Huck's
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Ed "Huck" Palmer is one of our trusty statisticians/observers. He is not to be confused with Tom "Puck" McKenna. (Huck is normal. Puck is not even close). He will make occasional reports on games he sees. You may contact him at TEDDYCAT10@aol.com.
NOV. 16
NON-LEAGUE
Southern 7, Overbrook 6
No lack of hustle or hitting
in this tilt. The teams played hard right up to the final gun, despite only having one win
between them. Overbrook sr. DT Aaron Johnson (6-4, 270) set up the
Panther score with a blocked punt. Six plays later, frosh. FB Anthony Moorehead
(6-foot, 220) bulled in from the 2. The Rams followed with a nine-play, 6:56 drive capped
by jr. QB Leon Pettyjohn's
2-yard sneak on fourth and 1. On the drive, Pettyjohn hit jr. RB Demetrius Hayes on a 57 yard pass play to set up the score. Soph
K Udochukuri "Hugo" Egbukwu blasted the point after; this
proved to be the difference. Pettyjohn showed some nice touch on rollout pass plays.
'Brook's O was on its heals all afternoon, managing 46 yards in total offense. Their D was
led by jr. LB John Lyles (10 tackles, fumble rec.) and
sr. DB Nafis Washington (seven tackles, sack). Once again Rams sr. RB Ernest
Smith (17-85) ran hard, and numerous times carried would-be tacklers. Sr. Angel
Delgado, sr. DL Sherman Ellis (six), Smith (five), and sr. LB Terrell
Steadman (five) led in tackles. Steadman who is roughly 5-6, 155, lined up at DE
on more than a few occasions. To start the second half, the Rams had an 11-play drive that
consumed 9:33 of the clock. The odd thing about the drive was that it only covered 40
yards. The drive ended when 'Brook sr. DB Dante Johnson intercepted at a
pass at the 1. He returned it 54 yards before Hayes made a TD-saving tackle. 'Brook
converted a fourth and inches at the Southern 36 right at the 2:00 warning. Needless to
say they turned the ball over on downs with :54 left from their own 37. Not exactly your
prototypical 2-minute offense. By the way, just after halftime both bleachers had a total
of 11 people. Just short of a sellout!!!
NOV. 10
PUBLIC LEAGUE QUARTERFINAL
Franklin 18, Central 8
Nothing like getting the Pub playoffs rolling on a crisp fall
afternoon. This was my third consecutive week of seeing Central, but I had not seen
Franklin, so I really didn't know what to expect. I was quite impressed with Franklin's
club. Coach Allen Rushing has really brought his team a long way. They
were fundamentally sound on both sides of the ball. Led by their dynamic duo of sr. RB-LB Jermaine
"Beanie" Smith and sr. RB-LB Maurice Samuels,
the Electrons controlled throughout. Smith and Samuels combined for 212 yards on 35
carries. They also had 88 yards on four returns and were in on 15 combined tackles. More
than a day's work. Franklin's line play on both sides was DOMINANT. Led by jr. T-DT Boe
"Big Boe" Davis (6-2, 260), sr. T-DT Tyrone Coffey
(5-9, 270), soph G-DE Bryant Jennings (6-2, 220), sr. G-DE William
Moffitt (5-10, 230), and jr. T-DE William Madre (6-2,260), the
Electrons opened holes and stymied the potent Lancer ground game. Davis is a serious
talent and could be one of the Pub's best linemen next season. Teammate sr. G-LB Marvin
Atwell (5-9, 240) injured his leg late in the first half; he was playing
extremely well up to his injury. An ambulance had to be called and, thankfully, was there
within minutes. The entire delay only lasted 18 minutes. Hopefully, Marvin will heal
quickly. Offensively Central was pretty much asleep throughout. Aside from sr. FB Everett
Lee (15-72), the Lancers didn't receive much offensive output. With the score
12-0 Franklin, the Lancers seem to grab old MO when jr. DB Jorrell Durham
intercepted a pass at the goal line and returned it 99 yards before being tackled by
Samuels on the 1. On the next play, Central scored the TD and added a two-point conversion
to make the score 12-8. However, the Lancers would not cross Franklin's 40 for the rest of
the tilt. Capping a 5:31 drive, Smith plunged 1 yard to add the insurance. The field at
29th and Chalmers is coming along nicely. The stands and press box are finished and look
great. Franklin English teacher Helen Coleman took her usual place on the
Electron sideline. She mentioned that she would not get run over like she did last week.
Moments later Central sr. QB Teddy Lipford severely overthrew a pass and
Helen was pelted in the back. Franklin alum Caleil Blocker, who played
football and was the basketball scorekeeper, was in attendance. Caleil has always showed
school pride and is a personable kid. He told me he is headed to Delaware St. in the
spring and plans to play football. I wish him good luck.
NOV. 6
NON-LEAGUE
Roxborough 36, Southern 8
If Southern's field had lights, they would have probably
turned them on before this one started. On top of that, the game started 10 minutes late.
Considering the teams, this one had the makings of a entertaining game. As it turned out,
it was as lopsided as the score indicates. Southern coach Bill Edger is a
nice guy who is constantly teaching and motivating his players. However, he nearly lost
control of his team midway through the first quarter. When sr. RB Ernest Smith
was tackled by a host of Roxborough players, he quickly took exception by pushing and
kicking before throwing his helmet. Head referee Tom McClain didn't
hesitate to sit him down. Before the next play, two more Rams were asked to take a seat.
The Rams blew two timeouts during this sequence. Smith was allowed to return
and, to his credit, played a solid and clean game (94 yards, six tackles). The teams
packed most of the
excitement into a 3:25 span during the first quarter. After Roxborough super
soph RB Curtis Brinkley scored on a 7-yard run, Southern jr. QB Leon
Pettyjohn threw a beautiful pass to sr. TE Ashley Jefferson for
a 78-yard score on the first play after the kickoff. Brinkley then retuned the subsequent
kickoff 74 yards for a score. After a three-and-out for the Rams, on its second play
Roxborough scored yet again as sr. QB Myles Henderson hit sr. TE Brandon
Cavanaugh (6-2, 240) on a 22-yard scoring play. Also, Roxborough sr. FB Bryan
Reese ran extremely hard and had the Ram defenders taking cover as he barreled
through the line. Indians sr. RB Justin Miller gets my Most Couragous
Player award. He is GENEROUSLY listed at 5-6, 110. He ran up the middle three times for 5
yards, but got up every time after taking some nice pops. For Southern, sr. LB Angel
Delgado played a nice game on D with 6 tackles. Southern soph K Udochukwu
Egbukwu gets The Name I Would Least Like to Say More Than
Once award. Thankfully, he goes by "Hugo."
NOV. 3
PUBLIC LEAGUE
Central 36, Roxborough 6
Needing a W, the Lancers made no mistake of setting the tone in this
one. Central's option, led by sr. QB Teddy Lipford, looked like one of
those Oklahoma Sooners teams from the mid '80s. The Lancers piled up 361 yards on 49
carries, while only throwing the ball once. Nine different players rushed for Central; no
one player had more than eight rushes. The Lancer D was led by jr. LB Isaac
Cowart. He had a sack and 2 TFL that resulted in 27 yards. Jr. DB Kahill
DuPree had 2 INTs. One
was a beautiful, over-the-shoulder, unhanded grab. The Lancers routinely dominated on both
sides of the ball. Roxborough had trouble all day getting into the flow offensively.
Speedster soph RB Curtis Brinkley was held in check
throughout, but showed flashes on a few occasions. I kept wondering, Why doesn't he touch
the ball more? This kid has a chance to be very good. The Indians' D was led by sr. S Jeremiah
Harrison (9 tackles), sr. DB Justin Levister (9 tackles) and sr.
LB Maurice Landon (9 tackles). I was entertained at
halftime by each school's cheerleaders. This was also a mismatch. Central had two crews on
hand with about 40 girls in two different sets of uniforms. Roxborough had about six girls
in uniform and another half-dozen or so in street clothes. The Central girls gave a clean
and respectable performance. This was followed up by Roxborough doing the UNCUT version of
"Who let the dawgs out?" Nevertheless, the crowd loved it. Great job put in by
Roxborough's two-man drum team, as they pumped out the beats throughout. After
Roxborough's fourth quarter TD, the teams lined up in the wrong direction. This one nearly
got by the refs. GOTTA LUV the PUB.
OCT. 27
Catholic Blue
West Catholic 38, Dougherty 13
Coming into this one I thought a lot of points could be scored
and possibly some records would fall. Well, we got a little of both. West sr. RB Abdul
Sesay needed 75 yards to break the Burr single season rushing record held by Kimani
Patterson in 1988. It only took him 5 carries to eclipse this mark. Sesay went on
to carry 38 times for 279 yards, establishing a new single game rushing record. The old
record was his own 262 earlier this season against North Catholic. A big pat on the back
for his lead blocker, sr. FB Abdulai Sesay (no relation), who continually
paves the way. Others responsible for his success -- TE's sr. Michael Bazemore
and soph. Quaire Miles and interior linemen sr. Chucky
McBride, sr. Joel Caldwell, sr. Bill "Pizza
Bill" Barats, sr. Marques Lyde, sr. John Dix
and sr. Rob Zambrano. A job well done. Sr. LB/DT Terrence Mayo
(6-1,289) was a fixture in the Cardinal backfield all night. West played an aggressive
man-to-man defense against Dougherty's potent passing game. They led by sr DBs
Mike D'Elia, Mike McGrath and Masueli Musonge.
Soph DB's Robert Ramsey (INT) and Matt Rodia also
provided strong coverage. Dougherty was led by the tandem of jr. QB Sean McGovern
and sr. WR Mickey King. It was good to see sr. WR Leonard Hodges
get his well-deserved TD late in the first quarter. King and Hodges coming into this game
had almost identical receptions and yards, but King had 15 TDs to Hodges' 0. Later, King
added to his single season TD reception mark when he hauled in a 27-yarder. Sr. LB Tim
LeBold led the defense with 13 tackles. King (10) and jr. LB James
Jefferson (10) also starred. West soph. K Jason McCarrie missed
the first quarter because he was at a soccer game. He arrived in time to kick a
26-yard FG and boom two PAT's. He looks to have one of the strongest legs in recent
history for the Burrs. Thought I was at a "Pub" game for a minute: West jr. DB
James McDuffie, when covering a punt, caught the punt before it hit the ground,
then proceeded to return the ball down the sideline. At least he was headed in the right
direction. To those of you may have wondered why I was conversing with my
"usually" trusty colleague, Tom "Puck" McKenna, so
much during the game. See, Puck and I had a discrepancy on Sesay's yardage. Late in the
first quarter, Abdulai Seasy ran 14 yards on a play. Puck had credited Abdul with the run.
After confirming with 3 of West coaches, a few sideline observers, and yes, the two
players, Puck finally agreed to change it. He later pulled me aside and said, "You
sure you want to change it? Come on, you know 293 sounds better than 279."
OCT. 21
CATHOLIC BLUE
Carroll 74, W. Catholic 7
This baby was over before it started. Carroll had 11 offensive
possessions and scored on nine of them. The two others ended on turnovers. They also
scored on a blocked punt and a lateral off an
interception. Carroll was entirely too strong for the Burrs. Sr. RB-LB Brian
Mattaway was responsible or partially responsible for six TD's. He rushed for
four, caught a blocked punt in mid-air, which he returned for a score, and picked off a
pass that turned into a TD as, while dragging a would-be tackler, he flipped back to sr.
DB Jeff Kobilka, who went the rest of the way. In the third quarter, West
ran 12 offensive plays to Carroll's three, yet was outscored, 21-0. Sr. DE Jeff
Vanak was as awesome as advertised. He routinely caused havoc in the Burr
backfield. He blocked a punt that went for a score. On the play he nearly engulfed a Burr
blocker, the ball, and then the punter. Sr. RB Charlie Hurley showed
excellent hands out of the backfield and on punt returns. For West, the only thing to
build on was that it became the first team to score against Carroll's vaunted D since the
first week of the season. With 6:32 remaining in the first quarter and Carroll leading,
19-0, West star sr. RB Abdul Sesay unleashed an 85-yard JAUNT. Coach Brian
Fluck said to me after the game, "Make sure you let everyone know that we
did in the first quarter, and it was against their first team D." Sesay finished with
114 yards rushing. That is 92 more than all 6 of Carroll's previous opponents combined.
Sr. QB/DB Mike D'Elia once again played with a TON of heart. He assorbed
punishment on nearly every pass play. On defense he did not shy away from contact and got
involved on many tackles. He also had a INT, his fifth in games I have seen this year. One
side note: Make no mistake Carroll is a tremendous football team and this game was a total
mismatch before the teams got off the bus. I'm a firm believer that when second and third
strings get into the game they should have just as much right to score as the first team.
So I don't begrudge Carroll for scoring in the second half. However, When your team is up,
46-7, there are 30 seconds left in the half, your starters are still on the field, and you
call a pass play, that is something I feel is uncalled for. Obviously Carroll felt that 46
wasn't enough. Whoever called that play was wrong. Coaches, next time show a little class
and take a knee.
OCT. 13
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Penn Charter 30, Haverford School 14
This was my first Inter-Ac assignment for the good, ol' Daily
News. Everything was pretty good except that Haverford ran into some heavy traffic on
its way to the game. The normal start time is 3:45 (sometimes earlier) for Inter-Ac tilts.
This baby got started just after 4. It was a beautiful day for football at PC's scenic
campus. Somebody I know was quite lucky to get to go this school (it's Ted's alma mater).
The Quakers controlled throughout. They were led by sr. RB-LB Kenny Devenney,
who ran hard all day. Soph QB Matt Ryan (6-4, 185) was equally
impressive. This kid has a serious arm. The mistakes he's making now look to be from
inexperience. Two years from now we could be looking at one of the better QB's in the
area. I really like sr. K Phil Elbaum. He twice blasted kickoffs to the
goal line. Also, he made 38-yard FG to end the first half. Early in the game he barely
missed a 37-yarder that would of been good from AT LEAST 50. On two occasions he sent
PAT's screaming high off the scoreboard/message board, a good distance behind the
goalpost. After the second one the scoreboard operator flashed, "Which part of don't
hit me do you not understand?" PC has a quartet of sophs that look to be players --
Ryan, LB-RB Tony McDevitt, OL-DL Taylor Baum, and OL-DL Jarrod
Williams. A startled Baum returned a lateral 13 yards late in the first half that
eventually set up Elbaum's FG. Frosh RB Hanif Hopkins (5-5, 130) had a
nifty nine-yard run late in the game. For the Fords it was sr. franchise RB Paul
McKinney or nothing. I've never seen a team rely on one player as much. It took
him 35 carries to get his 169 yards. Not a one came easy. McKinney became the first city
player to crack the 1,000-yard barrier this season. The Fords got solid contributions from
sr. LB George Earle (INT, nine tackles) and jr. DT/OL Joe
Masciantonio. Comcast SportsNet's Pete Christy was a
sideline guest. At one point the scoreboard operator told him to look up at the board. It
read, "PC welcomes Comcast Sportsnet's Pete Christie." Pete
turned and said, "You spelled my name wrong, but I'll take it." With the loss
Haverford has an 18-game Inter-Ac losing streak.
OCT. 6
CATHOLIC RED
Roman 26, O'Hara 21
This was a tremendous high school football game. Without a
doubt, the greatest game I've covered in four
years with the good, ol' Daily News. You hoped it would never end. Filled
with great players who made great plays. No player was greater than Roman sr. RB/LB/K Joe
McCourt. He carried the ball an astounding 44 times (city record is 49) for 234
yards. Of Roman's 15 first downs McCourt carried the ball on 14 of them. Amazingly, he
found time to be a major contributor on the defensive side of the ball (five
tackles,forced fumble). He is the epitome of a COMPLETE player. I'm no college recruiting
guru, but if this kid can't play at least at a lower Division I school then I know
absolutely nothing about the game. Roman's line did a fantastic job opening holes for
McCourt and jr. RB Jon "Turbo" Tarvin. The
line consisted of sr. Andrew Runowski, jr. Joe Wilson,
soph. Chris Guinter, sr. Dan Falcione, and jr. Ryan
Brody. Jr. FB Erik Strauss and sr. TE Scott Paxson
(6-5,250) also did an excellent job in creating holes. Paxson was brilliant at his DT
position as he was a major force in deflating O'Hara's potent running game. He made
countless tackles and forced two fumbles. Roman ran 63 plays to O'Hara's 34. The Lions
killed themselves with turnovers (four fumbles, two INTs). O'Hara's franchise, sr. RB Kevin
Jones was stymied throughout the first half. He finally broke through in the
second half, but fumbled late in the game inside the 5. This was the first time I had seen
him since his soph season. He is very impressive. In college I see him being a power back
as much as a speed back. Four years from now we could be looking at another Eddie
George. Jones even played some defensive back for the Lions. One time he was
isolated with Paxson out wide. These two could be joining each other next year up at State
College. O'Hara jr. LB Andrew Wood was all over the field, making 12
tackles. Sr. LB Matt Cabrey went untouched through the line and
beautifully blocked a punt that turned into a Lion score. CN8 was in attendance.
Hopefully, some of you had or will get the chance to see this masterpiece.
SEPT. 29
NON-LEAGUE
Mastbaum 16 Lincoln 6
On a picturesque Friday afternoon for football, I had the feeling
that this could turn out to be a goody. Think again!!! Offensive ineptness at its finest.
In fact, I saw more action last weekend in the synchronized swimming finals at the
Olympics. There is one word that sums up Lincoln's running game: DISMAL!!! It pains me to
see a team held to negative rushing yards, but that was exactly what happened. One bright
spot for Lincoln is sr. QB Andre Coles (6-4,185). He is tall and has a
very strong arm (threw one in warmups 65 yards). However, Lincoln's line lacks
cohesiveness and he was pressured all day. Help could be the way. Jr. OL-DL Christian
Lippolos (6-4, 320) is a transfer from Neshaminy and has only been with the team
for a week. Study those plays, kid, that line could use you. Jr. DB Shahfin
Timmons made a great defensive play when he leaped and deflected a beautifully
thrown pass, possibly saving a touchdown. Prior to the game I asked Lincoln coach Jeb
Lynch for a roster. He turned to asst. Gene Kelly and
asked, "Have you seen my clipboard?" Kelly responded, "Yeah, it's under
your armpit." Lynch replied, "Jesus, can you believe that?" In turn Kelly
said, "It's OK. That's why I'm your assistant." Gotta LOVE "The Pub."
Last week I reported that Mastbaum was small. That still holds. It has only two players
that tip the scales over 250. Hard to imagine. Jr. FB-LB Chris DeShields had
a solid game on both sides of the ball. He was involved in many tackles and had a INT. On
offense he did most of his damage with hard-hitting blocks to open holes for sr. RB Ron
Brown. Sr. DB Gerald Cooper had a nice INT return to set up
Mastbaum's first score. Mastbaum's D dominated the 2nd half by holding the Railsplitters
(I love that name) to minus-34 yards. Sr. DE Jonathan Borden (only 5-11,
160) accumulated three sacks in the fourth quarter.
SEPT. 23
CATHOLIC BLUE
West Catholic 23, Conwell-Egan 7
(At Truman)
Third consecutive week of seeing the Burrs and it was more of the
same -- sr. RB Abdul Sesay left and Sesay right. The Burrs' franchise
gained 179 yards on 24 carries, but not 1 yard came easy. C-E's defense was gritty all
night. Soph DB-K Robert Ramsey was successful on his 3 PAT and had an
interception. Sr. QB-DB Mike D'Elia had a nice game from both positions.
On three occasions he hit receivers on strikes down the middle. He also had 2 INT's. C-E
will probably struggle once again. However, it has only have 12 seniors on the
43-man roster, as well as 18 sophs. Sr. QB Mark Pawlowski
struggled all night in a light mist. He was unable to complete a pass and tossed 3 INT's.
Sr. RB Phil Brazil had the run of the night. It only went for 9 yards,
but what made it special was that he jumped over D'Elia before being tackled. Sr. DT Joe
Domzalski, jr. LB Joe Lamina and DB Brazil showed some
promise on defense. By the way, I would like to thank John "Moe" DeMucci
(West '91) for letting the West cheerleading coach know that I was the one who reported
last week's warm-up debacle (see Sept. 16). I quickly blamed our fearless leader, Ted
Silary. He threatened to dock my pay for the website work. I'd have what I have
now -- an empty wallet.
SEPT. 22
NON-LEAGUE
Northeast 20 Mastbaum 6
(At Lincoln)
Name three reasons why a statman could be late for a game?
Tired of thinking? Try these on for size. A
wife with a sprained knee, a new puppy with
the runs, and the dreaded City Ave. traffic. Nothing creative driving couldn't handle. A few bobs and weaves and the next thing
I knew I was at Lincoln High collecting rosters with 3 minutes
to spare. The guys at Lincoln must be short on
speed because the grass was a tad high in most
areas. NE sr. QB Noel Nation was not dressed for an undetermined reason. Jr. QB James Franklin filled in admirably.
The coaches did not have him do much, but he
seemed pretty poised. I was extremely
impressed by jr. RB Darien Hardy. He reminds me of William
Griffin, who starred for Overbrook last year. Has good instincts,
quickness, and power and he carried would-be tacklers on more
than a few occasions. The same could be said
for sr. RB Brent Grimes; he got involved in many facets. Grimes threw a beautiful pass from is halfback position at the end of the first half for a TD. He also ran
a punt back 43 yards for a score only to see it nullified by a
hold. He later went on to score from 13 yards
on a run. NE has a couple of BIG lineman in
sr. T Cameron Murphy (6-3, 310) and sr. T Khalid
Islam (6-3, 320). Both can move some for their sizes
and are definitely worth a look-see. Sr. DB Eric
Harris made a sensational interception late in the game. He soared through the air over a receiver without
interfering to make a juggling catch. Sr. K Steve
Josephson (6-0, 230) kicked 2 PAT
that landed on the track, a good 25 yards back. This NE team reminds me of last year's champs, G-town. The Vikings are not quite to that
level yet, but could make some noise if they survive their
division. After a string of very successful
seasons, Mastbaum could be in for a long one.
It does not have nearly the same speed or size up front. Jr. FB-LB Chris DeShields
looks to be a player and sr. DE Jamaal
Robinson (6-4, 230) is a hard hitter. Inexperience at the QB position will hurt
them until later in the season. Coach
John Murphy was aided by his sons, Jon-Erik and
Dylan, who were down from NY
(they are pursuing acting careers). They're old buddies of mine. Good to see them again.
SEPT. 16
NON-LEAGUE
Judge 38, West Catholic 26
With a slight chill in the air, it was an ideal night for
football. Going into this contest I figured the "over" could be in jeopardy. The
Crusaders and Burrs did not disappoint as they raced up and down the field all night. The
West cheerleaders prior to the game warmed up by knocking back 20 jumping jacks apiece.
When finished they were told by their coach, "I don't know what you girls had for
breakfast, but it wasn't good." The highlight of Judge's first score was when sr. RB
Joe Brzycki shredded the tackle attempt by West's stud linebacker,
Michael Bazemore. West's Abdul Sesay was a blur on his 80-yard
TD run. He went untouched through the line before being knocked slightly by two Crusader
DB's; somehow he kept his balance and went on to score. West shot itself in the feet all
night. They had four turnovers and allowed two onside kicks to be recovered against them.
The first was a thing of beauty. Sr. K Dave Straub lined up on the
right hash and placed a perfect kick to the far side that was recovered by jr. DB Danny
Graf. Judge sr. P Eric Schneiderreit had an excellent night,
pinning the Burrs deep throughout and denying their speedy backs any attempts at returns.
Sr. LB Mark Dickson and sr. DE Joe Keepsey starred on
defense for Judge. Keepsey was a fixture in the Burr backfield throughout the second half.
Burr soph LB Steven Williams could be a player. At 6-1, 210, he has a
nice build and seems to have good awareness of where the play is headed. The hit of the
night belonged to Judge sr. LB Joe Montanye. The second half kickoff was
hit high and short and the second West up-back, soph Quaire Miles, caught
it. He was nailed by Montanye. The hit sent the Judge faithful into a frenzy. Judge had a
solid turnout, with plenty of students. One must have wanted some ink because with 2:57
remaining he raced across the field with his shirt above his head before darting through
the gates. The West defense must have been distracted: On the next play jr. QB Greg
Hennigar hit jr. WR Derek Talley on a 58-yard strike to put the
game out of reach.