North Central honors its senior football players

She's showing her "glove" for NC.

Brandon Alexander poses with his family.

Matt Hicks poses with his family.

William Clinkscales poses with his family.

Kevin Kelly poses with his family.

Jeremy Garcia poses with his family.

Marquel Wattley poses with his family.

Melvin Graham, Jr., poses with his family.

Kevin Davis poses with his family.

Markeez Stocking, right, poses for a picture.

No. 41 is Korey Rogan with his family.

No. 11 is Jaron Clark with his family.

Warren Central proved it's special, defeats North Central

            Top-ranked Warren Central overcame North Central’s comeback attempt before going on to defeat the Panthers 48-16 in a Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school football game.
            Warren Central dominated the game early, building a 13-0 first-quarter lead. The Warriors scored on a 55-yard touchdown run by Shaquille Breeding, and Ronnie Alexander’s 5-yard scoring pass from quarterback Kyle Faunce.
            But North Central battled back. Ben Stoller nailed a 35-yard field goal with 3:56 left in the second quarter. After Stoller’s successful pooch kick recovered by the Panthers, NC’s running back, Kevin Davis, raced up the middle for a 37-yard score, pulling NC within three points at 13-10.
            After Davis’ touchdown, time and Warren Central’s strong special teams play put North Central away.  North Central was forced to punt from its own 21-yard line,  but Warren Central’s strong rush resulted in a 3-yard punt, putting the Warriors 24 yards away from another score with under 2 minutes left in the half. The Warriors’ drive was started with a holding penalty and ended with 1-yard run by McFarland Dominique with only 10 seconds left on the clock. Warren led 20-10 at the half.
            Warren Central’s special teams continued to impact the game.  North Central was forced to punt from its own 23-yard-line. But the Warriors nearly blocked another punt, resulting in a negative 2-yard punt, putting WC at NC’s 21. The Warriors took advantage again, getting a 5-yard run from Faunce. The Warriors led 27-10.
          When North Central punted successfully In the third quarter, Warren Central’s Karn Utter returned the punt 62-yards for a touchdown, making the score 34-10.
          By the time North Central scored on a 45-yard touchdown from Gavin Alexander to Krayshawn Brewer, the game was over. The TD made the score 34-16. Alexander finished the game 10-of-23 passing for 159 yards. North Central Jordan Williams had five catches for 39 yards and Matt Hicks added three catches for 57 yards.

North Central loses to LN, losing its swagger

               For two games, North Central had a swagger. They entered games with their chests stuck out, with their heads held high, and with their fists balled up.
                Entering games, NC’s body language said, “Bring it!
This swag – a confidence not seen from a North Central team in several years – led to road victories over ranked Pike and Lawrence Central.
             Where did this swag come from? It came from the football players’ parents. They were parents who gassed up their SUVs, vans, and cars and drove their kids all over the Midwest to compete against the best high school players in the area in front of many Division I, II, and III college coaches.  Our players found out what their parents have been telling them for years: Son, you are good! You are just as good as every player in this camp.  The college coaches also told them positive things.
                   So for the first two games – NC sauntered into enemy territory and came back with enemy heads on a figurative stick.
                   The media was scrambling. Is North Central that good? If they had asked one of the dads who  supported – played catch with them, hopped the NC fence with them, and spent their last dimes on them – they would have gotten a decisive answer to that question: Hell yeah they’re good!
                But over the last two weeks – especially in the recent 14-9 loss to Lawrence North, the Panthers have lost their swagger.
                Against LN, North Central scored first, marching down the field with relative ease before settling on a 26-yard field goal by Ben Stoller. Stoller’s field goal and a 51-yard TD run by Tyrin Liggin in the second quarter may have been the only bright spots for the Panthers.  Liggin, who had a 72-yard TD run last week, gave NC a brief 9-7 third-quarter lead.
                That’s when things got weird. The Panthers had two snaps sail over their punter’s head, leading to two safeties. Throw in a Craig Larew 31-yard field goal and Lawrence North walked away with a 14-9 victory.
                In the game, quarterback Gavin Alexander was held to 10-of-20 yards passing for 96 yards. He also had seven carries for 54 yards. Alexander played without all-county receiver Jordan Williams, who didn’t play because of an injury.
                Reidus Trimble led North Central with three catches for 17 yards. Mike Raby (37 yards) and Marquel Wattley (21 yards) had two catches each.              

Ben Davis pounds North Central

     Sometimes, football is a simple matchup featuring the big boys –an unpublicized cage fight between the offensive and defensive linemen.
     In this bare-knuckle fight featuring No.4 Ben Davis and host No.7 North Central, the aptly named Giants manhandled the Panthers’ offensive and defensive lines en route to a 54-21 victory in a Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school football game.
     Before Ben Davis called off the big boys by putting in their second, third, and fourth-string players, the Giants led 54-7 to start the fourth quarter. In the fourth, North Central’s backups were able to score two touchdowns to end the scoring.