FOUNTAIN SPRINGS — There are a bevy of reasons why North Schuylkill is undefeated through seven games.
Perhaps the biggest is the Spartans’ abundance of weapons on offense.
North Schuylkill’s balance and its quick-strike capabilities were on display Friday in a 53-21 non-conference rout of rival Mount Carmel at a packed Spartan Stadium.
In front of a live television audience, the Spartans racked up 624 yards of total offense, rushing for 366 and passing for 258. Six Spartans found the end zone, with five of North Schuylkill’s eight touchdowns covering 36 yards or more.
In all, the Spartans recorded nine plays that gained 20 yards or more.
“In practice, we share the ball among everyone,” quarterback Bobby Grigas said. “We try to get everyone touches. We try to get ready for games just like this.
“When our line does good and they make the holes, we can do whatever we want.”
North Schuylkill (7-0) scored on its first two possessions to take a 14-0 lead, as Grigas plunged in from 1 yard out and then hit Major Jordan on a 2-yard pass — both scores coming on fourth-and-goal plays.
A 59-yard screen pass from Grigas to John Rupinski set up the Spartans’ first score, while a 42-yard pass to Tevin Murray set up the second.
“They were bringing six, seven guys all the time, and we thought maybe switch it up and throw a screen pass,” Rupinski said of the screen pass. “It worked out nicely and set the tone for the rest of the night.”
Mount Carmel (4-3) focused on stopping North Schuylkill’s running game, going with a six-man front. That strategy worked early, but eventually North Schuylkill’s big offensive line wore down the Red Tornadoes.
Rupinski, the area’s leading rusher, was held to just 19 yards on his first 11 carries before breaking free for a 66-yard touchdown with 2:31 left in the first half.
The touchdown gave North Schuylkill a 21-7 lead at that point, and Mount Carmel didn’t get any closer than two scores the rest of the way.
Rupinski added a 91-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter and finished with 184 yards on 17 carries, giving him 1,025 yards on the season.
“I was getting frustrated. When there wasn’t a hole, I was getting bottled up at the line,” Rupinski said. “You just have to get it the next play.
“I wasn’t getting much, and I saw the hole (on the 66-yard run). I hit it as hard as I could and broke through. The defense just wasn’t there. That was a big play.”
Mount Carmel’s focus on the run also opened up the deep pass for North Schuylkill. Grigas and Murray hooked up four times for 127 yards, including a 61-yard touchdown that made it 28-7 in the second quarter. Grigas added a 65-yard TD pass to Richie Zahodnick in the second half.
“We have good athletes all the way around on offense,” North Schuylkill coach Wally Hall said. “You try to spread the ball around, see what the defense is giving you and see where we go from there.”
Mount Carmel scored its first touchdown early in the second quarter after Grigas fumbled deep in North Schuylkill territory and Dominic Farronato recovered and returned it to the Spartans’ 3. Blake Panko scored on a 2-yard run to make it 14-7.
Panko tallied Mount Carmel’s second TD right before halftime, taking a screen pass 53 yards to paydirt and slicing North Schuylkill’s lead to 28-14 at intermission.
The Red Tornadoes, however, were never able to establish their ground game, rushing for just 36 yards on 24 carries.
North Schuylkill, meanwhile, pulled away in the second half, scoring on its first four possessions.
As a perfect example of how things went for North Schuylkill, facing a first-and-10 from the Mount Carmel 36 in the fourth quarter, offensive coordinator Tony Russo asked Pat Gownley if he wanted to score. Gownley scored on a 36-yard run on the next play.
“We have great wide receivers in Zahodnick and Murray who can catch the ball and run the ball, and they made some great plays tonight,” Rupinski said. “We have the backfield, we have Major who punches it right up the middle when we need to. It works out nicely for the whole team.”
Game Summary
MCA (4-3) 0 14 7 0 — 21 NS (7-0) 14 14 7 18 — 53
NS —Grigas 1 run (Grigas kick)
NS —Jordan 2 pass from Grigas (Grigas kick)
MC —Panko 2 run (Bielski kick)
NS — Rupinski 66 run (Grigas kick)
NS —Murray 61 pass from Grigas (Grigas kick)
MC —Panko 53 pass from Farronato (Bielski kick)
NS —Zahodnick 65 pass from Grigas (Grigas kick)
MC —Kelley 14 run (Bielski kick)
NS — Jordan 2 run (kick blocked)
NS —Rupinski 91 run (pass failed)
NS —Gownley 36 run (kick failed)
MCA NS
First Downs 7 17
Rushes-Yards 24-36 42-366
Passes 10-20-1 8-12-1
Passing Yards 148 258
Total Yards 184 624
Fumbles-Lost 1-0 1-1
Penalties 7-46 6-53
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: Mount Carmel — Panko 8-16, Karycki 6-15, Kelley 2-11, Farronato 7-3. North Schuylkill — Rupinski 17-184, Gownley 3-61, Zahodnick 4-47, Jordan 8-32, Grigas 6-28, DeAngelo 3-12, Runge 1-2.
PASSING: Mount Carmel — Farronato 10-20-1, 148. North Schuylkill — Grigas 8-12-1, 258.
RECEIVING: Mount Carmel — Panko 2-58, Sullins 2-42, Kelley 4-38, White 2-10. North Schuylkill — Murray 4-127, Zahodnick 1-65, Rupinski 1-59, Jordan 2-7.
INTERCEPTIONS: Mount Carmel — White. North Schuylkill — Gownley.