'G-Money' sparks Wood win over Ryan

THE START was inauspicious for Archbishop Wood until the young man who was one of the best-dressed 5-year-olds in West Oak Lane history jumped into action.

It was a fourth-and-6 early in the first quarter against Archbishop Ryan when three penalties on their opening drive appeared to scuttle the Vikings' momentum.

That is, until Jake Cooper took a direct snap on a fake punt and flared a pass to Gianni "G-Money" Cruel, who was uncovered in the middle of the field.

After a quick juke and a burst of speed, Cruel capped off the subterfuge with a 48-yard touchdown. The Vikings never looked back, ransacking Ryan, 47-14, at William Tennett High.

"Yeah, G-Money," exclaimed Cooper as Cruel fielded postgame questions.

"That's been my name my whole life," Cruel smiled as he explained how West Oak Lane birthed the moniker. "People from my old neighborhood. They called me G-Money because I used to dress real nice."

Later, the junior wideout and defensive back added: "I was probably about 5. My mom used to spoil me and I used to get everything I wanted, so they used to call me G-Money."

Maliah Atkins, Cruel's mother, was in attendance last night and had to be proud to see her son rebound after a disappointing sophomore season.

A broken tibia and fibula in his left leg claimed most of last season, although Cruel said he returned for the Vikings Class AAA state title win. However, he wasn't involved when Ryan shocked Wood, 22-7, last season.

"That was horrible," said the 5-10, 165-pound Cruel. "I was about to cry. It hurt seeing my team down like that and I couldn't do anything about it."

Last night, he had his say. After Anthony Russo (6-for-10, 104 yards and two touchdowns) hit Cooper for a 38-yard score, Cruel scored on an 8-yard rush to put Wood ahead, 21-0, with 26.9 seconds left in the first quarter.

Senior running back Jarrett McClenton added his 200 cents. The Villanova commit rushed 17 times for 202 yards and a pair of ground scores. Senior Alex Arcangeli finished with 80 yards on 10 totes for Wood (5-0, 1-0 AAA).

For Ryan (2-3, 0-1), senior Samir Bullock had 70 yards on 21 carries and a score. Sophomore Jeremy Smith added a tally after he blocked a punt and recovered the ball in the end zone.

As for Cruel, who is 16 now but apparently turned heads as a fresh 5-year-old, the game wasn't all roses. He was beatdn deep by Ryan's Seneca Williams in the second.

"I thought I had him," Cruel smiled. "We both slipped and then he just reached out for the ball. I was just mad . . . I fell and I looked back too early."

Cruel reports little college interest so far. Cooper, his unlikely QB on the fake punt, is headed to Penn State next season where he likely will play linebacker - not toss touchdowns.

"We talked about it before that play," Cruel said, laughing. "[Cooper] said it was gonna be, who'd he say he was gonna be? The [Florida] Gators' old quarterback . . . Tebow, he said."

Cruel's grade on the toss?

"It was all right," he joked. "I almost dropped it, though. I caught it with my fingertips because I had to stretch out for it . . . he threw it a little too far, so I had to stretch out."