Back for its 14th season, the popular Intelligencer/Bucks County Courier Times ‘Let’s Talk Football’ features football beat writer Drew Markol. To stay on top of the high school football news in the area, visit the Intelligencer (http://www.theintell.com/sports/high-school/) and Courier Times (http://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/sports/high-school/) web sites.
Join Jeff Nolan for the WPHT High School Football Scoreboard Show as they recap the night of high school football on Friday at 10 p.m. on 1210AM/WPHT and the Audacy app.
SuburbanOneSports.com: Central Bucks West edged Garnet Valley 28-27 in an overtime thriller. You were there. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “West was in a rematch of last year’s District 1 title game against Garnet Valley. West lost Conor McFadden, their do-everything running back, receiver, defensive back, punt returner, kick returner with blazing speed. He tore his ACL in the first round of districts against Cheltenham, and he’s out for the 
rest of the playoffs, so West goes into the Garnet Valley game without him. That’s minus a huge home run hitter, but they found a way. Cooper Taylor, the senior quarterback, was unbelievable. He ran for 180 yards, he scored all four touchdowns, and he had an interception. Then when they go into overtime tied at 21, Garnet Valley had the ball first, they scored a touchdown, and Taylor blocks the extra point. It wasn’t like it was a horrible snap or anything. It was just a little bit of a bobble, and he just came in and blocked it. Then two players later, he runs in for a touchdown on offense, holds for the extra point by Ryan Clemens. It’s good and they win. Rob Rowan, the West coach, called it the best individual performance he’s had in six years. He said, ‘I don’t even know what to compare it to.’ It was truly remarkable.
“West lost its three-year starting quarterback, Ganz Cooper, they lost Matt Cleland, their punter and safety and another running back who was a big part of the team. They lose Conor McFadden. If you asked before the season who the West big four were coming into the season, you would have said – Ganz Cooper, Conor McFadden, Matt Cleland and Jack Williams, the defensive end/tight end. You wouldn’t even have mentioned Cooper Taylor, who had a very good year last year, but he wasn’t in that big four. Now, three of those four are not playing because of injury, and Taylor has just stepped in and has been remarkable, and Williams is just a monster on defense. Okay, they have all these injuries, and I know it’s – next man up and all that coach-speak stuff, but it’s working because now they’re in the district semifinals against Central Bucks South.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Central Bucks South travelled to Spring-Ford and defeated the Rams 35-19 to set up a showdown with Central Bucks West. Your thoughts.
Drew Markol: “Central Bucks South, to its credit, goes to Spring-Ford and knocks them off to put themselves into the semis. Corey Moore who’s the back-up running back to Anthony Leonardi scores three touchdowns and runs for 120 yards against Spring-Ford. Leonardi had 140 yards, and Owen Pinkerton, the quarterback, had close to a hundred yards. He’s really come on lately, running the ball. It just gives South another option. Now you have to worry about three people running the ball, and that’s hard. They’re definitely not a – ‘We’re going to give it to this guy and hope for the best.’ They can move it around and get production, and it’s working. Their defense has been good all season. The 40 points they allowed to West was the most, by far, they’ve given up all season, and here they find themselves in the district semifinals.
“Here’s South at 11-1 and West is 12-0. South’s only loss was to West in week nine of the season (40-29), and in that game, South made some mistakes early – some fumbles, and I think there was an interception in there, and West took advantage of it and built a pretty big early lead. If South plays a cleaner game, it’s going to be a really good one on Friday night at War Memorial because 12-0 versus 11-1 - it’s good stuff, good job by both of them getting to this point, and one of them is going to be playing for the district title.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Souderton fell to Downingtown West 34-17 in a district quarterfinal game. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Souderton lost at home for the first time since 2019. Their 19-game home winning streak came to an end against Downingtown West. Downingtown West is playing Downingtown East in the other semifinal. Those are good teams. If you’re Downingtown West, I know you want another shot at East. I’m sure that played a role too. East beat them 35-7 when they played a couple weeks ago, and East has not allowed a point in two playoff games.
“For Souderton, what a great season. They had never won 11 games – they went 11-0 for the first time ever, and they got to the district quarterfinals. I think if you asked just about any coach before the season – ‘Hey, you’re going to be undefeated in the district quarterfinals,’ they’d say, ‘Okay, sign me up.’ They would absolutely take it. Souderton loses Danny Dyches, the senior wide receiver, and Ryan Sadowski, the senior running back, but Ben Walsh will be back – the sophomore quarterback who kept getting better. He’ll be back next year to build around, and Ed Gallagher, the head coach, never has a bad team. I believe he had a losing record his first year at Souderton about 20 years ago, and he hasn’t had one since. Those three teams in 6A were the benchmark teams all year, and two of them are still playing.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Plymouth Whitemarsh and Upper Dublin both saw their seasons end in the District 1 5A quarterfinals. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Upper Dublin was the defending District 1 5A champion. They lost a ton to graduation. They only had two seniors – Shyne Roberts and Chris Kohlbrenner – that were starters and played major roles on last year’s team, and they lost to Strath Haven in the quarterfinals, but what a terrific season for them. There were a lot of question marks surrounding them before the season, and that has to be considered a great year. If you’re an Upper Dublin fan, you’d be very happy because look at all the experience these younger guys gained. Wait until next year when they’re back playing for a district title.
“Plymouth Whitemarsh ran into a really good West Chester Rustin team. That’s a Rustin team that’s fluctuated between 6A and 5A, and they’re always very good. Whatever your hopes are, you can’t be disappointed if you’re PW and Dan Chang, the head coach, because you got to the district quarterfinals, and things happen. Sometimes you win those, and sometimes you don’t. The fact that you made it that far is saying something.
“So, for Souderton, Upper Dublin and PW, it’s just great seasons all around that came to an end, but there’s only one team that wins its last game.”
Drew Markol’s picks
(Winners in bold)
Central Bucks South at Central Bucks West
Downingtown West at Downingtown East
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