When North Penn takes the field for Friday night’s District One AAAA title game against Council Rock South, the Knights will be led by a senior class that has been there before.
James Fielder thought his season might be over. His coaches and teammates thought so as well.
North Penn’s senior fullback was diagnosed with a hematoma in the deepest part of his thigh muscle. It measured 10 ½ inches by 2 ½ inches and not only limited his range of motion but also caused considerable swelling and pain in his leg.
“It was really tough,” Fielder said. “I started feeling a little depressed. I was real upset.
“My teammates know I’m not one to be sitting on the sidelines. I just kept telling myself after that injury, ‘I’ve got to come back. I have to come back. This is my senior year – I can’t be out.’”
Fielder heeded his doctor’s instructions and stunned everyone when he received the green light to return to action in time for last Friday’s District One AAAA semifinal against Pennsbury after being sidelined for two games.
“James is kind of like our heart and soul,” coach Dick Beck said. “He’s like a program player for us. Is he going to Penn State and play in the NFL? No, he just loves to play.
“We find out he’s hurt and probably done for the season – it’s devastating to the team because everybody loves him. He’d run through a wall for anybody. He’s worked so hard. He doesn’t care if he gets the ball. He’d rather block first. To him, it’s all about the team. He’ll play any position and do anything. When he told me last week that they thought he could come back – not only did it fire me up, it fired up the rest of the team.”
Fielder had eight carries and a pair of catches for a total of 50 yards in North Penn’s 27-3 win over the Falcons.
“I did what the doctor said, got healthy and now I’m back and better than ever,” he said. “It means absolutely everything to me to come back.
“A couple of days before the game I was saying in my head, ‘I’m going to come back, I’m going to play real hard, and I’m going to have a great game.’ I came out and did what I said.”
Even more significant that the yards he amassed was Fielder’s presence on the field.
“One thing people don’t think of – with James back, Ralphie (Reeves) doesn’t have to play fullback and go both ways,” Beck said. “Matt Smith doesn’t have to play any fullback, and we’re a little fresher. Against a big physical team like Pennsbury, we’ve got to keep those guys fresh.
“Fielder is such a good kid. You want to see him succeed because of his determination. He played a lot of defensive tackle last year being undersized. We had to put him in there because he was so active and tried so hard. You can’t have enough guys like that on the field.”
***
In many ways, James Fielder’s gutsy comeback not only captures the essence of the senior fullback but of the entire senior class. The Knights were written off by many after falling to 1-2 heading into their SOL opener against Central Bucks South, and according to Dan Gevirtz, things weren’t going all that well inside the Knights’ ranks either.
“We came into that game and guys were breaking down, people were quitting the team,” Gevirtz said. “It was uncharacteristic for us to be in that position at 1-2.
“We could have quit, we could have stopped playing right there, but the guys got it together, and we came back strong.”
The Knights defeated CB South 28-14 on the Titans’ home field.
“That was a big turning point,” senior T.J. Smink said. “That game itself – the field conditions were terrible, we were going against a team that was very good. We heard so much hype about them. Matt Johns, who is going to Virginia, was back, and Dan Brown is one of the best players in the area.
“We went into that game hearing all about how good they were, and to actually shut them down on their home field in the rain on a field that was muddy to begin with – that was the turning point of the season.
“From that point on, we pretty much went into games with the attitude, ‘We’re coming in and we’re not going to stop until we win. Our season isn’t going to end here.’”
The Knights have reeled off 10 straight wins since their 1-2 start.
So what exactly changed?
“Guys are taking different roles, people were switched around on defense,” Gevirtz said. ‘I think everyone is in the right position now. Everyone is getting the fundamentals down. I think we’re playing our best football.”
Ask Beck what saved the season, and he points to the seniors.
“This is Ralphie’s fourth and for the rest of the seniors, it’s their third district championship game,” the Knights’ coach said. “Gevirtz was a starter for three years. He has experience. He understands it’s not what you’re doing at the beginning of the season, it’s what you’re doing at the end.
“People say how does experience help you? Experience helps you when things go wrong. When things are going right, anybody can help you. When things are going wrong, it’s the experienced guys that will tell everybody, ‘Let’s calm down, let’s slow down a little bit, let’s not point fingers. It’s not an individual loss, it’s a team loss.’
“These guys understand the process that it takes to get to this point, and it kind of carries the guys that aren’t experienced. I know it’s a grind, I know there are a lot of demands, but there’s a pot of gold here at the end of the rainbow per se, and these guys are working the other guys through the most difficult times of the season.”
The pot of gold that awaits the Knights is yet another district crown. They are the defending district champions and have been to the district title game in eight of the last 10 years.
Friday night’s district title game against top-seeded Council Rock South, according to Gevirtz, feels different than the rest.
“I know the team is looking at us seniors to lead this team,” he said. “We know if we don’t do our job we might never play football again. There’s a lot of pressure. It’s nerveracking and exciting at the same time.
“Our number one goal every year is to get to the district championship. I’m happy that we have been able to come back from such a bad start and get to this point.”
“Going into the district championship again as a senior, it’s everything we could have wished for,” Smink added. “We have all dreamed about this since August and even before that.
“Everyone was doubting us because we lost all of our backfield to graduation. To come back this far and be where we’re at – it’s just a dream come true.”
Last year, the Knights brought an end to Rock South’s season with a 28-14 win in the district semifinals. The key to Friday night’s rematch, according to Gevirtz, is everyone doing their jobs.
“They’re a triple option team, and in order to beat that kind of team, you have to play responsibility football,” he said. “I think if everyone does their job and everyone is in the right position, we’ll win the game.”
Kickoff for Friday night’s District One AAAA title game against Council Rock South is 7:30 p.m. at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School.
- Log in to post comments
