North Penn will host Coatesville in a District One 6A semifinal game on Friday night. Senior captain Nick Vasger is one of the team’s leaders, but it’s his passion for the game that stands out.
There’s no such thing as too much football for Nick Vasger.
“I absolutely love it,” the North Penn senior captain said. “My mom signed me up when I was five for flag, and ever since then, all I wanted to do with my time is play football. If I’m not playing outside, I’m playing on the Xbox.”
These days Vasger and his teammates are keeping busy trying to stay on top of their game as they continue what has been a remarkable season. The top-seeded Knights will take a perfect 12-0 record into Friday night’s District One 6A semifinal game against fourth-seeded Coatesville.
So far, it’s been a dream season for the Knights, who have beaten their opponents by an average of close to 30 points a game while allowing just over 12.
“It’s crazy,” Vasger said. “We expected to do well this season, but we didn’t really expect to be in the situation we’re in now.
“It’s really exciting, and obviously, we want to finish strong. We know everyone is gunning for us right now. We just want to stretch this thing out as long as we can.”
Vasger – a three-year varsity starter – is one of the Knights’ unsung heroes, anchoring the line at defensive end while also making contributions on the offensive side of the ball.
“He’s a very high energy, high motor guy,” coach Dick Beck said. “He plays to every whistle.
“He’s our spark on the defensive front. He leads our team with 13 sacks, but besides that, it’s the disruption he creates with his play. He’s just been one of the major reasons for our success this year, especially defensively.”
On offense, Vasger has seen action at tight end and H-back.
“He probably has the best hands on the team,” Beck said. “He’s such a highly productive player.
“The one thing that sticks out most about Nick is his love for football. He loves to play. He loves the game.”
Vasger admits he isn’t quite sure where his love for the game got its start.
“It’s funny because I don’t have any brothers,” the senior captain said. “I have a twin sister and a younger sister, and I was raised by my mom until I was eight or nine when she married my stepdad.
“Some people ask where I get my aggression from. It’s not even aggression. I just love the speed of the game, the thinking it takes and the strategy, and obviously, I love hitting.”
On the offensive side of the football, Vasger has seven catches for 74 yards and three touchdowns.
“Sometimes he gets frustrated with me because we’ll go two tight, and we’ll throw the ball to the other tight end,” Beck said. “He lets me know that he can catch the ball as good as Owen (Thomas) can.”
“I feel like I bring something to the table catching the ball,” Vasger said. “And sometimes I’d like to get the ball a little more.
“We have absolutely great receivers, and I understand when I don’t get the ball as much as I would like. Obviously, who doesn’t want the ball more?”
In last week’s quarterfinal game against Spring-Ford, the Knights raced to a 21-0 first-quarter lead but took a tenuous 21-19 advantage into halftime. They went on to win 28-19.
“We haven’t really been tested since our first game on the season against La Salle,” Vasger said. “In the second quarter, we made a few mistakes, and they caught up and made the game real close.
“Going into halftime, that was almost a good change of pace to feel like we’re in a 0-0 ballgame. I think it made us all figure out what we needed to do and how we needed to step up. I think we did, and I think that will help us later in the playoffs.”
The Knights’ next test comes on Friday night when they host fourth-seeded Coatesville in a District One 6A semifinal game at Crawford Stadium.
#1-4 COATESVILLE at #1-1 NORTH PENN (Friday, 7 p.m.)
North Penn
- 12-0 overall
- 6-0 SOL Continental Conference champions
- Attack led by quarterback Reece Udinski (3,110 yards, 31 touchdowns) and his three favorite targets: Ricky Johns (788 yards, 18 TDs), Jake Hubler (738 yards, 5 TDs) and Justis Henley (659 yards, 7 TDs). Nick Dillon is the leading ground gainer with 788 yards and 18 touchdowns.
- Knights’ defense has allowed just over 12 points a game.
Coach Dick Beck says: “The key is going to be keeping them in front of us. Don’t give up the big play. Make them earn every yard. If we give up a freebie, they’ll start to get their confidence. We’ve got to make them earn every yard, we’ve got to keep their quarterback inside the pocket – sometimes when he gets to scramble, he likes to turn it into a backyard football game where he starts running around a la Doug Flutie, and we can’t let him to do that to us. We’ve got to stay on our guy, we’ve got to make a play on the ball. We can’t let them outplay us for the ball.”
How they got here:
- In its district opener, North Penn raced to a 42-7 halftime lead on its way to a 56-7 rout of 16th-seeded Coatesville. Nick Dillon had four rushing TDS to lead the Knights, who had 406 total yards.
- In a quarterfinal game, North Penn opened up a 21-0 first-quarter lead but Spring-Ford came roaring back to make it a 21-19 game at halftime. The Knights went on to win 28-19. Ricky Johns had seven receptions for 192 yards and two touchdowns on a night that saw Reece Udinski throw for 329 yards. Nick Dillon ran for 104 yards.
Coatesville
- 11-1 overall
- 6-0 Ches-Mont National champions
- Winners of 10 straight games since a 41-21 loss to Cumberland Valley in week two.
- Raiders have averaged more than 40 points a game in wins with 34 points their lowest output in any win this season.
- Offense led by freshman quarterback Ricky Ortega, a two-way threat, and sophomore running back Anthony Young (1,242 yards, 23 TDs).
How they got here:
- In an opening round game, quarterback Ricky Ortega threw for 224 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 86 yards and another TD to lead Coatesville to a 42-0 win over Abington. Dapree Bryant was Ortega’s favorite target, hauling in five passes for 135 yards and two touchdowns.
- In quarterfinal action, Coatesville defeated fifth-seeded Ridley 41-21. Anthony Young ran for 246 yards while Ricky Ortega had 123 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.
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