MILL HALL - As the sea of blue flooded Malinak Stadium, fans were anticipating a match up of the two premier tailbacks in the District 6 Class AAAA.
Central Mountain's Von Walker and State College's Andrew Kelly were slated to be the headline of last night's matchup in Bald Eagle Township.
Apparently, State College's Pat Irwin didn't get that memo. The junior quarterback stole the show, leading the Little Lions over Central Mountain, 36-7.
"I don't want to take anything away from State College," CM coach Vinnie Kishbaugh said. "They are big and fast. We had our chances early, but we didn't take advantage of them. The great teams don't let the games slip away from them.
"Tomorrow, we will break down the film. The big thing is that we had our opportunities and we had our chances. We have to build on that. There is a bright side to this. Our receivers played well against a great secondary and they were able to get open. We just need to execute on all of our plays, not just 30 percent of them - like we did tonight."
Irwin started the game off hot in the first half, going 4-of-6 for 124 yards - including two long touchdowns. The first was a 40-yard bullet to Darian Herncane who made a spectacular one-handed grab in mid stride, while the second came off a little flare to Kelly, who torched passed the Wildcat defense - chewing up 51 yards in no time.
"He is getting more and more confident," State College coach Al Wolski said of Irwin. "He didn't take a varsity snap last year, but he is an athlete. He is used to competing and is always ready to go. I was happy with his performance tonight."
