When the Marcellus football team is considered, many things might get addressed before Ricky Alfreds enters the discussion.
Despite being a first-rate running back who, twice this season, has earned 100-plus yards both rushing and receiving, Alfreds has lingered in the shadow of the Mustangs’ passing attack.
But all that changed Friday night when, amid all the rain and wind, Alfreds carried Marcellus past visiting South Jefferson 33-21 in the first round of the Section III Class B playoffs.
Alfreds ran for a single-game school record of 296 yards on 27 carries, with three touchdowns. And it might have been much more, with several long gains called back due to penalties.
Flags or not, the Marcellus offensive line garnered high praise for the big gaps they created so that Alfreds could run wild against the Spartans.
Maybe those numbers were inevitable. When the two teams first played Sept. 25 in Adams, Marcellus pulled out a 41-37 win mostly because Will Fiacchi threw for 519 yards, the third-highest single-game total in state history.
For the rematch, the Spartans prepared for more of Fiacchi – and instead saw far too much of Alfreds cutting through their defensive backfield.
Naturally, Alfreds put the Mustangs in front 7-0 in the first quarter, accounting for each of the 77 yards on his team’s first sustained drive, including the final four yards for the touchdown.
With the wet and windy conditions, Fiacchi would get modest totals – nine-for-16 for 187 yards – but he stll went deep and found Dan Rudy for a 57-yard TD strike early in the second quarter, then followed it up by going 18 yards to Zach Amidon for the score.
Just before the half, the Spartans finally got on the board, A.J. Chartrand scoring on a one-yard run, but the Mustangs’ 21-6 margin at the break still appeared comfortable.
Once the third quarter started, Alfreds hit again. His 55-yard run keyed another scoring drive where Alfreds, from three yards out, got his second TD to make it 27-6.
Just when it looked like a romp, though, South Jefferson pieced together a strong comeback, helped in no small part by Fiacchi throwing a pair of interceptions.
Twice, the Spartans would find the end zone, and each time Chartrand would score, on runs of one and eight yards, the latter of them making the score 27-21 with one period to play.
The Mustangs’ defense found itself on the field again midway through the fourth quarter, trying to keep South Jefferson from catching up, when it pulled off, arguably, the game’s biggest play. Josh Tucker stripped Chartrand of the ball near midfield, and Marcellus recovered at its own 45-yard line.
Enter Alfreds, once more, to apply the clincher, as he carried the ball five times for 55 yards on the ensuing drive, the last five yards for the touchdown.
From the defensive side, freshman Jason Decker had 14 tackles, with Zach Wiley adding 13 tackles and Jason Howard 10 tackles. Steve Brissette added an interception.
Marcellus got more good news later that night when it found out that Chittenango, the top seed in its half of the Class B bracket, got stunned at home by Solvay 27-21.
So the Mustangs, winners of five straight, will meet the Bearcats (3-5) in the Class B semifinals Friday at 8 p.m. at West Genesee.
Marcellus won their first meeting 32-6, but the rematch will carry higher stakes – namely, a trip to the Carrier Dome for the Class B final against Westhill or Vernon Verona Sherrill.
