CHERRY TWP — There are 0-1 starts and then there are oh-no-and-1 starts.

Clarion quarterback Dan Walters threw for two scores, rushed for another and caught a 17-yard touchdown on a halfback pass from Bubba Rue as the Bobcats routed Moniteau 46-14 Friday night.

"We're not as bad as that is," said Moniteau coach Jeff Campbell. "We didn't tackle anyone all night. Honestly, it was just pathetic."

Things didn't start out that way for Moniteau.

Jacob Boy stopped an early Clarion drive with a sack and a forced fumble.

But Moniteau was unable to take advantage of any opportunities it had — and there weren't very many.

Instead, Clarion exploited Moniteau's aggressive defense, scoring from 59 yards and from 30 yards on wide receiver screen passes.

"They did the same thing they did last year, basically," said Clarion coach Larry Wiser. "They came out in that 5-3 and Jeff (Campbell) is really aggressive with it. We worked on that jailbreak screen. Both cases, kids did a great job downfield blocking to open things up."

After the second screen pass that went for a score, Moniteau responded.

Tony Campbell hauled in a 37-yard pass on the left sideline and carried it to the 2 before James Shope punched it in to close the gap to 13-7.

That was the last of the highlights for the Warriors.

Clarion scored two touchdowns in a 19-second span late in the first half to take a 25-7 lead into the locker room.

The Bobcats then started the second half with a five-play, 65-yard drive to put the game well out of reach.

Thought to be the team's strength, the Moniteau defense was out of sorts all night.

"The media overhyped this game," Campbell said. "I told Larry (Wiser) last Saturday we weren't very good."

Campbell said he had to replace key players on defense who played prominent roles last season.

"Most of the kids who stepped up and played those positions don't have Friday night experience," Campbell said. "That's where we are at. We need to figure it out. We can't play like that: mistake after mistake."

The Moniteau offense also struggled.

Sophomore quarterback Kyle Armagost was sacked four times and pressured on virtually every passing play.

He finished 4-of-11 for 63 yards.

Shope also had tough sledding in the running game, amassing 65 yards on 16 carries. He had only 28 yards on 10 attempts in the first half.

Walters was the star of the game for Clarion. He was 5-of-9 passing for 162 yards and two scores. He also forced a fumble and recovered it on defense.

Walters proved to be a triple threat as a receiver, too, catching two passes for 39 yards from Rue.

"That first throw was nice," Wiser said. "(Rue) may lobby me to be our Michael Vick."

Campbell isn't ready to break the glass over the panic button, but he has the hammer at the ready.

"It's a long season," Campbell said. "I'm certainly not going to give up on these guys."