're supposed to play, and that's what we're going to have to do to be successful."

The Tigers (2-0) scored the eventual game-winning touchdown in unusual fashion.

On the opening drive of the third quarter, Central's offense faced third-and-8 at the Warrior 11-yard line. Instead of going with a conventional pass play from quarterback Peyton Montgomery, who had yet to throw an incompletion, Norman turned to senior running back Braion Owens.

Owens retrieved a screen pass from Montgomery and threw a wobbly ball to the corner of the end zone, where Young had his defender beat. The defender was called for pass interference, but it didn't matter as Young lunged forward and scooped it in for the score. The touchdown put Central on top at 26-21 with 7:18 remaining in the quarter.

"Our kids like that kind of stuff. What high school kid doesn't?" Norman said. "I don't know that we executed it perfectly, but it was open. They bit."

Young admitted the pass wasn't perfect, but it got the job done.

"He got it up there," he said. "When [Owens] came to the huddle, he was like, 'Man, I could never play quarterback.'"

Central's Al Young looks for an opening on a run down the sideline against St. Charles West Friday, Aug. 29, 2014 at Central High School. (GLENN LANDBERG)

Young didn't slow down from there.

The Tigers' defense forced the Warriors (0-2) to punt the ball, and on the second play of Central's next possession, Young broke to the outside and showed his explosiveness on an 81-yard touchdown run. Montgomery carried the ball in for the two-point conversion, and the Tigers held a comfortable 34-21 advantage at the 5:28 mark of the third.

"For Cape Central to be successful, our playmakers have to make plays," Norman said. "The stats are going to look a little bit loaded towards Al, but all of them played well. All of them made plays. When Al makes a big play, it's because somebody's blocking."

On the ground, Young finished with 173 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries, averaging a little more than 19 yards per carry. He was equally effective in the passing game, hauling in six receptions for 105 yards and three scores.

But the story of the second half was Central's defense, which gave up 125 rushing yards in the first half but limited St. Charles West to only 44 in the second half.

"In the first half, I felt like our offense kept us in the game. I felt like our offensive line and our running backs were doing what we were asking them to do," Norman said. "We were lucky to be in the ball game for as poorly as we played."

Norman credited a defensive line led by seniors T.J. Pearon, T.J. Marquis, DeAndre Banks and first-year players LaMarcus Johnson and Andre Statam for shutting down the Warriors' rushing attack in the second half.

"We don't have young kids, but we have some inexperienced kids," Norman said. "We really put an emphasis on technique. Playing a team like this that's well-coached and disciplined, you've got to play with great defensive line technique."

St. Charles West took an early lead after senior fullback Blake Rugraff capped off a 12-play, 87-yard drive with an 11-yard run up the middle. Jon Young added the extra point to give the Warriors a 7-0 lead with 6:36 remaining in the first quarter.

The Tigers began the ensuing drive from their own 34 and marched down field 66 yards, scoring on a 12-yard run by Montgomery, who scrambled out of the pocket and wiggled between four defenders to reach the end zone. Nathan Mecum's extra point tied the game at 7-all with 3:43 left in the quarter.

"Peyton, he's explosive," Young said. "You never know with him. When you think you've got him in the backfield, you ain't got him. If he gets loose, he'll find the receiver that's open."

Central's Braion Owens carries against St. Charles West Friday, Aug. 29, 2014 at Central High School. (GLENN LANDBERG)

Montgomery struggled in the passing game during Central's opener last week against Vashon, but was near perfect on Friday. He finished the game 11 of 12 passing for 164 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. He also had 46 rushing yards on 11 carries.

"People last week wanted him to come out of the gate and run for 15 touchdowns and throw for 15," Norman said of Montgomery. "The most important thing Peyton did was he led our team, this week and last week. He obviously put us in a position to be successful, and he made plays. That's what a good quarterback will do for you.

"He's a team player, and he's a leader. That's what we like about him the most."

Montgomery, who had surgery during the offseason on a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder, said he felt some soreness throwing the ball during last week's game but simply felt more comfortable playing in front of the home crowd.

"I think the first week was tough mentally," he said. "The team just told me to stay confident, and that really helped me. The coaches said, 'You're our man. We're going to ride with you until the wheels fall off.' I think I had a lot more confidence. We did a lot more rehab this week, and it was really just focus. It was a good atmosphere this week, a lot better than last week."

Drew Lauer scored on an 83-yard kickoff return to put the Warriors back in front 14-7, but Central's offense kept fighting. After Jalen Reddin fumbled on a 27-yard pass from Montgomery, the Tigers' defense jumped on a loose ball to take back possession, and on fourth-and-8 at the Warrior 25, Montgomery connected with Young, who found the end zone on a post route over the middle. Mecum's extra point tied the game at 14-14 with 10:15 remaining in the first half.

"We saw how they were playing defense on us. I kept talking to Peyton like, 'Man, the post is open,' and he just kept putting it there," Young said. "He was giving it time. He just put it there at the last minute."

Montgomery and Young connected again in the final minutes of the first half, this time from 69 yards out. The Tigers missed the extra point, however, and trailed 21-20 at the break.

Central's Peyton Montgomery is taken down by St. Charles West's Nick Anselmo Friday, Aug. 29, 2014 at Central High School. (GLENN LANDBERG)

"A normal receiver wouldn't have caught it. Al scooped it up and caught it," Montgomery said of his second touchdown pass. "We're getting better timing on our routes. That's the main thing we need to focus on is our timing, but the crew around me is good."

Central's offense had zero plays for negative yards in the first half, which Norman said was a credit to both the offensive line and Montgomery's elusiveness.

"When you don't have negative plays, that means the line's blocking. They did a nice job, and [Montgomery] can scramble," Norman said. "He did a nice job of getting outside the pocket. The great thing about him is that once he's out there and you're not covering your man, you better look out."

The Tigers entered the game ranked No. 9 in Class 4, while St. Charles West was ranked No. 7. Both teams were district champions a year ago as the Warriors reached the state quarterfinals and Central reached the state semis.

"St. Charles West is a very well-coached football team. They're tough kids, and they play hard. Hats off to them. I thought they played a great game," Norman said. "It's a great game. I hope it's something we can continue to do. It's good competition for both of us."

The Tigers will now turn their attention to next week, when they take on visiting district and conference rival Sikeston.

"We've got to take care of the process of practice," Norman said. "We have to be mentally tough and disciplined and have great practices this week.

"That's going to be the focus."

St. Charles West 14 7 0 0 -- 21

Central 7 13 14 7 -- 41

First Quarter

SCW -- Blake Rugraff 11 run (Jon Young kick), 6:36

C -- Peyton Montgomery 12 run (Nathan Mecum kick), 3:43

SCW -- Drew Lauer 83 kickoff return (Young kick), 3:28

Second Quarter

C -- Al Young 25 pass from Montgomery (Mecum kick), 10:15

SCW -- Lauer 1 run (Young kick), 7:19

C -- Young 69 pass from Montgomery (kick failed), 1:14

Third Quarter

C -- Young 11 pass from Braion Owens (pass failed), 7:18

C -- Young 81 run (Montgomery run), 5:28

Fourth Quarter

C -- Young 66 run (Mecum kick), 4:12

SCW C

First downs 14 11

Rushes-yards 43-169 37-326

Passing yards 116 175

Passes 7-21-0 12-13-0

Punts 3-129 2-78

Fumbles-Lost 3-1 1-1

Penalties-Yards 3-21 9-65

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING -- St. Charles West, Lauer 18-69, Rugraff 12-58, Dre Kelly 7-33, Larry Thompson 2-6, Manny DeArmas 1-4, Brenden Jett 3-(-1); Central, Young 9-173, Owens 12-70, Montgomery 10-46, Jordan Franklin 4-27, Joshua Jones 1-7, Jalen Reddin 1-3.

PASSING -- St. Charles West, Jett 7-21-0-116; Central, Montgomery 11-12-0-164, Owens 1-1-0-11.

RECEIVING -- St. Charles West, Lauer 4-96, Jon Young 1-8, Dylan Carey 1-6, Drew Holtgrieve 1-6; Central, Young 6-105, Reddin 3-49, Owens 2-11, Kway'chon Chisom 1-10.