Farrell Rolls Past Seneca 44-7 Advances To Title Game
Tagged under: District 10, Gameday Hub, News, pfn, Playoffs
Shane Lux | November 5, 2024
New Wilmington – Farrell scored 29 straight first-half points en route to a 44-7 victory over Seneca Saturday night at Greyhound Stadium.
With the win, Farrell advances to the District 10 championship, giving them a chance to win their fourth consecutive title and ninth in the past decade.
The Steelers continue their dominance against Class A and AA competition, improving to a perfect 6-0. All five schools Farrell lost to are Class AAA and above. Four of those losses were by a combined 19 points.
“We played a really tough non-conference schedule all year, and our record doesn’t reflect who we really are,” said Farrell head coach Anthony Pegues. “But to win and be good in the playoffs, you must play those non-conference games. This time of year, it’s win and move on. If you don’t, you go home and get ready for basketball. You see the different speeds, sizes, and strengths when you play teams like Hickory, Sharon, Cathedral Prep, and Ursuline. When you get into league play, you see a lot of different teams and athletes. That helps prepare us for the playoffs.”
After a tough 7-0 defeat against Cathedral Prep, Farrell got things rolling right away on their first snap scrimmage when Julius Phillips took a short pass from Aaron Pegues and raced 60 yards for a touchdown.
Aaron Pegues completed 13 of 19 passes for 211 yards and three touchdowns, while Phillips caught four passes for 121 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
“It feels good tonight, Aaron Pegues said. “Overall, it could have been better, but it was a great team win. We needed that jump start for sure tonight. That was all our offensive line, and Julius Phillips saw the seam and took it to the crib. We still need to work on things in practice, but getting the win was good.”
Scoring on their first three possessions, tailback Juelz Johnson scored on a 19-yard run, capping an 89-yard touchdown drive, giving the Steelers a 13-0 lead after a quarter.
Juelz Johnson 19 yd run, Farrell 13 Seneca 0, 2:46 1st, @farrellfootball @JujuJohnson0 @BobGreenburg pic.twitter.com/av0d44C5n3
— Shane Lux (@PFN_Luxy) November 2, 2024
Johnson rushed for a team-high 137 yards on 16 carries. He added an interception on defense.
Early in the second quarter, the Steelers went 76 yards in nine plays, scoring on Phillips’ 35-yard touchdown from Pegues.
On the Bobcats’ following possession, on fourth down, the ball snapped over the head of the punter Isaiah Cadden. He tried to corral the loose ball before being hit and fumbling at the 10-yard line. At this point, Zameere Thomas scooped up the ball at the 2-yard line for an easy touchdown.
“We got shutout last week in a game I felt like we should’ve won,” Anthony Pegues said. “It was nice to come out and put some points on the board early. I feel like we didn’t turn it on tonight when needed. I felt like we could have put it away earlier. Overall, it was a good win, but we have much to improve on.”
Seneca would respond with their best drive of the night as quarterback Rylan Harwood scored on a 2-yard run following a 7-play 60-yard drive. Harwood had a 31-yard rush on the possession, including a pair of 10-yard runs.
Rylan Harwood 2 yd run, Farrell 29 Seneca 7, 1:26 2nd, @_SenecaFootball @BobGreenburg pic.twitter.com/1zvDQBnDIM
— Shane Lux (@PFN_Luxy) November 3, 2024
Harwood rushed for a team-high 82 yards on 22 carries but was limited to only 15 in the second half.
“Sometimes we just weren’t lining up properly on their read option,” said Anthony Pegues. “We knew what the run and like to do. Their quarterback is not bad. He’s an athlete and ran the ball good. We were okay once we settled in and played the style of defense we needed to.”
Aaron Pegues threw his third touchdown of the night in the third quarter on a 20-yard pass to Timothy Jackson near the quarter’s midway point.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Steelers invoked the mercy clock when Johnson scored his second touchdown on a 14-yard run with 11:12 to play.
Farrell will now rematch Sharpsville for the District 10 AA title. The Blue Devils pulled off an incredible 35-31 comeback victory over Mercyhurst Prep. The Steelers won the regular season contest 40-21 on October 11th.
Game Highlights:
Farrell 44 Seneca 7
Score by Quarters
Seneca – 0 7 0 0 – 7
Farrell – 13 16 8 7 – 44
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
F – Julius Phillips 60 yd pass from Aaron Pegues, (Elijah Jackson pat), 9:27 – 1-60
F – Juelz Johnson 19 yd run, (kick blocked), 2:46 – 6-89
Second Quarter
F – Phillips 35 yd pass from Pegues, (Nemo Jones from Pegues), 9:09 – 9-76
F – Zameere Thomas 2 yd fumble return, (Jones from Pegues), 3:09
S – Rylan Harwood 2 yd run, (Jimmy Gadson pat), 1:26 – 7-60
Third Quarter
F – Timothy Jackson 20 yd pass from Pegues, (Jones from Pegues), 6:07 – 4-51
Fourth Quarter
F – Johnson 14 yd run, (Jackson pat), 11:12 – 6-48
Individual Stats
Rushing: S – Harwood 22-82, Zach Moats 14-17, Team 1-(-23). Totals: 37-76. F – Johnson 16-137, Jason Marshall 1-5, Pegues 2-7, Jones 1-(-8), Stevie Dean 1-(-5). Totals: 21-136.
Receiving: S – Dominic Buscemi 2-7. F – Phillips 4-121, Jones 4-39, Dorean Cain 2-48, Thomas 1-7, Johnson 1-15, Jackson 1-20.
Passing: S – Harwood 2-for-9, 7 yards, 1 INT. F – Pegues 13-for-19, 211, 3 TD, Dean 1-for-2, 8 yards.
Interceptions: F – Johnson.
Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews
