HERSHEY, Pa . — Curtis Drake needed a little something to prove to himself. The gifted West Catholic quarterback who was named Pennsylvania’s Class AA Player of the Year had heard the whispers that he may be a slot receiver at Penn State. But he wouldn’t mind a chance at playing quarterback, a position he mastered in leading the Burrs to the PIAA Class AA state title game last season.
Drake certainly proved he can play with the best, leading Pennsylvania to a late comeback before falling short to Ohio, 38-31, in the last minute Saturday night of the 52nd Big 33 Football Classic at HersheyPark Stadium.
Curtis Drake, West Catholic
File photo courtesy of West Catholic Football
Drake was selected as the Pennsylvania MVP after amassing a Big 33-record 284 offensive yards (breaking Steve Breaston’s mark of 281 in 2002), scoring two touchdowns and rushing for a game-high 88 yards. Kettering Alter’s Austin Boucher, who’s headed to Miami of Ohio, was Ohio’s MVP, tossing two touchdowns and throwing for 255 yards in completing 18 of 24 passes.
Pennsylvania still leads the series, 9-8.
For Drake, the game showed what he can do against an elite level. He had a nice touch on his passes and all 31 of Pennsylvania’s points came when he was on the field, including two fourth-quarter TDs that tied the game at 31-31 with 2:21 left to play.
“I’m a little disappointed we didn’t win, but I do think I proved a lot tonight, and I think I could have played better,” said Drake, who committed to Penn State before his senior year. “This is definitely the best I’ve played against, and I wanted to prove I could play quarterback against the best. But I think I had to prove to myself more than anything else. I don't know why, I just did.”
Drake hesitated when asked about eventually getting the chance to play quarterback at Penn State.
“I can see myself playing a little slot at Penn State, though I wouldn’t completely rule out playing quarterback. I think the bottom line is that I felt good and relaxed, probably the best I ever felt before a game. We were laughing and joking coming over on the bus.”
Drake has more than a few believers.
“Curtis is a winner and I think he showed that tonight in this game, but then again, it’s something I’ve known for a while with him,” said West Catholic coach Brian Fluck, who was part of the Pennsylvania coaching staff. “This game showed Curtis can play quarterback at the next level. What’s really a shame is you hear different things, he’s not tall enough, his arm might not be that accurate, but if you look at everything he does, he’s a playmaker. Every time he has the ball in his hands, he’s doing something.”
The only mistake Pennsylvania may have made was giving Ohio too much time to come back. After tying the score at 31-31 on Drake’s second 1-yard scoring plunge, Ohio had just over 2 minutes left to play to drive 80 yards.
Boucher was masterful. He directed a seven-play, 80-yard drive highlighted beautifully by his 50-yard quarterback draw, which brought the ball to the Pennsylvania 9-yard line with slightly over a minute to play. Three straight runs and Centerville’s Adam Replogle (Indiana), a 6-3, 275-pound defensive lineman, plowed into the end zone with the winning score with :20 left to play.
But the game wasn’t exactly over just yet. Rob Holloman, Drake’s West Catholic teammate who’s headed to Cushing Prep in Massachusetts, bolted out on a 50-yard kickoff return that gave Pennsylvania a shot at a last-gasp score at the Ohio 42-yard line. But two long Drake flings resulted in incompletions and ended the game.
For a game played in late-June with a slight breeze and threatening clouds saying it was late spring, the crunching pads and intensity on the field said it could have been more like any corner of Ohio or Pennsylvania on a brisk October Friday night.
“It was intense tonight,” said St. Joseph Prep’s Mark Arcidiacono, a 6-5, 285-pound offensive tackle who will be joining Drake at Penn State. “This was a little different than even a regular-season football game you’d play against a league opponent during the season. This is a game where you’re faced against the best, and everyone wanted to win this. It’s why we took it so seriously.”
Perhaps another major benefactor was shifty, darting Hollomon, Drake’s West Catholic teammate. He had over 150 all-purpose yards, and though he’s listed at 5-8, 165 pounds, he felt he proved he too can play with major Division I-caliber players.
“I groomed myself for this opportunity,” said Hollomon, who claimed to be receiving attention from Syracuse, Washington State, Colorado and UTEP. “I’m small and the Ohio players thought they’d destroy me once I got hit. This game proved I could play at a higher level.”
Joseph Santoliquito covers high schools for the Philadelphia Daily News and is a contributor to MaxPreps.com. He can be contacted at JSantoliquito@yahoo.com.
