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Coatesville, however, was not razor sharp, committing six penalties and losing two fumbles.
"We made some mistakes tonight, like the penalties," said Red Raiders coach Tom Nichols. "But it is always easier to fix things after a win than after a loss."
Coatesville showed its muscle early, taking the opening kick-off and rolling 69 yards on just eight plays to take a 7-0 lead. The drive consisted of seven running plays with Morgan and Kieran Hutchenson doing the dirty work. The pair ran behind holes opened up by Zak Barker and Andrew Scott, among others, and routinely found open space in the Patriots’ secondary.
But the play that hit for the touchdown involved a beautiful pass from senior Scott A’Hara to Khalil Brewer in the left corner of the end zone. The 23-yard strike broke wide open after a nice play fake to Morgan.
"Scott threw a nice ball tonight," Nichols said. "We like to run the ball, but we know Scott can throw for us also."
Carroll opened the door for the next Coatesville score when the Patriots fumbled the ball at their own 36-yard line, enabling Scott to fall on the ball after a bad exchange between Carroll quarterback Matt Cantafio and running back Russell Johnson.
Coatesville returned to its bread and butter -- the power running game -- with Morgan banging five successive times to reach the Carroll 4-yard line. Hutchinson went off tackle for the score from there and the Red Raiders took a 14-0 lead into halftime.
Carroll moved the ball in the third period, generating solid runs from Johnson and fullback Alex Belfi. But Cantafio threw an interception to Neil Apichella and Coatesville was in business at the Carroll 37.
Five plays later, Morgan plowed in from the 10-yard line and, with the third extra point from Chris Massaro, Coatesville held a 21-0 advantage.
Carroll came back to score when Belfi broke free for a 45-yard run -- and even threatened to score again late in the game. The Patriots drove the ball to the Coatesville 5-yard line with just over two minutes to play. However, when Johnson was stopped on a fourth-and-goal, Coatesville took over and ran out the clock.
"It was nice to get this win," Nichols said. "We like to run the football, and that is what we did tonight."
NOTE: Morgan, a senior, will visit Georgia Tech this weekend on an official recruiting visit. The 6-foot-3, 265-pound standout in the backfield and highly regarded defensive lineman has drawn a scholarship offer from Penn State and serious interest from Ohio State and Syracuse, among others.
