DEC. 17

Listed below are the rankings of all three City Leagues Teams by Winning Percentage

1. Wood                               13-2             .887
2. Mastery North                   10-2             .833
3. Imhotep Charter                13-3             .812
4. St. Joe Prep                      12-3            .800
    Malvern                            8-2              .800
6. MLK                                10-3             .770  
7. Franklin                            9-3              .750
    Southern                           9-3              .750
    West Catholic                   9-3              . 750 
10. Episcopal                        8-3              .727
     LaSalle                            8-3              .727
     Ryan                                8-3              .727
13. Frankford                        8-4               .667
14. Father Judge                    7-4               .636
      Prep Charter                    7-4               .636
16. Germantown Academy     6-4               .600
      Lansdale Catholic            6-4               .600
18. Central                            7-5               .583   
19. Haverford School             6-5               . 545
      Neumann-Goretti             6-5               . 545
21. Overbrook                       6-6                .500
      West Philadelphia            6-6                .500
      SCH                               5-5                 .500
24. Washington                     5-6                 .454
25. Gratz Charter                  5-7                  .417
      Lincoln                           5-7                  .417
      Northeast                        5-7                  .417
      Roxborough                    5-7                 .417
29. O’Hara                           4-6                 .400
      Penn Charter                  4-6                 .400
31. Olney Charter                 4-7                 .363
      Roman                           4-7                 .363
33. Boy’s Latin                    4-8                  .333
      Fels                               4-8                  .333
      Future                           4-8                  .333
      Carroll                           3-6                  .333
37. Mastbaum                      4-9                  .308
38. Bartram                         3-7                  .300
      Conwell-Egan                3-7                  .300
40. Bonner-Prendie              3-8                  .273
41. Del Val Charter              3-9                  .250
42. McDevitt                       2-7                  .222
43. Dobbins                         2-10                .167
44. Edison                           1-9                  .100
45. Furness                          1-10                .090                   

Nov. 30
PIAA CLASS AA QUARTERFINAL
Imhotep 49, Catasauqua 0
  “Extra point! Extra point! Extra point!” Is that Imhotep Special Teams coach Troy Gore telling his troops to get ready? No, that is Head Coach Albie Crosby screaming on the sidelines as one of his speedsters races towards the end zone or hopefully ends up there to bring on the special teams unit. While most coaches will encourage their runner with phrases such as: “go go go,” “get up the field” or “cut back,” Crosby sticks with his extra point verbiage. Well Crosby’s Panthers had plenty of opportunities for the PAT portion of the game as they blasted the Rough Riders of Catasauqua by the score of 49-0. Deandre Scott got the ball rolling when he picked up a fumble at his own 43 and scooted 57 yards for a quick TD with 8:15 to play in the first quarter. Sorry, Mister Crosby, but your kicker Denniston "DJ" Moore missed the extra point. Moore would have five more attempts at the PAT and he converted them all. On the first play of Catty’s next possession Scott was at it again when he intercepted a Zack Bradley pass at the Rough Riders' 40 yard line. Nasir Bonner did most of the damage from there, carrying the pigskin five times for 35 yards with his final rush being a one yard TD at the 5:06 mark of the initial stanza. Mike Waters would run for the two point conversion for a 14-0 Panther advantage. Scott would make more noise early in the second period when he returned an interception 80 yards for a TD. Catty got close to knocking on the scoring door midway through the quarter when Jacob Stopay intercepted an Andre Dreuitt-Parks pass and returned it 42 yards to the Panther 25. However two big tackles by DT Tyrone Barge and heavy pressure from DE Qwamere Wright-Downing forced two Bradley incompletions and the Panthers would take over on their own 18. The Rough Riders got the ball back one more time before the half but Bradley was sacked three times in the closing minute, twice by DE Shaka Toney and once by DE Naseir “Pop” Upshur. Tyliek Raynor would run for his first of two TD’s when he toted the ball 40 yards to pay turf in the third quarter. Waters closed the third period scoring on a 10 yard prance to the end zone as the arithmetic read 35-0. Raynor ran for a three yard TD early in the final quarter and Rahmir Johnson ended the TD parade with a 63 yard burst to the goal line. Dreuitt-Parks, who had thrown for 1,491 yards prior to the game, would toss the ball just seven times, completing two for a total of just five yards. Crosby decided the best way to rough up the Rough Riders would be to run the ball and run the ball some more with a fast paced no huddle offense. His plan worked perfectly as the Panthers ran 50 times for 433 yards for an average of 8.7 yards per carry. Raynor rushed 12-145, Bonner 18-129, Waters 7-58 and Johnson 6-82. Imhotep also had five returns for 199 yards. Scott was the leader with 2 for 137. In spite of the low passing yards the Panthers would finish with 637 all-purpose yards. On the other side of the ball the Philly squad held their opponents to minus 14 yards rushing, mostly as a result of Bradley being on his back. The Catty QB was sacked eight times for losses totaling 63 yards. His final numbers read 10-[-57]. Bradley however did manage to complete 11 passes on 27 attempts for 137 yards. In addition to Scott’s interceptions, Seifudden Black also had a Panther pick. Toney led the Imhotep tackle board with 8 while also sacking Bradley three times for 31 lost yards. Upshur was next in line with 7 tackles including four sacks for minus 26 yards. Barge had 7-sack and Randell Hunter had 5 with a TFL. Also notching TFLs were Wright-Downing and Steve Denby. Well it’s on to the semifinals for the Panthers and also Archbishop Wood and Saint Joe's Prep. Good luck to all and hopefully we’ll see Philly grab three. State titles, that is!

NOV. 9
PUBLIC AAAA FINAL
Frankford 30 Washington 3
  The Eagles' Ken Everage returned the opening kickoff 20 yards to the Washington 40 yard line. On first down Everage ran for seven yards before going back two yards on second down. Third down produced one of the Eagles' nine first downs for the contest when Hassan Brockman rushed for five yards. With the ball now at midfield, Everage, who rushed 15 times for 52 yards on the day, then ran two more times picking up six yards moving the pigskin to the Frankford 44. Appearing to have moderate success running the ball the Eagles opted to go for the home run on third down but Cedric Wright’s deep heave down the right sideline was picked off by Quinton Ellis at the Pioneers' 20. The Eagles' defense did their part forcing Frankford to punt the ball after a quick three and out. The Pioneers matched the Washington defense, which also produced a three and out. However, on fourth down punter and kicker Chris Schlegel booted the ball straight up in the air against a strong wind which resulted into a one yard punt giving the Pioneers the ball at the Washington 29. On second and 16 from the 35 QB Marquise Poston connected with Ellis for 16 yards. On the first play of the second quarter Ellis would score on a 5-yard run and Carlos Saldanna, who is a lineman, lined up in the backfield and ran for the 2 point conversion. After receiving the ensuing kickoff the Eagles marched from their own 40 down to the Frankford 7. The drive featured two big plays -- a 22-yard Wright pass to Rasheed Black and a 21-yard Everage run. The Eagles couldn’t convert on third down and had to settle for a Schlegel 25 yard field goal which cut the lead to 8-3 at the 7:21 mark of the second quarter. After playing a total of 16 minutes and 39 seconds of football at the time of the field goal, Washington had produced 68 yards of total offense. For the remaining 31 minutes and 21 seconds the Eagles would only muster 59 more yards. Twenty six of those yards were insignificant as they occurred on plays that ended the half and the game.  Washington would lose in the total yard category 281-127. The Frankford defense was led by DE Shareef Miller’s 9 tackles, which included a tackle for a loss and 2 sacks. Miller also batted down a Wright pass while also putting pressure on Wright the entire afternoon and evening. The Pioneer defense made 11 stops behind the line of scrimmage. On offense Frankford would score 22 unanswered points. The premier runner for the Pioneers was Damion “Jawzy” Samuels. Samuels would tote the ball 10 times for 111 yards and 2 TD’s. His five-yard scamper late in the third stanza along with Alex Candelerio’s
2- point PAT gave Frankford a 16-3 advantage. Samuels would later burst 68 yards to pay turf putting the contest away in the fourth period. Frankford’s final TD would be a 21 yard TD pass from back up QB Rene Herrera to Prince Cooper. Cooper also converted 2 PAT kicks. The Eagles were hurt with 10 penalties totaling 65 yards. They would rush 30 times for just 86 yards and pass 4-13-2-41. The Pioneers rushed 38-211 and passed 7-13-0-70. Helping out Miller on defense  was Poston 8-2 TFL’s and an interception, Devontae Lee 6-3 TFL’s and Qahire Moore 5- 1 TFL, while Cooper and Herrera each made 4 tackles. Kadar Jones and Josh Mason both had TFL’s. Washington’s defensive leader was Shawn Henderson with 8-3 TFL’s. George Hubbard, John Santos and Sharrif Jones all had 5 tackles. Others making tackles behind the line of scrimmage included: Hubbard, Everage, Black, Bruce Smalley and Andre Hollingsworth.

NOV. 2
PUBLIC AAAA SEMIFINAL
Washington 17, Northeast 13
  Although a very physical and competitive game there was some luster lost as a result of some sloppy play and penalties on both teams. The Vikings were hit with eight flags resulting into 70 yards of moving backwards. The Eagles committed 11 for 89 yards. The only first half scoring would be two field goals. Northeast got on the board first when Tyler Gormley nailed a 26 yard boot at the 7:35 mark of the second quarter. After the Vikings held the Eagles on downs after the field goal, Gormley got another shot but was wide left on a 27 yard attempt with just over one minute to play before halftime. Taking over from their own 20, Washington quickly marched down the field with Rasheed Black being  instrumental catching three ball totaling 34 yards from QB Cedric Wright. However it was a ball that Black didn’t catch in the end zone with 0:00 reading on the clock that made a huge difference. A 15 yard pass interference call moved the ball to the 19. As a result of the penalty Washington was awarded a free play and brought out their field goal unit. Kicker Chris Schlegel would tie the score at intermission putting a 36 yarder between the posts. The tempo picked up in the third period when the Vikings Natwan Curtis returned a punt 62 yards for a Northeast touchdown. Gormley added the PAT as the scoreboard read 10-3. Fifteen seconds later it was tied when Washington’s Hassan Brockman returned the ensuing kickoff 77 yards to pay turf. Schlegel added the extra point with the clock reading 7:33. With the help of an Asa Manley 48 yard burst from scrimmage Northeast would drive the ball to the Eagles 14. They would have to settle for another field goal of 32 yards by Gormley and took a 13 -10 lead with 2:37 to go in the third stanza. Early in the fourth quarter the Eagles were facing a third and 13 from their own 20. A pass of 8 yards to Ken Everage left the Eagles five yards short and were forced to punt. A roughing the kicker penalty of 15 yards gave Washington a first down to the 33. The Eagles then went 67 yards on 11 plays to take the lead. Everage scored the go ahead TD when he went around the left side for an 18 yard TD run. The PAT was good and the Eagles led 17-13 with just 3:18 left in the contest. The Vikings would make it interesting near the end as they got the ball to the Washington 33 yard line with 11.2 seconds left to play. After two incomplete passes by QB John Diaz who tossed 5-22-2-89 yards for the day, there was still time for one last play with the clock showing just 0.8 seconds. On the Vikings last attempt Diaz dropped back and threw deep down the left sideline looking for Curtis but the ball was knocked down at the four yard line by Carlito Wright as time expired and the Eagles advanced to the Public League AAAA Championship game against Frankford. Manley was the games leading rusher with 17-86 . Everage wasn’t far behind numbering 14-81. Washington rushed for just 91 yards on 25 attempts while the Vikings accumulated 31-125. Brockman had four returns for 151 yards with 40 coming on an interception return along with his long TD. The tackle leaders for GW were: Christian Gonzalez 8-4-1, Zaire Hollerway 8-5-2, Dawayne Young 7-4-sack, Tyrone McNeil 7-6-3-sack, Everage 6-3-0 and George Hubbard 5-3-2. Blackman also had an interception. The Vikings were paced by Will Okrafo-Smart 10-6-1. Trailing behind was Steven Rowe 9-5-1, Manley 7-4-0, Gladamir Paul 5-3-sack, Diaz 4-2-1, Markee Moses 4-2-0 and Brian Green 4-2-sack. Joshua Willis recovered a fumble.

OCT. 31
NON-LEAGUE
West Phila. 24, Mastbaum 0
  Not much of a contest at 58th & Elmwood Ave as the Speedboys were in total control all afternoon. On offense West Philly generated a pedestrian 274 total yards but on defense they allowed the Panthers just 32. Mastbaum could only manage one first down in the first half and ended up with a total of four. The Speedboys scored their first TD on a six play 45 yard drive that was started after Kurron Hanible ran the opening kickoff 32 yards. The score came when Darryl Jacobs rushed in from the eight yard line. Eric Davis ran for the conversion and it was 8-0 at the 8:38 mark of the first quarter. After a 20 yard return by the Panthers Daone Bing-Kirkman on the ensuing kickoff, West got the ball right back on second down when Terence Melton intercepted a Donnell Shields pass at the Speedboys 47 yard line. Mastbaum would stop their opponent on four downs and would get their only first down of the half when Shields connected with Kevin Hart for 12 yards. The drive would stop when the Panthers tried a fake punt on fourth and four from the Speedboys 40. Punter Jim Elkins-Borfay just missed the first down coming up a half yard short after a measurement. Although Jr. RB/DB Justin Hamilton was the leading rusher for West, toting 14 times for 108 yards he had no impact on the next drive as Jacobs ran 3 straight times for gains of 8,15 and 5 yards. The march was completed when JR. QB Donte Traynham connected with Hanible on a beautiful 36 yard TD strike thrown between two defenders in the end zone. Davis again ran for the two points as the half ended 16-0. The third quarter was not pleasant for the Panthers as they ran a total of six plays for minus three yards and punted twice. West Philly scored just 13 seconds into the final stanza when Stephen Pressley caught a 15 yard pass in the deep right corner of the end zone. Traynham would do the two point rushing honors for a 24-0 Speedboy advantage. On defense the West Philly squad was led by Sr. DE/TE Tymir Harris. He made the afternoon miserable for Shields sacking him 3 times and making four tackles behind the line of scrimmage for a total of minus 33 yards. He finished with 9 tackles with 7 being of the solo variety. Davis notched 7-4-1 and Melton numbered 6-3-0. Other Speedboys sacks were made by Hanible, Kwadere Fleming and Tariq Brown. The Panthers were credited with just one yard rushing on 24 attempts. One of the major factors in that number is the number of yards lost when Shields was tackled behind the line of scrimmage or sacked. His official numbers were 10 for [-35]. However 6 resulted in losses of 53 yards. He completed 3 of 9 passes for 31 yards. His other completions were to Ronnie Cannedy for 6 yards and Abel Waters for 13. Bing-Kirkman rushed 7-29 and had two returns for 52 yards. Wadu Loper 7-4, Hart 6-4-sack, Derrick McLean 6-4-1 and Yasier Mayberry 6-4 were the Panther tackle leaders. Keon Robinson forced and recovered a fumble on the same play. Traynham passed 4 for 7 for 83 yards and 2 TD’s. His other two completions were both to Pressley. Pressley finished 3-47-TD. The Speedboys rushed 31 times for 191 yards. Davis ran 5-30-TD and Jacobs legged 6-38-TD.

OCT. 25
PUBLIC AAAA FIRST ROUND
Southern 50, Fels 14
                      1         2           3        4       Total
Fels               8         0           0        6           14
Southern      15       7          28       0           50
  Southern: Michael Riley 1 run, Moed Gerventi kick
  Fels         : Jylil Reeder 94 kick return, Monythai Lay pass from Aasim Campbell
  Southern: Bryant Hudgins 67 run, Qazi Jones run
  Southern: Hudgins 5 run, Gerventi kick
  Southern: Jones 20 run, Gerventi kick
  Southern: Riley 42 with fumble return, Gerventi kick
  Southern: Terrell Miles 20 run, Gerventi kick
  Southern: Hudgins 29 run, Gerventi kick
  Fels         : Wesley White 12 run, pass failed
Team Stats:
First downs: Fels 9         Southern 21
Rushes-yds:  Fels 29-52 Southern 53-405
Passing yds:  Fels 94      Southern 0
Total Offense:Fels 146   Southern 405
Comp-Att-Int:Fels 11-20-1 Southern  0-2-0
Return yds:     Fels 102   Southern 169
Punts-Avg:     Fels 1-33.0 Southern 0
Fumbles lost   Fels    4      Southern 1
Penalties-yds: Fels  4-25   Southern 9-80
Individual Stats:
Rush-yds: Fels: Wesley White 9-35, Aasim Campbell 10-17, Jylil Reeder 9- [-6], Kennon Whitaker 1-6 
                 Southern: Bryant Hudgins 25-238, Qazi Jones 9-68, Michael Riley 3-9, Terrell Miles 4-35,
                                   Justin Bell 2-13, Darrell Robinson 1- [-1], Rodney Kay 3-13, Martell Marshall 4-25
                                   Zaundier Drayton 1-2, Kahassian Davidson 1-3
Passing:      Fels:  Aasim Campbell 11-20-1-94. Southern: Michael Riley 0-2-0
Receiving:  Fels:  Reeder 4-92, White 2-[-4], Kordell Robinson 2-18, Khalif Whitaker 3-38
                   Southern: None  
Returns:      Fels: Reeder 2-99, Michael Turnage 1-3, Southern: Sekwon White 3-34, Saamir Gentry 2-13
                             Riley 1-42, Qazi Jones 2-27, Matthew Solomon 1-27
Interceptions: Southern: Gentry
Fumble Recoveries: Fels: Quentin Busch, Southern: Gentry, Solomon, Riley,  Jones
Tackle Leaders: Fels: Turnage 8, Kennon Whitaker 7, Busch 7, Reeder 6, Treyvon Bryson 6, Curtis
                                     Fredrick 5. Southern: Miles 9, Casey Williams 8, Dimonte Powell 6, Naim Dykes 5
                                     Solomon 5
Tackle for a Loss: Fels: Busch 2, Southern: Miles 3, Casey Williams 2, Powell 1, Solomon 1,
                                       Mark Webb 1, Justin Bell 1
 Missed Field Goal: Moad Gerventi 37 yards                             
  When Southern head coach Frank “Roscoe” Natale’ got word that Fels had not contacted Public League Football Chairman Kenny Geiser that the Panthers would be late because of bus issues he was not a happy man. According to Natale, Geiser had to contact Fels head man Bill Harrigan himself. Natale thought some common courtesy would have been proper by Harrigan. The game was a second game of a doubleheader at the South Philly Super Site. Prep Charter had defeated Roxborough in the opener. That game had run a little later than usual as Natale’s squad waited anxiously to take the field for warm-ups for the scheduled 6:30 kickoff. When the Rams finally got on the field around 5:35 there was no word of where their opponent was. With his team having gone through their pre-game preparation word came at about 6:05 that the Fels bus was at Broad and Olney. Around 6:20 Natale had his players return to the locker room and remove their shoulder pads. No sooner had the pads came off . . . here come the Panthers at 6:30. Now being told that the game would start at 6:45 the Rams quickly put the pads back on. Natale had thrown the word forfeit out there but knowing Natale and his players and with Geiser in the house that wasn’t going to happen. The South Philly squad sure was happy that that didn’t happen. What did happen was that the Rams won their first playoff game in almost 50 years. According to tedsilary.com the last time Southern won a post season game was in 1965. Wow! Also Rams running back Bryant Hudgins broke the single game school rushing record, carrying 25 times for 238 yards and 3 TD’s. He passed Wayne Brunson’s 207 accomplished last year. On the first drive of the game Southern marched 70 yards on 12 plays. Hudgins ran the ball on six of the first 7 plays totaling 27 yards. Hudgins then got a break and was replaced by Qazi Jones who ran three straight times for gains of 11, 10 and 12 yards. His final carry put the ball on the Panther 3. On second down Sr. QB/DB Michael Riley sneaked in from the one yard line. Moed Gerventi’s PAT boot gave Southern a 7-0 advantage with 8:02 left in the first quarter. At 7:47 it would be 8-7 as Jylil Reeder took the ensuing kickoff 94 yards for a TD. Aasim Campbell’s 2 point conversion toss to Monythai Lay gave the Panthers the lead. That lead would last for 20 seconds as Hudgins ran for a 67 yard score on first down after a 23 yard kick return by Sekwon White. Qazi Jones ran for the conversion as the Rams took a lead 15-8. There would be no further scoring in the quarter as the teams switched ends of the field and Hudgins already had registered 121 yards. Justin Bell and Terrell Miles would help with the running on the Rams first possession of the second quarter. The 59 yard march was topped off by a Hudgins 5 yard TD run. The Rams got the ball right back when The Panthers Michael Turnage fumbled the kickoff which was recovered by Saamir Gentry at the Fels 38 and advanced it 8 yards to the 30. On first down Hudgins ran the full 30 for an apparent TD but it was called back as a result of a block in the back. On second down from the 19 Riley attempted his first pass but overthrew a wide open Tariq Breeden in the end zone. On third down Riley again tossed one in Breeden’s area but it feel incomplete as Natale’ brought on his field goal unit for a 37 yard attempt by Gerventi. Gerventi’s kick was short and the first half ended 22-8 in favor of the Rams. Hudgins entered his locker room with 19-182. The third quarter was one of the most bazaar quarters that I’ve ever seen. Fels received the second half kickoff and couldn’t do much on the series. However a roughing the kicker penalty gave the Panthers new life. On third down from the Southern 32, Jones stripped Reeder of the ball behind the line of scrimmage where it was picked up by Hudgins who returned it 27 yards to the Panther 31. Jones would add six more points for the Rams when he ran 20 yards to pay turf and after the PAT it was 29-8 with 7:20 to go in the third stanza. After a short kickoff and no return Fels started from their own 38. On first down Naim Dykes tackled Wesley White who fumbled the ball which was scooped up by Riley who ran 42 yards for a TD. The bad luck for the Panthers would continue again on first down of their next possession when Campbell couldn’t handle the snap and the loose ball was recovered by Dykes. On first down from the Fels 20, Miles ran 20 yards for a TD. Gentry would intercept a Campbell pass which set up the fourth third quarter TD, which was a 29 yard run by Hudgins ending his day at the 2:27 mark of the third quarter. The Rams had scored four TD’s in a span of 4 minutes and 53 seconds. The Panthers scored their final TD early in the fourth on a 12 yard run by White. On the evening the Rams ran the ball 53 times for 405 yards. They used ten ball carriers. The men up front doing the blocking included Center Rashaun Carter, guards Wayne Christian and Mark “Spider” Webb, tackles Dimonte Powell and Nafis Davis. Rotating players included Demetrius White, Tariq Breeden, Rasual Jackson, Samid Williams, Solomon and Khalil Lewis. The stingy Ram defense held the Panthers to just 52 rushing yards on 29 attempts. Miles was the mean man on defense with 9 tackles including 3 for losses.  Campbell had some success passing 11-20-1-94 yds. Reeder was the leading receiver with 4 grabs totaling 42 yards.

OCT. 24
NON-LEAGUE
Furness 16, Olney 0
  Kharee Ruley broke the single game yardage record for Furness by carrying 37 times for 258 yards and 2 TD’s. He passed former leader Sharif Smith [256- 2009] on his final rush which resulted into a 9 yard TD with 4:34 left in the contest. On the game's first play from scrimmage Olney’s Justin Williams recovered a Furness fumble at the Falcon 41. Malik Allen would then run the ball on three consecutive plays giving the Trojans a first down at the 27 yard line. Their scoring hopes ended on the next play when Charles Spencer intercepted a Kadir Chisholm pass at the 23. With the Falcons first string QB Khaaliq Shuler out of action due to injury Furness used freshman Derek Brown and Zamir Gindraw when in a Wildcat formation. Gindraw would run for a 16 yard gain and Ruley would carry 7 times for 56 yards as the Falcons moved the ball to the Trojans 17 after the interception. However on fourth and seven Gindraw was thrown for an 8 yard loss as he couldn’t avoid Olney’s Rasheed Baldwin and Charles Payne. After the change of possession Allen would run for 10 yards on first down. The Falcons defense then stepped up and forced the Trojans to punt from their own 42. A bad snap from center on fourth down gave Furness good field position at the Trojan 30. Rushes of 3 and 7 yards by Ruley along with a 5 yard penalty against the Trojans advanced the pigskin to the 15 yard line and a first down. Spencer would run for 7 on first down but on second down Gindraw loss 4 yards. Now at the 12 Ruley raced around the left side for an apparent touchdown but it was negated as a result of a holding penalty as the spot foul moved the ball back to the 25. Gindraw would again lose yardage on third down and now the Falcons were looking at a fourth and 22 from the 27. Nothing scientific on the next play as Ruley went straight up the middle untouched for the game's first score. Ruley would add the conversion run and the Falcons led 8-0 with 10:04 left in the second quarter. Furness would get the ball back a few minutes later when Allen was tripped from behind by Vincent Caramanna and the ball came loose and was recovered by the Spencer at the Falcons 23. It again looked like Furness would score when Ruley ran from his own 18 down to the Trojan 18 before he was tackled from behind by Zaire Shoemake. The Falcon offense hit a road block from there as the half ended 8-0 with Ruley’s numbers reading 19-157-TD at intermission. In the third period Ruley would run 8 times for 47 yards putting him over the 200 mark at 204 as the score remained the same going into the final quarter. Forcing the Trojans to punt early in the fourth it was time for Ruley to take over the game as the Falcons gained possession at their own 44. The boys from 2nd and Mifflin would run the ball 11 times without interruption with Ruley carrying 10 for his final 54 yards and last being a 9 yard TD burst with 4:34 to play in the game. Gindraw would run for the 2 point PAT and a 16-0 Falcon advantage. Olney tried valiantly to light up the scoreboard on their last chance to dance but their final drive was stopped at the Falcon 32 on a Chisholm incomplete pass. Chisholm passed 3-8-1-18 yds. His completions went to Shoemake 2-12 and Malik Sillman 1-6. Sillman also rushed 4 times for 52 yards. His carry’s registered 17, 13, 25 and [-3]. Why he didn’t get the ball more is a mystery to me.  Allen rushed 8-50. Payne paced the Trojan defense with 10 tackles, 6 solo, and 3 for losses. Allen numbered 9-5-2, Shariff Winston 8-6-3, Darius Harris 8-5-2, Derek Brown 6-4-0 and Giovanni Matos 6-4-1. Furness did not attempt a pass which is not unusual for an Anthony Pastore Falcon coached team. Spencer led the defense with 8-6-1. Trailing was Caramanna 7-5-0, Joe Mecali 6-4-0 and Abraham Toussant 5-3-1. Lamarick Dunmore and Deon Slocum had TFL’s.

OCT. 19
PUBLIC AAA
Ben Franklin 41, Boys' Latin 6
  With it being Eagles-Dallas week I guess Buddy Ryan would have found it appropriate, but I’m not sure who else would have . . . the Electrons were looking for more points as time was winding down! Franklin’s talented Jr. QB Kevin Caldwell was still in the game throwing the ball with the Mercy Rule in effect and the running clock approaching zero. The last effort failed when Ben Green sacked Caldwell at the Warriors 33. A spectacular 33 yard catch by Jamal Lane had put the ball at the 10. However a spot foul holding call after a rush of 4 yards advanced the ball to the 6, the pigskin was pushed the back to the 23 after the penalty. As the teams walked towards each other for the traditional handshake a heated verbal exchange between opposing coaches erupted. I’m not sure who the coaches were but something about a payback was said by a Franklin coach. He said that Boys Latin had pounded the Electrons a few times and were throwing the ball with a big lead a couple of years back. Finally another Franklin assistant stepped in before things turned ugly. The scoring started quickly when Edward Dennis took the opening kickoff 70 yards for a TD and a 6-0 Franklin lead. The Warriors came right back at the 9:14 mark when QB DeVaughn Shields scored on a 16 yard run to knot the score at 6. From that point on it was the Kevin Caldwell Show as he completed 10 of 16 passes for 207 yards and 4 TD’s. Javier Buffalo caught 2 passes for 23 yards and a TD, Isiah Jordan 3-83-TD, Rafael Rodriguez 4-68-2 TD’s and Lane 1-33. Dennis rushed 16-68. Caldwell also had a QB sneak for a TD. The Electron tackle brigade was lead by Dennis with 7-5-1. Aiding Dennis was Nyfece Ewell 7-4-0 and Brian Harvey 6-4-2. Jamere Williams had a sack while Keyon McCloud-Holman and Zahkwan Brown both had TFL’s. Juqwann Carlisle had an interception. Emmanuel Sloan rushed 14-70 for Boys Latin. He also had 2 returns for 37 yards. Rashedd Wilson returned 3 for 44. Shields ran 9-50-TD. He completed just 3 of 8 passes for 15 yards. All three passes were caught by Damere Gilbert. Mark Bowser 8-6-sack, Javon Ogelsby Rice 7-5-2-sack, Clarence Rowland 6-4-0, Shields 6-3-0 and Marquise Johnson 5-3-0 paced the Warriors defense.

OCT. 18
PUBLIC AAA
Dobbins 35, Bartram 15
  The Mustangs scored on the game's opening possession, marching 55 yards on nine plays. Two pass plays to Lamar Parker from Diamir Copes totaling 23 yards were instrumental on the patrol to the end zone. The TD was scored on a 9 yard run by Copes. Andre Witherspoon booted the PAT for a 7-0 Dobbins lead. An interception by the Mustangs' Jonathan Young gave the North Philly squad excellent field position at the Braves' 30 as Bartram tried to answer back on their initial drive. Four plays after the pick Copes again connected with Parker this time for a 9 yard TD. Another PAT Witherspoon kick gave Dobbins a 14-0 advantage with 42 seconds left in the first quarter. The Braves looked like they were about to cut the Mustang lead when QB Braheem Edwards hit Devon Brunson for a 32 yard gain but somehow the ball squirted loose and was picked up by the Mustangs Divine Epps, who returned it 13 yards to his own 30 yard line. After a quick three and out by the Dobbins, it was time for the Mustangs special teams to step up when Richard Collins blocked a Bartram punt at the Braves 30. A 15 yard infraction against Dobbins moved the ball back to the 45. It didn’t make a difference when Copes again found Parker wide open for a TD on the next play. Parker would end the day with 4 catches for 77 yards and 2 TD’s. Copes passed 6-8-0-105-2 TD’s. His other two passes were completed to Epps for 28 yards. Bartram would close out the first half scoring when Edwards sneaked in the end zone from the one. Sanassi Kane would add the PAT and the halftime scoreboard read 20-7 in favor of the Mustangs. Epps would again impact on the defensive side when he intercepted an Edwards pass at his own 36. Epps would contribute offensively after the interception, running for a 21 yard gain and snagging a 16 yard pass from Copes on a possession that ended on a six yard TD run by Nigel Faulks late in the third period. A Copes to Christian Jones two point conversion pass upped the score to 28-7. The Mustangs would increase their lead to 35-7 on a Copes one yard keeper and another Witherspoon kick. The Braves closed the scoring with just under three minutes left in the contest when Davon Key muscled his way in from 15 yards out. Edwards would run for the final two points.  For Bartram, Traekwon Young rushed 14-60 and Key 10-56-TD. Edwards passed 9-27-2-106. Brunson caught 4 for 64 yards and Gary Johnson 4 for 27. Ta-shawn Stringfield grabbed 1-15. Kane led the Brave tackle board with 9-6-0. Key numbered 8-3-0, Kifee Ryant 6-3-0 and Stanton Coleman 5-3-1 pitched in. Richard Collins was the Mustang tackle master numbering 12-7-2-sack. Rashaun Collins was right behind with 10-6-1. Jonathan Young 7-4-1 and Aaron Pinckney 7-3-0 also contributed for the defense.

OCT. 12
PUBLIC AAA
Ben Franklin 7, West Phila. 0
  Four lost fumbles and a TD called back as a result of a holding penalty hurt the Speedboys tremendously. Franklin scored early in the second stanza when QB Kevin Caldwell connected with Rasheen James on an 8 yard TD toss. Ismaila Saka kicked the PAT. West Philly thought that they had lit the board when QB Dont'e Traynham 6-8-0-43 connected with Stephen Pressley for what appeared to be a 13 yard TD. However a holding penalty negated the score with just under 3 minutes left in the third quarter. West would threaten late in the contest as they drove from their own 32 down to the Franklin 11 with 2:55 to go in the game. On first down RB Darryl Jacobs was hit by Nyfece Ewell and the ball came loose and was recovered by Ewell’s teammate Qiyaam Edgefield at the 3 yard line. Not sure whether Jacobs’ knee had hit the ground prior to the fumble the officials gathered together to discuss the play. Now with both sidelines pleading their case the teams waited impatiently for the ruling. From where I was standing, which was right at the 3 yard line it appeared that Jacobs may have been down. While awaiting the decision I said to a gentleman standing next to me that Franklin would get the ball. Why? Because Franklin coach David Carter was very upset at several calls that went against his team and let the officials know about it very loud and clear. No way they were going to let West keep the ball. If they did Carter would have went off again. Carter was doing what coaches do and that is protect his players and bait the officials and hopefully get a favorable call in crunch time. To me his plan worked. First down Franklin……Game Over !!! Ewell led the Franklin defense with 12 tackles, 7 solo, forced fumble and 2 pass defend. Taj Clea numbered 8-5-3-sack, Edward Dennis 8-6-3-sack, Keyon McCloud-Holman 7-4-2sacks and Brian Harvey 5-3 helped out. Devon Ward recovered 2 fumbles and Daysean Poulson had one. For West Philly Tahir Jennings 8-6-2, Kwadere Fleming 7-5-3, Tymir Harris 5-3-2-sack and Teair Tart-Spencer 5-3-3 aided the WP defense.

OCT. 11
NON-LEAGUE
Neumann-Goretti 41, McDevitt 7
  Not much of a contest at the South Philadelphia Super Site as the Saints beat up on a very young Lancer squad. The McDevitt roster shows 37 players with just 11 seniors and 11 freshmen. The Saints scored their 41 points in the first three quarters while McDevitt put up its seven in the fourth. Their lone TD was a 61 yard run by QB Max Bryson. Brendan Hanagan added the PAT kick. For N-G Khalil Roane rushed 6-54-TD and also returned a fumble 33 yards for a TD after he stole the ball from Bryson. Roane had 3 other returns totaling 165 yards giving him 198 for the evening. He came up 23 yards short of matching the Saints 221 total offensive yards on his 4 returns. Overall the Saints had 7 returns for 244 yards. Corbin Williams 10 yds, and Joseph Richardson 26 yds each had interception returns. Angelo Nevate had a 10 yard return. Richardson also caught a 45 yard TD pass from Raymond Lenhart. Sihimare Morgan rushed 14-61- 2 TD’s. Danny Murray also ran 2 yards for a TD. Michael Beck converted 5 of 6 PAT boots. Bryson was the leading Lancer rusher with 8-73-TD. He also completed 2 of 7 passes for just 8 yards. Gary Meakim and Stephen Leach each had an interception for McDevitt. Samir Reed and Dominic Stanton both recovered fumbles. Michael DiFrancesco also recovered one for the Saints.

OCT. 11
PUBLIC AAA
Overbrook 6, Bartram 0
  Two lost fumbles in Overbrook territory along with 8 penalties and a busted play late in the game cost the Braves big time at 58th and Elmwood. The games only score came early in the third quarter on a Takieyn Harris 11 yard TD toss to Nasir Collins. The Braves made it interesting with a little over 4 minutes left in the game driving all the way to the Panthers 20 yard line. However on fourth and eight a bad hand off exchange between QB Braheem Edwards and Traekwon Young resulted into a 5 yard loss ending any hopes for a comeback. Young would rush 15 times for 82 yards but the Braves leader was Makahi Sheed with 18-86. Harris was the leading rusher for Overbrook with 13-57. Jordan Brown and Daiquon Gregg recovered fumbles for the Panthers.

OCT. 10
NON-LEAGUE
Southern 37 Gratz 22
  The Rams put up 23 points in the first quarter and 14 in the fourth to defeat the Bulldogs 37-22. Southern QB Michael Riley turned on the first bulb when he scored on a 2 yard keeper. After a quick three and out by Gratz ,Riley completed his only pass of the evening connecting with Rasul Jackson for an 18 yard TD s at the 3:38 mark of the first quarter. Moad Gerventi’s PAT boot put South Philly ahead 15-0. The Bulldogs answered right back when QB Musa Al-Sulaimani hit Shawn Williams for a 65 yard TD. Williams would score later in the quarter when he raced 55 yards to pay turf, just a few seconds after South Philly’s Bryant Hudgins ran for a 15 yard score. The first quarter closed with the Rams on top 23-14. The defense tightened up in the second stanza with the only TD being an Al-Sulaimani 16 yard toss to Nydair Rouse. The teams headed to their respective locker rooms with the Southern on top 23-22. Southern’s Adam Richardson recovered a Gratz fumble at the Rams 26 late in the third period. The South Philadelphia squad would then proceed to march 74 yards for a score when Riley ran to the end zone from the four yard line. Hudgins’ two point conversion run made it a two possession game with 6:22 left in the contest. Another fumble by the Gratz at the Rams 40 halted another drive as Hudgins would close the scoring with a 9 yard run. Hudgins was the games leading rusher with 23-130-3 TD’s. For Gratz Al-Sulaimani put it in the air 26 times but completed just 9 for respectable 170 yards. Rouse was the leading receiver grabbing 5 balls for 84 yards. Williams led the Bulldogs rushing attack with 10-71-TD.  Jaylen Jenkins led the tackle board for Gratz with 10. He was followed by Shawn Jenkins 9, Raekwon Bynes 8, Rouse 6 and Rashad Hawkins and Jerlon Byrd each had 5. Along with Hudgins Terrell Miles 10-64 and Jonny Rodriquez 9-44 aided the South Philly rushing attack. Dimonte Powell was the leading tackler with 10 including 2 for losses. Mark “Spider” Webb contributed 9 and 1 TFL. Also pitching in was Naim Dykes 8- TFL and a forced fumble, Hudgins 6-TFL, Qazi Jones 5-sack, Miles 5 and Richardson 5.

OCT. 5
CATHOLIC AA
Neumann-Goretti 48, Carroll 7
  The Saints set the tone early in the contest when Jack Taylor picked off Sean McMorran’s first pass of the afternoon and ran 26 yards for a TD with just 70 seconds expired on the clock. It was all downhill from there for the Pats. Neumann-Goretti’s Sihmare Morgan, who rushed for 152 yards on 11 carries, would score the next two TD’s on runs of 16 and 6 yards. Trailing 21-0 Carroll would get on the board on a McMorran 25 yard TD pass to Shawn Springs at the 2:37 mark of the second quarter. Hoping to enter the locker room down 21-7, AC surrendered a late TD when Joseph Richardson caught a 26 yard pass from Raymond Lenhart with just 13.2 seconds remaining before intermission. The PAT boot was no good as the squads entered their locker rooms with the score 27-7. The third quarter featured two runs to pay dirt by N-G’s Khalil Roane who rushed 11 times for 90 yards. His second TD came after John Furey recovered a fumble at the Saints 19. They proceeded to march 81 yards for a score with 65 of those yards coming on two Morgan rushes of 25 and 40 yards. Michael Brewer closed out the Saints scoring with a burst of 7 yards. N-G’s Michael Beck converted six of seven PAT kicks. The Saints defense was outstanding, especially on the run holding the Patriots to 51 rushing yards on 30 attempts. Austin Tilghman was the leading ground gainer with 11-58. McMorran threw 6-15-1-TD-109. In addition to his TD snag, Springs also caught another ball for 48 yards. Tilghman gathered 2-13, Anthony Hill 1-11 and Joey DiWilliams 1-12. Lenhart’s favorite receiver was Jamal Custis 5-96. Aamir Brown also caught 2 for 41. Overall Lenhart tossed 8-10-0-TD-163. All of his passes were thrown in the first half. The Saints paraded out 10 ball carriers on the afternoon totaling 38-291. Michael DiFrancesco was the defensive leader with 11 tackles, 7 solo and 2 for losses. Danny Murray numbered 8-5-1. Also pitching in was Richardson 7-5, Matt Barone 6-4-2-sack and Fabian Matthews 5-3-1. Rashid Saunders had a TFL while Zane Marin and Amire Tyler combined on a sack. My 2013 midseason candidate for the Reckless-Abandon Award goes to Carroll’s Joey DiWilliams. The 5’10, 170 Sr. DB had 10 tackles, 6 solo and 1 for a loss. He plays hard on every play and makes plays all over the field. If he doesn’t make the tackle he usually is in the area with his face down on the ground after diving in an attempt to make a play that he has no chance of making. Man what a pleasure to watch. So if you happen to catch a Carroll game do yourself a favor and just watch # 24 on defense and don’t worry about following the ball. Chances are when the play is over # 24 will be near it. Others helping DiWilliams were: Harry Rohlfing 8-6-1, Joey Rodden 7-5, Andrew Tansey 6-3 while both Kevin Bier and Jack Daywalt each totaled 5-3. Evan Lake had a TFL.

OCT. 3
PUBLIC AA
Prep Charter 48 Future 32
  In a game that featured numerous highlights it would be extremely difficult where to begin this report so I am going to fast forward to late in the second quarter. With Prep Charter holding a 26-12 advantage with just under two minutes to play PC’s Timothy Scott intercepted a Ronald Wade pass and returned it 31 yards to the Firebirds 33 yard line. On the next play the Huskies Vian Dolo threw his third TD pass to Curan Simmons with 1:39 on the clock. After Bryan Hernandez booted the PAT the arithmetic jumped to 33-12. Future’s Wade then returned the ensuing kickoff 19 yards to his own 35 yard line. On first down Robert Hall was tackled for a five yard loss by Scott, Karamo Dioubate and Eric Taylor Jr. However Hall wasn’t stopped much all evening as he rushed 13 times for 196 yards and 4 TD’s. He also grabbed 4 catches for 45 yards. On second down Wade ran for 10 and on third he threw an incomplete pass. Looking at fourth and five from their own 40 the Firebirds called timeout with 46.6 seconds showing on the board. They elected to go for it but Wade’s pass again fell incomplete. The Huskies returned on offense and once again Dolo Found Simmons wide open on a post pattern for Dolo’s fourth TD pass all to Simmons who tied a city record for 4 TD grabs in a single contest. Hernandez again kicked the PAT, he had four on the night and what seemed to be a back breaking TD with just 28.7 seconds saw the Firebirds trailing 40-12 at the break. Wade returned the second half kickoff 28 yards to the Future 46. The JR QB/DB had a very interesting evening. He threw 12-27-1-171-TD, rushed 7-19 and returned 4 balls for 108 yards including one for 16 with an interception for 298 all purpose yards. Wade’s TD heave came soon after his return when he connected with Karim Karamoko for 34 yards. After a conversion passed failed Future trailed 40-18 with 10:35 to go in the third. The Huskies would take a severe hit as Dolo was forced to leave the game at the 9:48 mark of the quarter. I was told his shoulder was dislocated and he stood on the sidelines with his right arm in a sling for the remainder of the game. The quarterback duties then went to Joseph Holmes who completed 4 out of 5 passes for 28 yards. He also threw an interception. He completed 3 passes to Simmons and one to Tarr Monway. In fact Simmons caught 12 out of PC’s 13 receptions. His dozen grabs totaled 186 yards. Monway also rushed 19 for 122-2 TD’s. Twenty yards worth of penalties forced the Huskies to punt on their next possession. Did I say penalties? How about these numbers for infractions that aided the 6pm affair to end at 9:08 pm. There were 27 penalties that accounted for 238 yards. The Huskies were assessed 19 for 171 and the Firebirds 8 for 67. It took Future just 3 plays to go 73 yards on their next possession. On first down Wade completed a 33 yard toss to Jalil Neal-Savage. After an incomplete pass Robert Hall finished it off scooting 40 yards for the TD at 6:57. Wade’s interception set up Hall’s next TD run from 47 yards and suddenly the score was 40-32 at the 2:39 mark of the third quarter. The scoring would end early in the fourth as the Huskies marched 65 yards on 11 plays. Holmes would complete a 19 yard pass to Simmons and Monway topped it off on a 4 yard run. Holmes got lucky on his conversion pass as it got deflected and went right into the hands of Simmons for a 48-32 Huskies lead. Future’s next drive was halted at the PC 33 as the Huskies applied pressure on Wade and he was only able to complete a 1 yard pass to Hall on fourth and ten. The Firebirds got the ball one last time and with the help of pass interference call and got to the PC 8 yard line with just under a minute to play. After using their final timeout with 57.4 seconds left in the contest, Wade ran for 3 yards to the 5 and Hall would rush for no gain. Two incomplete passes halted the drive and the Huskies took a knee on the final play. In addition to his receiving yards Simmons had 3 returns for 91 yards. Anthony Thomas led the Huskies tackle board with 9. Scott had 7, Dioubate 6 and Taylor, Davante Coney, Tommy Nguyen and Markey Toe each had 5. Rand Williams had a sack and Romeo Outland recovered a fumble. Future’s defense was paced by Brandon Williams who had 10 tackles including a sack. Hall numbered 8 while John Garland and Shakeem Bradley each had 7. Tyrese Wise and Karamoko both had 5.