
Carmichaels defeats Waynesburg Central 54-33 to take Week 0 @YaugerCaleb @PaBackyard
Tagged under: District 7, News
Nate Grella | August 28, 2021
By Caleb Yauger
The last time the Carmichaels Mighty Mikes and the Waynesburg Central Raiders faced off in a regular season football game was the 1990’s. Waynesburg easily defeated Carmichaels in the previous matchup 32-0.
This time in 2021, however, it was Carmichaels who had the last laugh. With the home crowd cheering them on, the Mighty Mikes snatched the 54-33 victory over the Raiders.
Carmichaels took the early 6-0 lead with the first possession of the game, but a one-yard rushing touchdown by sophomore wide receiver Daniel Huffman knotted the game up at six apiece.
The PAT was no good, but @CarmichaelsFB jumps out to an early 6-0 lead! @PaBackyard @PaFootballNews pic.twitter.com/dhvvKsbLGw
— Caleb Yauger (@YaugerCaleb) August 27, 2021
By the end of the first quarter, Waynesburg was heavily pressuring Carmichaels, earning the 14-12 lead. Then a 48-yard connection on fourth down from freshman quarterback Jacob Steven to sophomore wide receiver Trenton Zupper opened the flood gates, giving the Raiders a 21-12 lead.
A @WBG_RAIDERS 4th down conversion attempt leads to a touchdown reception by Trenton Zupper. @WBG_RAIDERS leads @CarmichaelsFB 21-12 in the 2nd quarter. @PaFootballNews @PaBackyard pic.twitter.com/gFvXbBaPjD
— Caleb Yauger (@YaugerCaleb) August 27, 2021
Even though the Mighty Mikes inched their way back into the game, the end of the first half was still in favor of the Raiders 27-26, but both teams combined for a total of five turnovers to that point.
“I told them before the game that as long as we play responsible football, we’ll be alright,” said Carmichaels head football coach Ron Gallagher. “We didn’t play that in the first half.”
Gallagher also mentioned that blown coverage was a huge problem for his team in the first half.
Senior quarterback Trenton Carter, however, led the Carmichaels squad into a turnover-free second half and outscored the Raiders 28-6.
Trenton Zupper strikes again with a @WBG_RAIDERS touchdown reception from Jacob Stevenson. @CarmichaelsFB now trails 27-20 in the 2nd quarter. @PaFootballNews @PaBackyard pic.twitter.com/PAh07K0YOo
— Caleb Yauger (@YaugerCaleb) August 28, 2021
“I’ve been telling every newspaper [that] I put the whole offense on his shoulders,” said Gallagher. “He’s a general out there. He’s our leader.”
Carter threw for 140 yards, no interceptions, and four touchdowns on the night. He also rushed for 61 yards with two rushing touchdowns of his own.
“I didn’t really keep track of what I had,” said Carter. “Once the defense got stops, I knew we had to drive the field down in the endzone, and that’s what we did.”
On the offense for Waynesburg, sophomore running back Breydon Woods rushed for 177 yards while Zupper led the team with two touchdown receptions and 83 receiving yards.
Carmichaels travels to Charleroi on September 3, and Waynesburg also travels on the same day to take on Bentworth. Both games begin at 7 p.m.
“It’s been great to get out here and play some football,” said Gallagher. “These kids really need it.”
Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews