OCT. 20
TEDBIT
  Are you a high school senior with gobs of talent but no interest from Division I-A colleges? Do you dream of playing in the NFL, but also can't help but mutter to yourself, "How can I make it to the pros if I can't even stir Division I-A interest?" Don't sweat it TOO much, guys. Recently, Bartram product Al-Hajj Shabazz, a cornerback, made his NFL debut and he played his college ball at D-II West Chester. In 2002, SJ Prep product Rich Gannon, a quarterback, was the NFL MVP and his college stop had been made at I-AA Delaware. Over the last 30 years, thirteen guys from Public/Catholic/Inter-Ac schools have made the NFL out of I-AA/II programs. Jahri Evans, Gannon, Brent Grimes and Erik Williams have achieved stardom. (Also, some guys have needed to attend junior colleges before winding up in I-A programs.) The overall message here: Uncommon paths CAN work out. Hey, look at Carson Wentz (smile).

OCT. 19
TEDBIT
  This nugget first appeared last year after Haverford School edged Penn Charter, 41-40, in three OTs. The teams met again last Saturday and once again extra action was required. This time the Fords needed just one OT to claim the W and the score was 21-20. Over at Germantown Academy, meanwhile, the Patriots topped SCH Academy, 16-13, in one OT. Details/recaps on the I-A's six all-time OT games are below and here are the schools' last ties in any kind of game: EA vs. GA, 7-7, in 1995; GA vs. Prep Charter, 21-21, in 2014 (halted by lightning); HS vs. EA, 21-21, in 1988; MP vs. Carroll, 12-12, in 1994; PC vs. MP, 7-7, in 1985. CHA/SCH has had none since rejoining the I-A for football in 2006. As an I-A member, it last played a tie -- 0-0 vs. Germantown High -- in 1931.

OCT. 18
TEDBIT
  Further confirmation that the football gods work in mysterious ways: Yesterday, because of low numbers and mounting injuries (and almost certainly fears of really getting embarrassed), Neumann-Goretti decided to forfeit its final two Catholic Blue games of the 2016 season. Those games would have been played against the division's top two teams, O'Hara and Conwell-Egan. This past weekend, the Saints surrendered 41 points to Lansdale Catholic, which had been blanked in its two previous tilts, so it's fair to assume the Lions/Eagles would have truly frolicked. Anyway, yesterday was Oct. 17 and on that SAME DATE in 1972 Chestnut Hill Academy cut short its season for the exact same reasons. A story in the Oct. 18 Inquirer reported CHA had only 26 players on its roster and that eight had been lost to major injuries. Not sure about N-G's exact status right now, but the roster included 25-26 players as the season began. CHA, now SCH Academy and known as the Blue Devils (they were the Hillers back then), were 1-2 at the time. They beat Sanford (Del.), 21-0, then dropped Inter-Ac games to Haverford School (32-0) and Penn Charter (48-8). They forfeited I-A games with Germantown Academy, Malvern and Episcopal and a non-league tilt vs. Valley Forge Military Academy. The Hillers wound up leaving the Inter-Ac for football and did not return until 2006. In the interim, they had much success in leagues that included smaller-enrollment schools. Through the years, a few forfeits have taken place in the Catholic League. But mostly they've resulted from the use of ineligible players. Meanwhile, back in 1957, two games weren't played -- La Salle-North Catholic and Roman-Neumann. Those would have been played on Oct. 13, but the Philly region and the USA, in general, were being hit hard by the Asian flu. Two other games scheduled for that day -- Bonner-St. Thomas More and St. James-Judge -- were made up on the weekend before Thanksgiving. Bonner won, 12-0, on Friday night on the field at St. Joseph's College. A 60-yard TD run by Dave O'Donnell was the highlight. On Saturday afternoon at Northeast, in rain AND snow, St. James beat Judge, 33-0, as Frank Orobano ran for three scores. La Salle-NC wasn't played because La Salle had already clinched the championship and had games remaining against Germantown on Thanksgiving and against Roxborough for the City Title. Not sure why Roman-Neumann did not reschedule. In 2009, a non-league game between Carroll (AA) and North Catholic (AAA) was canceled because of swine flu problems at Carroll. One story reported that 38 percent of Carroll's students were absent one day. Meanwhile, in 1956, St. Thomas More forfeited league games to La Salle, St. James and Neumann due to "the large number of rather serious injuries" after getting outscored by 179-8 in six games. The school's principal, the Rev. John L. Curran, said, "It's for the good of the team. We have what amounts to a jayvee team. There are only three seniors on the team and we are not able to take the physical beating." The Golden Bears (a k a Tommies) did play Overbrook on Thanksgiving and lost that one, 12-0. STM, at 47th and Wyalusing, in West Philly, returned to CL football in '57 and remained through the 1970 season. It played independent schedules from 1971 through '73, going 6-20-1 overall. It did face Roman in all three seasons, posting two wins and a tie. It closed in June 1975 and had no football team in '74. For now, anyway, Neumann-Goretti is intending to honor its Thanksgiving commitment with Southern. There is also talk that the Saints will try to play Columbia, which has also struggled this season. Those teams were slated to meet in Wildwood, NJ, during Labor Day weekend, but weather fears intervened. Here's hoping N-G can regroup and again experience football joy. If not this year, then down the line. Its basketball and baseball teams won state championships last school year. These rough times can't be easy for the football guys. . . One last thing. Maybe you're wondering, did STM also make its let's-shut-this-down decision on Oct. 17? Nah, it was Oct. 26.
  UPDATE: On Oct. 19, N-G was told to end its season. Thus, the Thanksgiving game with Southern will not be played for the fourth time -- also 2001 (Southern forfeited due to low numbers), 2007 (agreement on site could not be reached) and 2014 (N-G was involved in state playoffs).

OCT. 17
TEDBIT
  Since Inter-Ac football jumped from five to six teams with the return of Chestnut Hill Academy (now SCH Academy) in 2006, the number of close games -- we're going to define that as a four-point margin or less -- has increased. There were only five in six seasons from 2000 to 2005 (60 games total) while there have been 28 in the 11 seasons (153 games total) since. Those percentages figure to 8.3 and 18.3. This past weekend, the three games were decided by seven total points and two required overtime. That was the first three-pack of extra-close tilts over these last 11 seasons. Let the great competition continue!

OCT. 16
TEDBIT
  This nugget was inspired by one of those hmmmmm moments. After noticing that Lansdale Catholic yesterday exploded for 41 points -- all in the first half, as things turned out; Matt Casee's three TD runs led the way -- vs. Neumann-Goretti, I couldn't help but wonder, "How often does a team get shut out in two consecutive games, then bounce back with as many as 41 points?" The results of that research -- for this century, limited to Catholic/Inter-Ac teams -- is contained in the list below. But there's much more. The question then became, "How often does a team score those 41 points in a LEAGUE game?" Oh, baby. That search created a journey all the way back to 1926, the first season for which I have Catholic/Inter-Ac results in chronological order thanks to the ol' Bulletin Almanac. The answer? I could find no CL/I-A team aside from Lansdale (the OC is Drew Gordon, of La Salle coaching fame) that has accomplished that feat in a league game over these last 91 seasons! The previous record in that category was 40 points, as posted by Roman in 1997 in a 40-36 win over Neumann. Just two years ago, Roman twice was blanked -- 43-0 by SJ Prep, 49-0 by La Salle -- before enjoying its usual Thanksgiving frolic past Roxborough, by 45-6. And in that 1926 season, West Catholic was shut out twice -- 3-0 by Salesianum (Del.), 9-0 by Roman -- before rolling to a 41-0 destruction of St. Matthew, in Conshohocken. As only oldheads likely know, St. Matthew (commonly known as St. Matt's) later became Archbishop Kennedy and Kennedy later merged with Bishop Kenrick, in Norristown, to become Kennedy-Kenrick in the latter's building. K-K closed in June 2010. Meanwhile, Penn Charter's 37-20 win over Episcopal in 2009 stands as the top bounceback among Inter-Ac schools going back to 1926. Before that game, the Quakers were dumped by Haverford School, 34-0, and Chestnut Hill, 45-0. . . Oh, almost forgot. The scores in LC's consecutive blankings this season were 26-0 vs. Conwell-Egan and 28-0 vs. O'Hara. Thanks to coach Tom Kirk for providing the names of the offensive starters. If you know of any other occurrences, please speak up. There are always chances of typos and/or incorrect orders for game listings. Or mess-ups by me (ugh).

OCT. 15
TEDBIT
  What are the chances? Two very late field goals. Same distance. Same result in crazy fashion. Last night, as reported by Matt Smith of the Delco Times (his story is here), Malvern's Brandon Chiazza hit a 29-yard field goal with 46 seconds remaining to create a 34-34 tie with Episcopal Academy and cap a wild stormback from a 34-9 deficit. The kick succeeded although the ball clanged off the left upright. Then, with 0:00 showing, Episcopal won it, 37-34, thanks to a field goal by Connor Ringwalt from the same distance with a bounce off the same upright! Adam Robinson did the holding after a snap by Adam Klein. The victory made coach Todd Fairlie's Churchmen 6-0 for the second time in five seasons and eighth time over the last 80 seasons. EA began the 2013 and 2015 campaigns with 5-0 marks, but fell to Lawrenceville (NJ), 48-47, and Malvern, 33-14, respectively. Check out the details for the 1942 squad. Usually, a team with a perfect record storms to numerous large-margin triumphs, right? Not that squad. The Churchmen topped 14 points just once, in a 52-0 pummeling of Gloucester (NJ). The only points were scored by Bryn Athyn, now known as The Academy of the New Church. Thanks to coach Fairlie for providing the names of his offensive/defensive members.

--

OCT. 14
TEDBIT
  The fact that Haverford School is Episcopal Academy's biggest rival will never change, but EA is much closer to Malvern ever since the move from City Avenue to Newtown Square a decade ago and proximity, I guess, has added something to these tilts. The teams meet again tonight, 7 o'clock, at Malvern and the Top 8 performances in rushing, passing and receiving from 1982 through 2015 are listed below. There were no meetings before MP joined the Inter-Ac for the 1950 season and the Friars have truly been dominant, at 47-16-3. They won every game again from 1971-80 and again from 2005-11. EA had two small runs with two wins and a tie -- 1981-83 and 1990-92. The top rushing performance is not a typo. Malvern's Troy Gallen did indeed rush for 372 yards! Also, check out EA's Mike McGillian. In the same game, he rushed for 160 and passed for 139. One other interesting nugget: Ian Strain is the only EA guy in the receiving section. But . . . He's No. 1! 

OCT. 13
TEDBIT
  The Penn Charter-Haverford School series goes back to 1887. Alas, it hasn't been gone straight through. HS was not in the Inter-Ac from 1905 through 1920 and the matchup did not take place. But since the teams met twice in 1888 -- 6-6 tie, 24-0 win for PC -- the series has included 114 tussles and PC leads, 69-39-6. PC achieved streaks of 10 (1892-1901), seven (1954-60) and 16 wins (1992-2007), and captured 27 of 28 (lost in '91) from 1980 through 2007. Since then? Eight straight wins by the Fords. The most compelling game, by far, was played last year and the final was 41-40, in three OTs (longest game in I-A history). It was borderline dark as the game ended. The Fords slapped together one other impressive streak, going 11-0-4 from 1935-49. Below are the Top 10 performances in rushing/passing/receiving from 1982 through 2015. This year's game will unfold tomorrow, 3:15, at PC. One other nugget: PC won the 1967 contest, 33-14, and star jr. RB Rick Mellor had quite the performance. It's almost certain he racked up over 400 all-purpose yards. As mentioned in a Daily News story I found online, Rick returned a kickoff for a 90-yard TD, had a 49-yard reception and returned a last-moments interception 73 yards to HS' 25. Complete stats are not mentioned in the story, but Rick, who played in college at Penn, was told he'd rushed for 200-plus. He's a long-time football assistant at PC, and he coached the baseball team for 33 seasons (1979-2011) before co-coaching with Jon Cross for one last campaign in '12.

OCT. 12
TEDBIT
  Conwell-Egan has posted shutouts in two consecutive games for the first time since 2004 and just the third time over the last 35 seasons. The victims this time were Lansdale Catholic, then McDevitt. The Eagles joined the Catholic League for the 1963 season and represented Bishop Egan through the '92 season. The merger with Bishop Conwell, the nearby girls school, then took place. There have been three consecutive blankings just once, in 1967. The streaks in '66, '67 and '68 all occurred at the start of the season. Thanks to coach Jack Techtmann for his help with names.

OCT. 11
TEDBIT
  Can't be sure about this because West Catholic football goes back almost a century. But it's possible, maybe even probable, that sr. WR Amadou "My Best" Barry now owns a piece of the Burrs' school record for receptions in one game. Last Saturday, in an 18-12 loss to Germantown Academy, on throws from co-QBs Da'Vion Kidd-Jackson and Anthony Mirabile, Barry made 11 catches for 139 yards. He wears No. 11, to boot. In 1987 vs. Carroll, thanks to Chris Abbonizio, Rob Gentile posted the same number of snags for 187 yards. (In case you're curious, he wore No. 80.) Below are details for all seven-catch outings by Burrs over the last 35 seasons.

OCT. 10
TEDBIT
  Bonner/Bonner-Prendergast (briefly Prendergast in the beginning) has scored at least 50 points nine times in its reasonably lengthy football history and the most recent outburst took place Saturday night as the Friars topped Neumann-Goretti, 52-18. The details are below, as are the names of the blockers who helped to make it happen . . . And now for an interesting story. I called first-year coach Jack Muldoon yesterday afternoon (right after the Eagles game reached halftime, in case he was watching) and asked for the names of the grunts. Then I asked if he could guess the name of someone whose name would be in the highlights of all-time outbursts. I even told him the season, 1974. Rather than make him guess and guess, I said, "Jack Muldoon kicked four PAT." With a laugh, he responded, "It wasn't me!" He then told me the story. Bonner's 1974 roster featured two guys named, officially, John Muldoon. "And we were born on the same day!" Jack said. "Though some people called him Jack, he mostly went by Max. He was our kicker. I was the holder. Max kicked those PAT." Jack was also a defensive back. Jack said Max attended Navy and later became an admiral. Thanks to Jack for providing the names. And especially for that classic story.
C - Ricky Pietrewicz.
G - Ian Jones, Sean Morris.
T - Kevin Zimmerman, Michael Killian.
TE - Steve DiBattista (when used).
FB - Michael Larsen/Hunter Clements-Ragin (when used).

OCT. 9 (Evening)
TEDBIT
  I wrote this story about Al-Hajj Shabazz, who today made his NFL debut for the Pittsburgh Steelers (thanks to website legend Amauro "Amar" Austin for the heads-up), back in 2009. It appeared in the Daily News EXACTLY seven years ago today!! Talk about freaky . . . Al-Hajj was Bartram's QB and also the centerpiece of a classic "Only in the Pub" moment. He played college football at West Chester and has persevered like crazy to reach this moment. Congrats, Al-Hajj! . . . Also thanks to Damond "Smash" Warren, who was Bartram's coach then and is now the principal, for his help.

  Al-Hajj Shabazz is not one of those Johnny-come-lately quarterbacks.
  You do have to go back a way - 13 months to be exact - to find the last time he was entrenched as a starter, though, and the reason that situation changed was . . . well, he was one of those get-to-school-late guys.
  Shabazz is now a 6-1, 175-pound senior at John Bartram High, and yesterday he steered the Braves past Jules Mastbaum Tech, 33-6, in a non-league game at Germantown's Ben Johnston Memorial Stadium.
  He began the 2008-09 school year as Edward Bok Tech's quarterback, but lasted just 3 weeks before transferring to Bartram, not far from his Southwest Philly home near 65th and Dicks.
  "I love Bok," Shabazz said. "I hated having to leave there. I love those cats. I was broken about it. I was crying. Those are my guys, man. I wish them the best of luck.
  "My problem was getting to school on time. I kept winding up late and my family said I had to transfer closer to home. You don't want that stuff going on your record. "
  The culprit: the 37 bus.
  "If I missed that thing, I was done," Shabazz said, laughing. "It only comes about every half-hour. If I got it, I was fine. If not . . . ''
  Yesterday, Shabazz missed no chances to contribute big plays. He had an arm or feet in four of Bartram's five TDs and then unwittingly had a hand - the right one, if you must know - in one of the all-time conversion comedies.
  After turning an ad-lib into a 14-yard TD dash with 9 minutes, 11 seconds left, Shabazz knelt down to hold for kicker Derek "Aztec" King, also a star linebacker.
  The snap was a shade off-kilter. Shabazz reached and fumbled for the ball and as he tried to get it onto the block . . . thump! King swung his leg forward and completely missed the ball while kicking Shabazz in the right hand. Al-Hajj (pronounce that second part like hodge) covered the ball and was swarmed under.
  How many times are there two failures - kick and "run" - on the same conversion? Like always, repeat after us: Only in the Pub.
  "It didn't hurt me," Shabazz said.
  "I can't kick it if it's not there," King cracked.
  Shabazz' other rushing TD was a 4-yard sneak right up the middle. He also passed for two scores, a 23-yarder to Yamir Simmons and a 9-yarder to Mohammed Diabate. Overall, Shabazz went 6-for-8 for 125 yards, and the most productive play was a screen left to Jerome Tucker (it worked three times for 63 yards).
  When asked whether his 14-yard score came off a designed play, Shabazz quipped, "Just me, baby. "
  He added, "I think it was supposed to be a pass. But coach [Damond "Smash" Warren] tells me, 'If you see a seam, take it. ' ''
  After arriving at Bartram last fall, Shabazz saw occasional handyman duty on offense as QB Laquan Williams finished a productive career. This year he was slated to serve mostly as a key wide receiver. But Warren made a switch last week, an upset of Frankford resulted, and the original QB is no longer part of the team.
  "I was fine with the situation," Shabazz insisted. "I was looking forward to be part of a heckuva tandem. I wanted to be a starting receiver. Didn't work out. "
  Does that mean he's now a reluctant QB?
  "Whatever the team needs, I'll do," he said. "I just like having the ball in my hands, however it gets there. "
  Brandon Jones led Bartram's rushers with 86 yards and a 24-yard TD on 14 carries.
  Mastbaum's highlight was Marcus Johnson's 84-yard kickoff return for a TD. The Panthers' operated all afternoon out of a spread, hurry-up offense, enabling Marc Price and Taron Williams to attempt 27 total passes. Fourteen completions yielded 135 yards, spread primarily among Juwan Morrison (5-42), Jacob Lockley (5-23) and Fermin Castellanos (3-55). Also, Williams hit Price for 15 yards.
  The more he thinks about it, the more Shabazz does like quarterbacking.
  "I like leading my troops," he said. "I like how, when a big play is needed, the team looks to me to make it. "
  Lately, that's been always.

OCT. 9
TEDBIT
  Penn Charter, under coach Tommy Coyle, is off to a 4-0 start for the first time since 1993 and the school record for widest gap (25 years, 1929-54) is no longer in danger of being broken. This is the Quakers' 21st start of at least 4-0 over the last 121 seasons. Championships have followed 13 times (nine outrights, four shareds) and perfect overall records have followed six times. Assistant Rick Mellor was a star RB for the '67 and '68 teams. Assistant Bill Gallagher was the head coach for the '82, '83, '90 and '93 teams. Assistant Brian McCloskey was an assistant for the '90 and '93 squads.

OCT. 8
NON-LEAGUE
Penn Charter 35, Academy of the New Church 0
  PC's "Grill Squad" was hard at work this afternoon, even going TO the stands on the far side to sell hot dogs, burgers, candy, etc. The guys and gals also should have offered ice cream. Gallons and gallons of only vanilla. ANC's roster includes 33 players and 14 are freshmen. Only 26 guys were in uniform and only a handful had some size. Because of the low numbers and injuries, the Lions opted to cancel last Monday's JV game vs. PC and, despite the Lions' admirable grit, this one could have gotten beyond ugly if the Quakers had wanted to go down that undesirable path. As the situation played out, the starting backs/ends sat down after 13 1/2 minutes, with the score at 28-0, and Chris Rahill, PC's offensive coordinator, kept everything vanilla thereafter. The Q's first three scoring drives required just four, one and three plays, and a defensive TD was mixed in. That was score No. 3 and was racked up by jr. OLB Terence Thompson on a 22-yard fumble return; sr. DE Luke Stansfield caused the cough-up on a TFL. The offensive scores went to soph RB Edward Saydee (4-yard run), sr. TE Justus Sanders (26-yard catch and truck-guys from sr. QB Mike "Neeko" Hnatkowsky) and sr. RB Brendan Pell (6-yard run). Sanders' TD created a stir because he's a first-year player and had to go through injury rehab before making it onto the field for a game. Justus, also a basketball-baseball player, is a strong kid (6-2, 235) with interesting potential and here's hoping he gets some college looks. Many, even. The final TD came with 3:37 left in the fourth quarter on a 3-yard run by frosh John Giuffrida, who goes 5-6, 134. The guys on the sideline loved that one, too. Thirteen of the Lions' plays lost yardage. Sr. DE John Grace earned a hat trick (TFL, sack, fumble recovery), Stansfield had a half-sack and two TFLs, sr. DL Kevin MacCabe recorded two sacks, sr. DB Denarii Beard made an interception and soph special-teamer Ryan Maloney blocked a punt. Junior sub QBs Will Samuel and Jordan Wilson were able to make appearances and that was good to see. Sr. K Adam Kuper went 4-for-4 on PAT and frosh Ryan Bradby drilled the last one. PC is 4-0 for the first time since 1993 and that season ended rather well, at 8-0. The Inter-Ac now includes six teams, so nine games will be played by PC. The I-A fun will begin Friday when Haverford School visits the Quakers. Because every school boasts a veteran QB, much offense can be expected over the next five weeks. I usually bring three No. 2 pencils to each game. Might have to up the number to four in case some all-time shootouts take place (smile). Best of luck to all six teams and I KNOW some major entertainment will be forthcoming . . . Not wanting to deal with rain (though it wasn't bad, actually), I watched this one from the press box with PA announcer John Burkhart, sports writer Jon Vander Lugt, PC handyman Paul Hart (he handled down/distance on the scoreboard) and clock operator Jim Tucker . . . ANC's squad also includes a Jordan Wilson (his middle initial is A; it's C for PC's version) and they agreed to pose for a post-game pic. Thanks, guys . . . Mark Brenfleck, a multi-sport contributor at Frankford in the early '70s (after spending some time at PC), is one of ANC's assistants. His frosh son, Jeb, a lefty, made a late-game appearance at QB. Mark said ANC is expecting to bring in a good crop of freshmen for the 2017 squad.

OCT. 8
TEDBIT
  For my money, the best thing about Carroll's new on-campus football field, which officially debuted last night during a 26-7 Catholic Red loss to Ryan, is that it's named after former coach Joe McNichol. I met Joe 45 years ago while starting my sports writing career and he was absolutely terrific. That never changed -- much later, he was part of La Salle's staff -- and congrats to the Carroll family for realizing/honoring what Joe gave to the school. Joe won two CL championships and City Titles with the Patriots, in 1971 and 1976, and breakdowns for those two teams are below. The most famous product of these teams is Joe Clancy, a first team coaches' All-Catholic honoree in '71. His current job: Director of the Secret Service. His brother, Kevin, was another great guy/coach at Carroll (1982-90) and has been the grid boss at Strath Haven ever since. Bill Zwaan, the QB for the '71 squad, is in his 14th season as the coach at West Chester University after an earlier stint at Widener. Kevin Mullen, a third team All-City receiver in '76, was a first teamer in '77 and held the city leagues record for career TD receptions (22) until 2006.  

OCT. 7
TEDBIT
  St. Joseph's Prep and Roman will get after it again tonight (7 o'clock) at Conshohocken's A Field (officially A.A. Garthwaite Field) in a Catholic Red tussle. And, as mentioned in one of these segments three years ago, they'll be bringing more than a century's worth of history with them. Believe it or not, these teams first met in 1903 and have met in EVERY year (sometimes twice, due to playoffs) since 1918. These schools -- Roman at Broad & Vine, SJ Prep at 17th & Girard -- are maybe a mile apart and long were intense Thanksgiving rivals (1920-71). They stopped the holiday series only because the CL was preparing to expand the playoffs. Overall, the Prep leads the series, 79-40-2 (those two ties were scoreless). The Hawks won 10 in a row from 1928-37 and 16 in a row from 1963-78, and they've won EVERY regular season meeting since capturing the 2000 tilt while posting an outrageous scoring advantage of 620-111. The Cahillites' decent runs came from 1944-56 (11-2) and 1979-93 (12-4). Below are the top rushing/passing/receiving performances from 1982 through 2015. The majority are recent. Joe McCourt, Roman's former coach, owns the Nos. 3 and 5 rushing totals; Roman rushers Dimetri (No. 2) and Marcus Kelly (No. 10) are brothers. SJ Prep's Skyler Mornhinweg slapped together four of the top five passing outings; recent NFL Hall of Fame inductee Marvin Harrison (Roman) far and away owns the top receiving number and Will Fuller (Roman, No. 9 receiver) is off to a great rookie start with the Houston Texans.

OCT. 6
TEDBIT
  Fields with artificial turf are now in use at all six Inter-Ac schools -- Penn Charter joined the fold last season -- and now that Bonner-Prendie has debuted its on-campus facility, 12 of the Catholic League's 14 schools play some/all home games on turf. Carroll (on its campus) and McDevitt (at nearby Cheltenham) are still in the grass-and-dirt club. Ryan (at Washington) and Roman (at Conshohocken's A field) still play some games on G&D while also mixing in some appearances at Public League Super Sites. At the bottom of the list below is a breakdown of first appearances on assorted turf fields by Inter-Ac/Catholic teams that were serving as hosts. Above that is a breakdown for CL playoffs and City Titles. As mentioned two years ago, when the original version of this list was posted . . . In 1969, Penn's Franklin Field, then 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 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. 5
TEDBIT
  Drew Gordon, a quarterback of note at McDevitt (class of 1968) and Villanova, is in his 16th season as a coach in Catholic League football -- nine as a head coach and seven as an offensive coordinator. This is his first campaign as the OC at Lansdale Catholic and so far he has had to accept half as many shutouts as his other squads were dealt. Those numbers are two and four, respectively. Hard to believe, right? The breakdown for Gordon's seasons is below. In 198 games, his teams have averaged 26.5 points (with some defensive points mixed in). Take away his first season, and this one, and the average is 27.8. Talk about productive. Lansdale is still feeling its way mostly because the quarterback, sr. Michael Basilii, is the only back/end with much experience. The other guys hardly touched the ball in the 2015 season. Gordon, meanwhile, spent the 2015 season as McDevitt's OC. The Lancers played 14 games and racked up 341 points (24.4 average) while avoiding a shutout. McDevitt had been blanked 18 times in this century and had avoided at least one goose egg in only two seasons (2009 and '10). Drew's son, Brett, an all-timer, was La Salle's QB for three seasons beginning in '95 and was the Explorers' OC for most of dad's stint as the head man. He's now back in that role under coach John Steinmetz. The Explorers are averaging 32.2 points.

--

OCT. 4
TEDBIT
  In Penn Charter's 49-21 win at Lawrenceville (NJ) on Saturday, sr. Adam Kuper went 7-for-7 on PAT attempts. He was just the second Quaker to post that many PAT in one game since at least 1973. Eric Muller did so once apiece in 2005 and '06. Fourteen other Inter-Ac players have kicked at least seven over these last 44 seasons and four have notched eight.

OCT. 3
TEDBIT
  La Salle jr. WR Troy Holland has a Twitter account and his handle is iamtrizzyfresh. Know what? Trizzy is fresh off a very noteworthy performance. In fact, it was the best by far -- 34 yards -- by an Explorer over the last 36 seasons. Saturday night vs. Judge, off throws from sr. Tom LaMorte, Holland made 10 catches for 213 yards and two TDs in a 35-7 victory. The previous one-game best: 179 by Jimmy Herron, already a baseball headliner at Duke, in 2014. Below are the top 21 efforts. Four belong to Herron. . . Meanwhile, LaMorte, a first-year starter, went 18-for-21 for 264 yards and three TDs, with no interceptions. That computes to an outrageous passer rating of 238.5.