Notre Dame commit recap: DT Jacob Lacey helps secure playoff upset
Eight Notre Dame commits extended their seasons with playoff wins last week. ND Insider recaps how all 12 Irish pledges in action fared.
• DT Jacob Lacey | Bowling Green (Ky.) South Warren 28, Bowling Green 21: Lacey was a disruptive force as South Warren found revenge for a 43-7 loss to Bowling Green in the regular season. Lacey recorded seven tackles including four sacks and two pass deflections.
South Warren (11-2) will play against Covington Catholic (13-0) on Friday in the KHSAA Class 6A state semifinals.
• QB Phil Jurkovec | Gibsonia (Pa.) Pine-Richland 42, Pittsburgh Central Catholic 7: Jurkovec accounted for four more touchdowns as Pine-Richland won the WPIAL Class 6A championship. Jurkovec completed 16 of his 23 passes (70 percent) for 283 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 93 yards and one touchdown.
Pine-Richland (13-0) will play against State College (10-2) on Saturday in the PIAA Class 6A quarterfinals.
BIG BOMB. @pjurkovec finding Mr Ray Falcone for the TD. @PRRamsFootball on top of Central Catholic. 14-0. 4:39 left in the first quarter. pic.twitter.com/68ChgG4eL9
— Scott Harbaugh (@WPXIScott) November 18, 2017
Mr @pjurkovec stopped by to say “Hi” to me. How nice of him. 42-0 Pine-Richland over Central Catholic. 4th Quarter. 11:33 left. @PRRamsFootball@real_PRstudsectpic.twitter.com/Bp2Q3MEzYq
— Scott Harbaugh (@WPXIScott) November 18, 2017
• ROV Shayne Simon, DT Jayson Ademilola and DE Justin Ademilola | Jersey City (N.J.) St. Peter’s Prep 42, Paramus Catholic 19: Both Simon and Justin Ademilola caught touchdowns passes in the St. Peter’s Prep victory. Simon finished with three catches for 25 yards including a 15-yard touchdown. Justin Ademilola hauled in a four-yard pass for his first touchdown reception.
On defense, Justin Ademilola tallied eight tackles, four tackles for a loss and two sacks, Jayson Ademilola notched eight tackles and 2.5 sacks and Simon added three tackles.
St. Peter’s Prep (9-2) will play against Bergen Catholic (9-2) on Friday, Dec. 1, in the NJSIAA Non-Public Group 4 championship.
• OL John Dirksen | Maria Stein (Ohio) Marion Local 33, Coldwater 0: Dirksen and the Marion Local offensive line helped pave the way for three running backs to combine for 187 rushing yards in the blowout win. Dirksen also contributed on defense for the fourth-consecutive shutout.
Marion Local (13-0) will play against Liberty-Benton (12-1) on Friday in the OHSAA Division VI state semifinals.
• LB Ovie Oghoufo | Farmington Hills (Mich.) Harrison 21, Riverview 0: Oghoufo and the Harrison defense ceded chunks of yards, but they didn’t allow Riverview to score any points. Twice the Hawks forced a turnover on downs on fourth-and-goal plays from the one-yard line. Oghoufo tallied 14 tackles and two tackles for a loss in the victory.
The run-heavy Riverview offense ran 67 plays compared to just 36 by Harrison. In the first half, Riverview possessed the ball for 18:36 of the 24 minutes.
Harrison (11-3) will play against Muskegon (13-0) on Saturday in the MHSAA Division 3 state championship.
• S Paul Moala | Mishawaka (Ind.) Penn 34, Carmel 7: Avoiding Moala wasn’t enough for Carmel’s offense to find success. Moala’s teammates on Penn’s defense intercepted four passes to stymie the Greyhounds. The Kingsmen were able to roll despite their offense only picking up seven first downs.
Penn (12-1) will play against Ben Davis (13-0) on Saturday in the IHSAA Class 6A state championship.
• CB Joe Wilkins Jr. | North Fort Myers (Fla.) High 6, Fort Myers 7: A loss for North Fort Myers appeared imminent, then Joe Wilkins Jr. scored a touchdown with 19 seconds left in the game. His teammate recovered a fumble and then tossed Wilkins the football to return it for a 65-yard score. But following the touchdown, North Fort Myers attempted a two-point conversion and failed.
North Fort Myers still managed to get the ball back on an onside kick, but the game ended when Wilkins was tackled in bounds on a short reception and time ran out before North Fort Myers could spike the ball. Wilkins accounted for eight of his team’s nine completions with 107 receiving yards. He also broke up two passes at cornerback.
The perfect season for North Fort Myers (9-1) ended in the FHSAA Class 6A regional semifinals.
• RB Jahmir Smith | Sanford (N.C.) Lee County 7, Cape Fear 24: Cape Fear kept Smith in check for most of the game in order to give Lee County its first loss of the season. Smith eventually broke loose for a 63-yard touchdown in the third quarter, but his team was already trailing 24-0. Smith finished with 16 carries for 100 yards in his final game as a senior.
The undefeated season for Lee County (12-1) came to a halt in the second round of the NCHSAA Class 3AA playoffs.
• RB Markese Stepp | Indianapolis Cathedral 13, Columbus East 42: Stepp had been battling hamstring injuries all season. In the lopsided loss to Columbus East, Stepp’s offensive linemen took a hit. Alabama commit Emil Ekiyor and Blake Kaufman were both knocked out of the game in the first half. Stepp led Cathedral with 14 carries, but he finished third in rushing yards with 54. Running back Daylen Hall (110) and quarterback Roman Purcell (58) each had more.
Stepp’s senior season ended with Cathedral (7-6) losing in the IHSAA Class 5A state semifinals.
• QB Cade McNamara | Reno (Nev.) Damonte Ranch 27, Reed 31: McNamara threw three touchdowns passes for Damonte Ranch, but he also threw two interceptions in the fourth quarter of the loss to Reed. The Mustangs (11-1) ended their perfect season in the NIAA Class 4A Northern Region semifinals.
Bye week: LB Bo Bauer.
Season finished: DT Ja’mion Franklin, LB Jack Lamb, WR Geordon Porter, OL Cole Mabry, WR Kevin Austin, WR Micah Jones, TE George Takacs, S Derrik Allen.
*Stats reported were provided by players, coaches or the following news organizations: MaxPreps, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dayton Daily News, Hometownlife.com, The News-Press, Sanford Herald, Indianapolis Star and Reno Gazette-Journal.
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