Capobianco, Robinson key Lawrence win
Lawrence quarterback Joe Capobianco looks for an open receiver during the first quarter. (Sept. 21, 2012) Credit: James Escher
It might have been a Freaky Friday sort of night for Joe Capobianco and Eddie Robinson, but the result was decidedly ho hum: Lawrence's high-powered offense struck again, the Fredericks brothers proved to be too much on both sides of the ball, and the Golden Tornado remained undefeated in Nassau III.
But back to the quarterback and his wide receiver who, for about 30 seconds in second quarter of Friday's 34-13 win at Bethpage, decided to switch places for a bit, both passing for touchdowns . . . to each other.
First came Capobianco. An illegal substitution penalty on fourth-and-11 and a short Bethpage punt put the Golden Tornado in prime position in the dwindling seconds of the first quarter, and they cashed in with 10:29 left in the half.
Capobianco hit the leaping Robinson in the back left corner of the end zone for the 10-yard TD pass, facilitated by an earlier 22-yard pass to John Ganas to bring Lawrence to the 14. That score gave the Golden Tornado a 13-0 lead, but Capobianco decided he hadn't quite finished playing catch with Robinson.
On the ensuing kickoff, Lawrence (3-0) attempted an onside kick, recovered by Simon Jones at the Bethpage 30. On the next play, Robinson took the snap with Capobianco split wide. Robinson sent a long pass deep into double coverage, a ball that was corralled by Capobianco for a 20-0 lead.
"I rolled out and he was open," Robinson said. "I'm usually the one catching the ball."
The play, coach Joe Martillotti said, was "called on the fly."
"Eddie is a true athlete," he said. "And he's smart . . . [I told him] roll out and if Joe is open, dump it to him, and if he's not, you can always run the ball."
The drive only took 17 seconds. The next big play, a regular old Capobianco-to-Robinson connection, was part of a scoring drive that took only 18.
After Jordan Fredericks recovered a fumbled pitch on the Bethpage 37, Capobianco found his favorite target for a 23-yard reception. On the next play, Tyler Fredericks brought it home on a 14-yard run with 4:39 to go in the first half, the senior's 50th career TD. Capobianco finished 14-for-19 with 188 yards, three passing TDs, and a reception. Bethpage falls to 1-2.
The Golden Tornado took a 34-0 lead before 1-yard touchdowns by Bethpage's Shane Lackey and Anthony Herman.
