FREEPORT — Brady Sherrieb didn't do anything special in the first half Friday night.

The second half was another story.

The senior running back, who collected 52 yards before halftime, broke loose for a 64-yard touchdown run halfway through the third quarter to put Freeport ahead 10-0 at Swartz Field.

The Yellowjackets coasted the rest of way to a 17-6 win over Shady Side Academy in an unseasonably chilly and damp high school football season opener.

"They just started overpursuing," Sherrieb said of the Shady Side defense in the second half. "I was just watching for that one chance."

That was the case more often than not in the second half. To go with the big burst, Sherrieb ate up more than 10 yards a carry four times after halftime on his way to a 192-yard outing.

"Anytime you can run for almost 200 yards, you're probably going to win," Shady Side coach Dave Havern said. "They ran the ball hard."

Looking at Sherrieb, that was evident. The 5-foot-10 160-pounder sported a nice gash on his lower lip, a symbol of his work for the night.

"Brady's a great back; he runs hard," Freeport coach Bill Dillen said. "When you've got a horse, you ride him."

They did. Sherrieb had a game-high 30 carries to spark Freeport's 222-yard rushing attack.

"Very important," Dillen said of the Allegheny Conference win. "The WPIAL didn't deal (Class) AA an easy hand by coming out and playing a conference game (to start the year). But that's what you have and you can't worry about things you can't control."

The coaches may not be able to dictate the schedule, but they have some say over how their team performs. For Havern, whose team went 0-for-3 in the red-zone, he knows the Indians will have to perform better next week against conference-favorite Ford City.

"We have to start learning how to score," Havern said.