Scott Huff takes a look back at the football season just completed and names his teams and offensive players of the year.
By Scott Huff
The brutal heat of August has morphed into the brutal cold of December – and the Suburban One League football season is now in the history books.
The season was full of surprises – none bigger than Wissahickon’s 38-35 shocker over Downingtown East in the opening round of the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs. The Trojans lost to Coatesville the next week. By virtue of the power vested in me – none – I am going to declare the Wissahickon Trojans the SOL American Conference Team of the Year.
Everyone had an idea that Pennridge was going to be good this season – but 12 wins good? The Rams advanced to the PIAA Quad-A District One semifinals before bowing out in a 35-24 loss to Spring-Ford at Poppy Yoder Field. By virtue of the power vested in me – none – I am going to list the Pennridge Rams the SOL Continental Conference Team of the Year.
Neshaminy is one of the finest programs in the entire state of Pennsylvania, and when the Skins started the season at 2-2 with losses to Souderton and William Tennent, the respect factor was gone for this 2012 team. But Neshaminy earned its reputation back with an excellent PIAA Quad-A District One run before Coatesville eventually ejected the Skins from the playoffs. And once again, by the power vested in me – none – I am going to declare the Neshaminy Redskins the SOL National Conference Team of the Year.
Ironically, of the three teams listed above only Pennridge was a conference champion. Wissahickon finished behind Plymouth Whitemarsh in the American Conference, while Neshaminy finished in second place in the National Conference behind Pennsbury.
There is plenty of room for argument here.
And here.
Suburban One Sports.Com***Top 24 for the 2012 Season
1. Pennridge Rams
2. Pennsbury Falcons
3. Neshaminy Redskins
4. Central Bucks South Titans
5. North Penn Knights
6. Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials
7. Wissahickon Trojans
8. Abington Galloping Ghosts
9. Souderton Indians
10. Cheltenham Panthers
11. Upper Moreland Golden Bears
12. Central Bucks West Bucks
13. Council Rock North Indians
14. Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals
15. William Tennent Panthers
16. Central Bucks East Patriots
17. Bensalem Owls
18. Council Rock South Golden Hawks
19. Harry S Truman Tigers
20. Upper Merion Vikings
21. Springfield Spartans
22. Hatboro-Horsham Hatters
23. Quakertown Panthers
24. Norristown Eagles
Suburban One League *** Continental Conference Snapshot
Pennridge (12-2, 7-0) overcame an early season setback against Bensalem to become an area power. The most impressive wins of the season for the Rams was a 28-27 victory over Pennsbury in the PIAA Quad-A District One quarterfinal game, and a 28-21 win over North Penn that established the Green and White a conference contender. The Pennridge defense was terrific all season and showcased John Dubyk. The Suburban One Sports Offensive Player of the Year for the Pennridge Rams – running back Michael Class.
Central Bucks South (10-2, 6-1) was a scoring machine for most of the season behind its multi-faceted offense led by senior quarterback John Pileggi. The only two games of the season lost by the Titans came in the only two games they failed to score 30 points – 21-10 to Pennridge and 14-7 to Neshaminy. The most impressive wins of the season for CB South were a 36-29 win over North Penn and a 38-14 PIAA Quad-A District One playoff win over Haverford. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Central Bucks South Titans – running back Josh Adams.
North Penn (6-4, 5-2) had its consecutive win streak stopped by CB South (36-29) and was knocked out of conference contention the following week against Pennridge (28-21). The Knights played an awesome non-league schedule with losses to La Salle and St. Joe Prep. It is hard to believe that the Big Blue did not make the postseason. The most impressive wins of the season for the Knights came in an 11-10 thriller over Souderton and a 24-10 non-league victory over Archbishop Wood. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the North Penn Knights – running back Kyle Mayfield
Souderton (7-4, 4-3) played on the fringe of the playoffs all season long. The Indians featured their Wing-T offense and came up with a terrific non-league win early in the season with an 18-7 victory over Neshaminy. Souderton, though, was 0-3 against teams in the conference with winning conference records. Souderton just missed the playoffs in the last game of the season when the Big Red lost an 11-10 contest to North Penn in the final moments. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Souderton Indians – running back Anthony Williams.
Central Bucks West (5-5, 4-3) finished the rugged Continental Conference with a winning record. The Bucks showcased a wide-open offense that featured the no huddle and caused defensive nightmares. The most impressive win of the conference season came in a 40-20 victory over intra-district rival Central Bucks East, and a convincing 31-0 non-league win over Upper Dublin. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Central Bucks West Bucks – quarterback Cody Riemenschneider.
Central Bucks East (4-6, 2-5) finished with a pair of conference victories and also ventured out of the league for a pair of wins. The Patriots claimed huge conference wins over both Hatboro-Horsham (43-29) and Quakertown (31-13). The Suburban One Sports.Com Player of the Year for the Central Bucks East Patriots – running back Vince Thompson.
Hatboro-Horsham (1-11, 1-6) finished the season with a single win – a 14-13 conference victory over Quakertown on October 5. Hatter head coach Gary Pagilaro resigned at the end of the season after an extremely difficult season. The Suburban One Sports.Com Player of the Year for the Hatboro-Horsham Hatters – quarterback Steve Palo.
Quakertown (1-10, 0-7) finished the season without a conference victory. The lone win of the season for the Panthers came on the opening week of the season in a 51-20 non-league victory over Upper Perkiomen. The Suburban One Sports.Com Player of the Year for the Quakertown Panthers – running back Mike Sawyer.
Suburban One League***National Conference Snapshot
Pennsbury (9-3, 7-0) lost two of its first three games, but the Falcons soared to a perfect season in the National Conference to claim their outright title. Pennsbury once again featured a punishing ground attack but mixed in the passing game with Breon Clark. The Falcons won the conference title with a 7-0 win over Neshaminy in the final week of the regular season and followed with a 21-13 victory over West Chester Rustin in the first round of the PIAA District One Quad-A playoffs. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Pennsbury Falcons – running back Shawn Pepper.
Neshaminy (9-4, 5-2) played its best football of the season come playoff time as the Skins routed Plymouth Whitemarsh 42-21 in the first round of the playoffs and followed with a tremendous 14-7 victory over Central Bucks South in the second round of the playoffs. The Skins were ousted from the playoffs by Coatesville. The strength of this 2012 edition of Neshaminy was its run game and defense. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Neshaminy Redskins – running back Nate Hall.
Abington (8-4, 5-2) did not come into the season with great expectations, but that did not prevent the Ghosts from making an appearance in the postseason. Abington lost in the first round to Pennridge. The most impressive wins for the Ghosts this season were a 7-0 win on Thanksgiving Day against rival Cheltenham and a 19-17 win over Council Rock North. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Abington Ghosts – quarterback Dylan Collins.
Council Rock North (5-5, 4-3) finished the season over .500 in conference play. The most impressive wins of the season for the Indians were a 13-7 victory in the final game of the season against rival Council Rock South and a 29-0 conference win over Bensalem. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Council Rock North Indians – quarterback Brandon McIlwain.
William Tennent (4-6, 3-4) shocked the SOL National world with its 20-17 victory over Neshaminy early in the season. The Panthers – who would also record an impressive 35-21 victory over Bensalem – had a season plagued with injuries. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the William Tennent Panthers – Jeff Ledford.
Bensalem (3-7, 2-5) shocked the SOL world with a 24-21 overtime victory over Pennridge. Another nice win for the Owls was a 35-20 conference win over Council Rock South. Bensalem featured a potent passing game with quarterback Kevin Hopkins. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year – wide receiver Donnie Reed.
Council Rock South (2-8, 2-5) had a tough season after reaching the District One Final last year. The Hawks claimed conference wins over William Tennent (28-7) and Truman (32-13). The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Council Rock South Golden Hawks – running back Christian Crane.
Harry S Truman (3-8, 0-7) was not able to notch a conference win this season. However, the Tigers were able to win three games outside of the conference – the two most impressive being the 34-31 thrilling Thanksgiving Day win over Conwell Egan – and the other being a 23-20 win over Fels from Philadelphia. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Harry S Truman Tigers – running back Jordan Livingston.
Suburban One League *** American Conference Snapshot
Plymouth Whitemarsh (9-2, 7-0) marched through its conference season unbeaten and defended its conference title from a season ago. The Colonials showcased a balanced attack and a strong defense over the course of the season. PW collected a huge 45-17 non-league victory over Abington and also impressed in a 35-21 conference victory over Wissahickon. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials – running back Corey Kelly.
Wissahickon (8-4, 5-2) captured the most impressive win of the season outside any of the SOL conferences with the Trojans 38-35 victory over Downingtown East in the first round of the PIAA District One Quad-A playoffs. The most impressive conference win for Wissahickon was a 55-35 win over Upper Moreland. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Wissahickon Trojans – running back Dan Murphy.
Cheltenham (8-4, 5-2) flirted with making the postseason, however, the Panthers never quite collected enough key wins to make the playoffs. Cheltenham did, however, collect a win over a playoff team as the Panthers defeated Wissahickon 20-6. Another impressive conference win was a 54-35 victory over Upper Merion. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Cheltenham Panthers – running back Mark Thompson.
Upper Moreland (7-5, 4-3) the Golden Bears competed well this season and earned a PIAA District One Class AAA playoff berth. Upper Moreland came up with a huge conference 28-21 victory over Cheltenham in conference play and closed out the season with a 35-7 win over rival Hatboro-Horsham on Thanksgiving Day. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Upper Moreland Golden Bears – Robert Knox.
Upper Dublin (6-4, 4-3) completed the season with a winning record in the conference. Nice wins for the Flying Cardinals included a 50-21 win over Springfield and a 28-7 non-league win over Harry S Truman. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals – running back Reed Rapine.
Upper Merion (2-9, 1-6) collected its lone conference win of the season with a 42-12 win over Springfield. The Vikings closed out the season with a 28-21 non-league victory over Owen J Roberts. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year for the Upper Merion Vikings – running back Hassan Gardner.
Springfield (5-6, 1-6) collected its lone conference win of the season with an 18-6 victory over Norristown. The Spartans were 4-0 outside the SOL this season. Springfield won its Thanksgiving Day contest with Lower Moreland – 29-0. The Suburban One Sports.Com Offensive Player of the Year – quarterback Chris Stone.
Norristown (1-10, 1-6) went through one of its worst seasons in school history as the Eagles could manage just a single win this season. The lone conference victory of the season came in a 27-20 victory over Upper Merion. The Suburban One Sports.Com Player of the Year for the Norristown Eagles – Darius Wills.
Eight months to go until August 2013 – Happy Holidays
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