No. 3 Clairton overcomes turnovers, eases past Leechburg

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, September 28, 2018 | 11:42 PM

Creating turnovers and short fields are a recipe for an underdog to beat a heavy favorite.

Leechburg created those opportunities with having short fields, however, the Blue Devils couldn’t capitalize as Class A No. 3 Clairton defeated Leechburg, 36-0, in Eastern Conference action at Neil Brown Stadium.

On Leechburg’s first two possessions, the Bears (5-0, 3-0) forced a Blue Devil punt. However, Clairton muffed a punt on each drive and giving the Blue Devils (2-4, 1-3) second life.

The Bears forced the Blue Devils to punt four plays later on the first possession. On the second possession, Clairton senior Taevon Thompson picked off Leechburg sophomore quarterback Dylon Cook to give the Bears a short field at the Blue Devils 22-yard line.

On the Bears’ next possession, the Blue Devils forced the Bears’ third turnover of the half when Thompson fumbled on the fourth play of the drive.

“We created some turnovers on defense, and we couldn’t capitalize on them. You can’t compete with a team like Clairton and not do that,” Leechburg coach Mark George said.

“They are going to wear you down and you’re going to make some mistakes. Whenever you create turnovers, you have to make something positive out of it.”

On offense, the Blue Devils were held to 88 yards, where 68 yards came through the air.

After a Blue Devil punt, the Bears finally got on the board when junior quarterback Brendan Parsons found junior wide receiver Kenlein Ogletree down the right side for a 73-yard touchdown pass.

The Bears scored on their final three possessions of the first half, starting with the Ogletree-Parsons connection.

Thompson scored the Bears’ second touchdown game with over three minutes remaining in the half. Thompson ended a seven-play drive on 7-yard run up the middle.

Right before the half, Clairton drove 68 yards, capped when Parsons connected with senior wide receiver Dominic Solomon for a 15-yard touchdown pass to give the Bears a 20-0 lead at halftime.

“We sat some guys with some injuries as we were looking down the road,” Clairton coach Wayne Wade said. “Anytime you come out and turn the ball over, you give the other team an opportunity.”

“Every game is a teachable moment. This game especially helps us get back to being focused. The mistakes that were made and how costly turnovers can be. There are a ton of lessons we can pull from this game.”

After a scoreless third quarter, Parsons found Ogletree for a 66-yard touchdown pass to stretch the Bears lead to 28-0 early in the fourth quarter.

Parsons finished 6 of 11 for 183 yards passing and three touchdowns. The Bears, who had 93 yards rushing, finished with 276 yards of offense.

Clairton sophomore Jonte Sanders’ 19-yard interception for a touchdown capped the scoring.

Andrew John is a freelance writer.

Tags: Clairton, Leechburg