OCT. 27
CATHOLIC AA
Conwell-Egan 34, Neumann-Goretti 33
  This win did not give C-E a spot in the Catholic League playoffs, so why were the coaches, players and fans going crazy as the clock reached 0:00? Well, four teams qualify for the District 1/12 subregional playoffs, which will start in two weeks, and the Eagles almost certainly will appear (barring circumstances that would be too shocking to even detail -- smile). And how did the Eagles earn their spot? In stirring fashion! As in, they rallied for 20 points in the last 16:48 to overcome a 33-14 deficit. Here we go . . . A 6-yard TD run by frosh RB Tyliek Raynor, followed by Michael Beck's kick, made it 33-14 with 4:48 left in the third quarter. C-E slapped together an 80-yard scoring drive and the big play was a 31-yard, streak-pattern pass from sr. QB Kyle Techtmann to sr. WR Tim Bolton. A tacked-on penalty placed the ball at the 12 and Techtmann, after a fake dive, scored on a 7-yard keeper two plays later. He then added a conversion flip to sr. RB Chaz Cason. Just three plays later, C-E scored again as frosh LB Jordan Burney batted a pass and soph LB Wyett McLeod roared 25 yards into the end zone with the resulting interception. The conversion pass failed, but 23.7 left in the third the Eagles were within 33-28. Again C-E's defense came through. On third-and-2, sr. LB Joe LaRosa limited soph QB Ray Lenhart to a 1-yard gain and Cason's 16-yard punt return gave C-E the ball at its 32. On play No. 5, Techtmann stumbled during a 10-yard keeper and grabbed at his right knee as he hit the turf. The sequence had that uh-oh look, but Techtmann was able to walk off. His replacement was lefty Mike Alley, a promising frosh. C-E needed to negotiate 38 more yards. Cason picked up 11 and 1. Sr. Dan McLaughlin added 11 more. Alley added an 8-yard keeper (as a teammate yelled, "That's Tebow right there!) and Cason ran for the 7-yard score. A trick play was used on the conversion -- didn't work (smile) -- but the Eagles owned a 34-33 lead. N-G rallied big time. There was a 49-yard, down-the-middle completion to sr. TE Sharif Custis (jr. DB Marcus Moore made a TD-preventing tackle) that placed the ball on the 30. Two plays after LaRosa registered a 5-yard TFL, Lenhart hit Sharif's younger brother, jr. WR Jamal, for 22 yards to the 13. Raynor ran six yards to the 7. Frosh Khalil Roane added a 2-yarder to the 5. Roane again got the ball and, pop!, soph LB Joe Ruggiero dropped him for a 2-yard loss. Would the Saints run a regular play? Go for a field goal? The distance would have been 24 yards, only four more than a PAT. Beck had hit three PATs, but also had drilled one into the line. The Saints decided to go for it. Lenhart went back to pass and LaRosa applied heavy pressure. Lenhart, showing a good presence of mind, was able to notice sr. Eric Neill standing somewhat alone toward the back middle part of the end zone. There was a mob scene in between, however, so he had to lob the ball rather than fire it. As Neill tried to catch it, he was absolutely drilled by sr. DB Bobby Simcox. The ball popped loose. Sixty-eight seconds remained. N-G forced a punt and got one last chance with 7.9 left. Lenhart maneuvered to his right and McLaughlin knocked the ball free. Soph lineman Joe D'Emilio was able to pick it up and rumble for about five yards before being swarmed. The Eagles celebrated with gusto. Much earlier, N-G had gone 10:48 without running a play! Lenhart threw an incomplete pass 8:18 before halftime and Roane lost one yard 2:30 into the third quarter. However, the Saints scored two TDs in that span thanks to Raynor's 83-yard kickoff return and Roane's 39-yard punt return. As Raynor gathered in the ball on his return, and then steamed downfield, an assistant kept yelling, "House it . . . House it . . . House it." As in, of course, "Take it to The House." Cason (17-95) and Techtmann (14-71), the son of coach Jack Techtmann, led C-E's rushers. The attention-grabbing grunts are sr. Gs Shane Phillips (6-5, 305) and Ian Loveless (6-5, 240). Raynor (14-53) led N-G's rushers while Lenhart passed 6-for-14 for 158 and one TD apiece to J. Custis and sr. WR Eric Holt (3-67).

OCT. 27
PUBLIC AA SEMIFINAL
(At Germantown)
Del-Val 14, Prep Charter 8
  This would have been an all-time holy crap! If Del-Val had lost this game on the heels of a last-second blunder, the devastation would have been monumental. Here we go . . . With 11 seconds left, after incurring a delay, D-V had the ball on its 44. Jr. P Nate Barnes went back to punt and, oops, the snap sailed far over his head. The ball was close to the goal line by the time Barnes reached it and, of course, the best move would have been to kick it through the back of the end zone for a safety. But who knows how often he'd ever faced that situation? Who knows whether his coaches had prepared him? Anyway, Barnes picked up the ball and was tackled at the 14 with 1.1 remaining. PC would have a last chance. Soph QB Dion Volo tossed one toward the left corner. It wasn't on target. The only two guys truly in the vicinity were Barnes and sr. CB Rasheed "Twin Two" Cade. They combined to knock down the ball and the Warriors went nutso. Phew! Barnes and Cade had been central all game long. Barnes, usually a running back, was pressed into QB duty -- he's the third-stringer -- after sr. CB Rashan "Twin One" Cade separated his left shoulder while making a tackle shortly into the game. Barnes hadn't thrown a pass all season and, honestly, he wasn't exactly Mr. Pinpoint (1-for-7, two picks). Ah, but he did make a perfect, clear-the-defender heave on a left-corner fade to a leaping Twin Two 6:13 before halftime and the result was a 15-yard TD. And he did add 45 rushing yards. The TD brought D-V within 8-6 and the conversion pass failed. PC had scored 6 1/2 minutes earlier on a 4-yard run by sr. RB Jovan Matthews (19-92); sr. RB Anthony Wyche (18-115) tacked on the conversion. The decisive score came 53.7 before halftime. Jr. Solomon Fitchett exerted strong pressure and batted Dolo's pass just after it left his hand. The ball  popped up rather high and was gathered in at the 21 by soph William Turner. No one was nearby and he had no trouble racing to the end zone. Barnes then hit Cade for two points. PC had five possessions in the second half. Results: punt, INT by Cade at the 1, broken-up pass by Cade at the goal line, leaping INT by Cade at D-V's 4, aforementioned breakup by Cade-Barnes in the end zone. Jr. Antron Smith (8-115) and sr. Donte Walker (8-90) wound up with good rushing numbers thanks to two long runs apiece -- 40 and 35 for Smith; 48 and 31 for Walker. D-V's grunts were frosh C Tyler Perkins, soph G Andrew Jackson, sr. G Daravann "Chino" Lok, and sr. Ts Shawn Thompson and Tyrique Wallace. For PC, which sorely missed injured soph RB-DB Asa Manley, soph LB Marky Toe recovered a fumble while DBs Eddie Thomas (sr.) and Curan Simmons (jr.) had INTs. Walker, a LB, posted the first of D-V's four pilfers. PC's line guys: soph Charles Anderson, srs. Jahbree Sullivan (6-6, 275) and Faheem Williams, frosh Marcus Bryant, jr. Eric Taylor and soph Macquel Hardy. (PC's numbers are some strange script that's tough to read and the guys were often speeding to the line and standing very close together. Plus, there appeared to be some flip-flopping). PC had won the teams' first meeting, 22-6.

OCT. 25
NON-LEAGUE
Fels 42, University City 12
  My deepest sympathies go out to Fels sr. Nadir Hudson. Nah, nobody in his family died, but Nadir's own heart was pulled out of his chest, then stomped on. This is year No. 7 for Fels in Pub football and only four PATs have been kicked. They were posted in 2009 -- two vs. Edison, two more vs. Prep Charter by a guy named Charles Quick (wearing No. 79) -- and Lord only knows how many others were even tried in that or any other season. Then came today and this non-league affair at West Philly's field. With 1:29 left in the third quarter, Fels sr. DB Dexter Smith returned an interception 48 yards for a TD. Coach Bill Harrigan decided to give Hudson an opportunity. Out of the hold of star sr. lineman Dezhaunte White, Hudson approached the ball and, boom!, he crushed that jawn!! Ha, ha. The sequence took place at the north end of the field. The ball went sailing across Locust Street and crashed into the side of a house. At the level of the second floor, no less. Hudson was happy like crazy! He went running toward the sideline and was greeted by delirious teammates/coaches . . . Oops. One problem. The PAT was negated because the Panthers had only six players on the line of scrimmage. The extra-point unit set up again, this time from the 8 instead of the 3. Hudson made reasonably solid contact, but pulled the ball to the left. He got one more chance. With 5:15 left in the game, backup sr. QB Marc Prompt whipped a 34-yard scoring pass to jr. WR Kennon Whitaker. This happened at the Spruce Street end. Hudson set up shop. The process did not go smoothly. Took too long. Hudson kicked it and, thump!, sr. Matthew Gilliam registered a block. Anyway, here's VERY MUCH hoping that Nadir gets more opportunities as the season winds down and is able to join the Successful PAT Club . . . Meanwhile, we had an appearance by the ever-popular Only in the Pub app. Rumor has it that AD Mark Heimerdinger, also the basketball coach, ordered a bus for the wrong day (smile). The Panthers had to scramble and didn't arrive until 3:10. The game started at 3:18 and ended at 5:50 and, yes, it was nearly dark. Fels is AAAA and competes in the better division (Gold) and UC, having dipped in enrollment, is now in AA. Nevertheless, I was thinking the Jaguars would at least be able to hang and maybe even create some drama due to a respectable passing game. Alas, the linemen experienced protection letdowns, the QBs occasionally held onto the ball too long and the good receivers were not as savvy on defense. DN ink went to sr. handyman/DB Jamiel Hines, who turned four catches into 77 yards and two short TDs. He attends Philadelphia Academy Charter and -- how cool is this? -- gets out of school at 11 a.m. on game days!! His brother, Jared, was a star wideout for the Panthers in 2010 and helped Tyree "Bam" Rucker break the Pub record for passing yards in a season. Frankford's Tim DiGiorgio then slapped around that mark last fall. Sr. QB Isaiah Brinkley, a lefty, passed 12-for-18 for 172 yards and three TDs; the other one went to Hudson. The leading rusher, though he didn't make it into the end zone, was sr. Jeremiah Mathis (11-83). The grunts were White, jr. Gs Samir Peterson and Ruben Martinez, sr. T Deionte Johnson and soph T Alvin Johnson. White had an early TFL and sack. The Panthers scrambled for five interceptions -- two for Smith; one apiece for jr. DB Jylil Reeder, sr. LB Rodney Drayton and Johnson. For UC, sr. Yahmere Williams (5-for-15, 89) and jr. Karim Karamoko (6-for-17, 189) threw for one score each. The star receiver was sr. WR Raymond "Usher" Jefferson, who carries that nickname because he looks like the entertainer. (Dude's real name is Usher Raymond. Who didn't know that? Ha, ha.) Jefferson had five snags for 160 yards and his best was an 80-yard TD. He appeared to be FLYIN' downfield! Not sure what his 40 time is, but I'm guessing 3.7 (just kidding, but, again, he was FLYIN'!). Sr. WR Matthew Gilliam added three catches for 44 yards. UC's top lineman was two-wayer Davon Wise (6-3, 240). Sr. S Quahdire Gordon also delivered some healthy pops. It was great to see Rob Powlen, Robeson's basketball coach, and former William Penn hoops all-timer Anthony "Hubba Bubba" King. Late in the game, an adult female, rooting for UC, was upset about a call made by the line judge. She hollered, "What are you DOIN', ref?! Hangin' with the Republicans?" I mentioned the remark to the ref, who smiled and said, "I've been called worse."

OCT. 21
NON-LEAGUE
Wood 62, Carroll 7
  This is nothing I've confirmed, but I'm going to take a strong guess that sr. handyman Anthony Roakes is one of coach Steve Devlin's favorite players. Reason? He's small (listed at 5-7, 160, maaaaaybe), but, man, does this kid ooze brass, just as Steve did during his playing days at Ryan. When a team storms to a 55-point victory, all kinds of guys are heroes. But Roakes gets some leadoff love here because of how he performed on a pair of TDs. His first, a 33-yarder reception from frosh QB Tom Garlick, occurred on what strongly appeared to be a busted play. Garlick looked around for a while, then found Roakes, who'd created space for himself, over the middle. Anthony caught the ball and outraced not-exactly-inspired defenders to the end zone. His other score came on a 49-yard punt return. Though a perfectly formed right-side wall was crucial in getting Roakes to the end zone, he showed major brass merely catching the ball. A Carroll kid was running RIGHT toward him and had to be no more than three yards away (maybe two?) when the catch was made. Later he added a 36-yard return. Nice afternoon, young man! The other Viking to post two TDs was sr. FB Tyler Smith, and he did so on just two runs (15 and six yards). Wood, which had a MAJOR advantage in terms of size (and numbers), stormed to 42 points in the first half. It was limited to one score in the third quarter, but it, too, was impressive. On a 19-yard run, sr. RB Nick Singlar (transfer from C-E; Smith's previous school was Lansdale Catholic) was momentarily stopped by two-three guys at the 5. Then, bingo, he broke free and entered the end zone. Carroll finally experienced joy with 2:22 left when jr. Sean McMorran, the backup QB, motored 75 yards on a bootleg. As McMorran sat on the bench, trying to catch his breath, starting sr. QB Sal Bello walked over and said with a laugh, "That wasn't even close to the right play." Mike McKay, the offensive coordinator, was standing nearby. "Yeah, Sean misunderstood me," he said. "That was a bootleg, a play we don't even have. There's a headline for ya." Moment later, on Wood's next play, in fact, deep sub Allan Brown dashed 60 yards for a score. On trotted sr. Joe Santospago to kick the PAT (after sr. Nick Visco had gone 8-for-8.) Shank job. Joe must have been pretty upset with himself. On the kickoff, he uncorked a big-time hit on Carroll's return guy. The DN story focused on sr. WR-backup QB Chris Rahill, whose 11-year-old, special-needs brother, Fran, was one of the captains (as was Chris) and spent the afternoon on Wood's sideline serving as a waterboy/spirit guy. The big news out of Wood is that sr. Nick Arcidiacono, a Rutgers commit, is playing LB instead of end. He appears to be in better shape than ever and was very effective at reading plays, then flashing to the ball. Admittedly, Carroll experienced major blocking miseries. Counting sacks, Carroll lost yardage on 12 of its 22 first half rushes, and the final loss total was 18 plays. Two important players suffered injuries. Sr. WR Dan Bier banged his head against a teammate on a pass play and sr. RB Ryan Boornazian tweaked his knee. Barring major weather problems, this will likely be the only Sunday game of 2012. As always, the Wood folks did an excellent job with their Homecoming/Senior Day festivities. The king was lineman Dan Prieto.

OCT. 20
CATHOLIC AA
West Catholic 42, Neumann-Goretti 0
  You know how teams routinely stage tackling drills at practice? Well, in this one, especially early, it appeared West convinced N-G to help out with an avoid-tackles drill. N-G often had guys stopped and/or surrounded and failed, big time, to finish the job. Thus, over time, the Burrs wound up frolicking. Jr. TB Greg White, who appears to be one of those guys who truly relishes running the ball and everything the job entails, finished with 17 carries for 163 yards and five TDs. Four came in the first half and No. 4 was posted 14 seconds prior to halftime. (Actually, it wasn't. White was short by as much as a half-yard, but somehow was given credit for the six-pointer). Since the TD made it 36-0, meaning the mercy rule would be in effect for the second half, coach Brian Fluck told his backup QB, frosh Josh Holsopple, to take a knee on the conversion attempt. How often do you ever see that in the FIRST half? N-G's problems lingered into the very beginning of the third quarter as jr. Rae'Quan Williams caught the kickoff on his 27 and raced down the right sideline for a 73-yard score. Oops. A flag wiped out the score and put the ball on West's 45. No problem. White immediately zipped for a 55-yard TD, meaning the Burrs covered 132 yards on those two touches. Phew! With backups on the scene, West failed on its next series and when someone called for the punt team, assistant Eric Rutherford yelled, "PUNT team? That doesn't even sound right?" The former West-Penn player always comes out with some good one-liners. Later, as the Burrs tried to maintain the shutout, he hollered, "Let's keep the glaze on that donut!" One of West's late ballcarriers was a tiny frosh named Kershon Farmer. Though the roster lists him at 5-5, 130, Farmer said he's really 5-2, 110. Rutherford has dubbed him "Tiny Bubbles." Sr. T-E Dom Toney set the best defensive tone-y, logging two TFLs and a sack in the very early going. N-G was allllll fired up right before kickoff. The Saints had warmed up at the north end of the stadium, but when the Burrs ran onto the field right before kickoff, they stopped in the north end zone and had their psych-up party right there. N-G's coaches weren't happy and tried to use that for motivation. Late in the second quarter, there was a short delay so the line judge could have blood removed from his right ear. He'd been hit by a ball tossed toward the field by one of N-G's ballboys. The blood wasn't quite gushing, but it was more than a trickle. N-G basketball star John Davis handled PA duties before bailing out at halftime. No one gave him rosters, apparently, because I don't think he mentioned a name the whole time. Here's an example of his outstanding work: "West ball on the 23 . . . Run for 7 yards . . . West ball on the 16." Watch out, Dan Baker. Johnny D is comin' for your job! (smile). Frosh DB Khalil Roane had some nice moments for N-G. He forced and recovered an early fumble and soon thereafter made an interception on the 1. Major kudos to N-G sr. John Mastrando. John is one of the captains and was hoping to start at QB this season. That didn't work out, but he has remained on the squad and served as the long-snapper. He got to QB the Saints on their final possession and came oh-so-close to connecting with jr. WR Jamal Custis for what would have been a save-some-face, 19-yard TD with 2:12 remaining.

OCT. 20
PUBLIC AAAA GOLD
Central 36, Germantown 26
  Since Germantown had shown a respectable passing attack all season, a decent game was expected. We got one, eventually, but not until the Bears' THIRD quarterback began taking snaps (out of a shotgun formation). Jr. Cedric Wright was lifted at halftime. Soph Donovan Crabbe made a brief appearance, then coach Mike Hawkins and helpers went with a kid named Shaquil Jones. Not sure what grade he's in because he was not, it appears, on the roster when the season began, but his presence added some juice and helped to make things competitive. Oh, and so did jr. WR Delane Hart, a transfer from Dobbins. The 6-3, 176-pounder enjoyed a spectacular fourth quarter en route to finishing with six catches for 109 yards and one TD. He started with a 40-yard pickup down to Central's 5. First he fought for the ball, then carried two-three tacklers for the latter part of his journey. Jones ran in for the score, then Hart snagged the conversion pass. Later, Hart caught a 6-yard TD pass after it was deflected by TWO guys (one from each team, I'm pretty sure). On G-town's final drive, capped with a 17-yard TD pass to sr. TE Chris Rone, Hart made catches worth 17 yards (came back to leap for a popup) and 27 yards (reached around the defender). Though it's not common practice to highlight efforts by guys on the losing team to start off reports, such a switch is certainly warranted here. You showed a lot of Hart, young man (smile). Until G-town mustered the late burst, Central mostly had its way. Srs. Jesse Gillis (16-125) and Hakeem Ellis (14-48) ran for one TD apiece while jr. QB Jon Henderson (5-for-9, 94) posted scoring passes of 39 yards to jr. handyman Walter Pegues and seven to jr. TE Brian Moseley. The fifth TD was a 51-yard interception return by Ellis just 40 seconds prior to halftime. Wright was jostled just as he threw and Ellis was pretty much alone as the ball floated down into his arms. The game's first three possessions resulted in turnovers: strip by Central jr. LB Zach Pownall, recovery by jr. DT Sam Reid; interception by Bears sr. DB Kevin Norris; recovery by Ellis after a strip by Reid (and that set up the first TD, Ellis' 11-yard run). Pegues, like always, showed Magic Man qualities. He made himself WIDE open on his TD catch and there was even no one around him on a right-side conversion run. How does that happen? He also had a nifty punt return. Central's line featured sr. C Devin Cruz, sr. Gs Michel Okeke and Anthony Bannister, soph T Shaafiq Cooley and Reid at the other T. Defensively, sr. L Jimmy Cao had a pair of sacks while Pownall mixed a TFL with his sack/FF. Germantown's most active defender was sr. Gregory Miller. Often, he started off right along the line of scrimmage and I figured he was a DE or OLB. Nope, as noted by defensive coordinator Montik Goodwin, Miller's official position is safety. He made tackles on Central's first three plays and involved himself in many more (maybe a dozen total?). Sr. DT Avion Plummer (6-1, 340) posted a pair of nice stuff-it-ups in the late going. As the Bears ran out to their sideline shortly before gametime, sr. L Donavin Winckler bellowed, "We don't need men on our sideline! Men don't win championships! We need animals! We need beasts!" Ha, ha, ha. Good stuff!

OCT. 19
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Malvern 27, Penn Charter 20
  PC is now the only I-A school without a turf field and since it rained very hard, off and on, into the early afternoon, folks might have been expecting a slopfest. Not quite. Yes, there was some mud, but the field wasn't too messy at all and offensive entertainment was often available. Especially in the first half! The QBs -- Malvern sr. Billy "Moose" Ford and PC soph Pat McCain -- combined for 11 completions and the average gain was 33 yards! Phew! Second half? Things calmed down and the only score occurred with 2:00 left on a perfect 7-yard, left-side counter by jr. RB Troy Gallen. Why do we call it perfect? 'Cause he went untouched during the decisive dash. Here's the setup: On a third down play, an intentional grounding call against McCain was overruled and that left PC with fourth-and-two at Malvern's 43. The Quakers were the underdog, they'd just gotten a break (McCain HAD dumped the ball; luckily for him sr. WR Kevin Murphy was at least in the same zip code) and right away (this isn't a second guess) I thought they should have taken the chance and tried to extend the good vibrations. Instead, the snap sailed over the head of sr. P Tyler Gottlieb, who ran far behind the line of scrimmage and at least was able to get off a kick. It traveled only 7 yards beyond the line and jr. LB Hunter Paulus uncorked an 8-yard return to PC's 42. Staying exclusively on the ground, the Friars covered the yardage in eight plays. Gallen was given the ball on three of the last four plays; he also had pickups of eight and 11 yards. PC did get two more possessions; the second ended at 9.9 as sr. DB Eric Purnell made a sideline interception. SportsWeek ink went to Gallen, who bagged 192 yards of rushing (13-82, aforementioned TD) and receiving (3-110, two scores). We focused, in part, on how his dad (Mike) and brother (Tyler) were stars at O'Hara. Read the story to see why he chose Malvern (smile). Sr. FB Connor Bohs had Malvern's other score on a 1-yard burrow. Ford finished 8-for-13 for 166 yards with help from his grunts: sr. C Mike Panichelli, soph Gs Mike McCarthy and Jake Rebisz, and sr. Ts Joe Barrett and Dan Riordan. Rebisz was a replacement for sr. G Jordan Andrews, who'd suffered a late-second-quarter injury. For PC, McCain went 11-for-22 for 275 yards and all completions went to a pair of D-I commits. Sr. Daryl Worley (West Virginia) posted seven snags for 175 yards and two TDs (67 and 47 yards) while sr. TE/SB Mike McGlinchey (Notre Dame) turned four into 100. Worley mostly lined up at TB because star sr. rusher Eric Neefe was unavailable due to a concussion. And sometimes, McGlinchey lined up at slotback and inched, inched, inched along right behind the linemen, as a motion guy, so he could add extra blocking power for Worley (or act as a decoy with the play going the opposite way. "Glinch" is also a basketball player and agility is no problem, but still it was surprising to see him looking so athletic as he rolled downfield. Also, he THREW a pass. That's right, on its last-ditch possession, PC stationed Mike as the shotgun/wildcat snap-taker and he easily whipped one far downfield. Incomplete, but cool to see. McGlinchey and McCain are cousins of Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Ryan and guess what . . . Pat has already topped Matt in terms of one-game passing yardage! Matt's best effort as a Quaker was 198 vs. Episcopal in 2002, his senior season. "Patty Ice" outdid him by 77 yards! (smile) PC's school record belongs to yet another Matt Ryan cousin. In 2009, John Loughery, who's now at Elon, dropped 337 on Germantown Academy. This game started at 3:45 and required 2 hours, 29 minutes. It was very cloudy down the stretch and darkness was right around the corner. Like always, it was great seeing everyone associated with both coaching/support staffs.

OCT. 18
PUBLIC AAAA GOLD
Washington 23, Northeast 6
  Not exactly a classic, folks. Even though the game was played at night and the teams overwhelmingly can't stand each other, the attendance was surprisingly crappy and the on-field activities did little to stir the juices. Rain was talked about all day and perhaps that threat held down the crowd. It did rain, for a very short time, almost the instant the game began (at 6:30, even though the listed start time was 6 -- ugh!), but it was nothing heavy and had no effect on the outcome. What did? Washington's grunts. Thanks to sr. QB Daquan Bohannan and his assorted receivers, Northeast has enjoyed some passing success this season. Very early, however, the coaches seemed to realize Bohannan would not have enough time to do his thing, and/or would get crunched far too often, so the play-calling was very conservative. Yes, Bohannan threw 18 passes, but 11 came in the last two series when garbage time was in full effect. The rushing "attack," such as it wasn't, yielded 24 yards on the same number of rushes. GW's defense included sr. E Justin Moody (picked for national all-star game), jr. E Tyrone McNeil, soph T Dawayne Young, jr. T Zaire Hollerway, sr. OLB Sean Villafane, soph OLB Shawn Henderson, sr. MLB Melvin "Macho/Take My Picture!" Gonzalez, sr. CBs Rashaan Williams and Brandon Sykes, and sr. Ss Kendale Truitt and Al Augustine. Truitt had an interception while Young-Hollerway combined for a TFL, Hollerway notched a sack, Henderson hustled for a TFL, Williams did likewise and sub soph LB Davik Miller hustled for a 12-yard sack. DN ink went to sr. QB Dave Gavrilov, who is accustomed to playing the first half and then yielding to Augustine. This time, he played deep into the third quarter and finished 7-for-10 for 124 yards. He almost connected on two more long ones, also. Jr. RB Ken Everage posted a simply outraaaaaaageous catch of a semi-bomb off a streak pattern. He had to dive, and he wound up reeling in the ball one-handed. Very, very special. Sr. WR Joshua "Texas" Macauley, who moved here from the Dallas suburb of Arlington, had a pair of impressive snags, as well. The grunts were soph C Brandon Brown, Hollerway and jr. Stavros Leventis/Moody at guards, and McNeil and sr. Deya Mhiesen at tackles. They were effective, but not terrific, witness that no run went for more than eight yards until the waning moments. The backup QB was Augustine, who ran twice when he appeared to have at least semi-open targets and then threw a ball that was returned for a 52-yard TD (by jr. DB Natwan Curtis). Not Augustine's fault, folks. The ball clanged off the receivers's hands. Northeast had to go without star sr. DB David Pulliam, who's nursing a shoulder injury. On its very first play, Washington tried a double reverse to jr. WR Rasheed Black. Sr. LB Shahir Gates sniffed it out early and dumped Black for a 10-yard loss. One of the defense's few truly sparkling moments, actually. Washington also benefited from a productive return game. Williams had a 47-yarder with a punt. Truitt went 33 with a punt. Truitt went 52 with a kickoff. Late in the game, I overheard a Washington player saying this to assistant Hassan Brockman: "Get somebody in there for me. I have to take a dump." . . . Except he didn't say "dump." Ha, ha. Only in the Potty-Mouthed Pub!!

OCT. 13
CATHOLIC AAAA
SJ Prep 24, La Salle 16
  Wow and/or ouch. Those are two words that come to mind after watching this one. Wow is the better fit because of how many thousands of folks (5,000? 6,000? 7,000?) turned out on a chilly night at Plymouth-Whitemarsh and because the result confirmed the fact that the Hawks indeed are back and that the balance of power MIGHT be shifting. Repeat, might. "Undoubtedly" is always a dangerous word to use, so let's say these teams will "probably" meet again in the playoffs. The stands, of course, were gilled (as in, packed to the gills) and people were standing everywhere. The fence surrounding the track had people behind it all the way around; often two-three deep. All hillsides/slightest of inclines also were packed. As for ouch, that comes into play because the contest offered TWELVE turnovers. I thought a lower-level Pub team had been brought in to play an intra-squad scrimmage (smile). You knew something was up when the game's first four series resulted in cough-ups. The QBs, Prep jr. Chris Martin and La Salle sr. Chris Kane, tossed three interceptions apiece and each guy was victimized for a return TD. La Salle's pick-six came first, 7:26 before halftime, as sr. LB Mike Eife jumped on a quick out on the 20 and unfurled an 80-yard return to make it 7-3. The pick-six by sr. LB Todd Jones, who was sitting back in medium-depth coverage, came with 5:43 left in the third quarter, covered 51 yards and staked Prep to a 10-7 lead. Two-plus minutes later, jr. LB Zaire Franklin, impressive all night despite never-ending struggles with cramping, made a big pop on a middle screen and the Explorers were in business at the 6. On a run, Kane was dumped by sr. LB Tim Rafter for a 7-yard loss and La Salle wound up having to settle for a 27-yard field goal by sr. Ryan Winslow (Pitt). Just three plays later, soph RB Olamide Zaccheaus was stripped by Poquie on an 18-yard run and jr. DE Ryan Coonahan recovered. La Salle then came up with its best -- and only truly big -- play of the night, a perfect, 29-yard TD connection from Kane to sr. RB Jared Herrmann on a throwback to the left side. Winslow was unable to hit the PAT, leaving La Salle with a 16-10 lead, but then hammered his kickoff four yards into the end zone. Prep received exactly the big play IT needed on the first play of the fourth quarter as jr. WR Jawan McAllister streaked right down the right hash mark, roughly, and turned a perfectly thrown ball into a 42-yard gain. Martin burrowed in from the 2 five plays later and the kick by sr. Kyle Battin, who'd opened the scoring with a 35-yard field goal, made it 17-16 with 9:52 left in the game. At 5:40, Zaccheaus caught Winslow's 40-yard punt on Prep's 24 and posted a 21-yard return. Jr. RB Vincent Moffett, limited somewhat by minor dings, was clutch with a pair of runs to earn a first down. Martin added a 2-yard keeper and then, zoom, Zaccheaus ran for a 38-yard score with 4:08 left. As was often the case in the second half, a La Salle defender made reasonably early contact, but failed to wrap and also was left unsupported because second/third tacklers never arrived. On the kickoff, Battin mishit a squib and the popup barely traveled 10 yards. It wasn't handled, however, and Rafter recovered. There'd be no late drama. Though its offense at times was sloppy, the Prep did churn to 414 yards on 77 plays. Yes, 77!! Zaccheaus ran for 198 on 22 carries while Moffett had moments (14-52) as well. The grunts were sr. C Fran Grey, sr. Gs Matt McIntyre and Chris Koilor, sr. T David Tracz and soph T Jon Runyan (yes, that guy's son) while the TE was sr. Shane Williams (also a baseball star). This game was won on defense, however. While La Salle has a large and talented line, the group turned in a sub-par effort. The longest rushing play was an 11-yarder and the best through the air, aside from the TD to Herrmann, was a 14-yarder. Hard to believe, right? The Explorers averaged just 3.5 yards per play (to 5.4 for Prep). The Hawks' front four featured Williams and sr. Jimmy Mooney at Es, and sr. Paul Johnson and frosh Joe DuMond at Ts. The LBs were Jones, Rafter and sr. John Antiskay. The CBs were soph John Reid (two INTs) and Pat McCabe while sr. Dan Sherry (also the punter) and soph Thomas Johnson played safety. (Hopefully, all those names and positions match. If not, please speak up. Thanks!) To see a game with 132 plays, thanks to no-huddle, speedup offenses, was truly amazing. At one point I mentioned to Prep's team doctor that he might wind up treating spectators for exhaustion, let alone players. The game lasted 2 hours, 47 minutes! At least in the first half, Prep's sideline was crammed with youth league players and coaches.
  This note has been added to the Football City Records page . . .
  Most turnovers in game involving city's top-ranked teams -- 12
        In Week Seven, No. 2 St. Joseph's Prep beat No. 1 La Salle, 24-16. Each team committed six turnovers, with three apiece of
        interceptions and lost fumbles. For Prep, John Reid (two) and Todd Jones posted interceptions while Tim Rafter (two) and Dan
        Sherry recovered fumbles. Jones returned his pick for a TD. For La Salle, Mike Eife, Jimmy Herron and Trent Simmons
        posted interceptions while Mike Koller, Herron and Ryan Coonahan recovered fumbles. Eife returned his pick for a TD.
Highest number of games involved in simultaneous endings of streaks -- 43.
        On Saturday night of Week Seven, while losing to SJ Prep, 24-16, La Salle parted company with a 21-game Catholic AAAA
        winning streak (counting playoffs) and Ryan beat Judge, 32-31, to leave behind a 22-game losing streak in that same division.

OCT. 13
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Haverford School 10, SCH Academy 9
  Though this game offered just 19 points, it lasted for 2 hours and 32 minutes. Say what!? Also, though SCH ran a whole bunch more plays, 65 to 46, it gained only 32 more yards, 250-218. And then there's this: SCH sr. QB Michael Hayes was involved in 45 plays, running (or getting sacked) 17 times and uncorking 28 passes for a combined total of 188 yards. If he's still fast asleep come Monday, don't hold it against him, school officials. Ultimately, the game was decided 3:10 into the third quarter when a PAT was missed after Hayes burrowed 1 yard into the end zone to bring the Blue Devils/Hillers within 10-9. Tension remained in the air for the rest of the way, but not the high-level variety. Haverford got as close as SCH's 30 before losing the ball on a fumble; that was early in the fourth quarter. The BD/H's went three-and-out, T&O again, one-first-down-and-out (to only their own 40), and to HS' 48 in the waning moments before third- and fourth-down passes missed their mark. The Fords scored on the game's second possession as sr. K Aron Morgan, who doesn't use a block, buried a 43-yard field goal. Just two plays earlier, soph RB Philip Poquie (brother of La Salle DB Dad) had lost a 19-yard scoring scamper to a holding call. Morgan has been around for a while and his kicks have the boom! I don't remember it being particularly windy, but he sent the opening kickoff nine yards deep into the end zone. The one right after his field goal went to the minus-5. Four of the next six possessions were halted by turnovers as HS sr. CB Hannibal Mathis soared for a pick and fumble recoveries went to SCH soph LB Paul Dooley, HS jr. LB Jeffrey Odiorne and SCH sr. DB Clint Sanders (hit by Dooley). One of SCH's drives got to the end zone's doorstep, but star sr. LB Matt Galambos (Pitt) made a stop on third down at the 3 and sr. DE Stewart "Stewwwww!" Denious followed with another at that same locale. Dooley made his recovery two plays later at the Fords' 21, and sr. WR Bobby Keyes made a ground-level catch three plays later to place the ball at the 2. Hayes lost the handle on a right-side keeper, however, and Denious did his pounce-upon. Jr. QB Brendan Burke again lost possession five plays later and Sanders' recovery gave SCH another golden opportunity at the 11. Alas, an 11-yard TD run by sr. RB Forrest Rall went the down-the-drain route because of a hold and sr. K Andrew Marcantonio nailed a 30-yard field goal. Next? True excitement! Poquie gathered in the kickoff on HS' 13 and that proved to be a lucky number. Getting a good early block from quality sr. WR-DB Chris Morgan (3 catches, 70 yards), Poquie, ultimately, wound up along the left sideline (school building) and recorded an 87-yard, memory-making TD. I was standing on the opposite side, but it appeared a few/many guys had decent angles. That mad dash occurred 4:59 before halftime. With just 42.2 seconds left, SCH took over on its 41. There was a 24-yard pass to Keyes, a 10-yard run by Hayes (though a hold brought the ball back to the original line of scrimmage), a 13-yard keeper, a drop by Keyes on a would-be TD (he turned at the last second and was looking dead into the sun) and a 14-yard keeper. Marcantonio tried a 35-yard field and . . . ohhh, the ball ticked against the crossbar. Galambos finished with 99 yards on 13 carries and had some of his best hits in the second half. For SCH, Hayes ran 17-55 and passed 14-for-28 for 133 and Keyes (9-108) was his favorite/best target, by far. Each team has a very big offensive lineman. HS soph Chauncey Simmons goes 6-5, 310. SCH frosh Darian Bryant is even bigger at 6-5, 335. (He appears to be taller, also, but those are the listed dimensions.) The artwork on the front of the program, which celebrates HS' 125th football anniversary, was done by soph DB Austin "Hep" Hepburn. The Fords welcomed about 15 recruits and coach Michael Murphy, 20 minutes before the game, spent five minutes along the Fords' sideline speaking to the kids and their parents. At halftime, a bunch of 5- to 7-year-olds entertained the crowd with a quick game of flag football. Best wishes to SCH assistant John McArdle, who is recovering from shoulder surgery. All the best, John!

OCT. 12
PUBLIC AAAA SILVER
Mastbaum 40, Edison 0
  Talk about frustration . . . It's 9:13 as I begin this report and I KNOW there'll be an error in my story for SportsWeek. Why? Well, the deadlines are quite early and no one answered the phone in the office a shade after 9 o'clock. In the story, I mentioned that a kid named Deion Fisher played the wildcat snap-taker position in the waning moments as Edison tried to avoid the shutout. Before the game, I'd been handed a roster with names, grades and NOTHING else. That's right. No uniform numbers. Coach Al Coleman tried to help with the main guys and said No. 3 was Devonne Fisher. One problem: During the game his teammates were calling him Deon (that was how it was spelled on the roster). When he ran off the field at one point, I asked him to spell his first name and he blurted out quickly, "D-e-i-on." OK, so in the SportsWeek story, he was mentioned as Deion Fisher. After calling the office and starting this report, I updated Edison's TEAM PAGE and noticed that in some earlier games a kid named "Dion Nicholson" had logged some statistics while wearing, you got it, No. 3. A quick call was placed to Coleman. You got it again . . . No. 3 was Nicholson. Only in the Pub!!!! This game was over pretty much from the start. As you might have heard, Edison forfeited last week to Lincoln due to low numbers. The Owls dressed 28 players today, but it's strongly suspected many were in costumes. Inexperience is everywhere. Mastbaum scored on its first three possessions and, on the flip side, Edison failed to record even one first down until 2:23 remained in the third quarter. DN ink went to jr. QB Joseph Walker, who goes 6-4, 185 pounds, and has some interesting possibilities. This was the first truly chilly game day of the season and a stiff wind was blowing straight across the field toward Edison's sideline. Oh, and for the first half, the game ball didn't have enough air. Walker managed to have some success, eventually, while finishing 5-for-13 for 77 yards and one TD apiece to jr. RB Ahharan Barksdale (rushing: also 8-41, TD) and jr. WR Kamau Taylor. On that latter score, Walker dropped the snap and, in calm fashion, was still able to connect for the 33-yard score. Walker ran for a 20-yard TD on a designed keeper while starting RB Frank Quiles, a junior (8-75), and sub sr. FB Howard Brumskill added one TD apiece, also on rushes. The big-'uns were sr. C Jose Morales, sr. Gs Steven McCoy and Michael Herbert, jr. T Adam Brown and sr. T Michael Hrynko. Early, jr. DE Kevin Hart forced a fumble that was recovered by Brumskill to set up a TD. Brumskill added a 5-yard TFL in the second quarter and Hart notched a 9-yard sack in the third. Edison got its chance to score with 1:28 left after sr. LB Zamir Boney forced a fumble and jr. DB Kareem Smallwood recovered the ball at Mastbaum's 10, 20 yards behind the line of scrimmage. Coleman desperately wanted the Owls to finish things on a positive note. It wasn't to be. Not even close. The series went like this: Under pressure from Hart, Nicholson slipped and fell for a 5-yard loss. Then he was sacked for 5 yards by Taylor and for 10 more by Hart. On fourth-and-goal from the 30, Nicholson's pass to soph WR Jahiel Hill, the Owls' only completion of the game (in three attempts) could produce only 18 yards. Coleman said Edison's crew includes seven players from Bracetti, with which it partners. One arrived shortly after the game began and another popped up midway through the quarter. They had to go inside the school and rush to put on their uniforms, however. Edison has two kids with impressive size. Edward Beideman (6-3, 255) is a freshman tight end. Charlie Velasquez (roughly the same size, maybe a little heavier?) is a senior tackle. On the roster his name is spelled as "Vassquez." Ugh! Meanwhile, Mastbaum has 10 kids from Bodine. Prominent among them are Walker, Taylor, Barksdale and jr. Paul Thomas, a productive DT. On game days, those guys are dismissed at noon and take public transportation to Mastbaum.

OCT. 6
NON-LEAGUE
O'Hara 57, McDevitt 7
  Well, let's see, is there any way to sugar-coat this one? No. Not at all. The score says everything and it could have been ridiculously worse. O'Hara stormed to 40 points in the first quarter and owned that number with 1:02 still showing on the clock. All six TDs came on offense and the LONGEST drive required just five plays. The first two were one-play jobs -- a 50-yard run by RB Lamont Veal (toss left; barely touched, if at all) and a 9-yard swing pass from jr. QB Dashawn "Day-Day" Darden to jr. FB Matt Penza right after Veal made an interception and reeled off a 46-yard return. The next drive required two whole plays and the score was a 50-yard pass to jr. WR Thaddius Smith. Then came the five-play thrust, capped by Veal through the left side of the line from the 1. I'm not even sure he was touched on this one. The last two drives of the quarter required three and two plays, respectively, with the scores going to Smith on a 10-yard pass (after soph Darell Jackson recovered a chip-shot kickoff 26 yards downfield) and to jr. WR Joe DeMaio on a 54-yard screen-and-dash. Let's recap: six TDs on just 14 plays with those scores totaling 174 yards. The first quarter lasted 46 minutes due to all the stoppages for TDs and extra points (jr. Steve Weyler hit four) and a couple of goofy situations that needed to be untangled by the refs. In the second quarter, the Lions' first possession also produced a score, albeit a field goal. Two plays before Weyler hit from 36 yards, McDevitt finally posted a hard hit as sr. LB Mark Griffin dropped the backup QB, soph Brandon Laughlin, for a 2-yard loss. The second half began at 8:29 and the game ended at 9:01. So, yes, the second half took 14 fewer minutes to play than the first quarter! Of course, the mercy rule was in effect. Major praise goes to O'Hara coach Danny Algeo for how he handled this situation. The Lions threw no passes after the first quarter and the No. 3 QB, frosh Shane McLaughlin, directed the offense beyond intermission. Algeo made sure all time on the play clock was used and the offense was as vanilla as could be. The second-half TDs were scored in the fourth quarter on a 13-yard run by soph FB Nick "Sauce" Mariotti and another 13-yarder by jr. RB John Harris (15-48). And when do you ever see a backup RB get 15 carries? McDevitt's score came 4:14 into the third quarter after a fourth-down TFL by sr. Chris Davis -- his mom, Christine, coaches Mickey D's cheerleaders -- had given the offense a fighting chance on O'Hara's 41. After being dropped for a 2-yard loss, sr. RB Gerald Fuller mad-dashed through the left side for a 43-yard TD. In all, McDevitt ran 33 plays and 11 of 'em resulted in losses. Also, starting QB Christian Connor, a sr. with a big arm, was lost to a headache after getting crunched a few times early. His replacement was jr. Gary Meakim, who appears to be generously listed at 5-9, 140. The coaches declined to put him in harm's way and he threw just two passes despite the huge deficit. He did gain 22 yards on six rushes. McDevitt's program is hurting. Coach Pat Manzi said the school's freshman class includes only 45 boys (roughly). Only six ninth-graders are listed on the roster, though it's possible a few have been added since that was printed. This much is still true, Manzi said: Not one of the freshman players is a lineman. When I asked Pat whether there are some big kids in that class who just aren't playing right now and might pop up in '13, he said, "Nope. There's no one of size in that class." He does remain positive, however, about the football program's chances of righting itself. "Our school is a very pleasant place to be," he said. "Everybody's upbeat and lots of good things are going on (under a new administration). We're hoping we'll be OK." Jack Rutter, the basketball coach, handled PA duties and provided some old-school music. First, two times, he had to beg somebody/anybody to be part of the chain crew. Three guys finally volunteered.

OCT. 6
CATHOLIC AAAA
Roman 14, Ryan 7
  Ah, there's nothing like an interesting, unusual development, especially when it involves high-profile performers. In a Pub game Friday, Frankford sr. QB Tim DiGiorgio did not post a TD pass for the first time in 16 varsity appearances. However, he did run for a score -- literally, he dashed 3 yards around right end off a fake dive -- to break a 12-game drought in that department. In this one, Roman sr. QB Michael Keir failed to throw for a TD for just the seventh time in 26 varsity appearances over the last three seasons (he also saw some action as a frosh), yet broke a seven-game scoring drought. And guess what? This was the first time either guy ran for TWO scores in a game. And we do mean RAN. Often, when QBs score it's on a power-ahead sneak of a yard or two. But Keir's tallies covered 8 and 18 yards on straight-up-the-middle bursts out of shotgun formations and dude looked pretty impressive (smile). His first TD came with 2:07 left in the first quarter and capped an eight-play, 47-yard drive that followed a short punt. Keir completed one pass apiece to sr. SB Patrick McCourt (16 yards), soph RB Dimetri Kelly (10) and sr. WR William Fuller (12) for the other highlights. No. 2 was posted 8:01 before halftime on a drive that featured two impressive receptions (37 and 17 yards) for Fuller, who was battled hard all day by sr. DB Bobby Romano. Ryan answered 3:04 before halftime on a perfectly thrown streak from jr. QB Mark Ostaszewski to jr. TE Connor Golden. That play covered 31 yards and earlier ground goodies had been posted by Ostaszewski (11 yards) and sr. RB Jeremiah Agrio (13). Early in the drive, there was a disturbing occurrence. A third-down run by Ostaszewski put the Raiders on the doorstep of a first down. The coaches asked for a measurement a couple times, but the head ref, Tony Stabilo, declined. He even said no after walking up to the line of scrimmage and looking toward the Roman sideline, where the chains were stationed, to get a better eyeball-it-up look from the supposedly perfect angle. During a timeout, the chains were finally brought out and -- lo and behold -- enough yardage for a first down HAD been gained. Nothing angers coaches more than apparent laziness and/or stubborn behavior and that was a classic example. Washington's field is grass and dirt and each yard line is not marked, as on turf fields. Plus, some of the lines for 5, 10, 15, 20, etc., were a shade crooked. Anyway, hopefully a lesson was learned. Following the score, there was a good defensive series for Ryan. The highlights were a batted-down pass by jr. DE Sean Boylan and an interesting play that featured a mad scramble by Keir. Twice he used fancy footwork to evade a sack, but then slipped and fell while still being pursued by Boylan and sr. DT Joe Ruskowski. Keir then could only manage a 17-yard punt and Ryan took over at Roman's 32. Agrio ran for 6 yards, then Ostaszewski's right-corner fade to soph WR Travon Williams was picked off in the end zone by a leaping Fuller, thus ending the half. Though neither team scored thereafter, entertainment was still available. The teams went at it hard and excellent defense was played. Roman sr. MLB Chris Cruz, in particular, was a bulwark. Midway through the fourth quarter, sr. DB Sam DuMond got a fingertip or three on a Keir punt, thus limiting it to a 6-yarder. Ryan had the ball at Roman's 41. A procedure call and a behind-the-line hold pushed it back to Ryan's 42, then Ostaszewski was sacked for eight yards by jr. DE Hezekiah Trahan, then held to a one yard on a draw (stop by Cruz and jr. DL Ricky Rivera). Next came a pass and Cruz broke it up. Roman got the last big play it needed on third and seven as Kelly made a juggling catch (good for 32 yards) of a ball that was first tipped by Golden. Keir then footworked his way to a nine-yard gain on third and six and kneeldowns ended it. The McArdle family was out in force. Frank is Ryan's head coach. His dad, Frank, is an assistant, as are brothers Chris and Jonmike. Ed McArdle, brother of the older Frank, handled PA announcer duties and his son, Ryan, a junior, was in uniform as a backup WR/DB. If I failed to notice that 17 more McArdles were on site, please accept my apologies (smile).

OCT. 5
PUBLIC GOLD AAA
Frankford 25, Washington 14
  Bubbles, Woo Woo and Rodeo. Sounds like a law firm, right? OK, maybe not. But today, those three guys joined forces to help Frankford claim this regular season showdown. In fact, they always join forces because they're three (of the eight) Compton brothers. Lorenz "Bubbles" Compton is the starting center and his fraternal twin, Renz "Rodeo" Compton, is a wideout. Wydell "Woo Woo" Compton, a junior, is the tight end. Though Bubbles plays the least glamorous position, he received the ink because he's the acknowledged leader of the o-line and that unit's performance was crucial to the victory. Know why? Sr. QB Tim DiGiorgio was playing on a tender knee, after missing one game already, and the coaches were going to try to give him minimal duties if at all possible. So, eight of Frankford's first nine plays were rushes and the scoreboard read 13-0. Oops, no it didn't. It wasn't operational. But that was the score and jr. RB Damion "Jawzy" Samuels owned TDs of 27 and 5 yards. (Does anyone who plays for Frankford NOT have a nickname? Didn't think so. Smile.) Not interested in a quick lie-down-and-die, Washington did rally and posted a 1-yard scoring run by sr. RB Donald Smith with 0:33 left in the quarter. Then, disaster! Samuels just stood there and let Washington fall on a kickoff at Frankford's 4. (He said he thought he was in the end zone, and was stunned that no ref blew a whistle to signal a touchback.) The Pioneers' defense responded in big-time fashion as sr. DL Denzel Turbeville made a 1-yard TFL, Samuels held Smith to a 1-yard gain on a pass and jr. DL Kadar Jones (6-2, 305) stopped sr. RB Marquis Edwards for no gain. On fourth down, jr. DB Quinton Ellis broke up a pass intended for sr. TE Rene Villafane. Though Frankford posted two interceptions before halftime (by soph DL Sharif Miller (tipped by Turbeville) and Samuels), neither was converted into points. As the third quarter commenced, Samuels made up for his blunder. With help from a block by Bubbles, and some fancy footwork that enabled him to evade sr. K Jake Wright, Samuels zoomed 94 yards for a TD. Washington did respond with a drive that produced a 4-yard score for Edwards; he also made a catch therein for a 28-yard pickup. The Pioneers proved to be in a no-drama mood, however, and they came right back with six more points. The TD, off an audible, was scored by DiGiorgio on a 3-yard bootleg. Good thing he wasn't crunched on the play. His coaches might have hit him even harder for putting his body at risk (smile). The play did work great, however. The fourth quarter was rather vanilla. Frankford's grunts aside from Bubbles were sr. G Will Robinson, jr. G Carlos Sandana, jr. T Unique Davis and sr. T Kelvin Coit. Fueled by Samuels (16-76), the rushing game managed 25-159. And DiGiorgio quietly rang up 100 yards on 6-for-14. Juan Namnun's defense forced four turnovers and sr. DB Jahlil Harris recovered two fumbles. Oddly, Washington QBs Dave Gavrilov (first half) and Al Augustine (second half) posted almost identical stats -- 4-for-8 for 42, then 4-for-7 for 42.

OCT. 4
PUBLIC AAA
Bok 30, Franklin 6
  I called this one The Thursday Bowl. In the 3 1/2 decades I've been covering the Public League, Bok and Franklin by far have played the most games on Thursday and, well, they were at it again today. Against each other, of course. One problem: It wasn't much of a game from the competitive standpoint and it was VERY rough on the eyes because the refs almost wound up being the leading ground-gainers. There were 20 penalties (all in the first three quarters, somehow) for 165 yards and Franklin was by far the worst of the two with 11 for 97. DN ink could/should have gone to sr. RB-KR Larry Pelzer, but he'd received a story a while back for his exploits against West Philly so we went with sr. FB-DE Vittorio "Vito" Goggins. Vito was Larry's lead blocker, added a TD of his own and strong game on defense with two sacks, one other TFL, two tackles for no gain and a fumble recovery 34 yards behind the line; it followed a bad snap on a punt. Vito's dad, also named Vittorio "Vito", likes watching games from the sideline, wearing a white No. 48 jersey with VITO SR. above the number, and he keeps up a steady stream of advice/encouragment. While the Wildcats were doing pregame drills, coach Frank "Roscoe" Natale reported that star WR-DB-KR Antoine Whitney would not be available due to a personal matter. That turned out to mean this: Larry Pelzer Day!! Ha, ha. He carried a gigantic load and met the challenge wonderfully, totaling 182 yards and two TDs on 26 carries, adding two catches for 29 and even returning five kicks/punts for 79. That ch-chings to 279 yards! What an afternoon! "Pelz" also received style points for using those little great-accomplishment decals to put his number, 29, on the back of his helmet. He said he did it in the locker room before the game. What a talented kid! (smile) Like always, Bok ran the left side to death behind jr. G Dimonte Powell and sr. T Marcus Owens. Often, jr. RG Mark "Spider" Webb went over there to form a quite effective unbalanced line. The other blockers were jr. C Tahree Snead, jr. T Nafis Davis and sr. TE Dylan Edmonds-Carty. The other primary defender was sr. LB Marquez "Kwez" Walker, who looks more and more impressive every time I see him. Not only does he fly to the ball at or behind the line, he scrambles downfield, if necessary, and makes hard hits even at the sideline. Great range/passion. For college he'd project as a strong safety. He had 11 stops and a fumble recovery, off a major pop by jr. DB (and QB) Michael Riley. Powell and Webb were stalwarts in the middle of the DL. Even beyond the penalties, Franklin was disappointing. Often, the receivers just seemed to lope aimlessly downfield, showing no true zest for the ball or attention to pattern detail. Coach David Carter is the all-time get-after-it guy, so I know those goings-on did not sit well with him. Baseball star Emmanuel Young, a sr. WR, eventually got rolling and used a late burst to finish with seven snags for 90 yards and a TD. Frosh CB Brian "Hit Stick" Harvey played hard while logging one sack and two more TFLs in the fourth quarter. It was completely cloudy until deep into the game and there was a hint of first-half rain. I think I heard 47 raindrops hit the umbrella that briefly was put into action (smile). Enjoyed appearing as a halftime guest on the Internet telecast done by Ari Bluestein, the former Northeast baseball star and the brains behind the sports fan base network. They had a pretty elaborate setup in the booth. Cool!