TAMPA — Cambridge won its home opener by thumping Bishop McLaughlin 48-21 in a quarterback’s duel at Skyway Park.
Cambridge junior Garrett Young won the duel with a tremendous effort through the air and on the ground.
“We knew coming in (Young) was going to be dangerous,” Hurricanes coach Derrick Alexander said.
Young was all that and more, completing 11 of 17 passes for 212 yards and three touchdowns. He also had 128 yards on the ground and three scores, including touchdown runs of 18 and 36 yards.
Coach Bob Dare finally pulled Young on the last two offensive series only to put him in at corner to handle 6-foot-5 junior receiver William Potosky (four catches for 89 yards).
The Lancers played on a short field all night. Five of their first eight possessions started in Hurricane territory.
“When you’re backed up like that there’s only so much you can do,” Alexander said. “We don’t have the downfield speed so we have to grind it slowly down the field.”
The Hurricanes did mount a few impressive drives with senior quarterback RJ Perciavalle leading TD drives of 80, 74, and 95 yards. Perciavalle scored all three Hurricane touchdowns in an 84-yard rushing effort. Perciavalle was also 17 of 35 passing for 228 yards.
“(Perciavalle) scares me more with his feet,” Dare said. “There were times where we could’ve had him but he still completed the pass.”
The Lancers got help from all over.
Eighth-grader Andrew Cunningham ran for a 40-yard score and finished with 92 yards. Junior Nick Stein had two 25-yard touchdown grabs, and junior linebacker Tanner Smelt had four tackles, two sacks, and a forced fumble. Smelt’s two sacks came on critical Hurricane third downs.