Just once this season, did Matt Ryan feel like asking permission to fire the football 30 to 40 times?

"Surprisingly not," he said with a laugh.

When people know a quarterback has accepted a Division I-A scholarship even before his senior season, they expect to him to ring up big numbers.

Ryan could have, but he was more focused on earning a ring.

The 6-5, 205-pound Ryan is bound for Boston College. He'll go there as a champion.

Saturday, visiting Penn Charter (8-1 overall) dumped Germantown Academy, 35-21, to capture the Inter-Ac League title at 4-0 and raise its edge in the nation's oldest continuous scholastic football rivalry to 72-33-11.

Ryan was not exactly busy. He wasn't even overly productive, passing 7-for-11 for 34 yards.

All he mostly did was hand off to senior tailback Tony McDevitt, then marvel and applaud.

Ryan was satisfied, even ecstatic, as a bit player - a shade beneath his usual status as one of the guys - in his final game. That spoke volumes.

"It's nice to put up big numbers, don't get me wrong, but it's more important to win," Ryan said. "I love to win. I find that much more enjoyable than worrying about statistics.

"How can I complain? We're 8-1. We're the Inter-Ac champs. We showed great balance on offense and look what it got us. "

Ryan finished the season 64-for-125 for 1,048 yards and 12 touchdowns. Given the chance to be pass-happy, he might have doubled that output. Junior wideout Sean Singletary radiates special. Receivers John Samuel and Rob Hitschler also have talent.

"Matt is so unselfish," said coach Brian McCloskey, a former star QB at PC and Ursinus. "He's not concerned with numbers. He just wants to win.

"Maybe I'm too conservative. In my early days, I had a strong belief that if you had a great quarterback and one great receiver, hey, you couldn't be stopped. "

He laughed. "Maybe I got influenced too much by Bill Gallagher [PC's ex-coach, later McCloskey's assistant and a running back in his playing days]. "

McDevitt, a 6-foot, 205-pound senior headed to Duke for lacrosse (and maybe football), scorched GA's defense early and often, carrying 26 times for 328 yards and four TDs (of 61, 38, 48 and 22 yards). He lost a fifth when the referees ruled he fumbled just before reaching the end zone.

It was the third time in 10 years a PC runner joined the 300-Yard Club against GA. Brandon Shepherdson (344 in '93) and James Berry (346 in '98) were the first two to frolic.

The grunts: center Colin Hitschler, guards Chris "Chips" Johnson and Jarrod Williams, rotating tackles Mike Boles, Eric Feinschil and Richard Bryan. The fullback was Paul Sweeney.

"We knew we'd come out and use the run, maybe to set up the pass," McDevitt said. "But if the run keeps working, you've got to stick with it.

"Having Matt Ryan back there is such a big deal. Teams can't put eight, nine people in the box. He'll throw the lights out. "

Ryan said of McDevitt: "It's unbelievable to see the moves he makes and how hard he runs. It's like he refuses to go down. "

Committing early, Ryan said, gave him an opportunity to relieve pressure and focus solely on PC's season. He had wonderful QB tutoring from McCloskey and assistant Mike Samuel, a former PC and Wisconsin star. McCloskey's brother, Chuck, another aide, was also a QB (at North Catholic. )

Ryan's uncle, John Loughery, also a PC whiz, played QB at Boston College just before Doug Flutie.

Then there's Mike Ryan, Matt's brother. He was Malvern Prep's QB in '98 and '99.

"He wanted to come to PC, but wound up there," said Ryan, who lives in Exton and is also a vital cog in basketball (forward) and baseball (shortstop). "As soon as he got out of Malvern, he gave me permission to try to beat them. "

In three starting seasons, Ryan went 204-for-408 for 2,984 yards and 22 TDs.

"I feel like I have tons of room to improve, but that I've made good strides," he said. "Definitely so in the leadership area. Like coach says, games have peaks and valleys. As the QB, you have to take the team through that. "

And pursue a letter (W) more than numbers.