Clarion Athletics

CLARION, Pa. --- The Golden Eagles football team withstood chaotic weather conditions and a determined opponent to earn a season-opening win on Thursday night, defeating West Virginia Wesleyan 52-14 at Memorial Stadium.
 
It was an evening beset by foul weather that bordered on biblical proportions. Pregame warm-ups were twice delayed by lightning in the area, and a third storm cell halted action late in the first quarter. That was followed by rain that poured for much of the first half, affecting both teams' offenses. And then there was the fog; midway through the fourth quarter a massive cloud of fog rolled over the field, creating near-zero visibility for fan and player alike.
 
Despite the constant roadblocks put in place by Mother Nature, the Golden Eagles rebounded from a slow start early in the game, scoring 38 unanswered points in the second and third quarters to build an impressive lead. Clarion racked up 443 yards of total offense, averaging 6.8 yards per play, while holding the Bobcats to 368 yards and 4.8 yards per play respectively.
 
Amari Colon-Brown scored the first of two touchdowns just before the game's final weather delay, hauling in a 21-yard touchdown pass to give West Virginia Wesleyan a 7-0 lead. The Golden Eagles came out of the locker room after a lengthy lightning delay determined to even up the score, and an explosive 27-yard run by Davon Jones to end the first quarter gave them the golden opportunity to do so. On the other end of the quarter break quarterback Jase Ferguson pushed his way into the end zone, evening the score at 7.
 
Jones struck through the air on the team's next offensive possession, as the Golden Eagles forced a turnover on downs in their own territory. The junior receiver took the top off the defense with a 25-yard pass down the seam to make it 14-7, and Ty Woods booted a 19-yard field goal as time expired at the end of the half to make it a 10-point lead.
 
Ferguson led a scoring drive to start the second half, manipulating the safety on the righthand side of the field to lob a 37-yard touchdown pass to Tsirell Curry. The rout was officially on three plays later, when David Adams-Prince jumped in front of a Mike Evans Jr. pass on the left sideline and sprinted 60 yards for a touchdown, the Golden Eagles' first pick-six since the 2022 season. That gave Clarion a 31-7 lead, and Kaevon Gardner and Ja'Tawn Williams tacked on two more scores in the third to make it 45-14.
 
The cherry on top came late in the fourth quarter, just as the dense fogbank rolled in. With 5:56 left to play, Tyreeck Hall ripped off an 80-yard run up the middle on the first play of the drive to push the Golden Eagles over the 50-point mark.
 
Ferguson finished 12-of-24 for 175 yards passing with three touchdowns and also logged 11 carries for 69 yards and a score. Jones had 151 all-purpose yards on the day with 52 receiving yards, 52 rushing yards and 47 punt return yards.
  Read Full Article