OCT. 31
TEDBIT
  Tonight's quarterfinal round of the Public AAAA playoffs will offer three interesting matchups. Because they finished first or second in their division, King, Gratz and Bartram have earned home games. Through the years, however, they've been dominated by the teams they'll be playing. To the tune of 60-10-3! Frankford owns a 20-3 edge over King; those teams will meet at the Northwest Super Site. Northeast owns a 28-7-2 advantage over Gratz; those teams will meet at the Gratz Super Site. Washington boasts 12-0-1 dominance over Bartram; those teams will meet at the South Philly Super Site. All three contests will start at 6 o'clock. Two of King's three wins vs. Frankford have been noteworthy. The Cougars won a semifinal, 21-20, in 1989 and won AT Frankford, 19-14, in '97.

OCT. 30 (Evening)
TEDBIT
  It happens every 25 years! As in . . . Lincoln wins a football game by a score of 7-0. Today, in a non-league tilt, the Railsplitters topped visiting Kensington, 7-0, as quarterback Nassir Coleman ran for a touchdown and Christian Steiner kicked a PAT. Lincoln had not won by that score since 1989. The occasion was the Thanksgiving game vs. Judge and the field was covered with snow. VERY covered. Duane Frazier ran for a TD and Dave MacDonald, also the QB, kicked the extra point. In the scoring drive, Ritchie Owens had a catch for 22 yards. He later played in the NFL, though by then he had dropped Ritchie in favor of Rich. I've never forgiven him for that! (smile). Ritchie with a "t" made him unique, right? Below is a list of 7-0 games won by Pub/Cath/Int teams in this century. Weird fact: All but four have occurred in even-numbered years.

OCT. 30
TEDBIT
  It has come to pass . . . The airwaves are more filled than ever. The 2014 season is not complete, of course, but for the moment 20 Catholic/Inter-Ac/Public passers are throwing for at least 100 yards per game. If that number holds, the total for the last four years will be 74. As you'll see on the chart below, the biggest improvement has come in the Pub. Before 2009, only once, way back in '84, had more than two guys averaged 100 YPG. Since then, no fewer than five have done so. Weather always plays a role in passing yardage and this fall, so far, has been terrific. Numerous turf fields also help. In 2011, 10 of the Cath's 14 schools produced 1,000-yard passers. The Int this season is 6-for-6 while the Pub's high-water mark was eight in '12. We began keeping track of city leaders back in '81.

OCT. 29
TEDBIT
  The team below includes black players from 1976 through 2013. As you'll see, this is quite an amazing group! Counting the HMs, 16 have advanced to the NFL (and a few more could be joining them). Chris and Derrick Downs, of Malvern, are brothers. Roman's Marvin Harrison, now that school's freshman football coach, was also the Southern Division basketball MVP as a senior. Penn Charter's Courtney Batts was also a first team All-City infielder and second team All-Inter-Ac basketball player. Northeast's Charles Way now heads the NFL's Player Engagement Department (assisting guys with current/future life/career issues). I spent the 1976 and '77 seasons working for the long-gone Bulletin, '78 through '12 for the Daily News and '13 focusing solely on this website.

OCT. 28 (Evening)
TEDBIT
  West Catholic and Wood have continued their march toward possibly eclipsing the city record for most consecutive regular season championships. Below is a list that shows all teams that have captured at least five. Way back in the day, playoffs did not take place unless two teams tied for first. The Inter-Ac, of course, does not have playoffs. To be fair to Pub/Cath teams, we have included only outright championships in the Inter-Ac.

OCT. 28
TEDBIT
  Week Nine offered all kinds of pinpoint passing. Ten guys with at least 10 attempts completed at least 60 percent of their passes (well, Imhotep's Andre Dreuitt-Parks passed only nine times, but since he was yanked early because his team was ahead by MANY points, we won't hold it against him -- smile). D-P also led the way in YPA.

OCT. 27
TEDBIT
  Over 20 games in these last two seasons as Bonner-Prendie's quarterback, Collin DiGalbo has generated 4,195 yards of passing and rushing. Amazingly, 1,059 of those yards (25.2 percent) have come in three games vs. O'Hara. Also, in those three outings he was directly involved in three quarters of the plays -- well, 74.9 percent to be exact. As Jim Haley, now playing baseball at Penn State, battled an injury, DiGalbo also saw significant QBing duty in 2012. He now boasts 4,137 career passing yards along with 1,209 on the ground (he had one carry for minus-12 as a frosh) for a grand total of 5,346.   

OCT. 26
CATHOLIC AAA
Bonner-Prendie 33, O'Hara 13
  The gesture of this now-rare Sunday afternoon game was made with 0:00 on the clock. With great respect for the rough times (just one win) the Lions have experienced since coach Dan Algeo passed away a shade short of four months ago, B-P coach Greg "Bubba" Bernhardt hustled down to the far end of the stadium and spoke for several minutes to the team and coaches. At the other end, the Friars waited patiently and then gave Bubba an energetic greeting upon his arrival. This game, played before an overflow Homecoming crowd in abundant sunshine (though it was admittedly windy) was closer than 33-13. Much closer, actually. O'Hara owned a 13-12 lead before the Friars scored 21 points over the final 13 minutes, 25 seconds. There was a gigantic 12-point swing and the circumstances will tell you all you need to know about how unfortunate the Lions continue to be. In the first quarter, sr. RB Max Ferguson lost a 2-yard TD run because only six men were on the line of scrimmage. Then, on what was shaping up as the last play of the half, sr. QB Collin DiGalbo could not connect on a right-corner fade to sr. TE Tyler Higgins. Most fans almost certainly began heading for the concession stand. Not so fast. The clock was stopped with four-tenths of a second remaining. Coming right up: Touchdown!! On a trick play!! The Friars executed a perfect hook and lateral along their sideline. Sr. WR Joe Oquendo made the catch at about the 15 and sr. handyman Aaron McCastle gathered in the lateral at the 17. He might have been barely touched, but that's doubtful. The miracle score, followed by the kick off frosh Riley Fillman's instep, handed B-P a 12-6 lead. Midway through the third session, O'Hara jumped back in front, at 13-12, thanks to a 6-yard run by Ferguson (28-161) right after sr. Nick Fallows swatted DiGalbo's punt and soph Des Holmes made the recovery. At this juncture, DiGalbo began to become, well, DiGalbo. Over the next three series, he passed/ran on 20 of the 23 plays and three scores resulted. The first was a 7-yard, TE drag to Higgins while the next two were fades to a barely noticed Oquendo (15 and 29 yards). Higgins also had a big day on defense, making stops that accounted for 31 yards in losses. The breakdown: 3 1/2 sacks and two other TFLs. DiGalbo, after taking snaps from his twin, Christian, went 19-for-30 for 273 yards and four TDs while adding 15 carries for 56 yards and one more score. The Friars ran 58 plays, so he was involved in 77.6 percent. O'Hara's best defensive play was made by sr. DE Andrew Gallagher, who goes 6-2, 255. On a pass play that picked up 20-odd yards, he made the tackle way downfield after hustling (pretty sure) from the opposite side. YouTube material! (smile) Both schools had large student turnouts and O'Hara added a dance team/marching band. This was also Senior Day. As the players and parents were waiting to be introduced near the far-end goalpost, a mom could be heard trying to psych up the players by breaking out the ol' anti-Friar chant, "I smell B-O!! . . . n-n-e-r." Later, of course, the Friars were smellin' a W. There was a brief scuffle with 3:38 left in the second quarter. Nothing outrageous, but O'Hara was hit with a penalty. Thanks to the outgoing PA announcer, Father Bill Chiriaco, for the shoutout. His most entertaining moment: After noting, right before the start of the third quarter, that he'd like to have two spotters join him in the press box, he added in a slightly lower voice, "A hot dog or pretzel wouldn't be bad, either." Ha, ha, ha. Former O'Hara student manager Big Willie McGonigle, who still makes occasional contributions to this website, was on the sideline. He came straight from umpiring a youth baseball game. He still dearly misses coach Algeo, as do so many of us. RIP, Danny.

OCT. 26
TEDBIT
  The Duke-out of Delco (Catholic version) will again take place today -- 12:30 at O'Hara -- and here's hoping we experience thrills even remotely close to 2013's in this series. In the regular season, O'Hara won in OT, 36-35. Bonner-Prendergast then stormed to victory in a playoff, 41-38. Before those two games, O'Hara had claimed 19 of the previous 22 meetings. This series began in 1965 and O'Hara owns a 39-19 advantage (ouch). Due to playoffs, the teams have met twice in nine seasons. Three times have tables been turned in the second meeting (by O'Hara in '81, by Bonner in '89 and '13). In the games in '78 and '79, only five total points were scored! O'Hara won by 3-0, then by 2-0. The Lions also claimed a 2-0 victory in '75. In the teams' first 10 meetings, Bonner went 7-3. O'Hara swept six straight from 1975-80, then eight in a row from 1983-89 (one playoff mixed in). Here are the top performances in rushing/passing/receiving from 1982-2013:

OCT. 25
CATHOLIC AAAA
La Salle 31, Judge 7
  It's pretty cool to be the No. 1 receiver, in terms of career yardage, in your school's storied football history. La Salle's Jimmy Herron can now say he is! . . . Not that Mr. Humble Beyond Belief would ever do so. Coming into tonight's tilt, played at Northeast, the sr. WR needed 57 yards to wrest the Explorers' top spot from 2013 grad Sean Coleman, who's now focused on lacrosse at Harvard. In the first quarter, Herron hauled in a right-side streak from sr. QB Kyle Shurmur (Vanderbilt) for a 43-yard gain that placed the rock at Judge's 8. After a pair of procedure penalties, mixed with a short run, placed the ball at the 15, Shurmur lofted a left-corner fade to Herron. Oh, baby. Would this be the record-breaker? Nope. The connection did not happen and two plays later jr. K Matt Savage blasted a 32-yard field goal, drawing the 'Splorers within 7-3. The squad's next two series also produced scores, but only five plays were required and Herron's talents weren't needed. Luck played a role in TD No. 1. As Shurmur tried to find jr. WR Winston Eubanks, the ball, Eubanks and a defender all arrived simultaneously at roughly the 15. The ball popped slightly into the air, Eubanks gathered it in and continued to the end zone for six. After sr. handyman AJ Greseszak uncorked a 56-yard punt return, the ball was at Judge's 25. Sr. TE Charlie Hemcher was sent down the middle and, whoa!, he snatched the ball one-handed out of the air, while stretching, and pulled it into his body. Mighty impressive! Herron notched exactly the 14 yards he needed on play No. 3 of the next series. La Salle was headed to the scoreboard end of the field and the catch, off a hook/curl/comeback/whatever, was made not too far from La Salle's sideline. The gain? Exactly the necessary 14 yards. On a similar play, he followed with a 13-yard pickup and the half ended in dramatic fashion as Hemcher posted a 61-yard gain all the way down to the 3. The clock showed 0:00, however, so the count remained 17-7. In the second half, Herron added three more catches for 21 yards, finalizing his numbers for the night at 6-91. Thus, he now owns 2,236 yards, 35 in front of Coleman (2,201) and six behind 1990 SJ Prep grad John Laumakis (2,242). A shade more down the catch-happy road is 2013 Roman grad William Fuller (2,380), who is already making noise at Notre Dame. Jimmy's college noise, meanwhile, is slated to come in baseball at Duke, though if he does somehow wind up on the football field I will not be surprised in the least. Congrats on this record, young man, and what makes it extra special is the fact that Jimmy/Sean are pretty much mirror images as athletes-people. In all, Shurmur went 13-for-20 for 249 yards and the two aforementioned scores while Hemcher turned four snags into 116. The Explorers' second half TDs were offered by jr. handyman Nick Rinella (7-yard run) and sr. Dan Martino, who burst through the line to block a punt and then recovered the ball in the end zone. Sr. DB Mike "Google" Crone (popup off a deflection; my new laptop keeps begging me to use Google Chrome) and sr. LB Aidan Kerrigan had fourth quarter interceptions while subs Kohler Setley (jr. DB) and Garrett Zobel (frosh DL) created quite the late-game stir by combining for a sack. Earlier sacks went to jr. DL Isaiah Henrich, sr. DL Sean Collins and jr. DL Anthony Piscopo. Despite the score, Judge had a respectable outing. Sr. QB Zack Carroll stood tall in his first post-concussion outing and jr. RB Yeedee Thaenrat delivered some teeth-rattling blows while running (18-96). Plus, it was not as if the Explorers had their way offensively. On seven plays, Judge made tackles behind the line. In the third quarter, there were two losses in a three-play sequence -- stops by jr. LB Robert Taggart, then a combo by sr. LB Eric Petroski/sr. DL Tim Breslin -- and then back-to-backers in the fourth quarter thanks to sr. DL Kevin McCue and Taggart. In the first quarter, after an umpire got trapped in the action on a middle screen, a Judge fan bellowed, "Get out of the way, or block somebody!!" In the third quarter, after the Explorers were hit with a penalty, a La Salle fan cracked, "Where you meeting their coach after the game!?" In the second quarter, one of Thaenrat's cleats got slightly shredded. First he wound up in a black high-top supplied by soph WR Kevin Schmitt. Nope, didn't feel right. Yeedee then bummed a blue low-top from soph LB Sean Coyle. By the way, Yeedee wears a size 10. If you win money in a trivia contest because you know this answer, please cut me in! (smile)

OCT. 25
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Haverford School 35, Germantown Academy 0
  Small and young is not a preferred combination. Especially when your opponent is large and filled with veterans. If ever a game proved that point, it was this one. GA will see better days in the seasons ahead -- perhaps even MUCH better -- but today all the Patriots wanted was to see the clock hit 0:00. Speaking of hit . . .Kevin Carter found his targets again and again! The jr. QB, believed to be only the second African-American to start at that position in Inter-Ac history (the first was Episcopal's Jerome Allen, who's now Penn's basketball coach), enjoyed a noteworthy performance. Not always do I figure out stats at halftime, but today something was saying, "Ah, why not take a look. That first half performance was pretty special." And how! Over those first 24 minutes, Carter was 14-for-19 for 331 yards. A check of the Internet, via the cell phone, revealed that Bryan Savage owned the Fords' school record with a 352-yard performance in 2003. After GA punted, the Fords took over on their 48. Five-yard pass to sr. WR Jack Doran. Seven-yarder to sr. TE Noah Lejman. Nine-yarder to jr. WR Dox Aitken. And . . . record time! Carter whipped a right-side hitch to sr. WR Derek Mountain, the son of La Salle assistant Steve Mountain, and the gain along the sideline was 18 yards. That raised Carter's total to 370 and two plays later he hit Mountain for a 9-yard score on a slant. Those two connected again for the conversion, thus making the score 35-0 with 7:22 left in the third quarter and bringing into effect the mercy rule. To the surprise, I'd imagine, of some people, Carter returned to the field when HS regained possession. He threw a second down pass, good for a 13-yard gain, to backup WR Brandon Walker, who assumedly was targeted so he could wind up in the stat column. He's said to be a very hard worker and has gained much respect for all his all-out attempts to block punts/kicks. Five runs followed and there was one more pass, an incompletion from the 15. Sr. K Jack Soslow tried a 32-yard field goal and -- pow! -- sr. Anthony Bozzelli earned major props -- don't forget, his team was down by 35-0 -- by blocking it. Carter's dynamic outing was finished. How dynamic? He finished 20-for-26 for 392 yards and that's the No. 4 total in city leagues history. The only I-A guy ahead of him is SCH Academy's Paul Dooley, who last year ch-ch-chinged his way to 498 yards in a loss to Malvern. Carter achieved gains of at least 20 yards on seven tosses. His longest were identical 53-yarders -- one for a TD to Mountain and another to sr. RB Reggie Harris. Carter also added 38 yards on seven carries, so his scrimmage output was 430. Rather respectable, right? (smile). His big-'uns were sr. C Connor Atkins, jr. G Frank Cresta, sr. G Julian Jamgochian, sr. T Chauncey Simmons and jr. T Brian Denoncour. Soslow hit field goals of 26 and 21 yards and his season's total is now up to 11, leaving him two short of a tie for the city record. As a strong wind helped to some degree, he boomed kickoffs to the 1, minus-9, minus-3, minus-4, minus-12, minus-10 and 4. (A couple of those were caught behind the goal line. I went with estimates on where the ball would have landed.) The Fords' best defensive play came when Lejman, an OLB, came off the edge untouched and delivered a full-body blow to soph QB Kyle McCloskey, who was also fully upright at the time. Talk about scary. To his credit, McCloskey returned to action on the Patriots' next series, but soon he was being sacked for five yards by Cresta. This time he departed for good and it's possible a concussion was suffered on that second stop. Best of luck, Kyle! His replacement, frosh RB Isaiah Jones, engineered a last-drive advancement that almost got GA on the board. On back-to-back tosses, he hit jr. WR James McAfee for 37 yards and sr. WR Kashta Davis for 17. With the ball at the 9, he rolled left and tried to hit sr. WR Brooks Cannell in the back of the end zone, at roughly the left hash. The pass was high, however, and the clock kept running to end it. DN reporter Aaron Carter -- he and Kevin are semi-distant relatives -- was on the scene and he enjoyed a three-pack of nuggets over the PA system. At one point, Aaron was credited with a completion. Also, the back judge, after deciding he couldn't remember the kid's name, decided to call one of the ballboys "Ace" -- that, of course, is Aaron's nickname. Finally, one of Haverford's play calls involves the phrase "Mad Dog." That's the nickname attached to Aaron's dad, Fred, the former NBA player and coach! Ha, ha.

OCT. 25
TEDBIT
  This is season No. 9 for the Inter-Ac as a six-team league (in modern times, anyway) and, like last year, the various scoreboards are being peppered. Through eight games, 451 points have been racked up and that figures to 56.4 per game. Impressive, yes, but not quite as productive as 2013.

OCT. 24
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Malvern 44, Penn Charter 16
  Well, that didn't take long. Comparatively, that is. With one week remaining in October, sr. QB Alex Hornibrook, a lefty and Pitt commit, already owns Malvern's record for passing yards in one season. Today he racked up 264 yards -- more on the crispy aspect momentarily -- to raise his 2014 total to 1,711. In 2003, while the Friars were going 8-2, Dan Onorato accumulated 1,526 yards. Hornibrook's career total is now up to 2,966 and the school mark (2,994 by '95 grad Ryan Polley) is in serious jeopardy, too. Just 29 more yards. OK, time to examine the crispness. Hornibrook finished 19-for-25 (76 percent) and completed 13 in a row -- yes, 13! -- surrounding halftime. He hit his final seven tosses in the second quarter and first six in the third. One score was included: A middle screen to sr. WR Trevor Morris that turned into a 55-yard frolic on the second play of the third quarter. Hornibrook and the first-teamers departed after sr. K Dan Giannascoli, a left-footer, drilled a 43-yard field goal to make it 37-0 with 5:43 showing in that third stanza. Immediately beforehand, Hornibrook’s streak had ended on a tight end drag to sr. Ryan O'Neill that was just a little high and outside. Up until then, in part because so many of the patterns were short (outs, screens, slants, hitches; whatever other terms are in use these days), Hornibrook looked like a catcher effortlessly returning the ball to his pitcher. Malvern's grunts were sr. C Dave Lynch (also a lefty; gotta love it!), sr. Gs Mike McCarthy and Jacob Rebisz and sr. Ts Hayden Mahoney and Nick Zarkoski. Thanks to offensive coordinator Drew "Drewbit" Maginnis for confirming those names/positions. In all, Hornibrook hit eight receivers. The leaders were sr. WR James Keating (6-45), jr. WR Chris Brown (4-63) and Morris (3-96). Aside from the 55-yarder, Hornibrook had three other long completions and, oddly, they came right in a row. With 3:00 left in the first quarter, he pinpointed a streak/streamer toss to Morris for a 35-yard score. Early in the next drive, he found jr. WR Rashon Lusane for a 32-yard pickup and followed two plays later with a 36-yard flip to Brown on a play that was pretty darn identical to Morris’. Sr. RB Dymond “Studded” Wright then powered two yards for the score. Early, it appeared PC might be able to hang as soph QB Mike “Niko” Hnatkowsky, also a lefty, had success finding sr. WR Pat McCain on quick slants/outs. Overall, though, not nearly enough first downs surfaced and the youthful, hit-hard-by-injuries Quakers soon were getting spanked. Not a good development on a day when the school was celebrating its 325th anniversary. Can you imagine being in existence THAT long?! Amazing! Malvern’s third score of the half was a 5-yard run by soph RB Zac Fernandez. Kind of anticlimactic, actually, because on the previous play he'd uncorked a beautiful 55-yard junket that featured a spin-away at exactly midfield. And before that, he’d broken a tackle or three. For PC, disappointment reached oh-crap proportions with 2:23 to go in the third quarter as Hnatkowsky could not quite handle an off-target shotgun snap. The ball got loose and . . . Malvern jr. DB Ryan Murray enjoyed gathering it in and galloping 76 yards for a TD. The PAT by backup K Nick Fizzano, a sr., made it 44-0. Moments later a PC fan hollered, “Hey, guys, this is NO time to quit. Keep fighting!” Yes, sir. Hnatkowsky hit soph WR Steven Lorenz for a 78-yard TD down the left sideline. The Quakers’ other TD came on a 4-yard swing pass from Niko to jr. RB Jake McCain and the last score was a safety; Fizzano, on a punt, covered a way-too-high snap in the end zone. The McCains are brothers and their cousin, sr. Frank McGlinchey, had some nice moments on the defensive line. In fact, he registered tackles behind the line on Malvern’s first two plays. On hand to watch them was Frank’s brother, Mike, a former PC star who now plays for Notre Dame. Sr. DB Nile Hodges also was frisky from time to time on defense. Lusane (for 4 yards), jr. LB Pat Finley (1 yard), jr. DL Ethan Bedwell (2 yards) and soph DL Justin Tichnell (2 yards) had Malvern’s most notable stops behind the line. Though 51 passes were thrown, this game was pilferless. A sideline halftime visitor was ol’ PC classmate Roger Gordon, a star in soccer (goalie), basketball and baseball, and the nicest man you could ever hope to meet. A late-game visitor was Steve Ley (’96), who also enjoyed wonderful multisport moments for the Quakers. He and DN reporter Aaron “Ace” Carter ('98) were hoops teammates at PC.

OCT. 24
TEDBIT
  Today at 3:30, Penn Charter will host Malvern on a grass field that will likely still be wet and/or muddy. Doesn't mean one or more players won't slap together a performance worthy of inclusion on the list right below. After all, on a similar surface two weeks ago, SCH Academy and PC racked up 104 points in an incredible offenseathon. The MP-PC series began in 1949, when the former won a non-league affair, 7-0. Malvern, which owns a 40-24-1 advantage, joined the Inter-Ac for the '50 season. Streaks: PC, eight wins in a row from 1952-59; PC, six from 1963-68; Malvern, 13 from 1969-81; Malvern, seven from 2007 to now. Malvern began its dominance in the '69 season and has lost just 37 league games over these last 45 seasons. On the list below, Chris and Derrick Downs are brothers. Chris and Joe Price are now Malvern assistants. John Loughery, Pat McCain (now a senior WR), Matt Ryan (yes, the Atlanta Falcons' QB) and Mike McGlinchey are cousins! John's dad, John, was a star QB for PC in the late '70s. The other three guys are his sisters' kids. And this game will include two more for PC: RB Jake McCain and TE Frank McGlinchey. PC's Pat Delaney is the brother of actress Kim Delaney, who starred in "All My Children" and "NYPD Blue", among other endeavors.

OCT. 23
TEDBIT
  The team below includes all Public/Catholic/Inter-Ac players with (hopefully) Italian surnames from 1976 through 2013. Pinpointing heritage can be difficult, and I even spent time on assorted websites trying to nail down particulars on surnames' roots. If a guy on this list (or family member) emails later and notes, "Hey, I'm not Italian. I'm Portuguese" or something else, changes will be made (smile). The Arcidiaconos are brothers (and their dad, Mark, came close to making the list, too). The Nannis are also brothers. (Another brother, Tito, starred for Chestnut Hill in the days when it was not an Inter-Ac member for football. He also starred in basketball and baseball and reached AAA in the latter.)  Another notable was quarterback Mike Paulone, who earned first team All-City honors in 1976. His school? Pennsylvania School for the Deaf, which was located on Germantown Avenue right where Mt. Airy begins to blend into Chestnut Hill. That property later was the site of Spring Garden College and now hosts Parkway Northwest.  I spent the 1976 and '77 seasons working for the long-gone Bulletin, '78 through '12 for the Daily News and '13 focusing solely on this website.
Perhaps the most amazing athlete on this list was Gene Leoni, of Germantown Academy. He was under 6-foot, and under 200 pounds, yet was a relentless blocker. He also starred in track (in sprints, for one thing!) and was a national-level wrestler. He even competed in worldwide events as a trapshooter. At UCLA, he participated in football and track and won a game ball for his play at LB in a game against John Elway's Stanford team. Click here for a breakdown of his accomplishments.

OCT. 22 (Evening)
TEDBIT
  Some notes about Imhotep guys . . .
  Sr. QB Andre Dreuitt-Parks is completing 65.8 percent of his passes (50-for-76). The best effort in that category since 1981 is (minimum 100 attempts) is 75.2 by Wood's Joey Monaghan in 2011. That 65.8 number puts Andre in second place. Also, Andre is passing for a TD once every 4.5 attempts and is averaging 15.3 yards per attempt. Amazing! Sr. wideout Denniston "DJ" Moore has turned 20 catches into 567 yards for a YPC average of 28.4. Also, every other catch has produced a TD (10 total). Also amazing! In his career, DJ owns 1,611 yards (24 YPC!) and 26 TDs. He needs 14 yards to surpass Fels' Jylil Reeder (senior last season) for the No. 2 career spot in Pub history. The No. 1 spot belongs to Delane Hart (2,038), who also completed his career last fall. Hart played for Dobbins, then Germantown, then King. With three more receiving TDs, Moore will claim the Pub's career record in that category. Del-Val's Brad Wilson managed 28 from 2008-10.

OCT. 22
TEDBIT
  Having kicked nine field goals already, and with three games remaining, Haverford School's Jack Soslow has a shot at tying/breaking the city record for most field goals in one season. That standard was raised from 11 to 13 in 1997 by Germantown Academy lefty Greg Davis, who accomplished the feat in 10 games. Like Soslow, the recordholder previous to Davis, Ryan's Brian Hamill, also a starting defender in soccer (and a basketball starter, too), did not try kicking until his junior year. Interesting note about SJ Prep's Pat Kaiser: As a youth, he was quite the soccer whiz. At the Prep, he switched to football and starred at running back for the '02 squad. As a senior, he raised the city record for points in one season to 306! . . . And he also played in the CL championship game in soccer! Coach Jim Murray said his team members made the suggestion after the team's star striker had to serve a suspension due to multiple yellow cards. Kaiser played about 20 minutes. He did not score. That game was played on a Tuesday. Two days earlier, in a Sunday night game at Northeast, he'd racked up 316 rushing yards and 32 points while leading the Hawks past Roman for the CL title. Soccer final? North Catholic won, 3-2.   

OCT. 21
DREWBIT (TEDBIT)
  Aside from coordinating the offense for Malvern, Drew Maginnis is a self-described "stat freak." In the last few days, he noted that three guys are on pace to break the Inter-Ac record for passing yards in one season. That mark, 2,091 yards, was set just last season by Episcopal's Ryan Whayland. Whayland is now a senior. Though he's not throwing quite as often, his yardage total through Week Eight (1,300) is certainly impressive. Anyway, here are the current numbers/projections for the Big Three . . . and let the aerial circus continue (smile). Malvern's Alex Hornibrook will get four more shots due to Malvern's holiday tilt vs. Bonner-Prendie. Thanks for the input, Drew.
UPDATE: Gerry Sasse, assistant to Penn Charter's assorted athletic directors, reports that all three QBs in the chart below played for the Little Quakers, the nationally famous youth team.

OCT. 20
TEDBIT
  Everybody appreciates a guy with versatility. Below you'll find four. So far this season, these guys have scored at least four varieties of touchdowns and the top player on the list, Franklin's Rapheal Rodriguez, has even gone the five-ways route.

OCT. 19
TEDBIT
  Samir Bullock wasted little time in becoming Ryan's all-time leading rusher. After playing for Judge in '12, Bullock has called Ryan home over the last two seasons. With 301 yards Saturday vs. O'Hara, he raised his Raider total to 3,509 in 19 games. The school's previous rushing kingpin, 2006 grad Joe Zeglinski, accumulated 3,289 yards in a 4-year varsity career. He played in 36 games. He missed the final seven games of '05 and his average through five games was 129. He also missed two games as a junior, so it's possible (likely?) he could have added another 1,000-plus yards. In college, at Hartford, "Ziggy" had an outstanding basketball career . . . Bullock is just the second city player to rush for as many as 300 yards three times. West Catholic's Curtis "Boonah" Brinkley (class of '04), who went on to play in the NFL, did so four times.

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OCT. 18
CATHOLIC AA
Neumann-Goretti 28, McDevitt 0
  Way back in 1976, en route to storming to the Public League championship, Bartram posted seven consecutive shutouts to start the season and finished with nine overall. The local newspapers began calling the Braves the "Maroon Wave" (primary school color, most of the wins were serious romps) and its defense the "Zeros Heroes." Granted, pitching two shutouts (also vs. O'Hara) is not exactly a match (smile). But the Saints did come within moments of notching a third (vs. Conwell-Egan) and such defensive dominance has not been common for our friends from South Philly. McDevitt soph QB Max Bryson, a lefty, did manage 112 yards through the air, but he went just 5-for-20 and was picked off three times. (Major credit to him for even being out there. I attended last Tuesday's practice for pic purposes and, due to a tender shoulder, he wasn't even allowed to throw.) The Lancers' running game netted minus-six yards on 23 carries. Twelve of those plays lost yardage. The picks went to sr. DB Takeem Ford (also 3-62 receiving), jr. DB Khalil Roane and soph DB Aamir Brown, and the last two were made deep in McDevitt territory. Sr. LB Michael DiFrancesco, jr. DL Rashid Saunders, sr. DL Joe Herrin, sr. DE Matt McKeown, sr. LB Jack Taylor, soph DE Emil Moody and jr. LB Fabian Matthews all were involved in TFLs and/or sacks. McKeown's play was the best as he turned a tackle into a strip/recovery combo. The Saints' first TD went to DiFrancesco on a short flip over the middle (from sr. QB Ray Lenhart) that turned into a 41-yard gain, thanks to an impressively broken tackle. Roane (24-110) added two rushing TDs and Brown scampered 25 yards for the last score with 4:03 left. Lenhart finished 8-for-18 for 184 yards. McDevitt's bright light on offense was frosh WR Jaron Macon, who made two nice snags on streaks to finish with 78 yards. Also, sr. P Brendan Hanagan launched goodies for 52 and 48 yards (into a cross-wind). Frosh DL Nasir Pettus, jr. DE Vincent DiLeo, sr. DB Stephen Leach, jr. LB Keith Cole, Pettus again and frosh LB Jayvonne Campfield had TFLs/sacks. The Lancers are incredibly young (just six seniors on the roster) and it's nice to see so many of the young bucks having good moments. Long-time coach Pat Manzi, still recovering from a summertime health setback (assistant Karl Stout is running the show), was on hand, and he has shown marked improvement within the last month. Very cool! McDevitt had a small band on hand (camped out in the stands) and the kids provided nice entertainment. In three weeks, the Lancers will compete in the Class A subregional semis with KIPP DuBois from the Pub and two teams from District 1. Making noise WILL be possible. Cheltenham also hosted a drum-and-bugle-corps competition. It was held indoors, but around 6 o'clock some of the crews were warming up in the parking lot. I'm writing this at 9:30 Sunday morning and assorted drum beats are still bouncing around in my head (smile).

OCT. 18
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Haverford School 32, SCH Academy 16
  Talk about disjointed. This game had pretty much everything, including many reasons to scratch your head. One spectator wondered whether the game was handled by Rent-a-Refs. I do know one thing: The head ref was The Guy Whose Games Always Take Forever and this baby lasted 2 hours, 58 minutes. Beforehand, I had a talk with two friends and told them what to expect. "Goofy things always happen when this guy refs . ..and you might not make it home in time for dinner." Bingo and bingo again. By the end, the players were getting chippy on many snaps and SCH coach Rick Knox was ready TO snap, for real. You know the day is headed for Strangenessville when the halftime score is 5-0. Yes, 5-0. The Fords got a 38-yard field goal 5:38 before halftime from sr. K Jack Soslow and a safety shortly thereafter when sr. Brandon Walker blocked a punt through the end zone. Earlier in that session, HS jr. Dox Aitken bombarded a punt that traveled 81 yards! (At least. It's possible the ball wasn't touched until it traveled 83 yards.) Also in the first half, we had this: In a moment of frustration, a Blue Devil thumped his helmet against the aluminum bench. Clang! HS' student rooters were right behind that area and one of them yelled, "What did that bench ever do to you!?" Ha, ha. As halftime neared, an 11-yard completion from jr. QB Kevin Carter to sr. TE Noah Lejman placed the ball on the 2. Carter gained 1 yard, then an encroachment call placed the ball at maybe the 4-inch line. Carter was stuffed for no gain and the Fords used their last timeout at 0:05. The next play? An option. I kid you not. Carter rolled right and, just as he was about to make a pitchout, he was popped hard/smothered by sr. DB Sameir Madden. Quite the impressive defensive stand! There were five possessions in the third quarter and four of 'em produced scores. The sequence: 22-yard pass from SCH sr. QB Paul Dooley to sr. WR Dylan Parsons; 37-yard pass from Carter to jr. WR Micah Sims (nice improv play by Carter; nifty sidestep by Sims at about the 12); 89-yard scamper by HS sr. RB Phil Poquie (on this play there appeared to simultaneous procedure/encroachment before the snap; no calls were made); 54-yard streak from Dooley to jr. WR Jordan Johnson at 2:34. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Soslow drilled a 27-yard field goal to make the score 22-16. The ball was ever so nicked and it went through the uprights in a spiral. No way! I saw the same thing last night at Episcopal. HS coach Michael Murphy even scrambled over quickly along the sideline and said with a laugh, "Isn't that the second spiral kick you've seen this weekend?" Hey, at least somebody reads these reports (smile). To conclude the Fords' next series, Soslow tried a 47-yard FG. He hammered that biatch! Alas, he also pulled it ever so slightly and the ball hit the left upright. Halfway up it, in fact. And HS has those very tall college-like uprights. The kick would have been good from at least five more yards. Amazing. Soslow added a 22-yard FG with 2:52 left, enabling him to tie the Inter-Ac record with three, and sr. RB Reggie Harris provided the clinching TD with an 85-yard run at 1:52. Harris' appearance was interesting. He racked up 176 yards on 15 carries and every time he showed even a hint of quality rushing, his teammates went crazy. A few kids along the sideline confirmed it: He's a very popular kid. Nice to hear. Poquie, meanwhile, rushed 12-121 and Carter passed 10-for-20 for 134. Dooley, who almost always shines, was not completely himself today, going 12-for-32 for 243. He had a string of 10 incompletions and I'm guessing that was a lifetime first. Sims and sr. DB Jack Doran got him for late picks. Right before the game, the HS loonies behind SCH's bench, for whatever reason, yelled at Parsons, "Dylan, this is your day!" Pretty damn close. Parsons totaled 137 yards on eight catches; most involved leaping and/or nifty footwork to stay inbounds. Soph Syaire Madden had 119 yards on 17 totes, but 59 of those yards came in the waning moments. Near the end, Knox became particularly livid about how the refs handled a play that wound up being ruled a lost fumble. Finally, he was hit with a sideline warning. Soon, the Fords were drawing a flag for procedure. An assistant wisecracked, "Is that just a procedure WARNING!?" Ha, ha. Good stuff!

OCT. 18
TEDBIT
  Last night vs. Bonner-Prendergast, Wood jr. Anthony Russo tied the city record for TD passes in one game, with seven. The first two guys to accomplish the feat, Germantown Academy's Sean Grieve (a lefty) and SCH Academy's Paul Dooley, also were juniors. Below is a breakdown of the respective performances. Russo notched all seven of his TD passes in the first half. He did not play thereafter. Prior to Grieve's performance, the city record had stood at six since 1969 (Judge's Jim Smink). Grieve also starred in baseball and, after playing for William & Mary, pitched for a spell in the Phillies' farm system.

OCT. 17
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Episcopal 41, Penn Charter 26
  Along the sideline, a visiting dignitary at one point purred, "What was that college league where they always scored lots of points? The WAC, right? This league's turning into the Inter-WAC." Sixty-seven points were rung up tonight and Episcopal jr. RB Dee Barlee had 30 of 'em. Oh, and he also churned/dashed for 289 yards, on 24 carries. Episcopal's PA announcer gets VERY excited any time Barlee posts an impressive run "Dee!! . . . Bar!! . . . Leeeeeeeee!!" He used that signature call early and often as Barlee racked up five runs of at least 30 yards. His TDs, in order, went for 10, 35, 4, 5 and 44 yards while his other long gains covered 43 (first of the night), 33 and 39 (two plays apart early in the fourth quarter). This young man boasts extremely strong legs and more than once he broke tackles that "should" have been made. While showing versatility, he also enjoyed some sidestepping moments in what was quite the wonderful performance. The 289-yard effort represents a school record, breaking 266 by Kyle Eckel in 1998. Kyle then starred at Navy and spent some time in the NFL, and now (don't hold it against him, Churchdudes -- smile) is an assistant at nearby Malvern. Barlee's grunts were sr. C John "Moose" Minicozzi, sr. G Austin Morgan, rotating guards A.J. Cutrufello (sr.) and Bob Gibson (soph), sr. T Chris Redden and sr. T Kahse Mandarino. Maybe Dee could spring for some grub for these guys? Only fair, right? EA's other headliner was jr. DT/DE Tyler Will, who pretty much received mail in PC's backfield. He made seven sacks/TFLs and recorded at least three other stops close to the line of scrimmage. Where there's a Will, there's a tackle about to take place. Though the win, ultimately, was garnered in comfortable fashion, things were still quite hairy until midway through the fourth quarter. Down by 35-26, the Quakers posted a 35-yard TD pass from soph lefty QB Mike "Niko" Hnatkowsky to jr. TE Evan Ferrell. Um, no they didn't. Holding was called. Will then logged a 7-yard sack and combined with Barlee (a LB) two plays later, on fourth down, for a 10-yard sack to protect that nine-point spread. Then? Zoom! On play No. 3, Barlee sprinted 44 yards for the clinching TD. Hnatkowsky finished 16-for-25 for 281 yards and one TD. He completed his first seven tosses and failed on No. 8 only because of a drop. His top targets were Ferrell (4-75, TD), sr. WR Patrick McCain (4-73), sr. handyman Frank McGlinchey (3-42) and jr. RB Jake McCain, Patrick's brother (3-69; also 25-87, two TDs rushing). The pass play of the night belonged to EA, however. On a perfectly designed and executed throwback screen to the left side, sr. QB Ryan Whayland hit sr. TE Jake Martillotti for a 48-yard score. A true thing of beauty. PC has now yielded 94 combined points in its last two games but, amazingly, has had a legit chance to win both. How often does that ever happen? In the first half, P. McCain earned a running into the kicker flag with a serious swan dive. An Episcopal assistant bellowed, upon seeing the flag, "Is that for embellishing?!" Soon thereafter, another chirped, "Give him an Oscar." Ha, ha. On one of his PAT, EA soph Connor Ringwalt sent a near-spiral through the uprights. No idea how that happened. Among the witnesses: Bill Gallagher, former head coach at EA and PC . . . oh, and don't forget Chestnut Hill (smile). How YOU doin'?!

OCT. 17
TEDBIT
  Many head/assistant coaches at Pub/Cath/Int schools were quarterbacks during their playing days and some were very prominent. Below are the Top 15 one-season performances based on passing yards per game. Brett Gordon, La Salle's offensive coordinator, owns the top three and his father, Drew, the Explorers' head coach, checks in at No. 7. Not all rosters provided this season have included the names of assistants. If I missed anyone, please speak up. tedtee307@yahoo.com. Thanks. (Daily News stats leaders go back to 1981. I have stats for McDevitt's '67 season because I once researched the early years of the school's Catholic League history. Judge coach Mike McKay was that school's star QB in '75.)
UPDATED: Oct. 19. Totals not adjusted. Thanks to Imhotep assistant Eric Richardson for the heads-up.

OCT. 16
TEDBIT
  Just seven weeks into the season, three players -- one apiece in each category -- have already staked claims to Top 10 spots on the list of all-time career yardage leaders for rushing, passing and receiving. How much higher will each guy climb? Let the numbers continue to ch-ching! (smile)

OCT. 15
TEDBIT
  Currently, 15 turf fields are used on a regular basis for varsity games by teams in the Public, Catholic and Inter-Ac leagues. The breakdown: 5 in the Pub, 1 in the Cath, 5 in the Int, 4 more by Cath teams. (Carroll formerly played its home games at Radnor). In 1969, Penn's Franklin Field, still the home of the Eagles, installed AstroTurf and in that year's City Title, at that site, the winner was Bishop Egan by a 29-20 score over Frankford. The first TD went to Egan's Ed McDowell on a 72-yard pass from Mike Friel. McDowell caught the ball at Frankford's 49. In 1975, the Cath's first playoff on turf occurred at Veterans Stadium as SJ Prep beat Carroll, 21-14, for the Southern Division title. The first TD went to Tom Kincade on a 24-yard run that capped a three-play drive after Brian Price recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff. That game was part of a doubleheader. In the nightcap, Judge beat Kenrick, 17-14. (Earlier that fall, after brutal rain postponed some Sunday games, CL officials, led by Carroll coach/AD Joe McNichol, quickly came together and scheduled a Monday tripleheader for Veterans Stadium. The first game began at 4 o'clock and the last one ended at 10:45. In order, Carroll beat Neumann, 21-20; West Catholic beat St. James, 8-0; and O'Hara beat Bonner, 2-0. In the Daily News, Dick Weiss reported that the CL paid $1,500 for stadium use and $850 for cleanup . . . Meanwhile, on the evening of Oct. 13, 1973, a Saturday, the CL held a prearranged doubleheader on the turf at Franklin Field. Wood beat North Catholic, 20-15, and then West Catholic beat St. James, 27-0. The first TD in the Wood-North game was scored by Wood's Pat Sharp on a 5-yard run. The first TD for West was scored by Bob Ward on a 2-yard run. The force behind that double-dip was WC athletic director Joe McFadden, also the Burrs' basketball coach and later to become Bishop Joseph McFadden.) The Pub's first playoff on turf did not take place until 2004. At the Northeast Super Site, in a quarterfinal, Frankford topped Overbrook, 27-8, and the first TD went to Frankford's Malik Walker on an 8-yard run. The first city-leagues school to have its own turf field was Haverford School. On Sept. 15, 2001, just four days after the 9/11 tragedy, the Fords bested Bristol, 14-7. Quarterback Bryan Savage scored the Fords' first TD on a 1-yard sneak  and passed 7 yards to John Chermak for the game-winner. In an email, then-Fords coach Ron Algeo, who now works in administration at Malvern, wrote, "I still remember the call: Jumbo rip 32 boot."  

OCT. 14
TEDBIT
  In this century, only 12 games featuring one Catholic League team against another have ended with the winner scoring no more than seven points. The latest occurred Sunday as Lansdale edged Conwell-Egan, 7-6. Most of the low-scoring affairs have involved small-enrollment schools (AA since '08; Blue beforehand). The last four have ended with identical 7-6 scores.

OCT. 13
TEDBIT
  What are the chances? One in a million? Just one week after King-Northeast gave us the highest-scoring one-point game in city history, SCH Academy-Penn Charter slapped together the highest-scoring two-point game. Crazy!! To see the all-time list of the highest-scoring "close" games (with at least 50 points for the winner), scroll down to Oct. 6. Meanwhile, right here are the best rushing/passing/receiving performances IN those games. Outrageous numbers galore! . . .   

OCT. 12
TEDBIT
  Maybe you were having this thought over the weekend . . . How common is it for Frankford and Washington to lose Public League games in the same week? Answer: Not very! On Friday, Frankford fell to Bartram, 50-21, in AAAA Liberty while Washington was topped by Franklin, 20-14, in two OTs, in AAAA Independence. Over the last 41 seasons, this is only the second time both schools have lost Pub games in the same week. On Oct. 2, 2009, Frankford was topped by Bartram, 14-6, while Washington was falling to Northeast, 12-6.

OCT. 12
CATHOLIC AA
Lansdale Catholic 7, Conwell-Egan 6
  This was the lowest scoring game in city history!!! . . . Just kidding. But one day after seeing SCH Academy outlast Penn Charter, 53-51, in an incredible offense-athon, I was a shade shocked to see guys routinely makes tackles. That can happen? Who knew? (smile) This was the first Sunday game of the 2014 season and the weather was absolutely perfect. Did I mind the lack of offense? Not at all. Obviously, the game was close throughout and the kids played hard and when you're always on the doorstep of a play that could change things dramatically, hey, no problem. Thanks for a nice experience, troops. LC's headliner was jr RB-DB Ryan Quigley, who contributed 164 yards of rushing/receiving and made a leaping, end-zone interception to keep C-E off the board midway through the second quarter. Quigley saved 78 of his yards for the fourth quarter as the Crusaders preserved their 7-6 lead. On the last series, after Quigley registered 19 yards on a catch, a fan bellowed, "Give it to him again!" They did and the result was an 8-yard run. The suggestion was repeated two more times and Quigley did get the calls. LC's score came with 1:01 left in the first quarter on fourth-and-1 from the 11. Quigley powered over the right side and, at first, it appeared he'd only get the necessary yard. Then maybe three yards. Then maybe six yards. But he kept churning and C-E failed to apply brakes and Quigley wound up in the end zone. It was a classic example of second/third/even fourth effort. Jr. RB-DB Marlen Fenstermaker drilled the PAT. A recurring theme was the success of LC's vastly outweighed linemen, on both sides of the ball. Almost every guy on C-E's lines was heavier than any guy on LC's. The 'Saders' grunts were jr. C David Torri (190), sr. G Andrew McClintock (210), jr. G Vince Picozzi (245), sr. T Jon Kweder (200) and sr. T Tom Antenuci (210) and they enabled the offense to accumulate 221 yards to C-E's 230. Sr. QB-DB Joe Pinzka passed 7-for-11 for 96 yards while also notching a pick. Sr. T Chris Sniscak was a leader on the D-line while soph David Saulino had some special moments at LB. The first four possessions of the second half ended with turnovers as Pinzka made his interception, soph LB Danny Bentley did likewise for C-E, Saulino recovered a fumble and Bentley stole the ball after soph TE Michael Basilii made a short reception. The Eagles started on their 44 and needed 12 plays to reach the end zone. All 12 were runs by sr. RB Joe "Just Won't Stop!" Ruggiero (19-90), sr. FB Jordan Burney (9-48) and jr. QB Jarrett Patman (13-43). Burney, an effective DE brand new to rushing duties, scored from the 5 straight up the middle. Alas, the PAT sailed slightly to the left. C-E had only one more possession and a chop block helped to kill it. Spectator of the game: Ed Enoch, LC's former basketball coach (and ready to start his new gig at Hatboro-Horsham). Why was he here? Tom Kirk, LC's grid boss, is Ed's brother-in-law. Ed, always a first-magnitude class act, came all the way down and around from the stands to say hello. Best of luck with the Hatters, Ed! . . . Oh, about Ruggiero's nickname. The PA announcer was Rich Papirio, former baseball coach at Ryan and C-E. After one of Joe's tough runs, Rich said, enthusiastically, "Joe Ruggiero just won't stop!" Niiiiiiice.

OCT. 11
INTER-AC LEAGUE
SCH Academy 53, Penn Charter 51
  The final score is hard enough to believe, right? Now digest this nugget: The game was played AT Penn Charter on natural grass. And not in ideal conditions. It rained rather hard overnight and drizzled up until lunchtime, so by the 2:30 start the middle of the field, especially, featured some soggy areas that later turned into mud patches. Who noticed? Phew! These teams combined for 1,139 scrimmage yards and 185 on returns for --- ch, ching -- 1,324!! SCH's breakdown: 289 rushing, 265 passing, 82 returning. PC's: 261 rushing, 324 passing, 103 returning. And you know what? We almost saw more. If PC had succeeded on a conversion with 24.2 seconds remaining, the score would have been tied at 53-53. The Blue Devils would have gone for the win. If the game had eased into OT, we would have seen more yards. I could write about this tilt for days (smile), but I'll try to maintain some sanity. The coolest quarter was the third, which saw the teams combine for six TDs from 9:35 to 1:53 in PC-SCH-PC-SCH-PC-SCH order. Two (both by PC) were shorties, but the other four scores produced 238 yards. Those were, in order, a 63-yard run by SCH soph RB Syaire Madden (seriously adept at breaking tackles), a 59-yard pass from SCH sr. QB Paul Dooley (great touch/location on multiple deep throws) to jr. WR Jordan Johnson (after sr. FB Nile Hodges scored for PC on a 1-yard run), a 65-yard run by PC jr. RB Jake McCain and a 51-yard pass from Dooley to sr. WR Sameir Madden, Syaire's brother. Incredibly, considering what happened later, the game started off in slow fashion. The game's first four possessions were fruitless and the initial TD (a 21-yard, right-corner lob to sr. WR Dylan Parsons) wasn't posted until 1:35 remained in the quarter. Then it was time for scoring mayhem! Counting the one on which Parsons scored, 12 consecutive possessions yielded points! SCH notched six TDs while PC mixed four TDs with two field goals by soph Adam Kuper, who was making his first appearance due to the absence of the regular kicker, jr. Colin Mattice. With 5:00 remaining, SCH boasted a 53-49 lead thanks to Syaire Madden's 21-yard run a PAT by sr. K Mac McHugh. Soph QB Michael "Niko" Hnatkowsky steered the Quakers downfield and soph WR Steven Lorenz was given credit for a 17-yard snag that placed the ball at the 1. (It was close. Ball might have hit the turf.) The Quakers then rushed to the line for the fourth-down play and Hnatkowsky powered in. Thanks to a TFL by soph DL Bill Costello and another clutch tackle by jr. LB Kenny Bergmann, SCH wound up calling for a pass on third down. It sailed out of bounds and a punt/return combo put the ball at PC's 48 at 2:00. The sequence: 18-yard pass to McCain; 24-yard pass to soph WR James Gabor; minus-1 pass to Gabor (he slipped in the flat); incompletion; 9-yard pass to McCain on a middle screen; 2-yard TD for Hnatkowsky after another rush job up to the line. The clock showed 24.2. Because Kuper's previous PAT had hit the left upright, the Quakers needed two to tie. Off a trips left formation, Hnatkowsky rolled that way. No one was open, so Hnatkowsky had to tuck, go and hope. Sr. LB Desmond "Wrestler Dude" Johnson wasn't interested in arriving REALLY late for dinner (as opposed to normal late). His contact popped the ball free and, along the PC sideline, it was deflation time. Kuper's onsides kick was recovered by sr. LB Nick Lawlor and a kneeldown ended it. As you can imagine, coach Rick Knox was a combination of elated/feisty. Though his team had won the game, it had surrendered 51 points, the most scored by a losing team in city history. Naturally, memories of last year's 63-50, season-ending loss to Malvern also were stirred. Come to think of it . . . today's 104 total points? A mere pittance (smile). When time permits, I'll set up a special page with a complete boxscore, etc.

OCT. 11
TEDBIT
  Thirty years is a long time. And when Franklin finally broke its drought against Washington yesterday, two extra sessions were needed. In double OT, thanks to a TD pass from Kevin Caldwell to Rasheem James, the Electrons (nee Poor Richards) bested Washington, 20-14, for the first time since 1984 and third time total in 13 meetings. From the how-things-change-over-time file, we give you this: In this win, Caldwell passed 19-for-29 for 153 yards and the score to James. In the 8-0 win in '84, Danny Williams went 0-for-4. The TD was scored by Vernon Gilmore on a 44-yard run.

OCT. 10
CATHOLIC AAAA
SJ Prep 35, La Salle 31
  Imagine standing at this goal line, then running to that goal line . . . And then imagine doing it 10 more times. In all, before a now-commonplace throng-and-then-some at Plymouth-Whitemarsh, these heated rivals combined for 1,097 yards, thanks to 814 from scrimmage and 283 on returns. And you'll likely find it tough to believe what eventually happened: La Salle got La Salled. Yes, the Explorers, who almost have a patent on late, clutch drives, were victimized by one tonight after staging a great rally from a 21-7 deficit. (And then, their own last chance went like this: drop, procedure, drop, underthrown incompletion under pressure.) One of the Hawks' prime heroes was sr. QB Jack Clements and if ever someone needed some quick redemption, it was this guy. In the third quarter, Clements dropped the ball for a 3-yard loss and then lost it on the next snap after sub DE Isaiah Henrich used a come-from-behind slap to dislodge the pigskin (recovery to sr. DL Sean Collins at the Prep's 25). Five plays were needed to get the ball into the end zone and the score, a 6-yard run by sr. RB-DB Jordan Meachum, provided a 31-21 lead. The Hawks responded with a 10-play, 73-yard drive and jr. FB Joe DuMond did the scoring honors with a 2-yard run. The big play was a 43-yard connection from Clements to sr. RB Olamide Zaccheaus. La Salle managed one first down on its next possession, but the drive never really became a "drive" and an 8-yard sack by sr. DE Jake Strain made sure of that. Eighty-seven yards to go to retake the lead . . . coming right up! Clements went 3-for-3 on this thrust, accounting for 74 of 'em. His completions went to soph RB D'Andre Swift (outSTANDing leaping catch for 24; he was up high enough to dunk), to Swift again (for 37 on a crossing pattern) and to sr. WR-CB John Reid for 13. That third snag placed the ball at the 15. Three runs got the job done: 9 yards for Clements, 5 for jr. RB Benny Walls and 1 for Clements on a sneak. Sr. T Jon Daniel Runyan then hammered his fifth PAT of the drizzle-less evening and La Salle's last possession left the aforementioned void. Clements has been through so much. A shade more than a month ago, jr. QB Tom Garlick, already a two-year starter at Wood, transferred into the Prep after losing his job with the Vikings. No doubt Clements had to be wondering if he was ticketed to become a spectator. Then, almost as quickly as he appeared, Garlick was gone, having transferred to his neighborhood high school, Quakertown. Though there are times when Clements does not look completely comfortable, he deserves major praise for how he fared tonight during crunch time. Aside from his passing -- in all, he went 14-for-19 for 232 yards and a 13-yard TD to DuMond -- he turned QB draws/scrambles into 59 yards on 12 totes. His primary pass-catchers were Zaccheaus (5-84) and Swift (5-76), and they led the rushing parade as well (10-52 and 10-89, respectively). The grunts were jr. C Ed Mooney, sr. G Mark Ehrlich, sr. G Shane Davis, jr. T Charlie Holsopple and Runyan. The most productive Explorer was Meachum, who notched 104 yards and one TD on 15 carries while adding six receptions for 48 yards; he had one TD in each category. Sr. QB Kyle Shurmur went 21-for-32 for 188 yards and two scores. Though the completion percentage was impressive, the yards-per-attempt number (5.9) was not. The Hawks did a terrific job (mostly) of preventing YACs and that was a key factor in the win. While the Prep posted five completions worth at least 20 yards, La Salle had just one. And when does that scenario ever occur? The Prep totaled 476 scrimmage yards and 160 on returns. La Salle had 338/123. The Prep honored its seniors beforehand. AD Joe Parisi said La Salle, at school this week, sold 2,469 tickets out of 2,500. "We could have sold the rest," he added, "but we had to get the check to the Prep." At one point, I mentioned to Joe that Franklin had bested Washington in double OT. He said, "Changing of the guard, eh?" Followed by, as a whistle blew, "Speaking of guards, one of ours just went offside." Also on La Salle's sideline was '14 grad Ryan Coonahan, a star DE. He was still itchin' to play. "I almost ran out there and tripped a guy," he cracked. My first stop was Haverford School for the first three quarters of the game with Malvern. That highlight was being able to touch base with Terry Toohey, a great (and versatile) sports writer for the Delco Times. Keep it rollin', Terry! Meanwhile . . . A suggestion for CL brass (and this is no slap at the other schools): Create a two-team Prep/La Salle division and let them play every damn week. (smile) The entertainment would be top notch and the cash cow could be milked again and again.

OCT. 10 (Mid-Morning)
TEDBIT
  Here are the Thursday games (not counting Thanksgiving) in this century involving Catholic League teams. In these 15 seasons, only Roman has played on back-to-back Thursdays.

OCT. 10
TEDBIT
  It's 8 o'clock in the morning and, if you want a parking spot, here's hoping you're already heading to Plymouth-Whitemarsh (smile). Yes, tonight's Catholic AAAA game (7 o'clock) between St. Joseph's Prep and La Salle will be quite the mob scene. The private school archrivals have met 25 times in this century and the Prep owns 17 victories. Prior to the 2013 season, La Salle had captured eight of the last 12 contests. But the Hawks seized both meetings and stormed ahead to win the state title. All time, the Prep leads the series, 44-35-5. Best runs: the Hawks were 13-0-3 from 1920-43, the Explorers were 14-3 from 1976-92 and the Hawks answered with 13-0 dominance from 1999-through the regular season meeting in '05; La Salle broke its skid on Thanksgiving. Immediately below are the top 10 performances in rushing, passing and receiving from 2000 through 2013. Below that are guys who would have made the top list, going back to the first season (1982) in which we began publishing stat leaders each Tuesday in the Daily News.

OCT. 9
CATHOLIC AAAA
Roman 20, Judge 14
  UPDATE: Dimetri Kelly now owns the No. 1 total for career rushing yards in Roman history. He has produced 3,443 yards and 31 TDs on 646 carries. His coach, Joe McCourt (Class of 2001), rushed 558 times for 3,315 yards and 38 scores. Kelly needed 19 yards to snap McCourt's mark. Late in the first quarter, he owned 13 before breaking free on a middle-to-left-side run that earned him 44 yards from Roman's 18 to Judge's 38. . . Congrats, Dimetri! 
  A check of several websites indicates we were one night past a full moon. Coulda fooled me. Through the years, while watching chest-bump celebrations, undoubtedly you've often wondered, "Does anyone ever get hurt doing those?" Maybe a twisted ankle here or a tweaked knee there. Sadly, an all-timer happened tonight. Six minutes and 33 seconds prior to halftime, Roman sr. handyman John Chaney, off a trick play, hit wide-open sr. WR Kenny Avallon, the class president, for a 40-yard, trick-play TD. Understandably, the Cahillites were pretty darn excited and sr. WR AJ Frazier (my sincere apologies for listing the wrong player when this report was originally posted) sprinted over to celebrate with Avallon toward the right corner of the end zone. Up they went. Bang! Backward Avallon fell. While trying to break his fall with his left arm . . . oh, my God . . . Avallon suffered a broken forearm. This kid has been a brassy, two-way force all season and now, just like that, his Roman career is likely over. Best of luck getting through this deflating experience, Kenny, and here's hoping that you CAN make it back for the Thanksgiving game vs. Roxborough. (By the way, Kenny's dad, Ken, is also a president . . . of the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame!) Avallon was not alone in the injury club. Each team lost its starting QB. Early in the second quarter, Judge sr. Zack Carroll suffered what was believed to be a concussion. A little more than three minutes prior to halftime, Roman jr. Phil DiWilliams dinged his throwing (right) shoulder . . . Not before experiencing a special moment, however. Avallon's TD was Roman's second. Sixty-five seconds earlier, DiWilliams had scored one by recovering a fumble in the end zone. On that play, "Phil DiWill" was lined up at wideout as Frazier took a wildcat snap and surged toward the end zone from the 6. Just as Frazier reached the goal line, the ball popped free and DiWilliams made the recovery. DiWilliams finished 5-for-10 for 115 yards while Carroll went 0-for-6. Roman's backup, a well-built soph named Anthony Butler, hit Chaney for a 25-yard score -- the defender fell down -- on the Cahillites' first possession of the third quarter. Judge's backup, soph Robert King, shook off some early ballhandling miseries to finish 5-for-12 for 106 yards and a 20-yard TD to soph WR Raheem "Speedy" Blackshear. That score brought Judge within 20-7 4:11 before the end of the third quarter. Roman only owned 20 points thanks to great hustle by jr. RB-S Yeedee Thaenrat, who'd blasted off the corner to block the PAT. He was hardly finished, folks. On the Roman series that followed Blackshear's TD, Thaenrat, while trying to sack Butler, knocked the ball free, made the scoop at midfield and dashed all the way to the end zone. Soon, Roman jr. K-P Ethan Mahler was trying a 28-yard field goal and, thwap!, jr. WR-DB Prince Smith was recording a block. The ball squirted toward Roman's sideline, where it was recovered by Judge sr. DL Tim Burke. Truthfully, this could have been an EASY touchdown for Judge. Smith must not have known about the rule that allows blocked FGs to be returned, however, because he was dancing in celebration. Just two plays later, Roman soph LB Matt Galasso made an interception to highlight a strong performance. He'll be the recipient of Ace Carter's DN ink and the story of how Galasso wound up at Roman is quite amazing (in tandem with troubling). Judge mounted no true threat on its last two possessions, thanks primarily to Galasso, sr. DT Gavin Wiggins (Youngstown State) and jr. LB Bobby Cox. (Sr. LB Sam Payne had been an earlier force.) In the waning moments, on a third-down play, sr. RB Dimetri Kelly (27-146) reeled off a 19-yard gain to earn a first down, cinch the win and place the ball at Judge's 2. Coach Joe McCourt then ordered Butler to twice take a knee. Chaney made three snags for 78 yards and Frazier's catchin' numbers were 3-78. Hey, identical! Thaenrat managed 64 yards on 16 rushes while adding back-to-back sacks late in the fourth quarter. Sr. Eric Petroski showed well at LB, making a handful of stops at or behind the line. This game was played at Conshohocken's Alfred A. Garthwaite Field, commonly know as "The A Field." The grass was incredibly lush, causing McCourt to crack, "It's so soft, you wanna lay down and take a nap." The lights? Don't ask! Talk about insufficient. The highest ISO on my crappy camera is 1600, so many of the shots were dark and/or fuzzy. DN lensman Steve Falk said he was shooting at 6400. That's an outrageously high number, necessitated by the poor lighting. This was Roman's home game and the rental cost was no more than one-fourth of what it costs to rent a Philly School District Super Site. (Maybe as low as one-fifth, actually.) I can't remember ever having covered a Thursday night Catholic League game, though I guess it was possible. (Judge hosted O'Hara, at Northeast, in a AAAA game on a Thursday night in late October 2009. The next night, Northeast was used for a Pub AAAA quarterfinal.) Meanwhile, I'd have to think Roman is the first CL team to play on back-to-back Thursdays. Last week the Cahillites played an afternoon game at Haverford School because a Jewish holiday started at sundown on Friday. Hanging out along Judge's sideline was Jim Burgmann, formerly a very productive, part-time sports writer for the now-gone Northeast News Gleaner. In his regular job, Jim has worked for Acme for 48 years. Great to see you, Jim! 

OCT. 9
TEDBIT
  Roman and Judge will meet tonight, 7 o'clock, at Conshohocken's A Field (11th and Harry Streets) in a Catholic AAAA battle. The teams first met in 1956 and Roman leads the series, 15-14. The teams met each year from '56-'64, again in '77 and '83 and straight through from '99 (with three playoff tussles mixed in) after the North-South alignment was scrapped in favor of big-small (and later medium). Below are the top performances since '99.  Some of these guys are now assistants and Joe McCourt, primarily a standout rusher though he made this list for pass-catching, is now Roman's head coach.

OCT. 8
TEDBIT
  This is the ninth season for SCH Academy (nee Chestnut Hill) in its latest go-'round as an Inter-Ac League football member. And if you like to see individual offensive outbursts, the Blue Devils (nee Hillers) are your answer. Since 2006, they've slapped together 11 rushing/passing performances of at least 250 yards. That's the Inter-Ac's top effort. The Maddens are brothers, as are the Campbells. For each school below, rushing performances are listed first, followed by passing. SCH coach Rick Knox was a star lineman at CHA and Penn, so he's very focused on making sure his grunts provide the blocking that fuels such outings.