SEPT. 28
CATHOLIC BLUE
Carroll 21, McDevitt 0
   Not a classic. Field was muddy after Saturday's heavy rains and McDevitt could not contend with the Patriots on the line of scrimmage. Plus, the Lancers had almost no one in attendance to root them on. Most of the people in the stands on that side were coaches/scouts from other Blue Division teams. My DN story focused on Carroll's sr. FB-LB Ryan Harford, a transfer from Springfield Delco. He goes 6-2, 230, sports a shaved head and looks like he'd be at home on a Harley (smile). He ran 18 times for 82 yards and made 6 tackles in roughly half-time duty at LB. Some I-AAs are after him. The best moment for the Patriots was the return to action of sr. RB Ryan Stewart, who posted 1,000-plus yards last season. He'd been out with hamstring woes. He carried just 4 times, but one of his totes produced a 62-yard gain. If he regains his full form, Carroll will again be dangerous. The other RBs, srs. Mark Ellow (11 run) and Rich Wood (53 pass from jr. QB Greg Kobilka) produced TDs. As did Kobilka on a 2-yard keeper. Sr. T-DE John Lachman was a game-long force. On Stewart's long run, he got WAY downfield and occupied a McDevitt defender for what seemed like an hour. He was in on 5 tackles. McDevitt ran just 38 plays and just one went for more than 11 yards. The Lancers reached the 50 once, but never crossed it. Soph QB Tom Maha is still feeling his way, and he gave in to a pair of big first-half sacks. As he becomes more experienced, he'll learn to dump the ball in subtle fashion or even make big plays against what seem to be overwhelming odds. After one of the sacks, a teammate yelled from the sideline, "Maha, have faith in your arm!" The tone was one of encouragement, not of complaint. This kid (and by default, his teammates) should have a lot of fun in '04 and '05. The Lancers are very young overall. Jr. RB Lamar McPherson settled for 63 yards on 15 carries. Jr. RB Damian Jordan added 43 on 7. Early, sr. DB Ryan Gara caused the much bigger Harford to fumble and even made the recovery. Sr. DE Sterling Williams had some big hits and showed lateral quickness. Sr. LB Mark Tipson was sturdy inside. Because of the postponement, McDevitt had to shell out $300 extra for two more team buses. Only in the Cath!

SEPT. 27
CATHOLIC BLUE
Wood 28, Dougherty 0
   Games played under the lights can sometimes be deceiving because they appear to be played at a much faster pace. But, phew, the Vikings appeared to have a whole bunch of kids with speed and quickness, especially on defense. They flew to the ball like crazy and pretty much had their way with the better, but still developing Cardinals. Not counting incompletions, Dougherty ran 36 plays for the night. Sixteen resulted in losses! And the loss on those plays was 74 yards! Sr. DE Jack Ayling was in on 4. Jr. DE Bryan Howard was in on 3. Sr. LB Shane Rose (3), jr. DT Pat Kane (2; he goes 6-6, 265 and is one to watch) and sr. LB Brian Devlin (2) were also in on multiple sacks/TFLs of RBs/receivers. Jr. LB Bill Gross had a 45-yard interception return for a TD, but a penalty wiped it out. Jr. DB Eddie Waddington had a pair of picks. Late in the game, soph Ryan Dolan came off the bench and hustled for a 9-yard TFL. On offense, sr. QB Dane Mangin showed impressive ballhandling skills and scored three times mostly because he got the Cardinals to bite on option fakes and then had paths to the end zone pretty much to himself. Soph RB Bryan McCartney, who came into camp as a third-stringer, rushed 21 times for 167 yards and a 43-yard TD. After that play, line judge Pat Waninger said, "See the only guy who kept up with him on that run? Me! Of course, it's a lot easier running without pads. I hadn't really thought about how I'd kept up with him until (fellow official) John Loftus mentioned it." On a running play, McCartney went for 8 yards and a Dougherty player popped him hard, causing the ball to fly out. Sr. TE Mike Barainyak caught it in the air and rumbled for 4 more yards. Barainyak said later with a smile, "See these hands? Like magnets!" Sr. K-P Tom Laurich crushed his PATs and KOs with the wind and had punts of 38 and 44 yards. Dougherty sr. RB Dominic Rock is solid, quick and energetic. He needs only a sliver of room to at least be a threat. He didn't get that too often. His best run was a 59-yarder. Late in the game, sr. RB Paul Bryant, who showed strong effort all game long at DE, ran for 42 yards. My main man, sr. Quendell Christmas, who keeps the scorebook for Dougherty during basketball season, started at T-DT. Dougherty has no freshman team, so the 12 players in that class are part of the varsity. Most are very small. When I asked WR Robert Smith (listed at 5-6, 118) what he does in practice when the big guys pound him, he said, "Fall down and get back up." Wood had more fans than Dougherty even though the game was played at Northeast. The Vikings also had an energetic student section. Nice to see, especially for a road game not exactly around the corner from Warminster.

SEPT. 27
CATHOLIC RED
O'Hara 45, Bonner 15
   The football gods work in ironic ways. At just about the time O'Hara raised its point total to 45 on a 69-yard TD run by freshman sub RB John Dempsey, and the PAT by jr. Frank D'Angelo, the rain went from medium to big-time heavy and came down at a 45-degree angle. I measured it (smile). Not many people were still around and most immediately headed for shelter. It was almost impossible not to get soaked to the skin. Though O'Hara was dismantled in its pre-Labor Day opener by mighty North Penn, it does have a darn good squad. Now that ex-Roman coach Danny Algeo is the offensive coordinator, the Lions are operating out of a wing-T formation (with variations). That means sr. RB Anthony Heygood, a prime D-I recruit, is lining up in different spots and getting to run from different angles. That can only increase his versatility. He's also a pass-catching threat. Heygood rushed 18 times for 108 yards and three short TDs and had a 21-yard reception. Sr. FB Matt Gough (5-7, 210) added 97 yards and a TD on 19 carries. Sr. QB Matt Campbell, a lefty, passed 4-for-8 for 88 yards and a TD to sr. TE Shawn Anderson. The neatest run, short as it was (3 yards) was turned in by sr. RB Anthony Lucidonio. He stopped, stuttered, stood his ground, fended off tackles, hunted and pecked. I told him he must have been a tap dancer in a former life. When Gough fumbled on a third quarter carry, the recovery was made by none other than his brother, Dan, a 6-3, 245-pound soph guard. "I owe him a favor," Matt said later. O'Hara had only one bad sequence all day. Late in the first half, an interference call gave the Lions a first down at the 14. Somehow, Heygood had no touches on the next three plays and D'Angelo followed with a 31-yard FG. There were early turnovers in the first and third quarters. Heygood fumbled on O'Hara's first play (recovery by impressive sr. DE Earl McNeil; 6-3, 265) and Bonner scored six plays later as jr. QB Andrew Case hit jr. WR Mike Heppler with a 17-yarder. He was wide open. O'Hara obviously blew the coverage. On the first play of the third quarter, Case was hit as he threw by sr. DL Paul Titchenell (others were in the neighborhood, too) and the pass was a short wobbler. Sr. LB Rob Fritisch made a pick and Heygood scored three plays later. For Bonner, sr. Drew Schiller ran 29 times for 153 yards. Sounds impressive, but it's misleading. He ran 10 times for all 70 yards on the Friars' last series against subs. Still, he ran hard all day and the Lions knew he was usually getting the ball. Interesting sequence at almost the very end: jr. Matt Daly fielded a kickoff on the O'Hara 2. He lost the ball and it kept squirting from pile of bodies to pile of bodies. In the end zone, sr. DB Bob Hogan finally recovered and the refs eventually ruled a safety. Christine Cull, daughter of assistant Marty Cull, is an O'Hara cheerleader. Maybe I'll take a picture of them later this season.

SEPT. 26
NON-LEAGUE
Northeast 28, King 6
        It remains to be seen how the Vikings will hold up against the Frankfords and Washingtons, but I liked what I saw in this one. The team is physical with decent speed and there appears to be great togetherness. My DN story focused on sr. FB-LB Warren Bartlett, who is one tough hombre! He's listed at 5-11, 225, but is probably heavier. He has a low center of gravity and packs a serious wallop. He shows very good instincts and can throw guys around like ragdolls. Our old e-mailing buddy, sr. RB-DB Benjamin "Slimherc" Franklin, is now officially a player. He's dangerous on NE's patented sweep. Sr. QB Marcellus Sammons wasn't needed much, but as the season goes on I'm sure he'll have some fun hooking up with impressive soph WR Rockeed McCarter (6-3, 185). The line: sr. C Sam Chhat (yes, there are two H's back to back; how cool is that?), sr. G Bryan Adamson, jr. G Brandon O'Malley, sr. T Drew Lessa and sr. T Brandon Stewart. Adamson and O'Malley are baseball starters. Dwayne Gay, a 5-4, 150-pound sr., returned a punt for a 37-yard TD. Congrats to rookie coach Mel Hinton, who got a win in his first game. King did little overall, but I do like the potential of jr. QB Jeff Campbell (6-2, 175). He showed good touch on several passes, and put the correct amount of air under an 18-yard TD toss to sr. WR Danny Smith. Sr. TE Jabir Oliver protected Campbell with a key block in the pocket. The Cougars' best play had come moments earlier -- sr. WR Sammy Tranks ran 45 yards on a reverse. I love this kid's heart. He's listed at 5-10, 150 (VERY doubtful) but likely delivered the two loudest licks on defense. Once he went low and sacrificed his body to bring down Bartlett. Umpire Dan Hoban provided the striped-guys' highlight by falling backward onto the turf during a running play. "I didn't even get hit," he said. "I just went down." Dan has worked in the Catholic League for a while. This might have been his Pub debut. Only in the Pub! Gary Covington is on Hinton's staff. He was a mover and shaker way back in helping the City All-Star Game get started. He hasn't coached in 23 years (but had worked for the Eagles in the interim.) Gary's good people!

SEPT. 25
NON-LEAGUE
Gratz 12, Bok 6
   Boring game overall. Good fourth quarter. Great finish. The Bulldogs won it on the final play as sr. QB Kyle Whiting hit FB Robert Littlepage with a 5-yard TD pass. The drive covered 94 yards and featured two big plays -- sr. RB-P Vondell Parson (18-116) ran 34 yards from his OWN 10 on fourth-and-17!!!, then with 0:08 left, against double coverage, while on his back, WR Eugene Wright caught a 40-yard pass from Whiting that put the ball on the 5 (even though back judge Ernie Gallagher at first signaled a TD). Whiting then threw incomplete to Stanley Sims and hit Littlepage for the emotion-producing winner. There was no conversion attempt. Displeased with some post-game friskiness, Bok's coaches did not allow the players to go over for handshakes. On his own, though, Bok sr. RB-LB Cedric Green did finally walk over and the Bulldogs appreciated the gesture. There was a big play on the first play of the fourth quarter. Bok sr. QB Allen Major was passing and DE Richard Sheppard arrived to bat the ball. It popped up and was cradled by DT Lamont Lee-Edgefield, who rumbled 75 yards for a TD. Sheppard had a key early block after turning around to face the oncoming Wildcats. Bok was held to 103 yards total offense. Sr. RB Kenny Major, Allen's twin, had 44 yards on 15 carries. The 'Cats TD came on a 6-yard run, out of a slotback spot, by sr. Marcelluas Barnes. Bok needs to find more ways to get him the ball. Gratz DT Brian Simpkins was impressive. For Bok, so were DTs Aaron Hayes (6-1, 275) and Navarre Archie (6-foot, 300). Bok assistant Vince Trombetta, upset that Gratz was not being called for delay of game, yelled at the refs, "What are you watching?! A sundial?!"

SEPT. 22
NON-LEAGUE
Gtn. Academy 33, Central 16
   Can't help but wonder whether Central would have hung deep into the game had two of its franchise players, sr. FB-LB Quindel "Milky" Ladson and sr. WR-DB Jordan Anderson, not missed long, important stretches in the second half due to cramps. Central had a 16-15 halftime lead. On the first play of the third quarter, Ladson cramped up while making a tackle. GA drove and drove and took the lead nine plays later just as Anderson was departing. My DN story focused on GA sr. QB Sean Grieve, who spent the weekend in Virginia putting in long hours at a baseball showcase. The P-CF is a D-I recruit in that sport, but might try to play both in college. Grieve passed 13-for-21 for 163 yards and a TD to jr. WR Greg Sih (top receiver sr. Justin Holiday was unavailable) and scored twice on up-the-middle runs. One was a designed QB draw. Sr. RB Tyler Yerk posted 111 yards and a TD on 23 carries. Sr. WR Peter Vernon, usually a FB lesser light (but a key during baseball season), had three catches for 43 yards in Holiday's absence. Jr. DE Kevin Byrne showed nice concentration on an interception, tipping the ball up and then gathering it in. Yerk and jr. LB Matt Brown recovered fumbles. Central's highlight was a 70-yard punt return for a TD by Anderson. He picked up the ball only because he saw it hit the foot of a teammate, then zoomed down the sideline to score. Early, he had to get through some traffic. It was an impressive play by the D-I prospect. Sr. QB Marcel Quarterman passed 5-for-14 for 49 yards while adding 79 yards on 12 totes. He figures to challenge for first team All-Pub honors. Ladson was impressive, as always, and especially early, sr. DT Promarty Martinez was in on a handful of tackles at and even behind the line. Two other website cohorts, Amauro Austin and Bill Wettstein, were in attendance. So was old friend Keith Hines, who attended Bok and was one of my DN stat guys through the '80s and deep into the '90s. Keith knows EVERYONE, and is liked by EVERYONE. Don't try to out-talk him; it's fruitless. Keith now works as a roving NTA in the school system and spent the day, fancy this, assigned to Central. He loved the kids and the atmosphere. He also loved the french fries I bought him on the way back downtown. (I highly recommend the McDonald's at Broad and Hunting Park. Pleasant youngsters working the drive-through window.) The french fries were all Keith wanted. He has mellowed. Back in the day, he would have hit me up for a full meal (smile). I gladly would have bought him two.

SEPT. 21
CATHOLIC RED
Roman 28, La Salle 7
   When jr. QB Mike Lynch scampered 40 yards for a TD on the game's third play, staking La Salle to a 7-0 lead, one had to wonder whether Roman had gotten stale during the teachers' strike. Um, no. Not at all. The Cahillites basically dominated thereafter and came away with an easy win. My DN story focused on sr. QB Andre Sloan-El, who was near-perfect while going 13-for-18 for 176 yards and two TDs. The lefty is being eyed by Maryland, Clemson, Minnesota and Iowa and has already been offered by Kent State. In this space I'd like to say more about sr. WR Charlie Squitiere. "Squid" (I guess that's how he spells it) made six catches for 106 yards and was outstanding on a 29-yard TD catch. He caught the pass barely past the line of scrimmage and made people miss tackles at least three times with fancy footwork. In the fourth quarter, he made three catches on a TD drive that ended with Sloan-El's 1-yard burrow. Squitiere also does the kicking, is a fearless return man and he probably had this affair's most bone-crunching block. The rushing was handled by jr. Marc Patricelli (14-59, TD) and jr. Evin Jones (10-64). Jones goes 5-11, 195, and is solidly built with good speed. He's one to watch. Early, Jones was involved in almost every play. As the strong safety, he made tackles on La Salle's first two plays. Then, after Lynch's TD, Jones posted a 14-yard kickoff return, receptions for 10 and 7 yards and an 18-yard run. Pretty busy, eh? Roman's O-line: sr. C Bill Chomiszewski (6-2, 265), sr. G Nick Sarro, sr. G Frank Suplick, sr. T Jim Gullifer, sr. T Lenny DeMalto and jr. TE Matt Schenk. Roman had 363 yards total offense. The defense was paced by sr. OLB Charron Fisher, Jones, jr. L Tim Plona, sr. L Alex Garcia and sr. LB Tom Bowen. Each was involved in two tackles resulting in sacks or losses for running backs. Bowen also recovered a fumble (hit by soph DB Cory Jackson). Jr. Mike Guinter made a vicious hit while covering a kickoff, but was seriously wobbly as he came off the field. He looked a shade dazed the rest of the day, but maybe he's just a goofy kid (smile). La Salle is still searching for an offensive identity. Formations and approaches and personnel are changing constantly and there's very little flow. The Explorers had just five first downs after Lynch's TD and two of those came on penalties. Sr. DB Chris Garzone had an interception and sr. DB Brian Hogan recovered a fumble. La Salle forever has been known for having a tough defense. But in this one, only two Roman plays went for losses. One came on the fumble recovered by Hogan and the other came on a snap bobbled by Sloan-El. Amazing.

SEPT. 20
CATHOLIC RED
Ryan 44, Judge 41
   Is it OK to put away the pencils? Are these teams really finished chalking up the yardage and points? Wow! This one featured 780 yards from scrimmage and 310 on returns for 1,090 total. It's a safe bet that no one who played in this tilt will be our Catholic League defensive player of the week. Up and down. Up and down. The teams were flyin' all night! The most interesting performance was turned in by Judge sr. QB Dale Curry. He was involved in 37 plays, passing 14-for-29 for 277 yards and rushing eight times for 48 yards. He was also responsible for five "air TDs" -- three to teammates and two to Raiders. For Ryan, soph DB Joe Zeglinski returned a pick 77 yards and sr. DB Rick Ferraiolo returned one 64 yards. Curry is a star catcher in baseball and catchers aren't supposed to be able to run. Guess what? On Zeglinski's interception return, Curry ran him down and made contact while almost hanging on for the tackle! Curry's TD tosses went to sr. WR Carl Peterson (3-53), sr. RB Tim Wacker (5-99) and sr. WR George Flack (3-100). The Crusaders' best rusher was sr. Sean Everitt, who again and again rushed for more yards than the holes should have dictated. He hustled for 86 yards and three scores on 16 carries. Zeglinski finished with 158 rushing yards and 109 on returns. He really knows how to "tempo" run, for lack of a better phrase. His moves and speed seem to perfectly match situations. Jr. FB Ron James added 66 yards and two scores on 11 rushes. Ferraiolo had an interesting night as well. Aside from his interception TD, he caught a 76-yard pass that took Ryan to the 3. So, he ran 140 total yards in a shade under 3 minutes. After Everitt ran 2 yards for a TD with 1:38 left, drawing Judge within 44-41, Ferraiolo recovered an onside kick to remove the suspense. As it turned out, the margin of victory was provided by the right instep of jr. K Tom Ferry. He kicked a 33-yard FG in the first quarter. Zeglinski made a wicked hit to upend Judge jr. WR Shawn Kelly. Kelly landed awkwardly on his head-shoulder and there was momentary concern. Both bands were in attendance. Neither played the National Anthem.

SEPT. 20
CATHOLIC BLUE
Conwell-Egan 34, Neumann 21
   It was almost a two-record day and the second would have generated all kinds of attention. With the former recordholder, 1981 grad Tom Seger, in attendance, jr. RB Steve Slaton (5-10, 185) became Egan/C-E's all-time career rushing leader by raising his total to 2,979. (Seger had 2,828). Slaton did so with a 22-carry, 253-yard, five-TD performance and, at halftime, veteran FB watchers were thinking he had a chance at the city's one-game record of 379, set in 1975 by Dougherty's Lawrence Reid in a 41-41 tie vs. Egan. (Later that school year, Reid scored 42 points vs. Egan in a basketball game. He wound up playing FB at Michigan). Slaton had 234 yards at the half!! He would have had another 58 if not for a holding penalty that happened 4 yards beyond the line and wiped out a 62-yard scoring run. In the second half, obviously, Neumann's defense did a much better job. Slaton's TDs, in order, covered 1, 41, 84, 72 and 11 yards. On his 84-yarder, he dusted a very fast Neumann defender, sr. DB Richard McMickens. On his 72-yarder, he left behind McMickens and another fast defender, sr. Billy Canady, who appeared to have an angle. Very impressive. Sr. Chris Schaefer did a nice job blocking at FB and added 57 yards on nine carries. C-E's line: sr. C Ryan Schafer, sr. G Brian "H" Hrynczyszyn, sr. G Steve Slemmer, jr. T Ryan Biernat, sr. T Tom Dezolt and sr. TE Anthony Caranci. Jr. John Leahy came in for double-tight situations. Though C-E roared to a 27-6, Neumann did show brass by coming back. Sr. RB Frank Baldino carried 19 times for 87 yards and a TD while Jon Brady passed 9-for-23 for 119 and one TD apiece to Baldino and Canady. With just over 7:00 left in the fourth quarter, trailing by 27-21, Neumann opted to go for it on fourth-and-2 on its OWN 11. Baldino was stopped for no gain and Slaton immediately ran in for the clincher. The big shift in field position had been set up by a 52-yard punt from sr. Matt Fischer. C-E's three LBs, Hrynczyszyn, Biernat and jr. Matt Porreca, were very physical all game long. Jr. DB Jeff McClenton had two interceptions. "H" and Biernat had one apiece. The game was sloppy and dirty, at times. After a shaky call by one of the refs, a female C-E fan yelled, "Is your mother proud of the way you turned out?!?!" Early, Neumann's coaches contended the C-E linemen were illegally diving at the Buccos' lower legs. A Neumann assistant yelled to a ref, "Will you please call that?! I don't want to explain to a mother why a kid has a crippled knee! I'm gonna sue you!" C-E's Walt Clark made an outstanding open-field ankle tackle on a kickoff. As always, C-E stat man Mike Tos wanted Slaton to carry the ball non-stop. After a run by someone else gained 7 yards, Tos muttered, "Another wasted play." Late in the first quarter, there were turnovers on three successive plays: recovery by C-E sr. DB Ryan Papandrea, recovery by Neumann DT Jareek Adams, pick by McClenton.

SEPT. 19
CATHOLIC BLUE
Kennedy-Kenrick 31, North Catholic 0
   The temptation is to say K-K is pretty darn good. I have to hold off, though, because North offered hardly any opposition. The Falcons were often manhandled along the line of scrimmage and counting sacks finished with minus-18 yards rushing. Ouch. My DN story focused on sr. RB-DB Dan Connor, who ran for a 41-yard TD, breaking several early attempts at tackles, and made two interceptions. He almost had a third pick in the waning moments. Connor and sr. Brian Gillin had success on jet sweeps. Gillin scored twice on an 81-yard run and a 12-yard reception from sr. QB Rick McMinn (8-for-11, 90 yards). McMinn is a big-'un at 6-5, 240, and is somewhat short on mobility. But he displays a nice touch and feel where guys are going to be at the end of their routes, and he appears to be hard to rattle. McMinn's two other TD tosses went to sr. Tom Sztubinski. K-K's line: soph C Jeff Lannutti, sr. G Mike Orman and sr. G Vin Dayton, sr. T Jason Collins (6-3, 320) and sr. T Eric Ondik. (I think I saw jr. Tim Bracken also playing some O-line.) K-K often used what appeared to be a three-man line on defense and then had LBs ease into line-of-scrimmage spots at the last second, ready (and able) to blitz. The D-linemen were Ondik (2 1/2 sacks), Collins and Bracken. Soph Kevin Lawrence sent a PAT over the wall behind the south end zone. Keith Cavello, a tiny soph (5-4, 125), provided some late-game excitement with three carries for 20 yards. Late in the game, three big kids along K-K's sideline (recent players?) were trying to decide whether the guy keeping stats in front of them was me. News flash: it was (smile). North jr. QB Joe Waclawski took a pounding. He lost yardage seven times, though maybe two of those were slips. He kept his chin up, though, and went 5-for-15 for 80 yards; much of it to sr. WR Sammy Ladd (3-59). Waclawski, who throws righthanded but punts leftfootted, also made the play of the night while punting. He recovered a bad snap 20 yards behind the line of scrimmage (right at the goal line) and got off a 20-yarder under major pressure. When I took the captains' picture way before the game, Ondik kiddingly asked me, "Can I get 'Boonah' under my name, too?" Boonah is West Catholic rusher Curtis Brinkley. I told coach Mike McTamney and assistant Mike Santillo about Ondik's comment. They both cracked up and said almost simultaneously, "He's a funny kid." Early, North jr. LB Dom Fardella made a few jarring tackles. On one he lifted Connor and planted him into the turf. Before the game I asked North coach Tim Quinn what he'd thought when people suggested North should have been moved to the Red Division to solve the post-strike dilemma. He said, "I told (athletic director) Fran Dougherty, 'Whatever you have to do, don't move us up.' We're skin and bones right now." Maybe the Falcons can get it going as time goes on.

SEPT. 13
NON-LEAGUE
SJ Prep 39, Holy Cross (N.J.) 8
   Holy Cross is a long-time power renowned for having a high-octane passing attack. Not on this day, folks. Yes, the field was muddy and, yes, it rained every so often. But I doubt it would have made much of a difference. The Prep dominated the line of scrimmage and pretty much toyed with the visitors. The Hawks had three interceptions. Sr. DB Greg Ambrogi posted two and sr. DB Dan Jones ran back his for a 22-yard TD. Sr. DB Solomon Patterson deflected two passes while Jones, Ambrogi, sr. DB Dan DiBona and soph DB Ryan Malarick, a sub, had one apiece. Soph DE Matt Leddy (6-3, 225) and jr. LB Steve Quinn had two sacks apiece. Sr. DE Matt Parkhurst made two TFLs and exerted constant pressure. The offense had a short field to work with most of the day. The rushing was balanced thanks to soph John Shaw (14-81, two TDs), sr. Brian Tracz (4-52, two) and Jones (9-58, one). The offensive line featured sr. C Pat Regan, jr. G Brendan Gilroy, sr. G Mike Buscaglia, sr. T Dave O'Brien and sr. T Mike Robinson. Among the TEs were Parkhurst (6-4, 240) and jr. Mike Boyle (6-6, 215). Not much more to say about this tilt. The clock began running nonstop, due to the 35-point mercy rule, with 8:24 left in the third quarter.

SEPT. 12
NON-LEAGUE
Gtn. Academy 27, La Salle 12
   When I spoke with GA coach Michael "Pup" Turner for our Inter-Ac preview, he said he was devoting twice as many practices to defense as offense. It showed in this one. The Patriots forced six turnovers and won in comfortable fashion though the offense was hardly spectacular. Jr. DB Tyler Stampone had two interceptions. Sr. DB Justin Holiday and sr. DT Dave Zuk had one apiece. Zuk's came on a perfectly sniffed middle screen and he returned the ball 30 yards to La Salle's 10. Sr. DB Sean Grieve and jr. LB Matt Brown had fumble recoveries. Be honest. Did you think the Patriots could post this impressive a win with almost no passing game? Hampered by a strong wind that made most of his long passes sail long, Grieve went only 7-for-20 for 47 yards. He rushed eight times for 59 yards and two scores, though, and had a spectacular 35-yard run. As he eased to his left, he pump-faked and left several defenders flat-footed. He zigged and zagged several times and took the ball to the 5. That sparkling effort set up his own 1-yard TD run. Sr. RB Tyler Yerk, subject of my DN story, ran 13 times for 80 yards and two TDs. He was barely touched on a 16-yarder and impressively broke two tackles at the 11 on a 19-yarder. This has to be a big confidence-builder for GA: Winning more with defense than offense, and posting four TDs on a night when the passing game was nearly non-existent (Grieve's longest completion went for just 8 yards). As for La Salle . . . phew, not a good night. Jr. QB Mike Lynch, so impressive last week vs. West Chester Henderson, had night-long difficulties as the Patriots exerted constant pressure. Lynch went 9-for-21 for 73 yards and the four picks. He did, however, make an excellent play on a 5-yard TD pass, finding sr. TE Frank Jorfi in the back left corner of the end zone. Lynch had good protection on this play and he took his time to hit Jorfi, who was probably the third or even fourth option. The running game got a very late boost from soph George Hudson, who had runs of 13 and 27 yards on La Salle's last drive. He finished 13-76. Sr. Matt Malloy had a teeth-rattling block on a punt return. It came late, too, which showed he was still focused and trying.