Lake Fong, Post-Gazette photos Jeannette quarterback Terrell Pryor heads to locker room after losing to Wilson Area, 29-28, in the PIAA Class AA championship yesterday at Hersheypark Stadium.

By Mike White
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette HERSHEY, Pa. -- Jeannette was misspelled on the scoreboard at Hersheypark Stadium yesterday. The school name was missing one 'n'.

When everything was said and done, Jeannette's season came up one 'W' short.

Many of Jeannette's players were in tears after the PIAA Class AA championship as the Jayhawks let this one slip away. Wilson came back from a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter and edged Jeannette, 29-28. A crowd of 5,399 watched only the fifth one-point game in 19 seasons of PIAA championships.

Wilson, located in Easton, got the winning touchdown and extra point with 7:11 left. Jeannette (14-2), the WPIAL champion, never seriously threatened again.

Jeannette's Chris Hall (50) comforts teammate Josh Westfall after losing to Wilson Area yesterday. Click photo for larger image.

Jeannette star quarterback Terrelle Pryor was visibly upset after the game, tears running down his face as he kneeled on the field.

"I just wish we could have finished the deal," Pryor said later. "That team wasn't better than us. I know everyone could see. Their quarterback just threw some good balls and, in crunch time, stepped up."

Wilson standout quarterback D.J. Lenehan, who came in with 3,572 yards offense, finished with 329 yards. He completed 13 of 28 passes for 229 yards and a Class AA championship-record three touchdowns. He also rushed for 100 yards on 17 carries.

In the fourth quarter, Lenehan threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Chris Labatch with 10:55 left and a 39-yard touchdown pass to Justin Scerbo less than four minutes later.

"We hadn't seen a quarterback like him," Pryor said. "But we had some mistakes in the secondary, too."

Pryor, who also came into the game with more than 3,000 yards offense, had 139 rushing on 18 attempts, and completed 5 of 8 passes for 93 yards. But he had minus-5 yards rushing in the second half and was 0 for 1 throwing.

What made the loss harder to take was Jeannette seemingly was ready to take total control of the game late in the third quarter when a turnover turned the tide. Jeannette led at halftime, 20-16, and Pryor scored on an 8-yard run -- his second touchdown of the game -- with 5:13 left in the third quarter.

Jeannette quarterback Terrell Pryor stiff arms Wilson Area's Brandon Perkins in the first half of the PIAA Class AA championship yesterday at Hersheypark Stadium. Click photo for larger image.

Later in the quarter, with Jeannette leading, 28-16, running back Jerry Harris ran 24 yards to the Wilson 15 before he was stripped of the ball and Wilson's Sean Hoffman recovered. Harris was hurt on the play and didn't return. Jeannette also lost a few other players to injuries.

After Harris' fumble, Lenehan threw a 43-yard pass on the next play and Wilson scored seven plays later. Wilson took over at its 41 on its next possession and scored three plays later.

"Our coaches tell us the only way to lose is beat ourselves," Pryor said. "I guess we beat ourselves today."

Jeannette also was forced to use two timeouts on offense in the second half when the play clock was running out. One of the timeouts came deep in the Jayhawks' territory and the other on the extra point after Pryor's 8-yard scoring run.

"Most definitely there were some organization problems there, and that comes on me," Reitz said. "Just blame me. Let the kids go."

The game had some controversy at the end of the first half. Facing a fourth-and-10 at their 35, Pryor dropped back in the shotgun formation. The Jayhawks were going to try a "quick kick," but the snap from center sailed over Pryor's head, and Wilson recovered at the Jeannette 9.

On third-and-goal at the 6, Lenehan was sacked for a 5-yard loss by Pryor with less than 10 seconds left in the half. Wilson was out of timeouts and couldn't stop the clock. But Lenehan rolled around on the ground in pain with an apparent injury. The officials stopped the clock with 2 seconds left in order for Wilson officials to tend to Lenehan. That allowed Wilson to get set for a field goal.

Jeannette's Davonte Shannon reacts after the team lost to Wilson Area yesterday in Hershey, Pa. Click photo for larger image.

Then, Reitz called a timeout, which allowed Wilson more time to set up, and Mike Ryan converted a 28-yard field goal. Those three points turned out to be critical.

"That call at the end of the first half was total bull," Reitz said. "They shouldn't have stopped that clock. The clock should've run out."

Reitz wondered how hurt Lenehan was, or if he used the injury to stop the clock.

"After I called a timeout, [Lenehan] wanted to come back into the game," Reitz said. "So how hurt was he?"

When a reporter asked Lenehan about the apparent injury, Lenehan was terse. "I don't know. I got hit in the groin. Go pick Jeannette."

Reitz tried to explain the rationale behind his timeout call.

"We wanted to get the kids composed," Reitz said. "I don't think the timeout would've made any difference. They still would've been able to kick. We wanted to ice the kicker. But it shouldn't have been to that point because the clock should've run out."

Reitz held back tears a few times while talking to reporters.

"I'm 50 years old. I'll get over this," Reitz said.

"It's hard right now, but I feel for these kids. You never know what tomorrow is going to bring. You don't know if you'll get back."