Carthage Fires on All Cylinders in 52-22 Home-Opening Victory vs. Chapel Hill [VIDEO]

CARTHAGE -- All facets of Carthage's balanced pro-style offense were on display Friday night.

Senior quarterback Blake Bogenschutz threw for 364 yards and four touchdowns, while senior Tevin Pipkin and junior Bryian Bolton combined for 266 yards from scrimmage and four scores to power Class 3A's No. 1 team to a 52-22 victory against Chapel Hill at Bulldog Stadium in Carthage's 2013 home opener.

The UTSA-committed Bogenschutz, who threw for 379 yards in last week's 45-17 win at Lindale, completed 16 of 29 passes. Bogenschutz enters next week's home game against Nacogdoches needing fewer than 450 passing yards to set Carthage's career record.

Three of his four touchdowns went to senior Terian "Tee" Goree, who had a huge game on both sides of the ball. The 6-foot-2 1/2 playmaker caught seven first-half passes for 168 yards and the three scores (37, 23, 51) before intercepting two passes in the second half from his safety spot. The first pick killed a Chapel Hill drive at the 1-yard line, while the second interception came in the end zone.

Goree, who has seven Division I FBS offers, has 23 catches for almost 500 yards and nine touchdowns in the Bulldogs' first three games. He said the coaches told him in the offseason that he'd be called upon to play virtually the entire game each week, and he's been happy to answer the challenge.

"They made that statement back in the summer, that I was gonna have to step up on both sides of the ball, and that's what I'm trying to do for my team," Goree said. "I've been taking it pretty good. I've just gotta get in better shape every week."

Goree even completed a pass. The seven-yard completion came on a receiver reverse pass to Bogenschutz, who gained seven yards to Chapel Hill's 2-yard line before a hard hit knocked his helmet off. The play set up a 19-yard Jimmy Gonzalez field goal for a 45-22 advantage with 1:54 left in the third quarter.

Pipkin ran 16 times for 93 yards and a touchdown and caught two passes for 44 yards. Bolton ran 10 times for 71 yards and two touchdowns and added a 58-yard touchdown catch-and-run, which gave the Bulldogs their 52-22 lead with 7:08 remaining in the game.

Senior 6-foot-5 1/2 receiver O'Keeron Rutherford added four catches for 54 yards, while Bogenschutz ran six times for 31 yards.

Carthage's defense recorded five takeaways thanks to four interceptions and a fumble, which senior Mario McCain forced and recovered deep in Chapel Hill territory. That led to a one-yard Bolton touchdown with 5:02 left in the third for a 42-22 lead.

Senior linebacker Tra Leary had a first-half interception and two tackles for loss, while junior defensive back Kirston Ingram picked off a fourth-quarter pass to accompany Goree's two picks. Carthage's pass rush, spearheaded by 6-foot-3, 220-pound sophomore Jarrod McLin and McCain, pestered Chapel Hill senior quarterback Andrew Black all night.

"You can't say enough about how much our defense has gotten better. They're gonna have another big challenge next week with Nacogdoches beating Lufkin, but they'v gotten better each week," said Carthage head coach Scott Surratt. "We've got great coaches on that side and they've done a great job bringing that group along. You can't say enough about our front four putting so much pressure on each quarterback each week, and that's what creates turnovers."

Black finished 18 of 35 for 178 yards, two touchdowns, and four picks. Black also ran eight times for 51 yards. Senior Lex Heckel caught five passes for 60 yards, including a 17-yard touchdown to cap Chapel Hill's third quarter-opening drive that cut Carthage's lead momentarily to 35-22 after Chapel Hill trailed 28-0 and 35-7 in the second. Chapel Hill sophomore Reggie King caught four passes for 38 yards and a touchdown, while senior Gabriel Robinson caught four passes for 56 yards.

Texas Tech-bound senior Joseph Clark had his own first-half strip-and-recovery from his middle linebacker spot. Offensively, he ran 10 times for 71 yards and a touchdown. Senior Wesley Thompson gained 77 yards on eight carries, while senior defensive lineman Shaq Warren had a sack and a fumble recovery. Fellow senior front-four man Keith Minor had a sack and two tackles for loss.

Carthage jumped to a 14-0 lead in the first behind Pipkin and Bolton touchdown runs before taking a four-score lead twice in the second quarter. The blips on Carthage's offensive radar were Bogenschutz' first interception of the season, which Chapel Hill sophomore DeUndre Phillips snagged, and two lost fumbles. But Carthage still had a plus-2 turnover margin.

Surratt, whose offense has gained more than 500 yards in each of its first three games, is excited about what his offense could achieve this fall.

"We have more (already installed) than we've ever had just because Blake can handle it and the linemen can handle it. You can do so much with your offense if your linemen and your quarterback can handle it," Surratt said. "Blake is so football smart. He's just smart period, but he's extremely football smart. We do have a lot of stuff in and we have a lot more to get in, but we're kinda waiting on our fullback and tight end. We're going a little slower because they're sophomores, but they're getting better every week."

Carthage hosts Nacogdoches (2-0), which pulled of a stunning 28-24 upset of Lufkin on Friday night, next Friday. Chapel Hill hosts Palestine (3-0).

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No. 1 Carthage 52, Chapel Hill 22

Bulldog Stadium, Carthage

Chapel Hill -- 0 15 7 0 -- 22
Carthage -- 14 21 10 7 -- 52

First Quarter
CAR -- Bryian Bolton 4 run (Jimmy Gonzalez kick) -- 9:37
CAR -- Tevin Pipkin 31 run (Gonzalez kick) -- 3:20
Second Quarter
CAR -- Terian "Tee" Goree 37 pass from Blake Bogenschutz (Gonzalez kick) -- 5:20
CAR -- Goree 23 pass from Bogenschutz (Gonzalez kick) -- 3:18
CH -- Joseph Clark 7 run (Johnny Bonilla kick) -- 1:43
CAR -- Goree 51 pass from Bogenschutz (Gonzalez kick) -- 1:18
CH -- Reggie King 8 pass from Andrew Black (Gabriel Robinson run) -- 0:10
Third Quarter
CH -- Lex Heckel 17 pass from Black (Bonilla kick) -- 8:47
CAR -- Bolton 1 run (Gonzalez kick) -- 5:02
CAR -- Gonzalez 19 field goal -- 1:54
Fourth Quarter
CAR -- Bolton 58 pass from Bogenschutz (Gonzalez kick) -- 7:08

                                                 CH                              CAR
First downs                                20                                21
Total yards                                397                              570
Rushes-Yards                         32-219                         37-199
Passing yards                            178                              371
Comp.-Att.-Int.                      18-35-4                         17-30-1
Penalties                                   9-60                             5-34
Fumbles                                    2-1                               2-2
Punts                                      4-37.0                          3-39.7

Individual Stats
RUSHING -- Chapel Hill: Wesley Thompson 8-77, Joseph Clark 10-71 (1 TD), Andrew Black 8-51 (1 TD), [#42] 4-24, Ja'Braylon Franklin 1-2, TEAM 1-(-6). Carthage: Tevin Pipkin 16-93 (1 TD), Bryian Bolton 10-71 (2 TDs),
PASSING -- Chapel Hill: Andrew Black 18-35-4 178. Carthage: Blake Bogenschutz 16-29-1 364 (4 TDs), Terian "Tee" Goree 1-1-0 7.
RECEIVING --  Chapel Hill: Lex Heckel 5-60 (1 TD), Gabriel Robinson 4-56, Reggie King 4-38 (1 TD), [#32] 3-25, Wesley Thompson 1-0, Ja'Braylon Franklin 1-(-2). Carthage: Terian "Tee" Goree 7-168 3 TDs, O'Keeron Rutherford 4-54, Tevin Pipkin 2-44, Bryian Bolton 1-58 (1 TD), Keldrean Strong 1-35, Blake Bogenschutz 1-7, Marquise Guinn 1-5.

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