Smith, a 6-0, 195-pound senior halfback, passed for one touchdown and ran for another and St. Joseph's defense shut down Holy Spirit's vaunted ground game before about 3,000 spectators on the Wildcats' home field.
Junior quarterback Anthony Giagunto ran for a touchdown and a two-point conversion and picked off a pass from his safety spot as St. Joseph (3-0), the No. 2 team in The Inquirer Top 10, scored the final 34 points of the game.
Top-ranked Holy Spirit (2-2, including a forfeit loss) managed just 85 yards and three first downs in the first three quarters.
"They won every phase of the game, starting with coaching," Holy Spirit coach Chalie Roman said.
Led by ends Max Valles and Kaiwan Lewis and linebackers Corey Litton and Kevin Goldsmith, St. Joseph's defense contained Holy Spirit running backs Donta Pollock (11 carries, 34 yards) and Nigel Jones (11 carries, 30 yards) and came up with three interceptions.
"We swarmed to the football," said Lewis, who has committed to South Carolina.
Holy Spirit was hurt by penalties, especially in the first half. The Spartans were hit with seven penalties for 70 yards in the first half, including a 15-yard infraction for roughing the punter and another 15-yarder for grabbing the face mask that nullified an apparent fumble recovery.
"That's been us the first three weeks of the season," Roman said of the mistakes. "But you can't overcome those things against a team like St. Joe's."
Holy Spirit blocked a punt on the first possession of the game and drove 23 yards to take a 7-0 lead on a 17-yard pass from Tom Hehre to tight end Jeff Steeb.
"We came out on fire," Roman said.
But St. Joseph answered with a 59-yard scoring run by senior Eli Pogue. The Wildcats took an 8-7 lead when Giagunto, the holder on placekicks, raced around right end on a fake for the two-point conversion.
Smith was St. Joseph's quarterback last season when the Wildcats lost a 35-0 decision to Holy Spirit. He felt responsible because he fumbled several times.
"That was crazy," Smith said. "It got me down. I went home and cried."
Smith lost his starting spot but stuck with the team. He said he considered transferring, but decided to finish his career with the Wildcats.
"Most kids would have packed their bags, but he stuck with it," St. Joseph coach Paul Sacco said of Smith.
Smith came through in a big way in the rematch. His 4-yard touchdown pass to junior Miles Pease on a halfback option gave St. Joseph a 14-7 lead at halftime. Smith also scored on a 36-yard run in the third quarter, as the Wildcats were pulling away.
"I feel like I redeemed myself," said Smith, who carried six times for 64 yards.
While Roman was hyping the game as the "Super Bowl," Sacco and several St. Joseph players were downplaying the event, noting that most of the season was still to be played.
Smith took a different approach. He knew this game was his big chance.
"We came in here with an attitude, with a chip on our shoulder," Smith said.
Holy Spirit 7 0 0 0 – 7
St. Joseph 8 6 13 7 – 34
HS: Steeb 17 pass from Hehre (Worthington kick)
SJ: Pogue 59 run (Giagunto run)
SJ: Pease 4 pass from Darryl Smith (kick failed)
SJ: Giagunto 1 run (Valles kick)
SJ: Smith 36 run (kick failed)
SJ: Reynolds 16 run (Valles kick)
Contact staff writer Phil Anastasia at 856-779-3223, panastasia@phillynews.com, or @PhilAnastasia on Twitter. Read his blog, "Jersey Side Sports," at www/philly.com/jerseysidesports
