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O’Connor does it again in Ridgewood’s win over St Joseph
Updated: October 8, 2011 12:07AM
P.J. O’Connor is not just an awesome offensive asset for the Ridgewood football team — he also can play some defense, too.
O’Connor racked up three rushing touchdowns with 185 yards on the ground and added another score through the air with 109 receiving yards, and he also picked off a pass on defense and made eight tackles as the Rebels won their fourth straight game with a 47-6 homecoming victory over St. Joseph Friday night.
Ridgewood (4-3, 2-0 Metro Suburban Conference) looks to be playoff eligible with a win Oct. 14 against visiting Glenbard South in Norridge.
“This is my 12th year in football, my sixth year as a head coach and he (O’Connor) is probably one of the top two kids I’ve ever coached,” Ridgewood coach Chris Zack said. “He’s tough; I’m glad he’s on my team. He’s not the biggest kid, but he’s strong and tough to bring down. One tackler’s not going to bring him to the ground, and we can utilize him in so many different ways — and we do.”
“We use him in the running game, in the passing game, we used him in some wildcat action tonight, and the thing that people forget is he plays defense as well. He intercepts, he tackles well, he doesn’t leave the field. He’s a stud out there.”
O’Connor started the scoring on the first drive of the game when he broke free for a 42-yard touchdown jaunt with just over 2 minutes gone in the opening quarter. After a stop by St. Joseph (0-7) on the Rebels’ next possession, it was O’Connor again from 9 yards out with 1:21 left in the first and once more from four yards away with 7:39 to play in the second quarter.
Jacobsen (8-for-18, 194 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 rushing touchdown) decided it was time to get involved, so he hit Adam Kutylowski with a 49-yard bomb to make it 27-0 Ridgewood with 1:21 before halftime.
The Chargers probably thought when they turned the ball over on downs the next time it had the ball with 1.7 seconds left that would be it before the break. But Jacobsen hooked up with O’Connor on a short pass and he turned it into a 51-yard touchdown romp for a 34-0 halftime lead.
St. Joseph scored its only points of the contest in the third quarter when backup quarterback Johnny Wilson hit Aaron Bell with a 72-yard strike.
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