Back for its 15th 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.
SuburbanOneSports.com: Pennridge edged Pennsbury in the SOL National Conference opener. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Pennridge lost its opener to Liberty 40-14, and you’re wondering what kind of season it might be for them. Now they’ve gone and won three in a row, the latest one 18-13 over Pennsbury last week. Pennsbury is a legit team. They went up and handled Quakertown when they played them a couple weeks ago. Kyle Beller is in his second year as head coach, and maybe they’re turning things around. You win three in a row – that’s a nice little run and a good start to your conference play.
“You look at their linebackers – Ryan Rowe, who’s a junior, and Trevor Fuhs, who’s a senior, and they both had double-digit tackles. Rowe is doing a nice job running the ball too. You couple that with junior quarterback Noah Keating – he’s throwing to Fuhs, he’s throwing to Chase Marshall, and they’re doing okay.
“Pennridge was trailing in this one. Pennsbury got a touchdown from junior running back Jordan Brensinger. He gave Pennsbury an early lead in the second quarter with a touchdown run, but 
Pennridge fought its way back. Keating threw a touchdown to Trevor Fuhs and then the Pennridge defense stopped Pennsbury. Then Keating – who is only a junior and is getting better and better – found Marshall with a 60-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter. That puts Pennridge up 18-7. When you’re playing Pennsbury – they don’t score quickly because they just run and run and run. Brensinger is threat to go all the way, but when you can key on the run, it’s easier to stop him. Pennsbury did come back when Kaiden Brown – who’s also a nice running back for Pennsbury – scored on a 15-yard run. They go for two, which was smart when you try to get to within three, but that failed.
“From there, Pennridge almost got in again, but they gave the ball back to Pennsbury. Pennridge’s defense needed a stop, and they got one, and they got the win. They’re coming along. It’s not easy. Beller took over a program that was in flux. We talk about this all the time – nothing gets a team going in the right direction more than winning. You win three in a row, and you look at it and say – ‘Who knows?’ Granted, North Penn is still sitting there as well as Central Bucks South and Central Bucks West. It’s a lot of tough games for Pennridge, but you’re making positive steps.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Central Bucks South kept its perfect record with a win over Central Bucks East. You were there – your thoughts?
Drew Markol: “You look at CB South – they keep rolling. They beat CB East 34-15. There was a nice crowd at the game. South’s 4-0. They scored on their first three possessions, and they were up 20-0. Senior quarterback Owen Pinkerton had a rushing touchdown, he threw a long touchdown pass to Danny Gies, who made a really nice adjustment and brought it in for a score. Another senior – Kaden Kube – had a touchdown run. South does enough on offense – Pinkerton’s really good. He ran for 175 yards. He knows when to scramble, he’s fast. Could that kid go to Del Val and be their quarterback? Absolutely. He told me he wants to play baseball, but he might change his mind. They don’t throw it a lot, but they can throw it. If they get a two-touchdown lead, good luck because their defense is so good. They’ve only allowed 28 points in four games. East gets 15 of them and was the first team to score in double digits on them. Sophomore Mike Price, the running back for East, had an 80-yard run for a score that was really nicely done. He just ran right up the middle and then just outran everybody.
“People have asked me if this South team is better than last year when they won the District 1 6A title for the first time. My answer now is – yes. Granted, we’ve only played four games. There’s a long, long way to go, but they’re really good. Their defense – Eddie Bowen, the defensive lineman, is having a superb season. Jim Wade at linebacker looks like he makes every tackle. Senior Nick Micewski, who is their left guard, is their only returner on the offensive line. He plays with a mean streak, which is what you need. They’re very big. South is going to be tough to beat.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: In the Continental Conference, Council Rock South rallied for a win over Cheltenham after trailing by 13 at halftime. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Cheltenham came into the game 0-3. They built a 28-15 lead at the half, and in high school football, that’s substantial, but Council Rock South comes back in the second half with two touchdowns to beat them. Shane Myers, the junior running back, had a rushing touchdown in the second half to cut the deficit in half. He had both of Rock South’s first-half touchdowns. He’s kind of taken over for his brother Chase, who graduated last year.
“Sophomore Gavin Lacey had a touchdown run with about four minutes to play after a long drive that gave Council Rock South a 29-28 lead. They had to stop Cheltenham a final time, and Nate Szydlik, the nephew of head coach CJ Szydlik – is a really good linebacker, and he had a sack on fourth down to stop Cheltenham’s final drive. That’s a good win. This was one of those games that you have to have – first conference game, you’re playing a winless team, and you go out and you rally from a big halftime deficit – if you’re Council Rock South, you’re ecstatic.
“Now Rock South has to go and play Upper Dublin at Upper Dublin, another tough game, but you’ve got momentum.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: North Penn rolled to a win over Neshaminy. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “North Penn took care of Neshaminy 37-7. North Penn is 4-0. We were impressed early on with their win over Downingtown East in week one, but they’re back. They’re absolutely in the conversation with CB South and CB West for top team in the National Conference. North Penn had a 31-0 lead on Neshaminy at the half, and it was just a really good defensive effort. Christian Johns-Wallace, a senior linebacker, is just a tremendous player. He had a couple of tackles for loss. Aidan Eves, another senior, is a defensive end, and he’s really good up front. They’re just beating up on teams like the old days, and when we say the old days, it wasn’t that long ago. North Penn had a couple of so-so seasons for them, but now they’re back in full force.
“You look at another aspect of the game – their senior kicker Ryan Bocklet kicked a 49-yard field goal. High school kids don’t do that. That’s how good he is, and that’s why he’s being looked at from some good schools. You look at the list of the longest field goals in the state last week. Bocklet had the 49-yarder, and the next longest was a 40-yarder. That’s another weapon North Penn has, and he’s a very good punter. That kid’s overlooked, but North Penn is a complete team.
“We’ve mentioned a couple of games, and we haven’t even mentioned the quarterback, Matt Bucksar, who’s a junior, and he’s really, really good. He commands that offense. North Penn is going to be a really tough out. When they play West and when they play South, those are going to be outstanding football games getting a lot of attention.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Plymouth Whitemarsh didn’t win but hung tough with a Manheim Township team that had a 3-0 record and only allowed a total of 24 points in its three games combined. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “If there can be an impressive loss, it was Plymouth Whitemarsh’s game against Manheim Township last week. Manheim Township is a perennial Central Pennsylvania power. They won the game 20-18, but this is a Class 6A team that was in the state semifinals last year, they won the District 3 6A title in a very good district for football, and PW had a 12-0 lead on them. PW quarterback Caiden Leszczynski had a 43-yard touchdown pass to Chase Smith. Everett Baker scored on a 10-yard run. Manheim came back to lead 17-12 at the half, but PW comes back and scores late in the fourth quarter. Leszczynski finds Kevin Hegerty on a 25-yard score, and all of a sudden, it’s 18-17 Plymouth Whitemarsh, and it looks like they’re going to pull off the huge upset, but Manheim Township’s kicker hits a 37-yard field goal in the closing seconds of regulation to win it. That’s a game I wish I was at. Great job by PW, which bodes well. When you’re beating a defending state semifinalist who plays in a classification above you in the closing minutes, that means you’re a pretty good team, and PW is. They’re the class of their conference in the SOL, for sure. They’re going to be playing for a while into November.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Hatboro-Horsham evened its record at 2-2 with a win over Upper Darby. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Nice win by Hatboro-Horsham – they beat Upper Darby 35-20. They were trailing 14-0 in the first quarter, and Hatboro didn’t let them score again until the last play of the game. It was a complete turnaround there. Luke Foley, the senior running back, had three touchdowns. He had a huge game last week and another big game this week. He had a 66-yard run in the third quarter that gave Hatboro its first lead and then he scored again on a 39-yard run that put them up 26-14. At that point, it’s basically over. It’s just a heck of a comeback in a game you have to win, and they went and did it. They ran for over 300 yards. That’s how you get it done.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Upper Moreland is 4-0 after it rout of Interboro. Your thoughts.
Drew Markol: “Another SOL American team – Upper Moreland beats Interboro 41-14. Upper Moreland is undefeated. Quarterback Alex Foley and junior tight end Larry Hughes have become a nice combination. Aidan Tuffy, the running back, had a rushing score. I talked to UM coach Adam Beach before the season and said, ‘What kind of team do you think you’ll have?’ He said, ‘I think we’ll be pretty good.’ Well, he wasn’t kidding. They’re pretty good. They’re just getting it done. Foley is very efficient, completed 10 of 14 passes for 180 yards and two scores. They’re getting good play from their defensive line. They just do what it takes, and they’re now a 5A school, so they’re up from where they’ve been for a while in 4A. They’re doing fine. Nothing wrong with 4-0. We don’t have many undefeated teams left at this point, and they’re one of them.”
SuburbanOneSports: What are the SOL games that catch your eye this week?
Drew Markol: “The biggest game probably in the whole SOL and the district is CB West goes to CB South on Friday. West went up on Abington 38-0 and won 38-6, and we talked about South beating CB East. West is 3-1. Their lone loss came against Souderton. South is 4-0. Last year when these two met in the regular season, they were both 8-0 at the time, and West beat South 40-29 in a crazy game that essentially gave West the National Conference title. Then they met again in the district semifinal, and South turned the tables and beat them 42-14 on the way to winning the district title. It will be packed, and it should be. It’s the story of a pretty good West offense against a really good South defense. Which side will come out on top? I don’t think it’s quite the rivalry of CB West/CB East because the kids from CB South don’t go to the same middle school as a lot of the East and West kids. They’re separated that way, but it’s a CB versus a CB which always adds to it. Now the winner will go to 2-0 in the conference and have a leg up on things. I think ultimately it’s going to be a three-team race between West, South and North Penn. One of these could be 2-0 and the other could be 1-1, and neither has played North Penn. We’ve had a couple of so-so weeks leading up to this, but now we’re going to start to get some good games, and this is right at the top.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Any other games of note this week?
Drew Markol: “Staying in the National Conference, CB East goes to Pennsbury, and it’s a six o’clock start. Both teams are 2-2 overall, but both are 0-1 in the conference. The loser drops to 0-2 in the conference – I think the winner of the conference will have either no losses or one loss. If you lose this one, you’re 0-2 in the conference. You have to keep winning, and then you’re thinking – ‘Can I grab a 12th or 13th or 15th seed in the district, and that’s for the winner of this game. The loser of this game is now under .500 at 2-3. Pennsbury is coming off a tough loss to Pennridge, and CB East has to bounce back after losing to CB South. It’s a must-win for both teams, for sure.
“Souderton and Quakertown will meet in the 309 Bowl. Souderton beat Quakertown last year 35-14, and they come in – they’re 2-2 after starting out 0-2. The lost to CB South, they lost to Spring-Ford, and then they beat CB West and shut out Truman last week. They seem to have righted themselves, for sure. Junior quarterback Ben Walsh has been really good. Evan Meenen, the senior linebacker, is back. He had missed a big part of the summer – he was on ROTC. Julian Adorno at linebacker is a really nice player. Souderton has pieces, for sure, and they go up to play Quakertown. Quakertown was 0-3 – they’d played some pretty good teams. They were able to take care of Bensalem last week. Quakertown’s Gavin Carroll, the senior running back and linebacker, had missed the North Penn game the previous week, but he came back and ran for three scores in the win over Bensalem. He adds a lot to that team on both offense and defense. Junior quarterback Brady Martin is just getting better. I would give an edge to Souderton, but that should be a good one too. It should be close.”
Drew Markol’s picks
(Winner in bold)
Abington @ Neshaminy
Cheltenham @ Bensalem
Central Bucks East @ Pennsbury
Central Bucks West @ Central Bucks South
Council Rock North @ Harry S Truman
Council Rock South @ Upper Dublin
Lower Moreland @ Springfield Twp
Pennridge @ North Penn
Plymouth Whitemarsh @ Penn Wood
Souderton @ Quakertown
Upper Moreland @ WC Henderson
William Tennent @ JP McCaskey HS
Interboro @ Wissahickon
Hatboro-Horsham @ Academy Park
New Hope-Solebury @ Northwest Area HS
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