Calvert throws 3 TDs; No. 1 Center Grove routs No. 4 Lawrence Central
By CLIFF BRUNT
ISL Editor
Luke Calvert has been a game manager for most of his career at Center Grove.
Not anymore.
The senior passed for 274 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another as the Trojans, ranked No. 1 in Class 6A, defeated No. 4 Lawrence Central 42-10 on Friday night.
Center Grove coach Eric Moore, best known as the architect of Trojans’ deceptive power running game out of the wing T, now is comfortable with loosening the reins on Calvert.
“He made some great plays,” Moore said. “Great scrambler and getting the ball to the right person at the right time. Luke’s our leader. He’s our spiritual leader and he’s our physical leader.”
Calvert passed for 206 yards in the first half. He threw just two passes in the second half after the Trojans took a big lead, and but both were for touchdowns — a 36-yarder to Justin Veteto and a 32-yarder to Devon Hensley.
With the win, Center Grove (5-0) gained control of the MIC race and avenged a 28-15 loss to the Bears in last year’s semistate game. Moore said the win over last year’s Class 5A champion was a big deal, especially in Lawrence Central’s homecoming game.
“This is the kind of game that you didn’t want your kids to come over here and expect to lose,” he said.
The blowout was a stunner against a Lawrence Central team that had been dominant defensively this season with star linebackers Brandon Lee and Nikia Averitte. The Bears (3-2) shut down nationally ranked Louisville Trinity in a 17-13 win two weeks ago, then held Carmel to 151 yards the previous week in a 17-7 loss.
The Bears couldn’t stop the Trojans. Hensley caught three passes for 93 yards and a score, Veteto had two catches for 76 yards and a touchdown and Matt O’Brien had three for 54 yards.
“The wide receivers are doing an incredible job of just getting open,” Calvert said. “Sometimes, the play’s broken down the first two or three seconds of the play, and they’ll find themselves open. You can see that if you watch the film of this game.”
Freshman running back Titus McCoy ran for 44 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for 40 yards and another score. Moore calls him the small, shifty back the “next great player” at Center Grove.
While the Bears’ normally stout defense struggled, the offense continued to have its problems. Lawrence Central gained just 212 total yards after producing little against Louisville Trinity and Carmel. Tyler Redfern completed 9 of 21 passes for 84 yards and scored the only touchdown for the Bears on an 8-yard run in the third quarter. Torrell Williamson ran for 48 yards and Redfern rushed for 42.
“We’ve got a lot to learn about ourselves,” Lawrence Central coach Jed Richman said. “We got outcoached, we got outplayed. They blocked and tackled better than us. That’s a pretty simple recipe. Our guys gotta learn they can’t just show up. They’ve got to come every day ready to work. This schedule demands it.”
Lawrence Central trailed 21-3 late in the second quarter, and things got worse. The Bears recovered a high snap on a punt but got a 1-yard net, setting Center Grove up at the Lawrence Central 34. McCoy scored on a 1-yard run with 2.3 seconds left in the first half to give the Trojans complete control.
Moore tries to keep his team motivated by calling the team average and reminding his players that they don’t get much attention from Division I recruiters. Calvert doesn’t buy it.
“He likes to call us average. Nothing different from coach Moore,” Calvert said. “We don’t believe we’re an average team. We’re ready to play some football, and we have the last five weeks. But we’re humble and we’re ready to move on to the next weeks into the playoffs. It’s all about momentum.”
Richman said the most important thing is that every team in the state makes the playoffs. He believes his team is still among the state’s best.
“I don’t think the score is indicative of who we are, but the proof is in the pudding — 42-10 — that’s fact.”
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Scoring summary
Center Grove (5-0) 14 14 14 0 — 42
Lawrence Central (3-2) 0 3 7 0 — 10
CG — Max Norris 7 run (Seth Northern kick)
CG — Luke Calvert 1 run (Northern kick)
LC — Nash Griffin 23 FG
CG — Titus McCoy 11 pass from Calvert (Northern kick)
CG — McCoy 1 run (Northern kick)
CG — Justin Veteto 36 pass from Calvert (Northern kick)
LC — Tyler Redfern 8 run (Griffin kick)
CG — Devon Hensley 32 pass from Calvert (Northern kick)
