Clairton edges Jeannette, 34-28
By BILL BECKNER
For the MV Independent
Jeannette coach Roy Hall said he expected to get Clairton’s best no matter what time of year the Eastern Conference rivals played.
Normally, the Bears and Jayhawks play in the regular-season finale.
That they kicked off against one another was quite a bang to open this peculiar season.
Clairton did give its best, rumbling to life in the second half to push aside Jeannette, 34-28, on Friday night before a sparse crowd due to COVID-19 restrictions at McKee Stadium.
The matchup lived up to the hype.
Senior running back Dontae Sanders ran for 209 yards and three touchdowns for the Bears, who held Jeannette at bay in the second half.
The victory ended a substantial run of success for the Jayhawks at their home field. Jeannette had not lost a home opener since 1993 and had not been beaten in a season opener since 1997.
The Jayhawks’ most recent loss at McKee had come against Clairton in 2016, a span of 18 games.
“We just line up and try to execute and dominate,” Clairton coach Wayne Wade said “We don’t think about things like that, teams winning at home or whatever. Jeannette is a good football team.”
The Bears have now defeated Jeannette eight times in 10 meetings dating to 2014.
“Give Clairton a lot of credit, but we hurt ourselves tonight,” Hall said. “We had way too many penalties and missed some plays. Yes, it’s been a long time since we lost a home opener, but those teams weren’t the Clairton Bears; they own single-A.”
The loss spoiled a head-turning performance from new Jeannette quarterback Brad Birch, who had a stellar debut. The ninth-grader completed 21 of 28 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns.
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