THUNDER BAY – Nic Cull is back for a fifth and final season with the St. Ignatius Falcons.
That’s not good news for the rest of the senior high school football league.
Cull on Saturday rushed for three ground scores, leading the three-time defending champion Falcons to a season-opening 29-0 whitewashing of the overmatched St. Patrick Saints at Fort William Stadium.
“It was definitely a good start to the season for me,” said Cull, who pounded one in from seven yards out for the only scores of the opening quarter, struck again from three yards in the second and again rom three yards to make it 26-0 in the third.
“I’m sure this meant a lot to the team. We’ve had a couple of good weeks of practice, but we didn’t know what we were really up against. I guess the whole team just showed up well today.”
Credit to the Falcons offensive line, said Cull, who has dominated the high school ground game since joining the St. Ignatius program in Grade 9.
“All week our offensive line has gotten to practice against our defensive line and our defensive line kind of proved themselves today. That kinds of toughened up our offensive line and made then perform really well against St. Ignatius,” Cull said.
The Falcons also showed they could be a force through the air.
Quarterback Jordan Maki, a star with the junior team a year ago, hooked up with wide receiver Noah Penfold for a 25-yard catch-and-run touchdown in the third, the third big play of the drive.
“It was mostly the running game, but the passing game was good too,” said Penfold, noting a couple of offside calls cost the team yardage.
“The offensive line did great. Nic Cull did great. The whole team overall.”
Keeping the Saints off guard, not knowing whether the Falcons were going to run or pass gave the victors a huge advantage, Penfold said.
His score followed a 20-yard run by Cull and a 17-yard reception by Anthony Valente that brought the ball deep into St. Pat’s territory.
“I ran a flat route. It’s a deep route. I had a penalty on me. It was pass interference, but I still caught it and I had to fight for extra yards into the end zone.”
It was a statement win for a team with a target on its back, the No. 42-ranked team in the nation coming off a huge win at the Simcoe Bowl last fall.
Everyone’s gunning for St. Ignatius, Penfold said – and they know it.
“Since the OFSSA victory, every team wants us and we’re showing that we deserve the ranking that we got,” he said. “We’re the best team in the city, but we’ve got to prove it.”
Falcons coach Tyler Dennis said it was what he was hoping to see from his squad.
“Every year’s a new opportunity. Every year’s a new year. We’re very happy with what we accomplished (last year), but it’s a new group,” Dennis said. “We lost a lot of veteran players that have been on our team. We want to continue to set the level high for football in this city and we work hard.”
Valente booted a 23-yard field goal for the Falcons other score.
Notes: Both the senior and junior leagues will play with five teams in 2017. Superior Collegiate has joined the junior ranks, with the Churchill Trojans dropping out in advance of the school closing its doors next June. The Trojans junior players are eligible to play at Westgate this season.
