North Penn will face St. Joe’s Prep in a battle of nationally-ranked teams in Saturday’s PIAA 6A semifinal game at Northeast High (5 p.m.). Check back for a game wrap.
Stats used in the article are provided courtesy of Calkins Media. For complete high school football coverage, visit the web sites: http://www.theintell.com/sports/high-school/fall/football/ and http://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/sports/high-school/fall/football/
“This one’s for you.”
Although unspoken, those words are Nick Dillon’s singular thought every time he steps onto the football field, every time he scores a touchdown. Memories of Stacy Johnson – Dillon’s beloved cousin who lost her battle with cancer three years ago – are never far away for the North Penn senior.
“It was hard at first - just thinking about it every moment and knowing she’s not going to be there at Friday games or anything like that,” Dillon said. “I just play for her.
“Every play that I have or anything – I just point up at her, and I know she’s looking. I go out there, and I know she’s with me. She’s with me every moment.”
Inspired by Johnson’s memory, Dillon is having himself a senior season to remember. He enters Saturday’s PIAA Class 6A semifinal against St. Joe’s Prep with 25 touchdowns – 24 on the ground and one in the air.
“Sometimes they’re not very big rushes,” Dillon said. “I’m just the man to punch them in.
“Hey, coach Beck gives me the ball, and I’m going to take full advantage of it.”
Interestingly, Dillon might not even be playing football had it not been for the encouragement of his uncle.
“My uncle signed my brothers up every year, so he was always trying to convince me to play,” Dillon said. “I wasn’t quite sure at first because I was a soccer man, but I gave it a try.”
Dillon, who also excelled in track, was a natural on the gridiron, and if he needed incentive, he got it from his cousin. Johnson, according to Dillon, would hold up a $20 bill while watching from the stands during his early years playing for the Conshohocken Bears.
“That was all the motivation I could ever have had,” he said with a laugh. “I was young, and every kid wants treats or money.
“When she used to hold up that $20, it was a game changer. When I was young, I used to think that was a lot, so I used to go for it.”
Dillon is still going for it, and he has been an integral part of North Penn’s perfect season. Making the season especially significant is the fact that it comes on the heels of a junior year that saw Dillon hampered by a nagging ankle injury.
“I really believe it all started in ninth grade when I first moved up here,” Dillon said. “We were doing a little 7-on-7 game, I went to cut, and I broke my ankle. I just kept coming back too fast because coach Beck would give me a chance to go in, so I wanted to take advantage of it.
“Last year was a struggle. I started the first game and the second game I didn’t. I played in a jayvee game, and that’s how I got hurt. Junior year is basically the most important year, so me trying to go back out there – I was rushing it too much.”
This year Dillon is doing all of his rushing on the field. He has 950 yards on 175 carries and – if you do the math - scores a touchdown close to one out of every seven times he touches the football.
“He’s not very big, but he’s physically strong,” coach Dick Beck said of his 5-8, 170-pound running back. “An ankle injury really set him back his junior year, but he’s really worked extremely hard and has been so productive for us.
“We’re not our typical North Penn team, and we don’t run the ball 75 to 80 percent of the time now, so he has to get his carries when he can, but he’s one of those shifty guys who’s good at getting the ball out of the backfield, catching it or running it out of the gun in the zone read. Plus, we have lined up in a lot of two tight stuff, and he comes downhill and finds the hole.
“In the past, we were more of a power football team, running at a hole, where this year we have been more of a zone team where he’s kind of picking his own hole. That’s where he’s excelled, and I think that’s where he’ll excel in college. He’s a great kid.”
Dillon figures to once again be in the middle of the action when North Penn faces St. Joe’s Prep in Saturday’s state semifinal contest, and once again, he’ll be thinking of Johnson.
“This season is really special,” the Knights’ senior running back said. “I wish she was here so I could enjoy the moments with her.
“I just want to keep pushing and make bigger moments because I know she’s looking all the time.”
#1-1 NORTH PENN vs. #12-1 ST. JOE’S PREP (Saturday, 5 p.m., at Northeast High School)
North Penn
- 14-0 overall
- 6-0 SOL Continental Conference champions
- District One 6A Champions
- Ranked 23rd in USA Today Super 25.
- Reece Udinski leads a high-powered offense. The senior quarterback broke the District One record for single season pass yardage with 3,814 yards and 36 touchdowns
- West Virginia-bound senior Ricky Johns – also a key on defense - has 55 receptions for 1,220 yards and eight touchdowns.
- Other important contributors on offense are senior running back Nick Dillon (950 yards, 24 touchdowns) and wide receivers Justis Henley (47 receptions, 853 yards, seven touchdowns) and Jake Hubler (38 receptions, 795 yards, five touchdowns).
- Knights have outscored opponents 581-214, scoring an average of 41.5 points a game while allowing only 15.3.
Coach Dick Beck says: “I don’t know if we ever have to be perfect, but I think in order for us to be successful on Saturday we have to be able to get (D’Andre) Swift on the ground in almost all of our first opportunities. We can’t let him turn the game into a backyard football game where he’s cutting it back and running it all over the field. If we don’t do a good job tackling him, it’s going to be a tough game for us to win.”
How they got here:
- In an opening round District One 6A game, top-seeded North Penn opened up a 42-7 halftime lead and rolled to a 56-7 win over 16th-seeded Haverford. Twelve different Knights had carries in a contest that saw Reece Udinski complete 11-of-15 passes for 169 yards and one TD.
- In North Penn’s 28-19 district quarterfinal win over eighth-seeded Spring-Ford, the Knights opened up a 21-0 first-quarter lead only to watch the Rams make it a 21-19 game at the intermission. The Knights’ defense silenced the Rams in the second half to seal the win. Reece Udinski threw for 329 yards and three touchdowns with Ricky Johns hauling in seven passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns. Nick Dillon had 104 yards on the ground.
- In a District One 6A semifinal contest, North Penn defeated fourth-seeded Coatesville 42-25. Nick Dillon led the offense with 135 yards and four touchdowns. Reece Udinski threw for 257 yards with Owen Thomas delivering a key touchdown reception and 106 receiving yards. Justis Henley had four catches for 104 yards.
- In North Penn’s 38-28 win over 10th seeded Garnet Valley in the District One 6A title game, the Knights accumulated 503 yards of offense, led by the career performance of Reece Udinski. The Knights’ senior quarterback threw for a school record 447 yards and four touchdowns. Ricky Johns had eight receptions for 215 yards and one TD. Justis Henley had 90 yards receiving.
St. Joe’s Prep
- 12-0 overall
- 6-0 PCL Champions
- District XII Champions
- 2013 & 2014 PIAA Class 4A Champions
- Ranked 15th in USA Today Super 25
- Led by senior running back D’Andre Swift. The Georgia commit – who chose Georgia over a final list that included Alabama, Clemson, Florida State & Penn State – was ranked fourth best running back in his class by Rivals. Swift has over 1,000 yards in limited action, averaging 12.4 yards a carry.
- Junior quarterback Marquez McCray is a dual threat to throw and run.
- The Prep has outscored opponents 486-187, averaging 40.5 points while allowing just 15.6 points.
How they got here:
- In the PCL 6A semifinal, St. Joe’s Prep defeated Roman Catholic 45-7. Quarterback Marquez McCray was 8-for-10 for 187 yards and three touchdowns. D’Andre Swift had seven carries for 90 yards and a TD and also had a receiving touchdown.
- In the PCL 6A final, the Prep defeated La Salle 35-14. D’Andre Swift had 176 yards and three touchdowns, and quarterback Marquez McCray threw for 160 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for 68 yards.
- In the District XII 6A final, St. Joe’s Prep defeated Northeast 44-6. Five different players scored touchdowns with D’Andre Swift scoring a pair.
- In the PIAA 6A quarterfinals, St. Joe’s Prep defeated Parkland 38-17. D’Andre Swift had 18 carries for 318 yards and two touchdowns.
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