With Pitt commit Kenny Minchey out, Pope John Paul II falls to Baylor, 42-7

Nashville Tennessean

HENDERSONVILLE — Taking advantage of Pope John Paul II without injured star quarterback Kinney Minchey, Baylor wasted little time taking control of its game against the Knights and rolled to a 42-7 victory Friday in a battle of two top five Division II-3A teams.

Minchey injured his shoulder in a 45-14 win against Independence last week. Despite treatment and rest he was unable to play Friday as freshman Sebastian Nelson got the start.

Pope John Paul II quarterback Kenny Minchey didn't play Friday night vs. Baylor after injuring his shoulder in last week's game against Independence (pictured).

"It looked like he dislocated his shoulder last game and he's just week to week right now and just trying to rehab it," Knights coach Brian Sneed said. "But one positive that we could take from (Friday night) was that Sebastian was able to keep drives going and keep us moving the ball. We just have to finish drives."

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Fifth-ranked Pope John Paul (4-1, 1-1 East/Middle Region) tried to control the tempo in the first half but Baylor's stout run defense and quick scoring put the Knights in a difficult position. Pope John Paul also lost running back Elijah Robb in the second quarter. Robb joined Minchey on the sideline for the second half with his arm in a sling.

The severity of Robb's injury was uncertain, while Sneed said Minchey's return will depend on how quickly his shoulder can heal.

"Obviously (Kenny) is a special player," Sneed said. "He adds a lot to the offense but we knew he wouldn't be playing, coming into the game. We expected our guys to play a little bit cleaner game than we did. I felt like we had the effort but the attention to detail was not where it needed to be against a good Baylor team."

After a first possession that netted only three yards, the second-ranked Red Raiders (4-0, 2-0) hit their stride behind junior quarterback Whitt Muschamp, son of former Florida and South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp. Whitt played the first half, completing 10 of 11 passes for 263 yards and three touchdowns.

Baylor had 42 points by halftime and the second half ended early with a running clock. Red Raiders running back Caleb Hampton had 11 carries for 146 yards and two touchdowns.