IHSAA football: Two quarterbacks, two receivers deliver big plays as Central Catholic rolls

LAFAYETTE – Regardless of who’s playing quarterback, Central Catholic’s two dynamic receivers – Evan Dienhart and Owen Munn – are going to make somebody look special.

And that’s what happened Friday night as the seniors caught a combined 11 passes for 280 yards and five touchdowns as the Class 2A ninth-ranked Knights cruised past Rensselaer 42-7 at LaRocca Field.

The ball found its way to Dienhart and Munn thanks to quarterbacks Bobby Metzger and senior Ben Mazur, who is coming off elbow surgery and working his way back in the lineup.

“We were waiting for them to truly break out and tonight was one of those nights,” CC coach Brian Nay said of his two receivers. “As long as they keep showing up with the same mentality that they’ve shown their entire careers, it’s only going to get better.”

As the state tournament approaches, Central Catholic nearly has all of its pieces together and Friday showcased the offensive potential with plenty of weapons under center, in the backfield with Baylor Smith and a talented and experienced offensive line along with on the perimeter.

Metzger, who had four TD passes covering 88, 14, 53 and 18-yards, and Mazur, who tossed one for 19-yards, took turns either playing a full series or alternating snaps during drives. It’s a challenge for a defense to keep up with who’s in the game.

“It makes us hard to guard because you don’t know who’s going to be in when,” said Dienhart, who had seven catches for 152 yards and three touchdowns. “It’s hard for a defense to guard all of them plus the five other skill guys we have who can make plays at any time.”

Munn’s 88-yard catch and run was the start of the scoring barrage and he capped the big night with an 18-yard touchdown. He finished with four catches for 128 yards.

But it all started because of Metzger and Mazur.

“That’s a good sign,” Munn said. “We’re on the up and coach Nay says to shoot for the moon and that’s what we’re doing.”

They’ll continue to aim high on the strength of leaning on two quarterbacks, who bring different skill sets to the position. Metzger’s arm is solid, and Mazur’s size allows the talented pitcher to bring a physical presence.

He stiff-armed a Rensselaer defender at the end of a 19-yard run, igniting his teammates on the sideline and bringing a smile to Nay’s face. Although the Knights spread the field and use the passing game, there’s no reason Central Catholic can't be known as a physical team.

That was one example.

“Ear-to-ear,” Nay said of his smile. “That’s one thing that’s been a knock on us in past years. We throw the ball around a lot but you’re not very physical. We really try to challenge that narrative. We want to be the aggressors.

“They sell out in the weight room and that was a big culture thing we wanted to bring with our staff. Just because we want to roll four, five wide out there doesn’t mean we don’t want to be physical.”

The drive with Mazur’s stiff arm ended with a TD pass to Dienhart.

“That was awesome, even with his surgery arm. That was sweet,” Dienhart said. “That was a big momentum play. I don’t think a lot of people will remember that play but that’s something that got the sideline going and we ended up finishing that drive with a touchdown.”

The combination of speed, quickness, skill, and talent along with a physical presence on both sides of the ball should allow Central Catholic to challenge any opponent once the state tournament begins. Add the quarterback play and the versatile style of both Metzger and Mazur and the Knights have an opportunity for a deep run.

The defense also collected four takeaways.

“We’re coming together more than we have been,” Munn said. “Week six into week seven and we need to buckle down.”

Metzger completed 9 of 16 passes for 235 yards and Mazur was 3 of 6 for 54 yards. Both quarterbacks had interceptions, but they also combined to average 24.1 yards per completion to generate big plays.

“(Bobby’s) got a great mind and he’s got a point guard’s mentality and I think you see that for a sophomore and the work he did in the offseason has been extremely impressive,” Nay said. “He’s put himself in this position.

“But when Ben needed the minor surgery, Bobby stepped up - no questions asked. He’s made some big-time plays for us and we’re extremely excited about his future but right now it’s Team 2022 and we have another guy that can take snaps and make plays in the passing game but he’s also more physical. It adds another element.”

Mike Carmin covers Purdue sports for the Journal & Courier and USA Today Network. Email mcarmin@gannett.com and follow on Twitter and Instagram @carmin_jc

CENTRAL CATHOLIC 42, RENSSELAER 7

Ren 0 7 0 0 - 7

CC 7 14 7 14 - 42

First Quarter

CC - Munn 88 pass from Metzger (Henry kick)

Second Quarter

R - Mathew 1 run (Drone kick)

CC - Dienhart 14 pass from Metzger (Henry kick)

CC - Dienhart 53 pass from Metzger (Henry kick)

Third Quarter

CC - Dienhart 19 pass from Mazur (Henry kick)

Fourth Quarter

CC - Munn 18 pass from Metzger (Henry kick)

CC - Cain 13 run (Henry kick)

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING - Rensselaer, Rowland 16-62, Mathew 4-43, Hernandez-Reyes 4-13, Reyes 3-12, Barko 2-11, Westfall 1-0, Team 1-(minus 2). Central Catholic, Smith 15-69, Mazur 7-26, Cain 2-20, Robbins 1-2.

PASSING - Rensselaer, Mathew 7-19-1-72. Central Catholic, Metzger 9-16-1-235, Mazur 3-6-1-54.

RECEIVING - Rensselaer, Barko 1-43, Reyes 3-16, Kuiper 1-9, Rowland 2-4. Central Catholic, Dienhart 7-152, Munn 4-128, Koch 1-9

Central Catholic is 4-2 (1-1 Hoosier Conference); Rensselaer is 3-3 (1-2)

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: High school football: Lafayette Central Catholic rolls past Rensselaer