Belfry 41 Newport Central Catholic 8

[spindoc]

Final per update thread

[KentuckyJoe]

As expected. Nice work tonight @Lawnboy13 but why would anyone NewCath faithful be mad at me. You know I'm a NewCath grad who just happened to move to Independence. I will always love the blue and gold!

[frankdracman23]

About what I expected as I had predicted that NCC would be fortunate to keep it from a running clock. However, NCC offense was a little less than I expected and the defense was a little better at least in the first half.

 

Belfry just ground and pound in the game and why throw it if you do not have to? O-Line was just massive and dominant. Doubt that NCC will see a better one this year. Still NCC kept it close until the second half kickoff return just seemed to break them.

 

Got to give kudos to Belfry defense though. Held NCC in check quite nicely and shut down both the running and passing game.

 

3A if you want to beat Belfry you are going to have to be able to stop their ground game and I think you are going to have to get in a shoot-out because you are not going to win a low scoring conservative game. Just ain't going to happen.

[colonel-fan]

Closer than I thought it would be.

[hrcarrier]

Belfry was just too much for the Breds in every part of the game. Good luck to the rest of 3A, if anyone has a chance, I'd say maybe Corbin and it's probably very slim. Newport Catholic likely won't face anyone close to as tough unless they play Mayfield again. #23 for Belfry was an absolute beast on the defensive line.

[hrcarrier]

Closer than I thought it would be.

 

It was only 14-0 at halftime which surprised me even more.

[InsideSlant]

If there was one thing Belfry could improve upon, it seemed like double digit false start penalty's tonight

[frankdracman23]

If there was one thing Belfry could improve upon, it seemed like double digit false start penalty's tonight

 

True, but that is a product of the option offense they run. They are so quick and it is based on timing so it is going to result in a few motion penalties. It would be great to eliminate those but the 5 yards does not really get them out of their offense.

[Lawnboy13]

About what I expected as I had predicted that NCC would be fortunate to keep it from a running clock. However, NCC offense was a little less than I expected and the defense was a little better at least in the first half.

 

Belfry just ground and pound in the game and why throw it if you do not have to? O-Line was just massive and dominant. Doubt that NCC will see a better one this year. Still NCC kept it close until the second half kickoff return just seemed to break them.

 

Got to give kudos to Belfry defense though. Held NCC in check quite nicely and shut down both the running and passing game.

 

3A if you want to beat Belfry you are going to have to be able to stop their ground game and I think you are going to have to get in a shoot-out because you are not going to win a low scoring conservative game. Just ain't going to happen.

 

That about sums it up............Pirates were BIG and fast.

 

@Watusi and @bucsvoice68 nice meeting you guys tonight, hope the trip home is/was a safe one.

[newarkcatholicfan]

Glad the Pirates recovered from their slow start in this one-sided contest.

[mexitucky]

Closer than I thought it would be.

 

In the words of Dale Dovak, "That was at 6, you don't want me to get to level 10." Belfry looked like they had just gotten off of a 5 hour bus ride after a day at school. Kinda lethargic, you know, lots of penalties and a couple of fumbles....and still worked the Breds. In fairness to NewCath, defensively they worked hard but #1 and # 5 were just too much on the give behind that huge line. KO return for a TD to open the second half killed the game. Hope NewCath's injuries aren't serious.

[ATLCat]

As expected nothing but class from the Breds' posters in defeat!

 

I wasn't able to follow this one as closely as normal but from what I gather Belfry came out a little rusty. I blame this on two things. One, that is a long trip to step off the bus and play football. Two, and most importantly, this is a pretty darn good football team they are playing and after two games where Belfry coasted it took a little time to acclimate to the speed of the game and actually having a team who would hit them and bring some fight.

 

From what I gather the Belfry Defense was superb and held NewCath's starters to under 100 total yards. Derek Wellman I found out was the man who brought the thunderstick on those Henschen plays. Here's hoping it was just some cobwebs getting knocked loose and no injury whatsoever to Henschen. Glad to see Taveon Hunter get loose for a big play. I think he needed that confidence after a bit of a slow start to the season for him. Catron, as always, did what he does and made plays with an INT and then on the next possession a TD.

 

Belfry has to clean up those procedure penalties. Now is the time to get them out of their system, in two weeks those could be the difference in winning and losing.

 

All in all I am pleased with what I heard. Cannot be upset anytime you beat a great foe 41-8 on the road.

[ATLCat]

As for NewCath:

 

The Belfry fans I spoke to said nothing but positive things about your Defense, specifically the LB and DE players. Said they looked like a team that will create a deep playoff push. Said everyone was very hospitable for sure.

 

Best of luck Breds! Hoping this series can continue. This Senior Class is a tough match-up for NewCath but the next two years I think would be great battles. Hoping they can work this out so two elite programs can continue to play.

[Watusi]

Now that I have recovered from the trip and worked a shift I’ll post some thoughts. A lot of what I would say has been posted already and I can’t add much.

 

First, it was a pleasure to meet up with Lawnboy13 and mexitucky. Both these guys were very hospitable, and it was really nice to put faces with the names. I regret that I was pushed on time and only arrived seconds before the kickoff, and I had to miss out on the official Lawnboy13 VIP tour and pregame meal. I understand that is a treat and it would have been nice to take it all in. LB was on PA duty, and did a good job of it, but I had to wait until post game to meet up and then I was in a hurry to hit the road. I visited with mex during the first half while the game was going on and I’m sure I wasn’t the best conversationalist. Maybe we can meet up in Bowling Green first weekend in December and celebrate a couple of state championships. :thumb:

 

Now for the game. I was impressed with NewCath, especially defensively. I was expecting a bit of a dropoff from last season on the DL, but that was not the case. The front 4 was very stout, even though they were outsized by a good margin by the monster Belfry OL. NCC stacked the box and for the most of the game was in what was basically a 4-5 defense. The two down tackles and defensive ends did a good job of holding their own and letting the 5 2nd tier guys fly to the ball. It appeared as though NCC was committed to trying to contain the Pirates and prevent them from getting to the edge, and they did a good job of it. Belfry took what was available to them and pounded the fullback with Wellman and Fletcher, who I would guess averaged 6-7 yards per carry.

 

Aided by a Pirate fumble and several penalties, the Breds kept it really close in the first half, only down 14-0. The defense had kept them in the game, but the offense had a tough time against the Pirate D, and I would guess ATLCat is right that the Breds probably had less than 100 yards total against the starters from Pond Creek.

 

Belfry made a couple of special teams plays, including returning the 2nd half kickoff for a TD, to help break the game open. The pounding by the Pirate offense started to take a toll in the 2nd half and they built up a 34-0 lead before both teams turned the game over to the backups. There was lots of team speed for both squads and no lack of physical play. I bet there are a lot of sore young men this morning in Newport and Belfry.

 

I understand Henschen is OK and will be fine, according to Lawnboy13 this afternoon. That is good news.

 

Wellman, Catron and Varney continue to just make plays. These guys are football players. Belfry has some playmakers and nearly everyone on the field is capable of a highlight play at any moment, but these three really provide a lot of entertainment and they go full tilt all the time.

 

Cole Bentley was a monster last night on both sides of the ball and showed why he has more college offers than @theguru has ex-girlfriends, and that is a considerable tally.

 

I think this NewCath team is better than last year’s version at this stage in the season. I am a fan of the program and I hope to see you guys again in Bowling Green. When I think of NewCath football the word Class just comes to mind. Kudos also to the Pirate fans, who traveled very well. Nice crowd considering the 4+ hour drive.

[colonel-fan]

From the Williamson Daily News (WV):

 

Pirates stomp NCC 41-8

 

NEWPORT, Ky. – The Belfry Pirates started off slow but put together a 20-point third quarter to over come the Newport Central Catholic (NCC) Thoroughbreds 41-8.

 

he night ended in regular Belfry style with the Pirates ahead by a large margin. Belfry went scoreless in the second quarter and scored from close range in the first quarter from both Andrew Fletcher and Derek Wellman. The Pirates entered halftime with a score of 14-0.

 

However, the Pirates would return in the second half to score 27 points and leave the Thoroughbreds in the dust. NCC didn’t score until the fourth quarter against Belfry’s second string.

 

The night was full of highlights for the Pirates as they finished with 396-yards rushing on 57 carries. Fletcher was able to return from a shoulder injury suffered in week one to lead the Pirates ground game. Fletcher had 15 carries for 86-yards and one rushing TD. Wellman finished second with 10 carries for 80-yards and touchdown.