This week’s notebook features the Upper Moreland/Quakertown showdown and includes the fab fives as well as a look ahead.
By Scott Huff
Ding, ding, ding!!!
‘Welcome to the Suburban One League American Conference main event’ between the pair of unbeaten conference teams – Upper Moreland and Quakertown.
In this corner – the home team – undefeated both overall and in conference play – the Upper Moreland Golden Bears.
Upper Moreland has not suffered defeat this season with a perfect 6-0 record overall and a 3-0 mark in the SOL American Conference.
The list of victories includes impressive wins over William Tennent (41-14), Phoenixville (42-7) and Upper Perkiomen (34-20) in the non-league games.
The Golden Bears have claimed SOL American Conference wins over Plymouth Whitemarsh (41-7), Hatboro-Horsham (41-40), and Cheltenham (34-7).
Upper Moreland had a bye last week.
“We are the smallest school in our league and we are scheduled to play another month because of the Thanksgiving Day game,” said Upper Moreland head coach Adam Beach. “The bye week was good for us because the players can stay after school for help in the classroom and for the seniors to go on some college visits.”
The Golden Bears know that they have a golden championship opportunity with their showdown against Q-town.
“We understand that if we win, we can control our own destiny,” said Beach. “All teams want to be in that position.
“We are opening up our brand new turf stadium and that also makes the game special,” added Beach. “It is rare that we have this opportunity.”
Upper Moreland has featured a punishing running attack this season. In fact, the top two rushers in all of the Suburban One League are in the Golden Bear backfield.
Both senior Sterlen Barr (949 yards and 9 touchdowns) and junior Caleb Mead (766 yards and 9 touchdowns) run behind a massive offensive line that showcases seniors Jacob Villanueva (6-4, 300), Ryan Carele (5-10, 265), Brett Broderick (5-11, 220), and Rodney Gowans (6-1, 265) – and junior Brett Broderick (5-11, 220).
“We have had a lot of success running the football,” said Beach. “The offensive line has been very good – but Bryan Mowery and Brett Brossman (tight ends), plus Cole Kitchen and Ronnie Perrelli (wide receivers) have also blocked well.”
However, Beach knows that Upper Moreland is more than a one-dimensional football team. In the thrilling one-point win over Hatboro-Horsham, quarterback Brendan Olexa fired a season-high three touchdown passes.
“We are an offense that will take what the defense is giving us,” said Beach. “We have full confidence in our ability to both run and throw the football. We will do what is working well this Friday.
“Quakertown is a big, strong, football team,” continued Beach. “We are going to have to play 48 full minutes if we want to win this game.”
And in this corner – the visiting team – undefeated in conference play and with just a single loss this season – the Quakertown Panthers.
Quakertown has been a ‘Cat with Nine Lives’ – or at the very least four lives – so far this season. The Panthers have trailed in the second half in four of their six wins, and the only blemish on their record was a loss to Central Bucks West (20-0).
The list of victories for the Black Cats includes a 15-12 non-league win over Central Bucks East and a 16-13 non-league victory over Souderton.
In the win over the Patriots, Q-town was down 12-7 at the half – and in the victory over the Indians, the Panthers were losing 13-8 in the fourth quarter.
There was also a pair of nerve-racking victories in conference play.
Quakertown trailed Upper Dublin 28-15 in the fourth quarter before securing a thrilling 34-28 overtime win. And the Panthers fell behind Hatboro-Horsham 20-3 in the first half and rallied in the second half to come up with a dramatic 26-20 victory.
Quakertown routed winless Cheltenham 40-6 last week.
“It was good to play a clean game against Cheltenham,” said Quakertown head coach George Banas. “I don’t know why, but in our other games, it just seems to take a while for us to get going.
“I think a big part of our success is our conditioning,” added Banas. “We work hard at conditioning, and it seems like we wear down teams at the end of games.”
Banas and his Panthers are more than excited for the conference showdown with Upper Moreland.
“We are a team that likes to check off boxes,” said Banas. “The first box is to win a conference championship, the next box is to win district playoff games, and the third box is to beat Pennridge on Thanksgiving.
“The game with Upper Moreland gives us a chance to check off that first box,” continued Banas. “On paper, this game is for a conference championship.
“If we lose the game, we can’t control who wins the league,” added Banas. “And our goal is to win out.”
Quakertown currently has just four home games on the schedule. If the Panthers do ‘win out’ there is a good chance that Q-town – currently ranked No. 8 in the District One 6A rankings – will host a PIAA 6A District One playoff game.
“We would really like to have an opportunity to play another home game at Alumni Field,” said Banas. “We have such a great following – and it would be a shame if the seniors only get to play four home games.
“Upper Moreland is a very tough team to defend,” added Banas. “Everyone knows they can run the ball, but their quarterback does a great job of keeping teams off balance.
“It should be a great game,” continued Banas. “Both teams have a lot to play for.”
And on this Friday the 13th at 7 pm, the SOL American Conference championship challengers will square off on the brand new turf at Upper Moreland.
The winner should be crowned conference champion at the conclusion of the season.
Ding, ding, ding!!!
SOL American Conference Snapshot
Upper Dublin (4-2, 3-1) lost a heartbreaker to Quakertown (6-1, 4-0) in overtime three weeks ago, but the Cardinals season is far from over.
Upper Dublin will become huge Upper Moreland (6-0, 3-0) fans this week as a Golden Bear win over Q-town – and a victory by Upper Dublin over Upper Moreland on October 27th – would create a probable three-way tie for the conference title.
The Flying Cardinals have a non-league game with Central this week.
SOL National Conference Snapshot
Neshaminy (6-1, 4-0) and Pennsbury (6-1, 4-0) once again may be poised for an epic conference title game when the Redskins and the Falcons meet on the final week of the season.
Both Neshaminy and Pennsbury have cleared the Truman (5-2, 2-2) hurdle, but both still have the dangerous Council Rock South (3-4, 2-1) hurdle right in front of them.
The Golden Hawks have played extremely well recently and will travel to Pennsbury this week and will host Neshaminy the following week.
SOL Continental Conference Snapshot
Who will be the bridesmaid to North Penn this season?
The Knights – who most concede aren’t the Knights of old – are still pretty darn good. North Penn (5-2, 4-0) is the only unbeaten team in the conference and should easily win out against Souderton (2-5, 1-3) andWilliam Tennent (0-7, 0-4).
Pennridge (5-2, 2-1) and Central Bucks South (5-2, 2-1) remain as the two one-loss teams in the conference. The Rams host the Titans in two weeks in a contest that just might decide that bridesmaid role.
SOL ‘Fab Five’ Offenses
Points Scored Per Game
1. Upper Moreland Golden Bears 38.8
2. North Penn Knights 38.7
3. Harry S Truman Tigers 37.3
4. Pennridge Rams 30.5
5. Neshaminy Redskins 30.3
SOL ‘Fab Five’ Defenses
Points Allowed Per Game
1. Central Bucks South Titans 13.5
2. Central Bucks West Bucks 14.7
3. Neshaminy Redskins 15.3
4. Pennridge Rams 16.0
5. Quakertown Panthers 16.0
SOL ‘Fab Five’ Passing
QBR C/Att Yds TD/INT
1. Evan O’Donnell (CBE) 170.4 85/124 1277 10/7
2. Steve DePaul (NP) 159.5 69/125 1137 13/4
3. Brody McAndrew (Nesh) 155.4 86/153 1344 13/2
4. Christian Jabbar (CRS) 155.1 62/ 98 789 9/3
5. Zach DeMarchis (Pbry) 151.1 72/128 851 12/3
SOL ‘Fab Five’ Receiving
Rec Yds Avg. TD
1. Justis Henley (NP) 33 620 18.8 6
2. Cory Joyce (Nesh) 29 404 13.9 5
3. Mike Garlick (Nesh) 26 514 19.8 5
4. Chris Lochetta (CBE) 25 523 20.9 7
5. Andrew Vera (CRS) 24 428 17.8 5
Sneak Peek @ SOL District One Rankings
Top 16 Qualify for District Playoffs
3. Neshaminy Redskins (6-1) 151.429
3. North Penn Knights (5-2) 151.429
5. Pennsbury Falcons (6-1) 150.000
7. Pennridge Rams (5-2) 140.000
8. Quakertown Panthers (6-1) 138.571
9. Central Bucks West Bucks (5-2) 137.143
12. Central Bucks South Titans (5-2) 131.429
13. Harry S Truman Tigers (5-2) 128.571
Sneak Peek @ SOL District One Rankings
Top 16 Qualify for District Playoffs
3. Upper Moreland Golden Bears (6-0) 161.667
6. Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals (4-2) 118.333
SOL American Conference Schedule
#Game of the Week
Quakertown Panthers (6-1, 4-0) @ Upper Moreland (6-0, 3-0)
Last Year: Quakertown 21 – Upper Moreland 7
Last Week:
Quakertown 40 – Cheltenham 6
Upper Moreland – Did Not Play
Plymouth Whitemarsh (1-5, 1-2) @ Hatboro-Horsham (3-3, 1-2)
Last Year: PW 35 – HH 13
Last Week:
Upper Dublin 28 – PW 14
Hatboro-Horsham 21 – Wissahickon 12
Wissahickon Trojans (2-5, 0-3) @ Cheltenham Panthers (0-7, 0-3)
Last Year: Cheltenham 27 – Wissahickon 14
Last Week:
Hatboro-Horsham 21 – Wissahickon 12
Quakertown 40 – Cheltenham 6
SOL National Conference Schedule
#Game of the Week
Council Rock South (3-4, 2-1) @ Pennsbury Falcons (6-1, 4-0)
Last Year: Pennsbury 21 – CR South 19
Last Week:
CR South 35 – Bensalem 14
Pennsbury 47 – Truman 32
Bensalem Owls (4-3, 1-2) @ Neshaminy Redskins (6-1, 4-0)
Last Year: Neshaminy 35 – Bensalem 22
Last Week:
Neshaminy 21 – Central Bucks South 14 (OT)
Council Rock South 35 – Bensalem 14
Abington Ghosts (3-4, 1-3) @ Truman Tigers (5-2, 2-2)
Last Year: Abington 49 – Truman 35
Last Week:
Abington 35 – CR North 14
Pennsbury 47 – Truman 32
SOL Continental Conference Schedule
#Game of the Week
Central Bucks West (5-2, 1-2) @ Central Bucks South (5-2, 2-1)
Last Year: CB South 14 – CB West 7
Last Week:
Pennridge 26 – CB West 6
Neshaminy 21 – CB South 14 (OT)
North Penn Knights (5-2, 4-0) @ Souderton Indians (2-5, 1-3)
Last Year: North Penn 48 – Souderton 13
Last Week:
North Penn 57 – CB East 43
Souderton 21 – William Tennent 16
Pennridge Rams (5-2, 2-1) @ William Tennent (0-7. 0-4)
Last Year: Pennridge 45 – William Tennent 3
Last Week:
Pennridge 26 – CB West 6
Souderton 21 – William Tennent 16
SOL Non-Conference Schedule
#Game of the Week
Council Rock North (1-6) @ Central Bucks East (3-4)
Last Year: CB East 45 – CR North 13
Last Week:
North Penn 57 – CB East 43
Abington 35 – CR North 14
Upper Dublin (4-2) @ Central (1-7)
Last Year: Did Not Play
Last Week:
Upper Dublin 28 – PW 14
Simon Gratz 40 – Central 0
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