ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A late-game letdown may have tempered the mood, but it didn’t take away from the final result.
The University Preparatory Charter School for Young Men (UPrep) Griffins announced their arrival in Section V Class AA on Friday night.
Chris Jean rushed for three touchdowns and Noah Hill contributed a pair of scores as UPrep defeated host McQuaid Jesuit, 36-30.
“That’s just business,” Jean said. “We’re here for business.”
Trailing 10-8 late in the first quarter, UPrep (2-0) outscored the Jesuit Knights 28-6 over the next 31 minutes of game time.
After a bad snap, @UprepR takes over on the McQuaid 15. First down, Christopher Jean on the end around. 2-point conversion is good. Griffins 8-7 with 4:35 to go in first. pic.twitter.com/8vOZbDiwww
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 9, 2022
“It was getting rid of the mental mistakes,” the senior running back/defensive back said. “We started off a little slow. That’s not how usually we start off. We start out fast. We start out aggressive.”
Jean capped an eight-play, 72-yard drive with an 11-yard for his second touchdown of the game.
UPrep had a lead it did not surrender at 16-10.
“They smacked us in the mouth on the first drive, so it was up to us to respond,” head coach Isiah Young said. “We talked all week about being disciplined and matching their intensity. This is an historic program. They’re not going to back down no matter what you do.”
Two drives later, Hill hit Tyrell Simmons on a 32-yard pass to set up Jean for his third score of the day. UPrep took a 22-10 lead into halftime.
Noah Hill to Tyrell Simmons set up the second @UprepR touchdown. pic.twitter.com/jGkeB4J651
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 9, 2022
“We’re just falling in line with what the coaches put out there for us,” said Hill who finished 12-of-17 for 259 yards through the air. “The coaches are putting us in great position, the right position to win.”
Hill connected with three different receivers on the night including a 66-yard strike with Juelz Russel for a 36-16 lead with 7:06 remaining in the game.
Noah Hill connects with Dekhari Carter on the final play of the first quarter. @UprepR will start the second at @AthleticsMcQ 32. pic.twitter.com/LfOCNIecgn
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 9, 2022
“We got a very diverse group of weapons,” said the senior quarterback. “I feel like I’m distributing the ball the way coach wants me to. We’re a very balanced team. I feel like we’re going to be a big problem going along the way into the season.”
Jean rushed for 86 yards on 10 carries. He had scores of 11, 15 and 30 yards.
“He’s an electric player with the ball in his hands,” Young said. “We kinda put it on him all week. You get him in that space, he’s going to do some good things.”
Simmons made five catches for 82 yards. Russel had three three receptions for 96 while Dekhari Carter caught two passes for 55 yards.
On second and 15 from the 34, Noah Hill hits Juelz Russel down the sideline. 2-pt. conversion is good. @UprepFball 36-16 with 7:06 on the clock. pic.twitter.com/7JkOxmphlO
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 10, 2022
Jean finished with 4.5 tackles including one for a loss and one pass deflection. RaeJouhn Yeomas led the UPrep defense with seven tackles including four solo efforts. Nazir Wynn had 6.5 tackles and combined on a sack. Carter contributed 5.5 tackles while Simmons had two tackles and 2.5 sacks.
McQuaid (1-1) took the opening kickoff and went 60 yards in seven plays with John Harding getting it in the end zone for an early lead.
John Harding caps a 7-play drive with his fourth rush. This one for six. PAT is good. @AthleticsMcQ 7-0 pic.twitter.com/wxdz2qfGfZ
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 9, 2022
A Dominic Sansone field goal gave the Jesuit Knights a 10-8 lead with 2:38 to go in the first quarter.
“It’s a really good win for the program,” Young said. “It’s a historic program (McQuaid) in terms of sectional championships. It’s a win that tells people we’re here. We’re not going anywhere. We’re not going to back down.”
On second and 15, Jack Polito hits Gavin Brownlie in the end zone. 2-pt. conversion is no good. 8:40 remaining @AthleticsMcQ trail @UprepFball 28-16 pic.twitter.com/yb53uyw2pQ
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 10, 2022
Jack Polito connected with Gavin Brownlie to make it a 28-16 game with 8:40 on the clock. Polito also orchestrated a pair of late McQuaid drives for touchdowns. The senior hit Anthony DiMarco for another touchdown.
“We have a mantra here: ‘the standard is the standard,'” Young said referring to the words of Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin. “When you get up 20 on a team, you got to put them away. At the end there, we didn’t meet the standard. The tone should have been a little bit more celebratory. We didn’t meet our expectation of how we finish games.”
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