DePaul rolls past Pope John to open the season by Greg Mattura of The Record
SPARTA – DePaul possesses as much big-play potential as any football team in New Jersey.
The Spartans, No. 2 in the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey Top 20, opened their season with Saturday’s explosive 48-7 victory over No. 10 Pope John.
DePaul scored four touchdowns on plays of 22 or more yards in this Super Football Conference matchup and would have had a fifth if not for a Pope John tackle at the 2-yard line.
“We’ve got weapons on offense,” said Spartans coach John McKenna. “We’ve got a lot of weapons.”
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DePaul senior quarterback Taquan Roberson threw for 242 yards and three touchdowns and also scored on a 40-yard run in less than three quarters of action. The Spartans led 35-0 at halftime, triggering the NJSIAA 35-point “running clock” rule to start the third quarter, and it ran for most of the second half.
“It was just amazing to get back out here for the first time with my brothers, for an actual game that counted,” said Roberson, committed to Penn State. “It was just an amazing feeling. We were just tougher than them from the start and it definitely showed.”
Pope John was without coach Brian Carlson, suspended for the first two games due to a bench-clearing altercation during last year’s playoff loss to St. Joseph, whose coach, Augie Hoffmann, also is serving a suspension. Pope John and DePaul had the customary handshake before the game rather than afterward.
What it means
DePaul is defending Non-Public Group 3 champion and appears fully capable of repeating, and the Wayne school also earned the inside track on a division title by dominating its SFC United White Division rival.
“We just played hard, we executed well, and everything was working,” McKenna said.
Key play
Roberson’s 22-yard TD pass to junior receiver Teddy Afful at 8:52 of the first quarter provided a 7-0 lead and set the tone for the Spartans’ big-play barrage, and it was the first of two scoring connections between them.
By the numbers
►Roberson also threw a 39-yard TD to junior Sean Kelly for a 14-0, first-quarter lead and a 32-yarder to Afful in the third to extend the margin to 42-7.
►DePaul did not allow Pope John inside its 40-yard line until 7:28 of the third quarter, when the Lions promising freshman backup quarterback, Peter Delaportas, tossed a 76-yard TD pass to senior receiver Ryan Dengler.
“We played really well defensively,” said Spartans senior linebacker Danny Forster, who had four sacks. “We did everything right, we were aggressive, we rallied to the ball and we did what we were supposed to do.”
They said it
“We’ve been pretty solid on defense all preseason, and in practices, and it carried over into today,” McKenna said. “It’s one game, but it’s a good start.”
“Nobody knows how good our defense is like I do, because I go against them in every practice,” Roberson said. “They get after it out there, and I’m just proud of them.”
Up next
►DePaul plays at Seton Hall Prep on Sept. 8.
►Pope John plays at Paramus Catholic on Sept. 7.