Marshall Lang picked a great time to have the best game of his career.
Northwestern's superback commit had eight catches for 111 yards and scored all three touchdowns in Cincinnati (Ohio) St. Xavier's 21-14 win over crosstown rival Colearain.
His performance won him the MVP awards in the 22nd annual Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown.
“There is a reason why he is committed to Northwestern,” St. Xavier coach Steve Specht told WCPO. “He is a talented young man. Your talented kids have to rise to the occasion and that’s exactly what Marshall did today.”
Lang said that he never before scored three TDs in a game, and he's been playing since football since second grade.
The 6-foot-4, 230-pounder got his first score when quarterback Matthew Rueve found him for an 11-yard scoring pass to make it 7-0 in the first quarter.
He struck again with 3:45 left in the second quarter when he caught a three-yard TD pass from Rueve, and he got his last one on a 12-yard catch with just 1:05 left before the half.
Lang's last TD gave the Bombers (2-0) a 21-7 lead that would hold up the rest of the game. Colerain scored one time in the third quarter but could get no closer than a touchdown as St. Xavier snapped a three-game losing streak to its rival.
So the final tally was Lang three touchdowns, Colerain two.
When asked about his big night, Lang gave most of the credit to Liam Clifford, a St. X wide receiver. Clifford had an 83-yard kickoff return to set up the first score and wound up with nine catches for 67 yards.
“Liam is an excellent player,” Lang told WCPO. “He is probably the most athletic person on our team. He’s unbelievable, but if they double him then they leave someone open, and it just happened to be me.”
Rueve finished 26 of 36 passing for 234 yards as the Bombers lived up to their name, taking to the air for all by 46 of their 280 total yards.
St. X leads the all-time series against Colerain 23-16. Many expect the two teams to meet up again in the playoffs.
The Rundown
Here's how the rest of Northwestern's 2020 commits performed over the weekend.
QB Aidan Atkinson had a night to forget for Boulder (Colo.) Fairview (1-1). He threw for 209 yards and a touchdown but also had five interceptions and got sacked five times in a 50-7 loss to Ralston Valley.
Story: Fairview stunned by blowout loss
DE Jaiden Cameron's Clayton (Ohio) Northmont Thunderbolts (1-1) got 352 yards and four TDs passing from Keaton Kesling and three interceptions from Rod Moore to coast to a 37-17 win over Pickerington North, the alma mater of Godwin Igwebuike.
Story: Thunderbolts win big at Pickerington North
LB Cullen Coleman and Rye (N.Y.) Country Day School open their season on Sept. 14 against The Pingry School.
DL TeRah Edwards and the Groveport (Ohio) Madison Cruisers (2-0) had no issues with overmatched Hamilton, cruising to a 56-0 rout.
Video recap: Hamilton Township vs. Groveport
CB Garnett Hollis caught two passes for 30 yards and a touchdown on offense, and helped Franklin (Tenn.) Battle Ground Academy (3-0) limit Goodpasture Christian to just 120 total yards on defense in a 42-7 romp.
Story: Top-ranked BGA blasts Goodpasture in home opener
CB Jaheem Joseph and the Miami (Fla.) Monsignor Pace (1-2) secondary had no answer for Naples' Keyshawn Brown, who caught 9 passes for 336 yards and 3 TDs to down the visiting Spartans 38-26
Story: Golden Gate, Immokalee, Lely, Naples all win
S Gunner Maldonado and Chandler (Ariz.) hardly broke a sweat in blasting Mesa 63-0 as quarterback Mikey Keene had an almost perfect night, connecting on 12 of 13 passes for 200 yards and three touchdowns.
DE Sean McLaughlin and No. 1 Frankfort (Ill.) Lincoln-Way East (2-0) made easy work of Naperville Central, posting a 31-10 win.
Story: Naperville Central falls to top-ranked Lincoln-Way East
LB Xander Mueller picked off one pass and had double-digit tackles as Wheaton (Ill.) North (2-0) cruised to a 23-7 victory over Lake Forest.
Story: Nathan Love making his presence felt in new ways for 2-0 Wheaton North
RB Cameron Porter only had seven carries for 61 yards, but one of them was for a 44-yard touchdown, as Cincinnati (Ohio) La Salle (2-0) ran past Mason 31-0.
Video recap: La Salle 31 Mason 0
OL Josh Priebe helped pave the way for Edwardsburg (Mich.) to roll up 412 rushing yards on just 29 carries (14.2 ypc) as the Eddies (2-0) destroyed Otsego 48-0.
Story: Eddies' defense stands tall against Bulldogs
OL Peter Skoronski and Park Ridge (Ill.) Maine South (0-2), playing without their starting quarterback, dropped their second straight game, 21-7 to top-ranked Mt. Carmel.
Story: Dan Lazic fills in admirably, but Maine South can't solve Mt. Carmel
SB Hunter Welcing is out with a knee injury and Lake Zurich (Ill.) (0-2) fell in overtime to Marist, 24-17, for its second straight defeat to start the season.
Video highlights: Marist 24 Lake Zurich 17
OL Ben Wrather and Powell (Ohio) Olentangy Liberty (2-0) posted a hard-fought 19-10 win over Huber Heights Wayne.
