Classical football tops Revere

LYNN – This one wasn’t quite as easy as the score might indicate.The Classical High football team defeated Revere, 36-13, Friday at Manning Field, but for three quarters, this one was a game.The Rams held a tenuous 14-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but once the floodgates opened, it was lights-out. Classical scored three touchdowns in the final quarter to improve to 5-3 overall, 2-0 in the Northeastern Conference Large.”In the first half, we didn’t think the defense played as hard as we’ve done in the past. They didn’t really come out to play. The second half, they definitely did. They (Revere) had that one drive, but we definitely controlled the ball and the clock,” Classical coach Tim Phelps said.Classical started off with a bang, marching 63 yards on 10 plays on the opening drive of the game for a TD and a 7-0 lead. Jasper Grassa took it the final 15 yards, but Rudy Collymore got the ball to the 15 with a big 18-yard run. Nick Grassa kicked the extra point.Trea Weathers (26 carries, 129 rushing yards) shouldered the load on the ground for Revere. The Patriots put their first points of the game on the board on their second possession. Although they were forced to punt on 4th-and-11 from their own 41, a Classical player batted it down and Revere snapped it up, making first down in the process.The fluke play led to a Weathers 4-yard touchdown run and a 7-7 tie (Brian Robichaud kicked the extra point).That was as close as the Patriots would get. Classical’s Casey Johnson scored his first of two touchdowns with a little over two minutes remaining in the first half to give Classical the lead for good. Johnson had three runs for 46 yards in that drive before finally pushing it in from the 4-yard line (Nick Grassa kicked the extra point) to put the Rams up, 14-7.Neither team could do much in the third quarter. Revere launched a 10-play drive in the third quarter that fizzled at fourth-and-two on the Classical 27 early in the fourth quarter.It was all Classical after that, with Johnson scoring his second of the night from seven yards out put the Rams up 22-7. Johnson (9 carries, 127 yards) dragged half the Revere defense along with him on a 45-yard run to get the ball to the seven. The conversion also had some entertainment value when Jasper Grassa bobbled the snap, but recovered the ball and found Johnson in the end zone for the two points.”I think he did some basketball moves out there,” Phelps said. “He dribbled the ball and threw the alley-oop to Casey. It was a good, heads-up play by Jasper.”Classical scored its next touchdown off a fumble recovery deep in Revere territory. The Rams got the ball on the 11 after a holding call set them back five yards, but two plays later, Ricky Bigwood broke through from the one and Nick Grassa kicked the extra point for the 29-7 lead.The Rams gave Patriots good field position (the Classical 44) to start their next drive thanks to a 15-yard face-mask penalty. Revere took advantage of the gift with Weathers scoring on a 15-yard run to cut the Classical lead to 29-13.Collymore, who had 60 yards on four carries, delivered the final blow when he scored on a 42-yard run and Nick Grassa kicked the extra point, to make the final 36-13. Chevere Archer had two sacks in a row at one point in the first half. He also had a part of a couple of others.