BURRS COAST INTO TITLE GAME

Nov 03, 2014 BY BRENT BAUM Daily News Staff Writer TWO WEEKS ago West Catholic was triumphant in a 41-0 rout over Conwell Egan. On Saturday night the concept of deja vu was in full effect as West Catholic again thrashed Conwell-Egan, 54-0, in the Catholic League AA semifinals at Cardinal O'Hara High. On a crisp windy night, each gust seemed to knock every loose ball into West Catholic's hands, as the Burrs recovered two onside kicks, a botched punt and a fumble for a touchdown on the final play of the game, en route to 54 unanswered points. As a two-way lineman you typically wouldn't find Tymir Oliver's name in the box scores, however he displayed tenacious physicality and dominance on both sides of the ball throughout the night. He not only anchored a defense that forced four turnovers, holding the Eagles to only 45 total yards from scrimmage, but his strong run blocking helped open up running lanes that led the Burrs to five rushing scores on the night. "We try starting out fast and coming off [the line] explosive. Getting off the ball, blocking the down linemen, and make sure they are out of the way," Oliver said. "We try to go hard every time in practice, and never give up. " And only a junior, the 6-4, 270-pound lineman is bound to pack on more pounds a year from now. Olver has an ample appetite for anything and everything from Philly cheesesteaks to salads to chicken wraps with fries. He even joked that he doesn't always eat the healthiest foods, but he loves when his mother cooks a soul food platter of barbecue ribs, macaroni and cheese and cabbage. Olver has received a steady diet of offers from Temple, UMass, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Michigan State and Illinois. During the off-season, he was invited to the Rivals Top 250 underclassmen showcase camp at the Jacksonville Jaguars' stadium. West Catholic surprisingly was held scoreless in the first quarter until senior Ahkil Crumpton displayed his explosive footwork on a 63-yard interception return for a touchdown, preceded by a 68-yard scoring reception with 6:15 left in the second. In addition, to Crumpton's plays, junior Josh Holsopple led West Catholic under center as he scored on an 8-yard keeper. Holsopple also connected with senior Demond Brunache (79 yards on two catches) on a 44-yard strike that set up a 2-yard run by senior Kharee Ruley as time expired, giving the Burrs a 28-0 halftime lead. Holsopple (5-12 on 149 yards) has embraced a leadership role, filling the void as the starting quarterback since West Catholic's all-time leading passer, senior Antwain McCollum, went down with a broken foot earlier in the season. "I always felt I was in a leadership role of our team and I like to get everybody hyped for the game. I think our seniors came out and sparked the initial offense," said Holsopple. "We have a great time together, and we are just a big family. " After the shutout victory, head coach Brian Fluck's postgame message to his team was to stay focused on future obstacles and get their work done in the classroom. It's a message that Oliver always hears from his mother. "My mom is big on school, so I always try to keep academics first," Oliver said. "My mom and my uncle are my biggest inspiration. My uncle played for West Catholic, too, and their team won the state championship, so I always wanted to follow in his path. " A 3.4-GPA student, Oliver is currently fifth in his class and wants to major in civil engineering, for his favorite subject is math and he has always enjoyed numbers. West Catholic is now on a six-game winning streak with a focus on winning it's seventh consecutive PCL AA championship under Fluck in a match-up against Neumann-Goretti, a team they beat, 30-13, in the regular season. "Normally we start out slow. We need to start out quick and have a spark in the beginning," Holsopple said. "Stay together as a team because sometimes other people get us off topic of what we have to do. " "We have to believe in ourselves," Oliver said. "And get the job done."