McKEES ROCKS — It was the kind of start Montour coach Lou Cerro was looking for in his first official season as head coach.

With last year's ESPNreality show based on the team Hall of Famer Dick Butkus assumed the reins as "coach" — Cerro was called the "associate coach" — and the Spartans suffered through a 1-9 season.

With the distractions gone, Cerro hopes to infuse some of his style of football into the program.

On a chilly, wet Friday evening, he got just what he wanted.

Three Knoch turnovers in the first half were converted into touchdowns as Montour rolled to a 34-6 victory over the Knights at Thomas Birko Stadium in a non-section game Friday.

"We told the kids to put everything from the past behind them," said Cerro, who led Seton-LaSalle to a pair of WPIAL Class AA championships. "We told them this was the biggest game of the year.

"The kids made plays and we were opportunistic. They had not done that in the past here, but they were ready,"Cerro added.

"We have a lot of young kids playing. We have only one senior on the offensive line," said Knoch coach Mike King. "We have a lot of experience where we need it, but at crucial times we made mistakes and we let it get in our heads."

The Knights looked to be in business midway through the first quarter when a Knoch punt hit a Montour blocker and the Knights recovered on the Montour 37.

On the third play, however, Knights quarterback Zack Gross was intercepted in the flat by Christian Wilson, who sprinted away for a 70-yard score.

In the second quarter, a fumble by the Knights' Alex Whisler was recovered at the Knoch 18. Two plays later, Wilson scored from six yards.

Facing a third-and-13 at the Knoch 16 two possessions later, Montour's Phil Peckich intercepted Gross and returned the ball to the 8-yard line.

Three plays later, Spartans quarterback E.J. Banks scored from the 1-yard line for a 21-0 lead, a lead which the Spartans took into halftime.

"We've just had too much mediocre play," said King.

The Spartans added two Banks scoring passes in the third quarter, one on a 35-yard slant pass to Brock McClelland and a the other on a 3-yard scoring strike in the front corner of the end zone to Bryce Pfeuffer for a 34-0 advantage.

Despite the score, the Knights' running game posted a strong performance, rolling up 215 yards on 43 carries, 128 coming from Justin McGowan on 12 carries.

He accounted for Knoch's lone score when he burst through the line for a 47-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter.

"I think Justin McGowan runs the football," said King. "He's tough, durable and played both ways for the whole game.

"He's doing everything he can to inspire the team. Some guys still don't take advantage of that."

Notes: Knoch outgained Montour 263-214 ... Banks completed 10 of 16 passes for 92 yards while Wilson rushed for 73 yards on 15 carries. Pfeuffer led all receivers with six catches for 50 yards.