Central football team finds answers at running back in win over St. Charles West

ST. CHARLES, Mo. -- Central coach Nathan Norman entered Week 2 still in search of someone on the Tigers' squad who would carry the load at running back.

He left the game with someone in mind.

Sophomore Aaron Harris took over in the backfield and carried the ball seven times during Central's opening possession of the second half, including a 5-yard run at the 8 minute, 40 second mark of the third quarter that extended the Tigers' lead to 13 points.

The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Harris bulldozed his way to a game-high 104 yards on 15 carries, and Central picked up its first win of the season with a 33-12 victory over St. Charles West at Steve Stahl Stadium.

"We had a feeling that he would be the man," Norman said about Harris. "He just does a nice job of getting positive yards, and that's what we ask. We don't have to have the big play. We want positive yards. ... He's a downhill runner, and he's secure with the football. What more could you ask?"

Behind an experienced offensive line that returned two guards and a center, Harris contributed 94 of his yards in the second half, and the Tigers (1-1) finished the night with 267 yards on the ground.

"They didn't tell me anything at halftime. They just told me to always stay ready," Harris said. "They noticed that I started running hard in practice, so I just run hard all the time. They gave me the chance, and I did what I do."

Central also got a boost from its defense, which allowed the Warriors (0-2) to score on their opening possession -- a 1-yard run by Brandon Carbray -- but held St. Charles West scoreless for the next 36 minutes. The Warriors were only able to muster eight first downs over the final three quarters and were limited to 211 total yards of offense.

A host of Central players bring down a St. Charles West runner during the first quarter Friday, Aug. 28, 2015 at Steve Stahl Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri. (TRENT SINGER)

"Our defense is young, but it's a learning process," Norman said. "Every week they're going to have to get better, and I think they did. Next week they've got to do the same thing."

The Tigers took the lead for good on their first possession when Kway'Chon Chisom connected with Al Young for a 29-yard strike at the 5:52 mark of the first quarter. Young was removed from last week's game against Vashon after taking a hit to the head but was evaluated throughout the week and was cleared to play on Friday.

"We evaluated him every day starting Saturday. ... Wednesday we tested him again, and he cleared. We put him through some cardio work just to see how he would respond, and he tested out nicely," Norman said. "Thursday was just basically a walk-through kind of day with no contact, and he was able to do that. We had our trainer check him again on Thursday afternoon, and he was good to go.

"He really had no problems all week, and we were pretty comfortable putting him in."

Central's Al Young carries the ball during the first quarter against St. Charles West on Friday, Aug. 28, 2015 at Steve Stahl Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri. (TRENT SINGER)

Young finished with 10 carries for 59 yards, including an 8-yard touchdown run with 10:45 remaining in the second quarter that extended Central's lead to 13-6. He was also the recipient of Chisom's three completed passes, finishing with 91 yards.

"When I came out today, I was ready to play," Young said. "... It was fun to be back, and knowing that last week I couldn't help my team pull away with the W, I knew I had to help them today."

The venue, Steve Stahl Stadium, also served as a reminder for a number of Central players who took part in making history in last season's 42-21 victory over St. Charles West in a Class 4 state semifinal, a game that sent Central to its first-ever state championship appearance. Young was one of those players, and Norman said he expected his star receiver to quickly re-adjust to the flow of the game.

"The whole team didn't necessarily like what they saw on film last week," Norman said. "That's what I told them during my pregame speech. I said, 'Hey, when you watch film, I want you to be satisfied. I want you to be happy. I don't want you to be embarrassed by your film.' I challenged them because some of them were. They should have been embarrassed by what they saw on film last week. That's how we approached it."

Central's Cole Knight hands the kicking tee to coach Nathan Norman after making an extra point during the first quarter against St. Charles West on Friday, Aug. 28, 2015 at Steve Stahl Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri. (TRENT SINGER)

Chisom pushed Central's lead to 26-6 with 9:28 remaining in the game before Alarenz Stanton scored on a 1-yard run on the Warriors' ensuing possession.

The Tigers responded with a 61-yard drive that was capped by a 3-yard run by Christian Mitchell, a 5-foot-11, 205-pound junior who's listed as a lineman but contributed some snaps at fullback. Newly-added freshman kicker Cole Knight booted the extra point, his third of four attempts, and Central extended its lead to 33-12 with 3:53 left in the game.

Tyler Banks added 11 carries for 47 yards, and Mitchell finished with 22 yards on three carries. Norman believes his team found some answers at running back but is focused on keeping his backfield free from injuries as the season progresses.

"They all count, but you've got to be healthy down the road," Norman said. "We've got to be smart. We've got to rotate guys. We've got to keep getting better."

Central 7 6 6 14 -- 33

St. Charles West 6 0 0 6 -- 12

C SCW

First downs 15 12

Rushes-yards 46-267 45-197

Passing yards 91 14

Passes 3-5-0 2-5-0

Punts-average 1-20 3-20.7

Fumbles-lost 2-1 1-1

Penalties-yards 7-75 3-15

First quarter

SCW -- Brandon Carbray 1 run (kick failed), 6:44

C -- Al Young 29 pass from Kway'Chon Chisom (Cole Knight kick), 5:52

Second quarter

C -- Young 8 run (kick failed), 10:45

Third quarter

C -- Aaron Harris 5 run (run failed), 8:40

Fourth quarter

C -- Chisom 3 run (Knight kick), 9:28

SCW -- Alarenz Stanton 1 run (pass failed), 6:43

C -- Christian Mitchell 3 run (Knight kick), 3:53

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING -- Central, Harris 15-104, Young 10-59, Tyler Banks 11-47, Chisom 6-29, Mitchell 3-22, Trevon McClard 1-6; St. Charles West, Austin Coffey 7-65, Stanton 15-49, Manny DeArmas 10-31, Tyler Hash 9-30, Matt Frazer 3-21, Carbray 1-1.

PASSING -- Central, Chisom 3-5-91-0; St. Charles West, Hash 2-5-14-0.

RECEIVING -- Central, Young 3-91; St. Charles West, Coffey 1-13, Rashaad Chatman 1-1.