Scalici's Five Touchdowns Burn Rebels in Annual Thanksgiving Day Game

If the first play from scrimmage was any type of indicator, the Howell Rebels were going to have a good day.

On that play, Howell quarterback Ryan Davies connected with his top receiver, Brandon Yaegel for a 67-yard touchdown strike, giving the Rebels (4-6) the early lead.

Unfortunatley for Howell, the game would not go by script from that play, as Colts Neck (6-4) powered through the Rebels behind five rushing touchdowns from tailback Victor Scalici in a 41-28 win, Thursday afternoon in the second straight Thanksgiving game between the Rebels and the Cougars.

Howell's offense struggled after the first drive, being shut out for the rest of the first half, but the defense allowed 27 consecutive points to fall into a hole that they could not climb out of.

"Its been the same problem for us all year," Howell head coach Cory Davies said, "They've got a much bigger offensive line than we do, and they're much stronger up front. We knew it was going to be a struggle, it has been all year. We're inexperienced and young on defense."

Davies was 19-27 passing for 245 yards, tossing 3 touchdowns and 1 interception, but, as has been their problem all season, the defense could not make the stops they needed to make.

The Cougars added a touchdown late in the first half when Scalici pounded the ball in on the final play of the half, legthening their lead and putting a dagger in the heart of the Rebels defense.

Colts Neck took over possession on their own 20-yard line after Cody Hubbs pushed a 22-yard field goal attempt wide-left. In two plays, the Cougars drove 79 yards, and had one final play with .3 seconds remaining on the clock.

Colts Neck quarterback Dylan Cottrell connected with wide receiver Thomas Vangelas for two big completions to set up the touchdown.

Scalici carried the ball 32 times for 297 yards and 5 touchdowns, adding his name to a long list of running backs that have burned the Rebels defense in 2011.

Davies connected with Yaegel for his second touchdown later in the third quarter, after pciknig up good field position on a Colts Neck fumble. Davies drove Howell 52 yards down the field, and, after converting on third and inches with a 10-yard scramble, he hit his receiver on a 15-yard touchdown pass.

Davies added another touchdown when he demonstrated an impressive 64-yard drive in the fourth quarter. He converted a crucial 3rd and 1 by hitting Walter DeCanio for a 17-yard strike, and later found tailback Jon Oeftering for a five-yard touchdown pass, making it 41-21.

Yaegel caught a game-high eight passes for Howell for 123 yards and two touchdown for the Rebels, while Tory Robinson hurled in four catches for 52 yards.

DeCanio caught three passes for 37 yards.

Evan Pinney threw a touchdown pass, as well, in the final minute when he hit Sean Walsh for nine yards, finalizing the score at 41-28.

Last year, the Rebels beat Colts Neck, 27-21 on the eve of Thanksgiving in the first match-up between the two rivals.

Individually, there is a lot of history between the two schools, with many Colts Neck players living in northern Howell, and having gone to Howell Township schools before high school, along with many playing in the Howell Lions Pop Warner program.

"I thought we handled ourselves well," Davies said, "There was a lot of trash talking going on, not just today, but for the past 12 months. It's that kind of game and I think it's going to be that kind of game for the future."

With the loss, the Rebels finish below .500 for the first time since 2008, a disappointing stature for Howell football.

"I was hoping for a little better year, getting one more win than we did. Coming into a season as a coach, you know the kind of talent that we had, and we were definitely hoping for five wins but we have good experience and talent coming back," Davies said.