Amauro's Corner, Football 2010

NOV. 24

NON-LEAGUE

Del-Val 18, Bartram 14

These games are always interesting because you never know what you'll get and this was just that kind of game. The Braves pretty much dominated the first half, but folks as we all well know, a HS Football game is 48 minutes not 24. The Braves' biggest sin was leaving at least 6 points on the field before halftime, which proved to be haunting later. DV has some seriously talented skill position guys so you knew they'd make a run after being down 8-0 going into half and that they did, running off 18 straight coming out of the locker room. Sr. QB Keith Page, who was uncharacteristically not sharp with his passing (just 4-for-20, 57), ran for the first two scores (4 & 6) and then sr. RB Markeese Walker darted 26-yards for another. The Braves did answer with a 45-yard TD catch by sr. WR Anwar Mitchell from sr. QB Adrese Perkins (scored the first TD on a 1-yard sneak), but never truly threatened from there. DV's top Warrior though was once again sr. two-way end Heleaince Gates (6-4 220). Gates (2 catches for 37 yards) sacked the QB 4 times going for 24 yards in losses while also making another TFL and forcing a fumble. It wouldn't shock me to see some D-Is take a chance on this diamond in the rough as his best days are ahead and he's beastly now. Confident (smile) sr. DB Aaron "Oz" Baker made a pick, but went out again with what looked like his second concussion of the season after a first down run early in the 4th. The game was delayed roughly a half hour while the ambulance was summoned. Get well, kid, you were enjoyable to watch this season. The Braves got a solid effort from their top player also in sr. LB Russell Calloway (6-1 225) with 7 total tackles including a sack and another TFL and a great job in coverage defending two passes. He, too looks to be a scholarship Football prospect.

AA's NOTES: Strangely, this was my first look of the season at the Braves. I'm glad to finally have gotten to take a look... DV sr. all-timer WR Brad Wilson made one catch for 11 yards (a spectacular one, no less, over the middle in traffic) and had a run for 5 yards both in the 3rd where he got banged up and didn't return. Great career, young man, and best wishes going forward... Finally, the last 3-4 weeks have been tough as I've patiently (SMILE) been awaiting and preparing for my first born child, Princess Saige E. Austin, who's due to make an appearance any day now. I'll keep everyone posted. Thanks for bearing with me . . .

OCT. 22

PUBLIC LEAGUE GOLD

Northeast 13, Washington 6

Phew!!!! Talk about a great high school football game! This one had it all. You want bitter rivals, CHECK! You need big plays, CHECK! How about the drama of late game drives, CHECK! And not to mention the best players/athletes the league has to offer, CHECK! The Vikings won this one for one reason and one reason only, they simply wanted it more! Coach Chris Riley had his bunch extra fired up for this one and how couldn't they be after last year's 4A Title game 40-0 drubbing at the hands of their not so friendly deep Northeast neighbors. Apparently, there had been a lot of trash talk back and forth between both schools players via Internet and text messaging all week long (Gotta love modern technology right -- smile) and it really showed on the field. NE has plenty of heroes on both sides of the ball, but for my money their biggest hero was sr. DB Lamont Davis. Did he have 100 yards rushing? Well, no. How about 2 INTs? Uh, no again. What he did, though, time and time again late in the game, as GW drove, was break up "sure" completions by very sharp sr. QB Tony Smith (11-for-20, 86 yards) to the Eagles' scary good receiving corps by either batting the ball away or making hard pops to turn a sure catch into an incompletion. Sr. RB Camille Max started the day with a 1-yard scoring run to cap a 16 play, 65 yard drive that spanned over 8 minutes which in football terminology, "hit the heavily favored Eagles in the mouth." Mega-prospect sr. two-way end Deion Barnes finished them off with a 20-yard TD catch (he ran an outstanding pattern) from soph. QB Harold Alexander (3-for-4, 35 yards + an excellent job managing the game). Barnes also set the tone on D with 7 total stops including 1.5 sacks worth 16 yards. Soph. RB-CB Marquis Edwards ran hard (18-59) while also playing great in the secondary. He seems to show well every time I see him and will be a household name in the city in the near future. Smith was razor-sharp for GW even with a wicked wind throughout. Even when he missed, the ball was catchable. Sr. WR Albert Gaye caught the TD on a 17-yarder. Jr. WR Nate Smith caught 5 balls for 34 yards. Sr. RB English "Buddy" Peay ran 15 times for 98 yards. The best Eagle though was sr. DE Claudy Mathieu (6-4 220). If I had never seen either team and somebody told me going in to look out for #18, I might have thought that he was Barnes as he's almost the mirror image (less the football experience and exposure on the national scene). His coaches say he's really come into his own as of late and that some college is gonna get a steal. He was a BEAST here as he was in on 6 TFLs including 2 sacks one which forced a fumble and laid out Alexander (hope he is ok, looks like he has another concussion). He left it all out on the field for sure and totally bought into his new found hated rivalry. Sr. LB/DE Brandon Chudnoff (Temple) was a tackling machine (10 stops). Phew, that was a lot and I can't wait to see the rematch, if there's a rematch, as Fkd looks to be surging as well and looks to be destined for a match-up with GW in two weeks. However, one thing is for certain and that's that the Vikings are the Division Champs and the League's hottest team winning 6 straight games...

AAs NOTES: Special Note star jr. RB Hakeem Sillman was held out for this game as he missed practice time this week dealing with some issues. He could have made a difference... Again though the Vikings wanted this one much more than the Eagles and that's the main (sole?) reason for victory... With all that said it'll be interesting to see how GW comes back in two weeks. They have what may well be the most individual talent that the city has seen on one team in some time, but as we saw here today that doesn't always equate to the ultimate success. I guess we'll find out soon enough... Finally, it was good to meet GW soph. T Deya Mhlesen (6-7 275, maybe even larger). I've never seen him play a down of Football, but can see that he could one day become a serious force that could even garner a scholarship to do just that (Play Football). He's got an unbelievable build and his coaches say he's got a seriously mean streak and shows signs of being a hard worker... He must have the strongest handshake EVER (sorry to Imhotep's Basketball C Erik Copes -- Smile).

OCT. 22

PUBLIC AAAA GOLD

Frankford 35, Germantown 0

It's always a good Friday afternoon when I get the opportunity to chart a game at the legendary Frankford Field. The whole scene at this place just gives you that special feeling. The game was pretty much one-sided as the Pioneers were running on all cylinders while the Bears are green . . . and I don't just mean their school colors. The Pioneers will be very much a player in the Pub 4A Playoff Conversation with GW and NE or should I say NE and GW (smile). Sr. QB Mike McGroarty (6-4 200) was largely the reason here as he ran for 2 TDs (4 and 1) and then passed for two more, a 65 yarder to jr. speedster WR Savoy Martin and a 25-yarder to jr. TE Aaron Allison (6-3 235). McGroarty overall was 6-for-9, 168 yards and frankly looked the best I've ever seen him look. He looked and played, as I like to say, like a senior (Meaning like there's no tomorrow). Sr. RB Jeffione Thomas carried 16-76 while being probably at 75% with continuing ankle issues. Sr. scatback Kelly Johnson ran for the final score, a 5-yarder. Sr. two-way tackle Dujuan Franks (6-5 260) was a bear on both lines. Jr. LB Marquan Scott made a late game pick. G'town truthfully had one positive offensive play in the whole game, a 56-yard bomb against double coverage from freshman QB Cedric Wright to jr. WR Myles Brooker. Other than that play, the Bears produced 9 yards on their other 33 plays from scrimmage, OUCH!

AAs NOTES: The Pioneers have a tough battle looming with upstart Furness this week in round 1 of the 4A playoffs, should be interesting as Furness has the wildcard in star jr. rusher Sharif Smith (6-0 200) and one of the city's best two-way players in sr. QB-FS Maurice Harris (7 INTs). That should be good one... I really like the possibilities of Fkd's Martin and Allison. Both are juniors who with strong offseasons could prove to be D-I prospects, Martin as a CB and Allison at TE and what's even better is both are said to be excellent students and model citizens... Finally, the G'town Bear will growl again in the near future. Coach Mike Hawkins has some good, young talent at his disposal and it will show maybe even as early as next season.

OCT. 15

PUBLIC LEAGUE AAA

Dobbins 24, Gratz 8

Back in August this was one of the games circled on the calendar as you were almost certain that this would be a first place game going into the playoffs. Then the season started and the Bulldogs were blowing teams' doors off week after week and the Mustangs were the picture of consistency and even showed well against quality opposition. Well, gang, in recent weeks, the Bulldogs haven't looked the same as early on as they've battled through multiple injuries to key players among many other serious issues. They've remained undefeated to this point, but on this night without a full compliment of players or maximum focus you had to know that it would be tough to get by a Dobbins squad that is peaking right now going into the season's crunch time. The Mustangs were indeed focused and hungry en route to victory here as they took down the Bulldogs here in front of a LARGE, spirited crowd. The ringleaders as they've been all season were srs RB-LB Terrance Stafford (19-86-TD, 1/5/TD) and FB-DE Aaron Walker (15-81-2TDs). These guys wouldn't let the Bulldogs even believe that they had a shot on this night as the surprisingly fast Walker, who goes 5-11 230 burst through the line on Dobbins' second series for 28 yards and a score untouched. Stafford ended the first half with the 3-yard run for a TD of his own that was key because the Mustangs would get the ball back after halftime. And when they got the ball back they don't relinquish it as they drove for 10:26 (17 plays) to start the 3rd starting with 16 straight runs and ending on a 4th and goal TD pass from sr. QB Kevin Butler to a leaping Stafford for a 5-yard TD and that pretty much sapped the life out of the Bulldogs. For good measure though, Dobbins next drive went 6 more minutes capped by a Walker 5-yard run that pretty much closed the show. Stafford was also the leader on D with a sack and another TFL. I also liked sr. T/DT Dillon Hood (6-3 275, 6 total stops) and his inside partner soph. C-DT Clarence Murphy (6-2 265). #74 & #71 were also the stalwarts on the O-Line that cleared the path to rack up close to 200 yards on the ground. Gratz' one trick tonight was super athlete Khalil Brown. He scored a late TD, but was pressured all game and must have fumbled the ball 5 times (only lost one). Most of the fumbles were caused by no one. Maybe it was the gloves or maybe the blazing wind and cold on this night, but Brown has seen better days. On Gratz' D, it was hard not to notice soph. DE/ATH (Probably could play anywhere on the edge from DE to LB to CB) Fulani Freeman (6-3 185). This kid is one of the better athletes in the League and also one of the better sophs. He seemed to be in or around every play. With sustained focus, growth and natural progression the sky's the limit for this kid.

AA's NOTES: The Bulldogs were missing at least 4 key contributors, including star RB Spencer Moses (high ankle sprain). They hope to have everyone healthy by the playoffs.. It was great to see sr. C/DT/occasional RB Jamil Morgan bull in for the conversion run with another large line lead blocking for him. Big 'Mel goes 6-1 345! A Dobbins defender yelled, "Y'all was scared to hit him!" after everyone moved out of the big man's way on his way into the zone... Finally it was good to see Gratz all-timer Keith Walls amidst the crowd. Walls is now fully recovered from a major (even life-altering surgery) and says that he's even back to working his regular job.

OCT. 9

CATHOLIC LEAGUE

Roman Catholic 34, Father Judge 14

I was excited about this one going in because I really liked the way Judge played early on this season when I saw them against NE and Crusaders came in at 5-0 and I knew that Roman would be focused as their backs were square on the wall after two straight Ls. Plus, last week against La Salle, the Cahillites lost their starting QB, soph. Michael Keir, to a knee injury. For the first half things were pretty much even, but Roman was much more opportunistic and went into halftime with a 20-14 lead after scoring 2 defensive TDs to answer Judge's early score, a 37-yard TD run on the game's first play by jr. RB/LB Raul Quinones. First sr. DB Dennis Regan took a pick 55 yards for six, then sr. LB Dan Pellicciotti rumbled 62-yards on a fumble return after a botched hand off between sr. handyman Connor Thompson and Quinones in the wildcat formation. Roman then scored again on a 62-yard dash by Regan, but Judge answered right back on the ensuing kickoff as sr. Nick Myers took one 94-yards to TD-ville. As I walked to the Roman sideline for the second half, I thought this one could have a great ending. It didn't though as Crusaders just flat out didn't answer the second half bell as Roman at first held them at bay after jr. RB Marcus Kelly's 45-yard TD burst and then put them away late after jr. D Taishan Tucker picked one off and took it 88 yards for six. For Roman, jr. QB Anthony Johnson did a very good job running the show in Keir's absence. He managed the game and made one minor mistake (a punt-like INT throw to jr. DB Tim Mills). Kelly ran 17 times for 189 yards, but 167 yards came in the second half on 8 carries while also catching a 12-yard pass giving him 201 yards total for the game. The Cahillite D was led by strong sr. DE Jack Gallagher (6-3 230), who was in on 5 TFLs including a sack among his 11 total tackles. Regan added another INT and jr. DT Tyrone Brown made all 3 of his stops behind the line. Quinones once again played strong for the Crusaders with 113 yards on 15 carries and 3 TFLs worth 15 yards among his 6 solo tackles. This guy plays for keeps and add that to his talents and he's one of the City's better juniors. Jr. QB Brian Hennessey struggled, but did have nice cohesion with jr. WR John Landis (5/102). It'll be interested to see how both teams are going forward as Judge still has in division its backyard battle with Ryan and a battle for first place next week with La Salle while Roman has Ryan next week and then a hungry Prep team the following week that should be coming off of 2 straight Ws; and they may be still without Keir.

AA's NOTES: You gotta love Roman's defensive playmaking ability. All season their D s had a knack for making plays, some of which lead to TDs (3 of them today)... Its always good to see great former players giving back to their schools and in this case it's coach Joe McCourt, a first magnitude star at RC and Lafayette giving back. It was also good to see one of my favorite players in my time covering the Pub, Joe DiGrazio, helping out at Lincoln where he was a star LB. It always good when the kids can relate to their coaches... The powerful Gallagher is a prospect to watch as he mixes that strength with size and athleticism. One of the JV kids on Judge's sideline quipped, "Look, Gallagher's arms are the size of my legs."

OCT. 8

PUBLIC LEAGUE GOLD

Northeast 43, Lincoln 18

And the Offense arrives... That would be the headline for a story on this one as the Vikings' O has been stagnant early on this season. Luckily, the Black and Red have been successful despite their offensive woes as they are still undefeated in League play as they continue their collision course with the Mighty GW Eagles of the even DEEPER Northeast. Anyway, that showdown looms two weeks from now in the season Finale! The Vikings racked up 33 first half points en route to a 33-0 lead at halftime basically slamming the door on the extremely young Railplitters. Soph. RBs Marquis Edwards (20) and Shimeek Carter (34) opened the scoring with quick TDs. Then impressive-looking soph. QB David Pulliam (6-2 190, Returning from injury for his first game of the season) tossed a way-too-easy 24-yard TD pass to sr. TE-DE Deion Barnes on a catch and run slant over the middle. Then just minutes later Barnes combined for a sack with sr. LB Camille Max worth 8 yards on 3rd down and on 4th blocked the ensuing punt, scoop the ball up and ran in from 17-yards out. Then finally Carter closed out the half with a 1-yard run for a score. Lincoln had its moments in the second half as they continued to play hard despite being in a deep hole and that deserves to be commended. Soph. QB Miguel Sanchez will be a good one in time. He's both poised and tough and these rough experiences will only make him better down the road. Jr. DB Sincere Merced, sr. DB Kevin Stover (a decent looking prospect) and sr. DE Lester Fluellen all made picks. Fluellen's was tipped at the line and led to a 28-yard TD bull rush. Sr. S Lamont Davis made a pick for the Vikings and also showed well in his duty as the Wildcat QB (3-35, also tossed a LONG TD pass that was called back). The Mega-Prospect Barnes made 6 total stops, 3 were behind the line and one was a sack along with the blocked punt for a score.

AA's NOTES: NE had a very impressive lineman who's new to the program (Recent Roman Catholic transfer) in 6-3 300-lb jr. G Joshua Wallace (Solid, not fat and extremely STRONG). He's one to watch... Lincoln's 1st year head coach Ed McGettigan will have better days and probably sooner before later. He claims only two of his current Railsplitters were varsity contributors last season... Finally, the saga of the the ever-changing Viking Roster is finally coming to an end as it now looks as professional as ever and even has a cool Viking Mantra on it saying, "We are the Red and Black. We never take a step back. We are always ready to attack. In the end, no one will destroy our pack. We are the Red and Black." Coach Chris Riley jokes, "Now I gotta give coach (Jim) Adams a raise for this."

OCT. 2

PUBLIC LEAGUE AA

Bok 40, Del Val 28

Sorry again folks for being late with this one, I've been all over the place for the last week and now I'm finally settled. This was as wild a high school game as you'll ever see last just shy of three and a half hours and packing drama of all kinds from start to finish. Bok, players and coaches alike, was seriously juiced for this one as they looked to make things interesting and cause a 3-way division tie going down the stretch in Pub AA. Early on though it appeared that DV would control the show as sr. speedster (and Dobbins transfer) Aaron Baker (more on him later) took the second play from scrimmage 80 yards down the left sideline to strike first. Quickly, though, sr. FB-LB-Heart-&-Soul Khalil Neal (6-0 225) responded on the ensuing drive with a 1-yard bull rush for a score that capped a 10 play, 61 yard drive. Then the second quarter came and the Wildcats began to roll. Jr. QB Marquise Brown ran in a 1-yard sneak, then shortly after VERY impressive Frosh DB Michael Riley scoop and scored (aka returned a fumble -- smile) for 51-yards and finally at the end of the half Neal bulldozed again from a yard out and before DV knew it, the score was 28-6 at half. Just before half, there was a 20-minute delay as Baker went down with what looked like a concussion. The ambulance had to be summoned to take him off the field. Baker is as feisty as they come and had been involved in 3-4 straight rough exchanges with some big dudes and he only goes 5-6 142. Then shortly after the 2nd half began soph. DB Rasheed Cade went down and out cold after laying a helmet to helmet hit on a runner. Again the medics had to be called and this time things were even more emotional as Cade has a twin brother, Rashan, on the team and he was very charged up about the situation and rightfully so as this one looked even more serious than Baker's injury... Let's hope and pray both young men are doing better... DV fought hard in the second half and never gave up although the Wildcat early lead proved to be TOO much in the end. Sr. QB Keith Page went out slinging as he passed 17-for-27, 221 yards. He tossed a 26-yard TD pass to sr. WR Brad Wilson (5/74). Sr. WR Rashaan Walker caught 6 balls for 58 yards and D-I Prospect TE (also and probably projected DE) Heleaince Gates caught 3/56. Gates was the leader on D as well with a 37-yard fumble return for a score. He's a prospect because not only is he big/strong/athletic but he runs like a kid that goes 5-9 170 not 6-4 230! For Bok, Neal was the consummate leader on both sides of the field. I LOVE standing on the sideline to hear how some kids interact with coaches and teammates and this guy gets an A+. As a captain, he's got total control of his mates while knowing/understanding when to encourage, to ream and to console. He's the BEST captain I've seen all year and it shows as his coaches have 100% faith in him to get the job done. His personality is infectuous and his play did all the talking for him here: 14 carries for 107 yards and 3 TDs (also 2 conversion runs). His backfield mate jr. RB Shaquil Sammons (16-140) made half of his money on 1 carry, a 70-yard burst for a score. The Wildcats also have a VERY impressive two-way end prospect in jr. Jihad Ward (6-6 245) who is an absolute menace coming off the edge.

AA's NOTES: Again I apologize for not getting to this earlier. This was probably the best game I've seen this season thus far as both teams played for keeps while in midseason form... Khalil Neal for being a great leader and the Bok sideline for being the best I've seen to date this season. I hope players around the city are reading because these are things that are very important. You NEVER know who's watching you and who can help you so its always a MUST to be on your better-than-best behavior. Football is synonymous with respect and discipline and quite frankly some of the sidelines that I've been on this season for one reason or another have been a JOKE and some even worse... I saw another game last weekend that I won't report on as Overbrook beat Germantown 32-20 late Friday night in a Gold Division Clash.

SEPT. 24

PUBLIC LEAGUE GOLD

Northeast 14, Overbrook 0

Welcome to the Twilight Zone! Sometimes you just can tell that things aren't going to be normal and this was one of those nights. As soon as this one began and the clock didn't start for 3 plays I said OK what's going on? Another Only in the Pub moment was the answer I got when I posed the question to the line judge. Apparently, the clock operator said, after the Franklin-Boys' Latin game, that he had to use the bathroom and NEVER returned. The line judge cracked, "That must have been one heck of a crap he had to take!" Oh and midway through the 3rd quarter after what sounded like gunshots (but I bet were firecrackers) rang from just outside the field on 16th and Hunting Park, the entire Overbook sideline ran across the field and hopped the gates into the locker rooms causing a 15-minute delay. Yes this was a wild one to say the least. The game itself was basically a dud. The Panther offense never got started and their D was solid, but not quite solid enough to stop the Vikings from doing enough to get the win. The NE D was once again staunch! It seems like they have two of every position and all are interchangeable. Oh yeah and they also have 6-5 230-lb DE Deion Barnes, who some feel is the state's BEST college prospect. Today Penn State's top assistant Coach Ron Vanderlain was here in person to try and sway the long/strong DE with so much upside to fulfill. Barnes was in on 9 total stops with 4 going for losses worth 23 yards and also forced a key fumble that swayed momentum back in the Viking favor the very next play after the Panthers had taken one away. By the way, I thought he could have played better, but admittedly its tough when offenses key on him either by doubling, holding or running in the opposite direction from him. Soph. RB-DB Marquis Edwards (19-73) ran hard and showed well overall once again. NEs TDs were scored by soph. QB Harold Alexander (a 1-yard sneak) and sr. RB Camille Max (10-yard stumble). Sr. WR Rashaun Sligh (6-2 210) caught 3 balls for 31 yards. The best Panther IMO was sr. two-way tackle BIG Edward Mills (6-4 300). He looks to be a Football novice and has a bright future. I also liked the passion that sr. DE/LB Donte Glover (6-1 220 also Basketball player) brought. He was in on 6 tackles all in the second half, 2 were TFLs, one of them a sack.

AAs NOTES: NE's Coaches said it best as this one wound down, "Let's just face it, we are an UGLY team!" A win is a win though folks... The ever-quotable coach Chris Riley gave me some good ones. His best two, "Tell Ted the roster is much better today, but he should come see us next week when I have it in 3D!" and when sr. WR-DB-PR Jamal Garner lost a decent return to a fumble Coach Riley shouted out, "I'm searching the waiver wire this week for a returner!" It's always good to stand around Chris because you never know what he'll say... The Vikings may well have what it takes to give the heavily favored Eagles of GW a run if their offense catches up to the defense and some of its key players tighten up their acts. There was way too much negative attitude last night on the Viking sideline that could have been channeled onto the field.

SEPT. 24

PUBLIC LEAGUE SILVER

Olney 22, Mastbaum 0

Phew this was a GOODIE! Both teams gave their all here in 90+-degree September heat. Don't be fooled by the final score as this one was still in doubt heading into the 4th quarter when the Trojans clung to a 8-0 lead. Olney's hero today, as he's been for the last 4 years was sr. CB Jaron "Snoop" Turner. Today the Snoop Dog only picked off 4 (YES 4) Mastbaum passes! He now has 7 INTs in the season's first 4 games and 16 for his career (5 came as a Freshman!). This kid is extremely aggressive from the safety position and also as smart as they come. He does have a big advantage because his other positions are QB and WR, but still it's almost unfair with him roaming around out there. Oh and by the way, Picks 2, 3 & 4 were all in the 4th quarter and pick #3 only went 96-yards the other way for six and pretty much sealed the deal. Pick #4 was also clutch as he caught it in his own end zone for a touchback to halt the final Panther rally. Turner also carried the ball 6-57 and threw for 57 yards (3-for-5). Oh and he's one of the league's better return men. The next best Trojan today was jr. RB Erike Taggart (3-77, 2 TDs, 1 catch for 28 yards). Every time this guy touched the ball something good happened. His TDs covered 14 and 60 yards, the latter was the cherry on top of the sundae. The Trojan D caused 7 Turnovers total. Sr. DB Chris Fountain also had a pick while both sr. LB Joe Bryant & sr. DE Nate McIntyre recovered fumbles. The Panthers were no easy out by any stretch. Twin brothers Tyree and Tyrin Stone-Davis didn't have their best games, but they are talented enough to cause a scare to anyone at this level and that they did. Tyree S-D, the QB, ran for 42 yards and passed 7-for-21, 134 yards (He wasn't the QB for picks 3 and 4 to Turner as he went down with cramps just before). His favorite target of course was his bro Tyrin S-D (3/81, but should have been 6/130+ due to some easy drops). Tyree made a pick on D as did VERY physical sr. CB Sean Hubert (6-2 190).
AA's NOTES: Turner is clearly stating his case to be the League's (City's) top cover corner! You just can't teach what he has for the position: skill, technique, mentality and play-making ability. He's 4-for-4 and deserves long looks from colleges even at the D-I level especially because of the fact that he's got so much room to grow physically (5-9 165) and from a football standpoint. Add the fact that he's also versatile (standout return man and possible wildcat QB) and that only enhances his value as one of Philly's MOST versatile prospects... The Trojans are now 4-0 with 3 shutouts so far this season. Admittedly the competition has been weak to date, but next week a challenge looms with upstart Furness, which is also undefeated and surging behind its gem of a RB prospect jr. Sharif Smith. Should be a goodie and probably will be for the Silver Division Title... College scouts should make their way over to Mastbaum as they have some serious eye candy. As I said last week between the Stone-Davis twins who no doubt in my are mind D-I prospects and the physical corner Hubert along with tough sr. CB Jacob Lockley there's a lot to like... This was a VERY competitive game! It felt like both clubs laid it all on the line and there's NEVER anything wrong with that. I could watch both of these teams every week.

SEPT. 17

SEPT.11
NON-LEAGUE
Penn Wood 27, Penn Charter 26
Whatta great game! PC made its season debut with a splash against the boys from Lower Delco as this one went back and forth throughout a wildly exciting second half. PW is gonna have a lot of football fun this season as they have their best group in some time led by Penn State bound Sr. 2-way end Shawn Oakman (6-8 250) and 3 other good seniors (FB-LB Kavonne Nottingham, RB/WR-LB Kali Smith & DB Wah'Fe Granger) who all should play scholarship Football in college... PCs big star is Sr. QB John Loughery (6-5 225) who's seriously hungry this year in his quest for a D-I scholarship. He looked good here in passing 22-32, 247 yards and 4 TD passes. His one INT (to Nottingham) was as costly as it gets as it came at the 1:17 mark of the 4th on PCs last ditch drive. You gotta love the way JL spread the ball around as 7 different receivers caught passes. The best of the bunch, soph. WR Daryl Worley (6-2 160) is a serious gem who should be amongst the state's best in the not too distant future. Worley caught 6 balls for 114 yards with 3 TDs (14, 45 & 18). Worley is thin yet highly athletic. Two of the TDs were leaping grabs, one of which he jumped over double coverage to make the snag! Sr. WR Joey Sankey (6/69), a lacrosse star, is also a tough cover in the slot. The other TD was a 4-yarder caught by Sr. TE Blair Bodek. Soph. RB Eric Neefe (5-10 205), a SJP transfer, was the workhorse with 15-62. Oakman actually made the difference here by blocking 2 PC extra points, but the bruiser Nottingham ran for the game winning score with 1:23 left. Smith, the Patriots' big play guy, had 2 rushing TDs and well over 100 yards on the ground.
AAs NOTES: The Quakers and Loughery should have a fun year as they challenge for Inter-Ac supremacy. Loughery has plenty of weapons at his disposal so it should be fun.

SEPT. 10
NON-LEAGUE
Judge 7, Northeast 0
Sorry everyone for being late with this past weekend's reports. The Battle of the mid-Northeast has become a friendly rivalry and I love nothing more than watching rivals get after it. This year's version of the Crusaders are a spit and grit bunch that will smack you now and ask questions later. However, these grinders won almost solely behind some trickery. Sr. handyman Connor Thompson fielded a short punt for a fair catch late in the second, putting his team on the Viking 24. On the very next play CT was inserted as the wildcat QB and ran to the left for 14 yards to the 10. Then up the right middle for 6 and then back to the left for the game's lone score. The most impressive Crusader for my money was Jr. RB-LB/S Raul Quinones (18-63 rushing, a pick and plenty of key stops on D). Rauuuuuuuuul plays with a serious edge that forces you to notice his work, which makes him a prospect to watch in the junior class. Judge had 3 other picks: Two by Jr. DE Anthony Walker and another by Jr. DB Tim Mills. A 5th was caught and returned 64 yards for a TD by Sr. DB John Donohoe, but was called back for a roughing the passer call that knocked out NE soph. QB Harold Alexander (who's the back-up). The starter, soph David Pulliam, has been out since preseason, but could return soon. The 3rd stringer is another soph, Marc Prompt. Once he settled down he did an admirable job, even putting the Vikings in position to make a move. But he was victimized by some late drops. The Viking offense was led by impressive soph. tailback Marquis Edwards (13-70), who runs with both speed and power. The D was led by superstar Sr. DE Deion Barnes (6-5 230). Barnes led the way with 2 sacks among 11 total stops while also blocking a punt.
AAs NOTES: Don't feel bad for the 0-2 Vikings as they are very young while also having a very athletic, swarming defense that really never allowed FJ to get in rhythm. Edwards doubles as a high level DB as does another soph, Shimeek Carter and Sr. Lamont Davis, a West Catholic transfer. Then there's the long and strong Barnes, who according to one publication is the area's top college prospect while also being the state's #1 DE prospect and #2 overall. His finalists are: Penn State, Michigan, South Carolina, Georgia, Pittsburgh & West Virginia... Judge is my kinda team, one that should be very competitive in the CL. They should be able to give La Salle, Prep and Roman all a good game.

SEPT. 3
NON-LEAGUE
Gratz, 66, Fels 36
Over the years, I'm sure there have been shootouts known to take place in the Nicetown section of North Philly, but this one almost left me dead (smile). This FNF Game at Gratz' Marcus Foster Stadium capped a 14-hour work day for yours truly on Friday night and man was I tired after watching this wild game, which took 3 hours and 6 minutes to complete. Luckily I live for this as High School Football has become my Love over the last few years (Sorry Hoops -- ;-) --) . In terms of game play, it almost felt like I was in the middle of a Video Game playing Madden '11. The Bulldogs opened the show behind 2 straight picks on Fels first two possessions by sr. DB Terence Roseboro putting Gratz deep in Panther territory. Scat-backs Sr. Jamir Anderson (14-141 2TDs, 2/15 TD) and jr. Derrick "Roach" Steele (another TD from 6-yards out later) skated in from 1-yard out to cap both drives. Wait a minute. Isn't Gratz' top returnee 1000-rusher sr. Spencer Moses? Why, of course, but he was benched for the first quarter for a minor team violation. Moses' second carry from scrimmage produced an untouched 53-yard score and his third touch went 79 yards to the house. At the end of the day, Moses ran 13 times for 240-yards and 4 TDs while also catching a pass for 37 yards and it could have easily been more yardage had he not battled serious cramping throughout, causing him to honestly probably play slightly less than 2 quarters, PHEW! Sr. QB Khalil Brown was solid on both sides of the ball as he is this team's linchpin. As weird as it sounds, Fels struck me tonight as not being that bad. With an adjustment here or there, they could be decent in their division in time. You gotta love spunky sr. QB Tyree Rucker. Here he ran for 64 yards on 12 totes while also passing for 125 yards and 2 scores to his favorite target sr. multi-purpose guy Jared Hines (5/84, 6-47 rushing). These two are a dangerous tandem as they both possess speed and brass...
AA's NOTES: Gotta give props to the Bulldog O-Line for racking up 518 total yards (455 rushing & 63 receiving). They are all srs: C Jamel Morgan (6-1 345), Gs Khari James (5-10 225) and Nate Gore (6-2 240) & Ts LaQuan "Yannie" Everrett (6-2 350) and Qualef Edwards (6-4 325). Trust and believe that McDonald's at Broad and Hunting Park is doing no shortage of business (smile). These guys are a combined 1,485 lbs with an average of 297 per man!... This is Gratz' best team in some time probably since the '02 squad that featured all-timer RB-CB Tyree Watson, whose single season rushing record is well in jeopardy with a healthy season by Moses... There was a great Friday night crowd on hand to take this one in; probably filled 65-70% of Gratz' stands...

SEPT. 3
NON-LEAGUE
Central 12, Franklin 6
This wasn't a bad way to start the season as this one was both spirited and competitive. The Lancers truthfully were just a shade better here. Central's headliner this year is Sr all-purpose guy Ravone Cornish (17-76 rushing & a 64-yard passing TD strike to Jr. WR Cebastion Glosy as the wildcat QB). "Ray" is both speedy and brassy and looks to be hungry which is a great recipe for success... Central also may be home to the smallest starting QB in city history in Sr. Christian Gonzalez (5-2 119 listed). "Gonzo" wasnt overmatched either as he too passed for a score, an 8-yarder to strong looking prospect Jr. WR Richard Drayton (6-0 205) who also made a drive stopping pick at the end of the 1st half on D from his OLB spot. Franklin has an extremely young team that is also a very small team only one guy listed over 200-lbs... That one guy is a good one though in Jr. Two-way tackle Demetrius Town (6-2 302). The big man has 3-4 DT/NG written all over him because of his strong/wide lower base. The Electrons also have a plethora of tall, lean wideouts for shifty Sr. QB Anwar Mathis to work with. Sr. Chris Sullivan (6-2 180) leads that group. He opened the scoring here catching a 6-yard TD from Mathis. The best of that bunch however looks to be soph. Jonathan Parker (6-1 172, caught 3 balls for 29 yards).
AAs NOTES: This was a good start to reiterate what I stated earlier! There were many good young players and Central's field is one of the best to watch a game because of the student support that they get. Now it's even better with the Lancers' brand spanking new stands... Franklin could be dangerous later in the season once coach Desmin Daniels probes the building for some more bodies, particularly some lineman. Only 6 players are officially listed as grunts on the roster though 3-4 more have lineman numbers... Now it's on to the next one as the trail continues...