2013 Recap
Written by: Big 33 Staff on June 15, 2013.
This one was a show for the ages. Pennsylvania’s recent troubles in the Big 33 Classic faded away once Clairton’s dynamic Tyler Boyd returned the opening kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown. And that was only the beginning. The Pitt-bound Boyd guaranteed himself a special place in Big 33 history, scoring four times and throwing for a fifth touchdown as Pennsylvania routed Maryland, 58-27.
The 56th edition of the classic marked the return of Maryland to the series after a 20-year hiatus. The Keystone state had dropped four straight games to Ohio entering this one. But thanks to Boyd and his high school teammate Titus Howard, Pennsylvania took a lightning fast 21-0 lead and never looked back. Boyd hauled in the first of two TD catches from North Allegheny’s Mack Leftwich, a diving 16-yard grab 35 seconds into the game. Shortly after, Howard picked off a pass and cruised 40 yards for another score with just 1:20 off the clock.
Maryland battled back and briefly pulled within 10 points on the strength of quarterback Shane Cockerille of Gilman High School. Cockerille, named the Most Valuable Player for Maryland, threw two touchdown passes and ran for another, all in less than a six-minute span of the second quarter, to cut the deficit to 30-20. But Pennsylvania MVP Boyd answered quickly, hitting Bishop McDevitt’s Brian Lemelle in stride on a 68-yard halfback option pass to make it 37-20 at halftime.
The teams traded scores in the third quarter, before Boyd ended all doubt, scoring on a quick 5-yard strike from Leftwich to make it 51-27 late in the third quarter.
Boyd amassed 310 all-purpose yards. Leftwich threw three touchdowns in the game, the final going to Coatesville wide receiver Chris Jones, who caught a pair of TDs. The University of Maryland-bound Cockerille led all passers, completing 13-of-28 for 247 yards.
