Back for its fifth season, the popular Intelligencer/Courier Times ‘Let’s Talk Football’ features high school football beat writers Drew Markol and Dan Dunkin. Markol covers schools in the Intelligencer area while Dan Dunkin covers teams in the Courier Times area. Both share their perspective on the teams in their coverage area. Scott Huff, football writer for SuburbanOneSports.com, shares his thoughts about the American Conference squads. To stay on top of the high school football news in the area, visit the Intelligencer/Courier Times web site http://www.phillyburbs.com/sports/high_school/
Suburban One:Talk about Pennsbury's impressive district championship game win over Coatesville.
Dan Dunkin: “It was their best start-to-finish defensive game all season. They did a great job executing the game plan by defensive coordinator Dan McShane and the staff. Coatesville was about a 50-50 passing and running team, and you look at the stats afterwards and they threw only 13 times. which is about half their usual number of attempts. A lot of that was their quarterback, Jordan Young, was confused. Pennsbury disguised pass coverages. They had a good pass rush, good coverage by their DBs and their linebackers. They were physical, which I thought would be the difference in the game and it was. They contained Coatesville's speed. They made Young and run a lot and not to very much success. Front to back, the defense played the game they had to play to win the district, beating the best offensive team they had played all year. Coatesville got some running yardage here and there, but the totality of it wasn't enough to sway the outcome. Pennsbury held Coatesville to 14 points, which is 22 below their average. I think that really surprised a lot of people.
Pennsbury has lots of athletes, and they're smart, tough kids. This was a great example of them putting it all together. Going into halftime, they could have been up 14-0, 17-0 or 21-zip. Coatesville never should have got a touchdown there near the end of the half. It was a bogus call - flagged for unintentional bumping into a referee - and that extended a Coatesville possession. Then they went in and scored. Pennsbury mismanaged the clock a little late in the first half. They got deep in Coatesville territory, tried to score a TD, but time got away. They have a good field goal kicker in Josh Leon, and they ran out of time. Those two happenings - the flag leading to a Coatesville TD and the botched Pennsbury red zone possession - could have been a game-turner and momentum killer for Pennsbury. To their credit, they shook all that off, and they came out and took care of business in the second half. They had a good drive, and they went ahead on Mike Alley's 15-yard keeper touchdown. The way that game ended with their defense getting a goal-line stand was a very fitting conclusion, showing their toughness and their will to win. I thought it was just a tremendous, memorable finish for Pennsbury and the way they won the district title.”
Suburban One: Size up the interesting matchup between Pennsbury and St. Joseph's Prep in the Quad-A state semifinal Saturday.
Dan Dunkin: “It's fascinating. Pennsbury's old friends at Neshaminy played St. Joe's Prep last year at the same point - the state semifinals - at the same place, Northeast High School. Neshaminy gave them a good battle. They were actually getting ready to take the lead in the third quarter before a fumble got turned into a Prep touchdown. Even with that, they kept fighting. They lost 37-21, and the margin wasn't indicative of how Neshaminy fought. They really gave St. Joe's Prep all they wanted for three-plus quarters.
"I think this is the same concept and that Pennsbury will give St. Joe's Prep all they can handle. I think Pennsbury's defense is better than Neshaminy's defense was last year. They're certainly quicker in the back - their linebackers and DB's are quicker. Offensively, Pennsbury is largely a one-dimensional team like Neshaminy was last year, a running team.
"St. Joe's Prep brings many of the same playmakers that Neshaminy faced last year. The quarterback is different, but he's very effective like their quarterback was last year. St. Joe's has got a lot of weapons. They've got a lot of speed on defense, and they have great special teams that can block kicks, and they can run back kicks all the way. One of their major game-breakers, John Reid, a terrific defensive back and receiver headed for Penn State, hurt his knee a couple of weeks ago, and if he misses the game, that's huge. Even without him, this will be the best team Pennsbury has faced by a lot.
“I think Pennsbury is going to be right there. I just think that Prep's ability to move the ball in the air and their overall balance on offense will be the difference in this game. I think it's going to be 28-24, St. Joe's Prep.
"St. Joe's Prep is significantly better than Coatesville. Pennsbury is going to have to do more through the air than it usually does, because they're not going to be able to run it down Prep's throat all day. I think Pennsbury is a terrific team, but they're dealing with a team that has six or seven Division One recruits, But St. Joe's Prep is going to walk away from this game and say about Pennsbury, 'Wow, that's a hell of a football team.' I think it's going to be a great game."
SuburbanOneSports.com: Your thoughts about Pennsbury’s impressive win over Coatesville in the district title game.
Drew Markol: “Pennsbury dominated up front, and they did what they’ve been doing with Snorweah the whole season. The first play of the game he goes untouched 75 yards for a touchdown, and you’re like, ‘Wow, I didn’t expect this,’ and they didn’t stop. They kept blocking well, running the ball. Raheem Thompson, who gets very little credit, comes in and gives them 100-plus yards too. Now you have a two-headed monster with a really good offensive line, and that’s what they did. I was shocked that Coatesville didn’t throw the ball more. It was cold, but it wasn’t that cold.
“Pennsbury – myself included – not many people gave them a chance, but they went out and they were the better team. It wasn’t a fluke. They made some errors that cost them some points, but they managed to overcome it. You keep doing that – now you’re two steps away from a state title. I thought they were a district contender, but I didn’t think they would be a district champion. Now they’re a state semifinalist. There are only four teams left in the whole state, and to be one of those four is pretty cool.
“Pennsbury came up with that big defensive stand on fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line late in the game. The defensive players I talked to from Pennsbury said Coatesville ran the same play on third down when they rolled their quarterback Jordan Young to the left. They ran the same play on fourth down, and I asked if they were surprised, and to a man, they said – no. When you have a really good idea of what’s coming, it makes life a whole lot easier to stop. If Coatesville had done anything differently – a reverse or a pass over the top to the tight end, they score there, but they set up the same way, and they ran the same thing. Pennsbury bulked up on that side. It wasn’t one of those – we’ll hold our breath and wait for the official’s measurement. They stopped them cold.
“Usually Coatesville can line up with anyone size-wise, but Pennsbury is very big, and all of a sudden they popped a long touchdown on the first play of the game and you’re thinking, ‘This isn’t good.’ Coatesville has such a storied program, and you kept waiting for the big play to tie the game, and it just didn’t happen.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Parkland gave St. Joe’s Prep all it could handle last week. What are your thoughts about the Pennsbury/St. Joe’s Prep game.
Drew Markol: “You have the defending state champ in Prep. Parkland is always good. Parkland beat an undefeated Easton team to win the District 11 championship. Their quarterback, Jack Clements threw for 266 yards and four touchdowns. That’s the thing – you look at this Prep team – they beat La Salle, and they’re the defending state champs. If Pennsbury goes up on them 7-0, they don’t get deflated. They can throw it, and they can run.
“I’m going to pick Pennsbury - which is an upset - because of the roll they’re on, but this is a tough one. As good as Coatesville always is, Prep is better. Prep is the defending state champ, but Pennsbury seems to have a little magic in them too.”
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