Macarthy stands tall after tough loss

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COMMENTARY

MERRILLVILLE -- Dolapo Macarthy is just 16 years old.

But the lanky senior quarterback for Merrillville took the Pirates’ 19-0 loss to Penn on Friday in the Class 5A regional like a man — a grown man who still has plenty of football left.

He could’ve stayed in the locker room, alone with his thoughts and his pain. There wasn’t much to talk about, really.

Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen last week against Boston College? Had a terrible game and he didn’t come out and talk to anyone. But Macarthy did.

It could’ve been worse for Merrillville. Penn fans could’ve flooded the field and danced on the Pirates’ turf. It was the first time since 2004 that they’ve won a regional.

But it couldn’t have been much worse or harder — not this particular moment and this singular game. The Kingsmen held the Pirates to just 112 total yards offense.

Macarthy was intercepted three times and he fumbled the ball once. Penn was in the backfield as much Denzel Pierce, the Pirates’ tailback, sacking him four times.

It was an utterly forgettable game for Macarthy and the Pirates in terms of execution. They just didn’t or couldn’t get it right.

How bad was it? On fourth-and-1 from midfield, Penn called timeout with two seconds left in the third quarter. Everyone in the stadium knew what was coming. They were going to try to draw the Pirates offside. Oldest play that never, ever works, not when you know it’s coming.

This time it worked. You could hear the whole stadium groan.

There Macarthy was afterward, standing on the field turf with the lights dimming, the Penn players filing out, a lone purple ribbon attached to his shoe, blowing in the wind, trying to make sense of it all. Answering every question that was asked.

For Macarthy, it was a night he’ll never, ever forget and a game that you just can’t make sense of.

“We struggled,” he said. “I didn’t have a good night. I didn’t play well at all. But I kept trying. This hurts. It hurts a lot. I wish I could start over from scratch.”

Zac Wells, the Pirates’ coach, knows just how young Macarthy really is.

“He’s a sophomore at most schools,” Wells said.

But not at Merrillville. He was the point guy for the Pirates, their leader in good times and bad. He was accountable. Had to be. He’s the quarterback.

“It wasn’t them,” he said. “It was us. We just kept shooting ourselves in the foot.”

The Kingsmen were everything the Pirates weren’t for this one game. Disciplined, patient and focused. They pressured Macarthy all the time. They stayed in their lanes when he tried to get outside to run. They jumped out in front — and then made the Pirates throw the ball.

Merrillville isn’t as effective when forced to pass. The Pirates are better at making big plays and mixing it up. Handing the ball off to Pierce or optioning it outside with Macarthy making the read.

Penn absolutely aced the exam. The Kingsmen took it all away from the Pirates on their own field despite a good performance by the defense.

Contact Mike Hutton at 648-3139 or mhutton@post-trib.com