MOUNT CARMEL — Quarterback Richie Zahodnick ran for 108 yards and four touchdowns, but the major pains for Mount Carmel in North Schuylkill’s 41-0 shutout were running back Major Jordan and the Spartans’ domination of the line of scrimmage.
Jordan broke right up the middle for a 50-yard run on the first play from scrimmage, and by the game’s end, had 236 yards on 25 carries, scoring the final touchdown on a 3-yard run.
Zahodnick, forced to play quarterback with Bobby Grigas out with an injury, ran the fullback dive series to perfection. He scored touchdowns on runs of 20 and 39 yards the first two times he carried the ball, pulling it out of Jordan’s gut when the Red Tornadoes overplayed the middle and scooting around the ends for easy scores.
The Spartans (4-3) ran for 405 yards in their new power offense, necessitated by injuries to Grigas, running back Pat Gownley and other players from last season’s high-powered team. Defensively, they held Mount Carmel to six first downs and 94 total yards.
Grigas kicked all of the Spartans’ extra points, and did come in for a few plays on offense.
“Our offensive line played real well,” Zahodnick said. “I had all the time in the world and easy reads. Major is a force in himself.”
“Honestly, I think the three games we lost, we beat ourselves,” added Jordan, who had his second straight 200-plus- yard game. “I think we’re playing pretty good football now. I’m very proud of our team. We’re in the weight room every day. This was a big win for us.”
The Spartans’ first touchdown came on Zahodnick’s 20-yard run, two plays after Jordan’s 50-yard run.
The Spartans’ defense forced a punt and though Mount Carmel (3-4) forced a fourth-and-3 play, Zahodnick pulled the ball away from Jordan for a 39-yard touchdown.
Jordan did his thing on defense on the next series, intercepting quarterback John Ayres and returning the ball 19 yards to the 14-yard line to set up an eventual 1-yard plunge by Zahodnick that made the score 21-0 with 6:03 still remaining in the first quarter.
The only things the Spartans did wrong in the first quarter were burn all their first-half timeouts and throw an interception that was picked off by Mount Carmel’s Michael Cuff.
The Red Tornadoes held the ball for 16 plays, driving to the 8-yard line, but a fourth-and-goal jump pass by Kyle Karycki on a direct snap fell incomplete in the end zone.
Zahodnick scored on another 20-yard run in the third quarter to cap an eight-play, 76-yard drive.
In the fourth quarter, Grigas threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Tevin Murray off a fake field goal attempt. The big play was a 33-yard completion from Zahodnick to Jonathan Smith.
Jordan scored a touchdown with 4:19 remaining in the game to complete the scoring.
Game Summary
North Schuylkill (4-3) 21 0 7 13 — 41
Mount Carmel (3-4) 0 0 0 0 — 0
NS — Zahodnick 20 run (B. Grigas kick)
NS — Zahodnick 39 run (B. Grigas kick)
NS — Zahodnick 1 run (B. Grigas kick)
NS — Zahodnick 20 run (B. Grigas kick)
NS — Murray 11 pass from B. Grigas (B. Grigas kick)
NS — Jordan 3 run (no attempt)
NS MC
First Downs 20 6
Rushes-Yards 48-405 31-73
Passes 2-6-1 3-11-1
Passing Yards 44 21
Total Yards 449 94
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 0-0
Penalties 9-93 5-33
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: North Schuylkill — Jordan 25-236, Zahodnick 13-108, Steinhilber 6-29, Reese 2-23, Heyer 1-8, DeAngelo 1-1. Mount Carmel — Karycki 11-37, Tanney 4-18, Zarkowski 3-13, Britt 2-13, Ayres 9-6, Yancoskie 1-4, Team 1-(-18).
PASSING: North Schuylkill — Zahodnick 1-4-0, 33; B. Grigas 1-2-1, 11. Mount Carmel — Ayres 3-8-1, 21; McDonald 0-2-0, 0; Karycki 0-1-0, 0.
RECEIVING: North Schuylkill — Smith 1-33, Murray 1-11. Mount Carmel — Shurock 3-21.
INTERCEPTIONS: North Schuylkill — Jordan. Mount Carmel — Cuff