Stream Pennsylvania High School Football on the NFHS Network
 
 

Gut Check: New Castle Stuns Knoch With Three Late Scores

Tagged under: District 7, Gameday Hub, News, pfn

| September 21, 2024

New Castle – The Red Hurricanes scored three touchdowns in the final 3:28 to pull out a dramatic 42-32 victory over Knoch Friday night at Taggart Stadium.

Who says wins have to be pretty? After all, a win is a win. That’s what matters at the end of the day.

Recent history has not been kind to the New Castle football program. Over the last two seasons, the Red Hurricanes finished each year at 1-9. First-year head coach Fred Mozzocio took over from Neshannock to rebuild and restore the New Castle football program.

“This is such a character win for our program,” Mozzocio said. “That’s what we’ve been preaching since I came here. A football game is 48 minutes. No matter the score, you keep fighting, clawing, and believing in each other. They did that tonight. I couldn’t be any prouder of this group of young men for their fight and courage. They could have packed it in; we scored twice in the fourth and had both called back. We kept scrapping and wouldn’t be denied.”

Things look pretty darn good through five weeks, as his team now sits at 4-0 after erasing a 32-20 fourth-quarter deficit.

The perfect start to the season was in severe danger throughout the contest. When Chase Lemmon fumbled a punt return at the ‘Canes’ 14-yard line with 4:41 remaining, leading to Codi Mullen scoring his third rushing touchdown of the night from two yards out with 3:28 to play, the fat lady may not have been signing, but she was warming up the pipes.

“As coaches, we tried to stay positive with them,” said Mozzocio. “We told them to keep their heads up and that we needed a return. I said, let’s get a return; we know we’re dangerous. We have several guys capable; next thing we know, Nate’s in the end zone.”

That went out the window on the ensuing kickoff when Nate McKnight ran it back 72 yards, pulling the ‘Canes’ to within 32-27.

“At first, I was standing there, thinking if they kick it to me, I have to take it to the crib,” McKnight said. “So they kick it to me, I’m running, one dude tried to tackle me, and I stiff-armed him, then busted it to the left. Once I busted it left, I saw nothing but green, and I started running as fast as I could.”

The New Castle defense then forced a 3-and-out and took over possession from their 41-yard line with 2:20 to play. In two plays, New Castle took the lead that had been eluding them since early in the second stanza when Nate McKnight made his second huge play in about two minutes, hauling in a perfect pass from Kyrell Harris and taking it 51 yards for what would turn out to be the game-clinching score.

“That was all my coaches with that play call,” said McKnight. “I didn’t think that was going to happen, but they called it. So I did what I had to do. This means a lot, coming from being 1-9 two years in a row. You just lose your football spirit. It feels great for coach Mozzocio to come in here, bring our spirit back, and bring the seniors together. I’ve never felt something like this before.”

McKnight caught three passes for a game-high 70 to accompany his two scores. Harris passed for 105 yards and a touchdown on 6-of-13 passing.

“Nate McKnight is an under-recruited Division 1 football player,” Mozzocio said. “I hope people start taking notice. He’s one of the best players in the WPIAL. When we need him most, he’s always there for us. We were setting up that play all night. We knew we had a big play out of him. We kept it in our hip pocket; right there at the end, we hit him on that post.”

The Knights then had no chance on their final possession, which began at their 10-yard line. Knoch went four plays and out, as quarterback Mullen was sacked twice and knocked down on all four snaps.

Kaevon Gardner scored his fourth touchdown of the night on a 3-yard run to seal the victory with 49 seconds to play.

Like his teammate McKnight, Gardner also sparked the Red Hurricanes as his 80-yard run at the 5:00 mark of the third quarter pulled New Castle to within 26-20 after Knoch went ahead following an 11-play 52-yard drive where Mullen connected with Kaden Spencer on a 9-yard scoring toss.

The touchdown had followed a lost fumble at the Knoch 48-yard line on the second snap of the third quarter for the ‘Canes.’

Early on, the Knights did what they needed to do and seemed to be in control. They took the football and drove 57 yards in 12 plays, opening the scoring on Kannon Trofimuk’s 25-yard field goal.

On the Red Hurricanes’ first possession, a bad punt snap resulted in a 37-yard loss. The defense pushed the Knights back three yards and forced Trofimuk to kick his second field goal from 29 yards.

Early in the second quarter, Knoch extended their lead when the Knights drove 73 yards in 11 plays, scoring on Mullen’s 2-yard run to take a 13-0 lead at the 10:33 mark of the first half.

New Castle got its offense moving in the second quarter thanks to Kaevon Gardner’s 10-yard run, which capped a 10-play 55-yard drive that got the Hurricanes on the board.

Less than two minutes later, Gardner ripped off a 45-yard run that gave the ‘Canes’ their only lead of the night until the closing minutes at 14-13.

Kaevon Gardner had a massive game as he rushed for 182 yards on 17 carries, scoring four touchdowns.

“Kaevon was a stud all night long,” said Mozzocio. “He had some miscues early, with some fumbles and mishandling of the football. But he didn’t bury his head. He kept pounding away. I asked him to impose his will and speed on people. He most certainly did that for us.”

Knoch wasn’t done in the half, however. The Knights drove 57 yards in ten plays, and Mullen scored on a 3-yard run with 23 seconds to go in the half. Knoch led 20-14 at recess.

Codi Mullen had a big game for Knoch, as he did just about everything offensively, rushing for 173 yards on 35 carries, including 111 yards in the first half. He also completed 15-of-32 passes for 90 yards and a touchdown.

New Castle’s perfect season will be tested next week as the Red Hurricanes travel to Aliquippa. The Quips were upset by Penn Hills Friday night, 21-13.

“This start has been a tribute to our young men,” concluded Mozzocio. ” These young men were made fun of, ridiculed, and talked bad about, saying they had no character or work ethic. I think everyone saw what they have tonight.”

Knoch will try to rebound when they host Indiana.

Game Highlights:

New Castle 42 Knoch 32

Score by Quarters

Knoch – 6 14 6 6 – 32

New Castle – 0 14 6 22 – 42

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

K – Kannon Trofimuk 25 yd field goal, 7:17 – 12-57

K – Trofimuk 29 yd field goal, 4:44 – 4-(-3)

Second Quarter

K – Codi Mullen 2 yd run, (Trofimuk pat), 10:33 – 11-73

NC – Kaevon Gardner 10 yd run, (Omar Thomas pat), 5:33 – 10-55

NC – Gardner 45 yd run, (Thomas pat), 3:46 – 2-44

K – Mullen 3 yd run, (Trofimuk pat), 0:23 – 10-57

Third Quarter

K – Kaden Spencer 9 yd pass from Mullen, (kick failed), 7:25 – 11-52

NC – Gardner 80 yd run, (kick failed), 5:00 – 1-80

Fourth Quarter

K – Mullen 2 yd run, (pass failed), 3:28 – 3-14

NC – Nate McKnight 72 yd kickoff return, (Thomas pat), 3:15

NC – McKnight 51 yd pass from Kyrell Harris, (Harris rush), 2:04 – 2-59

NC – Gardner 3 yd run, (Thomas pat), 0:49 – 1-3

Individual Stats

Rushing: K – Mullen 35-173, Samuel Skurka 7-13, Ethan Rouleau 3-18. Totals: 45-204. NC – Gardner 17-182, Harris 9-67, Jermaine Walker 1-2, Chase Lemmon 1-0, Nate Mcknight 1-(-1), Team 2-(-42). Totals: 31-208.

Receiving: K – Spencer 6-48, Shurka 5-21, Rouleau 1-12, Keaton Oprosky 3-9. NC – Lemmon 2-22, McKnight 3-70, Gardner 1-13.

Passing: K – Mullen 15-for-32, 90 yards, 1 TD. NC – Harris 6-for-13, 105 yards, 1 TD.

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
PA Football News Scoreboard presented by NFHS Network
 
GoRout
 
Showcase by Circle W Sports
 
Football Legends board game
 
 
x