2010 Recap
Written by: Big 33 Staff on June 19, 2010.
Most fans will not remember the sloppy play in the first 46 minutes of the 53rd Big 33 Football Classic. The first half is one both teams would like to forget, with the sides tallying a combined seven first downs, 137 total yards and 215 penalty yards. The only highlight was when Ohio punter Terry Spear kicked the ball out of the end zone after a bad snap for a safety, giving the Keystone State a 2-0 lead.
Things picked up in the third, as the PA quarterbacks Tyler Smith from Wilson, headed to University of Maryland, and Libery High School and Pitt recruit, Anthony Gonzalez picked apart the Ohio secondary, going 6-for-6 and 129 yards. Smith hurled the biggest dagger, a 48-yard bomb to Alex Kenney, giving Pennsylvania a 9-0 lead.
A short 30 seconds later, Ohio MVP Verlon Reed who is headed to Ohio State, danced away from Pennsylvania MVP Rich Gray from Woodland Hills headed to Kent State University and ripped off a 74-yard touchdown run. Ohio then took its first lead after Spear booted a 33-yard field goal with 3:41 left.It looked like PA’s Gonzalez was going to play the hero when he found a wide open Andrew Carswell on a skinny post. The Pitt recruit raced 65 yards to pay dirt with 1:30 left. The two-point conversion failed, but Pennsylvania had a 15-10 advantage.
One thing spectators will remember, especially Ohio fans, is quarterback Mark Myers’ hitting speedy running back Prince-Tyson Gulley from Akron Garfield headed to Syracuse University, on a 5-yard out and up that turned into a 53-yard gain to the Pennsylvania 22. After a 5-yard penalty moved the ball up to the 17, Myers targeted Ohio State recruit Christian Bryant on an out to give the Buckeye State an 18-15 decision and bragging rights for the second season in a row.
