A tale of two kickoffs

Before Saturday's WestPAC game between Conemaugh Valley and Rockwood at Rockwood Athletic Field, team captains gathered at midfield for the pregame coin toss.

Rockwood won the toss and, according to head coach Jerry Kaizen, the captains were instructed to defer to the second half. When the players returned to the Rockets' bench, that's what they told there head coach.

So, Rockwood kicked off to Conemaugh Valley to start the game, which the Blue Jays won 25-0 to improve to 3-4.

Trailing 22-0 at halftime, Rockwood took a little extra time in the locker room, in part because several players were part of the homecoming festivities. As they hurriedly prepared for the third quarter, the officials informed the Rockets they would be kicking off to start second half.

Say what?

Didn't Rockwood kickoff to start the first quarter?

"There was a fluke in the coin toss. My kids tells me he deferred," Kaizen said. "The refs says he tells me we want to kick."

That means the team kicks off to start the first and third quarters.

It rarely, if ever, happens.

Kaizen knew the rule and, according to him, when he spoke with the officials after halftime, he asked them why they failed to approach him after the coin toss because as he said, "the ref told me he'd never heard a team do that before."

For a depleted team searching for something, the second-half kickoff added to this season's woes.

"We laid out the whole first series and what we wanted to do," Kaizen said. "It was a little disheartening."

And it made little sense considering Conemaugh Valley ran the football 61 times and the Rockets' defense struggled to get off the field despite a strong effort from its defensive front.

Camp Kovak, Rockwood (fifth stop)

The left-hand turn at the intersection in New Centerville (pretty sure there's only one in town) began the short drive into Rockwood, a place this writer hasn't visited in at least 20 years ,though some hometown friends used to frequent the Rockwood Hotel.

Upon pulling into Rockwood High School, a long-forgotten visual exploded back into memory. The guess here is Rockwood is the only high school in the state with a scuplture of a rocket in front. It's impossible to miss and it hovers high above the football field.

I covered the Jefferson-Morgan Rockets for years. Never recalled seeing a rocket in front of the school, though I've never been fed better at a football game in my life. (If any J-M people read this, please inform me of prime rib night so I can adjust my schedule accordingly.)

Rockwood's football program has hardly taken off in recent years, but it would be difficult to find anyone willing to call the Rockets underachievers. The stadium is not exactly state-of-art. The numbers are frequenltly low. Yet, Rockwood usually finds itself in playoff contention and competing against teams with bigger numbers and more talent.

This past Saturday, Rockwood of the WestPAC got off to a roaring start as it defeated a rebuilding United of the Heritage Conference, 31-7, in a crossover game.

Before the season, Rockets head coach Jerry Kaizen could not say enough about senior running back/linebacker Luke Brancato.

Following Brancato's performance against, it's easy to understand why. Brancato had more than 100 yards rushing AND receiving. No doubt, he'll be the focal point of Blacklick Valley's defensive efforts during practice this week. Friday's game will be the first under the lights at Blacklick Valley, who used to play Saturday afternoons.