St. Joe’s Prep has big players and an even bigger reputation.
In Mark Arcidiacono (6-5, 277 pounds) and Seth Betancourt (6-6, 283 pounds), the Prep’s offensive line boasts a pair of tackles who could line up in the NFL. Arcidiacono will be playing at Penn State next year.
Pennsylvania Football News ranks the Prep second in the state while EasternPaFootball.com ranks the Prep number one in Eastern Pennsylvania. North Penn is ranked fourth and second respectively.
All of that’s just fine with the Knights, who seem to revel in the role of giant killer.
In week one, the Knights earned a convincing win over a Bethlehem Liberty team that had a distinct size advantage. The Knights will have to do it again on Friday night when they take on the Prep at North Penn’s Crawford Stadium at 7:30 p.m.
“There’s not much pressure on us this game,” Knight coach Dick Beck said. “I told the kids, ‘We’re going into this game as a clear underdog.’ People expect Prep to come here and walk all over us.
“It’s not going to affect us in the league championship, and I can’t imagine it would affect us that much in the playoff standings. We’re going into this playing with house money where we can play loose, have some fun and take on the challenge.
“That doesn’t mean we don’t want to win. Obviously, we want to put an exclamation point on our non-league schedule by going 3-0.”
Rankings and reputations aside, Friday’s showdown promises to be a classic, and Knight quarterback Justin Davey, for one, is enjoying his team’s early season schedule that features one big-name team after another.
“I think it’s awesome,” North Penn’s senior quarterback said. “It’s the time of my life to come out and play football with my friends in huge games like this with my friends and family in the stands watching.”
Davey recognizes the immense challenge the Knights will be facing in Friday’s game.
“They have a lot of big kids, a lot of talented kids,” he said. “We want to come out and show everybody we can play with them.”
The Prep promises to give the Knights a different look on offense than Liberty did in week one.
“Sizewise they’re similar, but Liberty does a little more spreading the field,” Beck said. “St. Joe’s Prep is more – line up and run at you. It’s match our guys against your guys.
“We’ve got to stop their power game. They’re going to line up and kind of say, “Hey, we’re going to do this until you stop us.’ If we can’t stop them, we’re going to struggle..
Friday’s game, according to Davey, will be won or lost in the trenches.
“I think the ‘O’ and ‘D’ lines have to do a great job of playing against them,” he said. “They’re very strong and physical, they’re tough kids, and it’s going to be a war between those guys.
“Our D-backs and our offensive skills guys just have to go out and make plays like we have been doing so far this season.”
Making the plays for the Knights at those skill positions will be Davey – a threat to run and pass, Tyler Smith, Andrew Stoll and Ronnie Akins.
“We try and emphasize team ball, and we try and give everybody equal touches – not because we want to keep everybody happy,” Beck said. “We want to give the ball to somebody that’s fresh. Especially early in the season when it’s warm, it’s hard to give a guy the ball 15-20 times because everyone is going to run out of gas.
“Everybody knows they have to do their jobs. They have to be able to block. They have to be able to do something with the ball. They have to carry out the fakes. We’re trying to play team football here.”
The Prep has the revenge factor working in its favor. Last year, the Knights upset the Prep 17-7 in front of a full house at Plymouth Whitemarsh. If it comes down to a kicking game on Friday night, look for the Knights to have a decided advantage. Last year, Brandon McManus kicked a 42-yard field goal in the win over Prep, and the Division One prospect can put the ball through the uprights from a lot further away than that.
“They have a great team,” Davey said. “I think we’re a pretty good team, and I think we can play with anyone.
“Coach Beck has done a great job of preparing us.”
The Knights are coming off a convincing 34-12 win over neighboring Lansdale Catholic last week while the Prep notched an impressive 7-6 win over highly regarded St. Anthony’s, which won six straight Long Island League championships
The Knights would like to take a perfect 3-0 record into the SOL season, but they know their toughest test awaits them on Friday night.
“I’m very happy that we’re 2-0, but I still think we have much room for improvement,” Beck said. “When we play Prep, I hope we play our best game of the season. We’re going to have to (in order) to have a chance to win.
“It’s going to be a fun game to watch.”
Be sure to visit SuburbanOneSports.com on Saturday for a complete game story as well as photos capturing all the action.
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