Williams, Olivier help Freeport roll past Baldwin
Freeport's Jeff Williams cuts up field against Baldwin. (Sept. 11, 2010) Credit: Photo by Lee S. Weissman
The Freeport Red Devils picked up right where they left off last season. The two-time defending Nassau champions hosted the Baldwin Bruins and defeated them, 48-13, Saturday in a Nassau Conference I opener.
Led by wide receiver Jeff Williams and running back Danny Olivier, the Red Devils gained 472 yards on the ground. At first, though, it didn't come easy. There were some early game jitters as the Red Devils were called for three penalties on the first six plays.
On the Red Devils' fourth play from scrimmage, quarterback Isaiah Barnes' pass was picked off by Tyler Harper. Five plays later, Baldwin quarterback Patrick Dillon bootlegged left for a 10-yard touchdown. That play and a late fourth-quarter touchdown would be the only scores for the Bruins. Freeport went on to score 48 unanswered points, including 21 off turnovers.
"It's never easy, and in this conference there is a lot of competition," Williams said. "We never go with the mind-set that it is easy because then we start to ease up."
The 6-2 Williams, who is listed as a wide receiver, ran the ball 12 times for 175 yards, including an 11-yard score. He caught one pass for 13 yards. Defensively, he had three unassisted tackles, two sacks and an interception.
"He's a very good high school player, he works his butt off and he's very talented," Freeport coach Russ Cellan said. "He is a quality human being. He's just a great person. You can't have enough Jeff Williamses on your team."
Williams' running mate, Olivier, got off to a slow start with a fumble after a huge gain in the first quarter, but then righted his ship.
"I was dying out there," Olivier said about the heat as the game started. "Then I remembered the conditioning we do during the week and I had to stay focused. Everyone wants to knock us off. Guys are big out there and I'm not scared of that, but we just have to do some more work."
Olivier piled up 122 yards on 14 carries for two touchdowns and his lone reception of 12 yards also went for a score.
For the Bruins there is much work to be done. "We have to work on our tackling. Their offense and defensive line owned the field today," coach Steve Carroll said. "Defensively I'm nervous because we had a tough time tackling."
Freeport, which leads the all-time series 43-28-1, had 528 yards in is fourth straight win over Baldwin. The Bruins were held to 109 yards.
