Pirates ride balanced attack to win

Richards increases role for South football

By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
   Eldred Richards enjoyed spending last year blocking for Ryan Lupo and Stuart Adams.
   But with the former West Windsor-Plainsboro running backs now playing college football, Richards and the rest of the offensive line have a new way to enjoy themselves.
   The Pirates offense was a dual attack on Saturday, as junior quarterback Connor Farrell passed for three touchdowns and junior tailback David Twamley ran for two in a 44-13 win over Trenton.
   ”Every year it seems like we have good running backs,” said Richards, who is also playing on the defensive line this year. “Last year we lost Stuart and Lupo and they were really good. But we always have someone stepping up. Twamley comes in and he’s a great athlete. He’s easy to block for because all you need to do is put your man down and he’s going to run.
   ”My mentality is just to push the man in front of me as hard as I can. And when I see that running back run by me, I let go and run downfield.”
   On a day when the Pirates dedicated their new turf field, honored former coaches Rex Walker and Tom Stuart, and saw Rutgers University coach Greg Schiano fly in and out in a helicopter to catch the first half, the offense showed it won’t be a ground game only.
   Farrell completed 13 of his 19 passes for 191 yards and three touchdowns. The first two TD strikes went to Jeff Reimann, while Dempsey Page also caught a pass for a score. Twamley, who rushed for 180 yards on 20 carries, also scored twice on the ground. Farrell added a rushing touchdown of his own to the attack.
   ”I thought we had a good thing going with the pass, so we wanted to keep going with it,” WW-P South coach Todd Smith said. “I think the pass set up the run a little bit and then vice versa. I hope we can do that all year long.
   ”The kids we have are good and they work hard. I think Connor is the biggest piece this year. We did not do a good job of protecting him and we will work on that. But he had a great first half throwing the ball. And we know that Reimann and Twamley and Dempsey and J.B. (Fitzgerald), they give 100 percent all the time.”
   WW-P South scored on each of its first four possessions to take a 28-0 lead at halftime. Trenton scored twice in the third quarter to get within 28-13 before the Pirates added 13 fourth quarter points.
   ”We came out a little flat in the second half,” Smith said. “But dealing with the weather today, the heat on the turf, you get tired. We knew we wanted to come out and score some points. We’re very satisfied with the opening effort these guys put out. The whole goal was to go 2-1 out of the first three. So we got one.”
   Unlike some Trenton teams of the past, this year’s team spent a lot of time passing the football out a spread offense. It made the day a little tougher for players like Richards, Ian Simon and Sean Porter, who had to play both ways in the trenches.
   ”I like the balance of it,” Richards said of playing offense and defense. “I know I am never going to score a touchdown. I picked up a fumble once, but that’s about it. I love being on the line. There is nothing better than watching somebody else score because of me or because of what we did on the offensive line. I love it. I never know how it feels to score a touchdown, but it’s one of the best feelings ever knowing that man scored because of me.
   ”This is my first year playing defense, so I am still getting used to it. I’m not trying to block somebody. I’m just trying to get to the ball and that’s something different for me. I had no idea about defense. Last year we had a lot of good linemen out there and this year we had less, so I’m happy to do whatever it is they need me to do.”
   That’s been the Pirates mentality the past two years, with players filling in wherever needed. That philosophy helped the team go 17-4 over the last two years. And with new players in place this year, the hope is that success can continue.
   ”I’m pretty confident,” Richards said. “I feel like we can win a lot of games this year.”