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: North Penn defeated Pennsbury 22-14 in a hard-fought game. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Let’s start out this week in the National Conference. One of the better games was North Penn/Pennsbury, which – on paper – you wouldn’t think would be that close. North Penn was trying to bounce back from a tough loss to CB South, and Pennsbury is fighting to get into the district tournament. They need wins. The final score was 22-14 in favor of North Penn, but to Pennsbury’s credit, they shut down North Penn’s running game pretty much.
“It was a story about Ryan Bocklet, who is the kicker and punter for North Penn, and he’s a tremendous asset to have for a team. He kicked three field goals, which is no surprise – he’s been their kicker for three seasons, and he had a 49-yarder earlier this season. North Penn coach Dick Beck is not afraid to let him try. He told me a few weeks ago that pretty much if you get to the 40 – you can start thinking about trying a field goal, which is really something on the high school level.
“Also, junior quarterback Matt Bucksar threw two touchdown passes because North Penn just couldn’t get the run game going. One was to senior Jackson Schurmann, and it got North Penn going.
“I give Pennsbury credit for hanging with North Penn for as long as they did. Pennsbury did score a late touchdown in the fourth quarter to make it 22-14, which made it a little more respectable, but North Penn gutted out a win. Christian Johns-Wallace, their excellent linebacker, was a little bit under the weather. He did manage to play, but he wasn’t quite himself. It’s the kind of win North Penn had to have. You don’t want to lose two in a row. It keeps them way up in the District 1 6A power rankings – they’re at number two right behind CB South, so if form held, they’d be hosting two games if they stay at number two, although they do have a big game this week at CB West.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Neshaminy earned a 24-13 win over Central Bucks East. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Neshaminy continues its turnaround season. It’s been a while since they’ve been in the district tournament, but they sit at 6-2 after beating CB East 24-13 last week. They were losing – East scored first when sophomore running back Mike Price had a short touchdown run. He’s a very good player, and he’s only going to get better, but Neshaminy bounced back. Junior quarterback Michael Eckart has been improving as the season’s gone along. He threw a 12-yard touchdown to Lucas Stewart, and then Kaden Nicastro, the senior kicker, gave Neshaminy the lead for good with a field goal. Neshaminy went into the half up 10-6. They scored two more times in the second half. Nick Sassano – a linebacker – had an interception return for a touchdown that made it more comfortable for Neshaminy and put them up 17-6. Carter Clee, the junior running back who was injured in week one of the season, is back, and he had a short touchdown run in the fourth quarter to finish off Neshaminy’s scoring.
“Again, that puts Neshaminy at 6-2 and a good spot in the district power rankings. They still have to play undefeated CB South this week and then they play their archrival Pennsbury in their regular season finale next week. Even if they lose to CB South and then beat Pennsbury, they’re 7-3 and likely a top eight seed in the tournament with its only losses coming against North Penn, CB West and CB South – three very good teams. It’s been a nice turnaround for Neshaminy. They just need to take care of their business. They’re doing it with a lot of younger players too. That team is sprinkled with juniors and sophomores, which bodes well going forward.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Upper Dublin edged Cheltenham in another closely contested game. Your thoughts.
Drew Markol: Over in the Continental, Upper Dublin – a week after a last play of the game touchdown pass from senior quarterback Kevin Etkin to senior wide receiver Eric Berman brought the Flying Cardinals back to beat Quakertown in a crazy game where Quakertown had fallen behind and came all the way back and took the lead. Then Upper Dublin drove the length of the field in the closing seconds to win. On Friday night, they have another tight one where they beat a game Cheltenham team 20-17 on a late field goal by Matt Miller, the senior kicker, who kicked that field goal with two seconds left in the game.
“Upper Dublin was up 17-0 at the half, and it seems like you’re in control, but Cheltenham – it hasn’t shown up in the wins and losses – they’re 2-6, but they’ve shown flashes. There’s potential there. They came back and tied the game at 17, so Upper Dublin has to rely on Miller, who’s a really, really good kicker. He puts a lot of balls in the end zone on kickoffs and he really drills his field goals. He puts one through for them to win it. That keeps Upper Dublin undefeated in the Continental and 6-2 overall in 5A. They’re in a pretty good shape come the tournament. Right now, they’re a fifth seed in the power rankings in 5A. If they can somehow jump up to a four, that would mean they could host a potential semifinal.
“A lot of things could happen when we get to tournament time, but you’d love being in that top four if you can, and they’re one stop away from doing that. That was a good win. You win on the last play of the game and then you kick a field goal with two seconds to go – maybe it’s your year.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Bensalem is 4-4 heading into week nine of the season after its win over Council Rock North. Your thoughts.
Drew Markol: “It’s nice for Bensalem – here we are with two weeks left in the regular season. Bensalem has historically struggled, but they’re at 4-4. They beat up on Council Rock North 41-6 last week. They bounced back from a tough loss to Souderton to do that. It’s a nice story for Alex Houston, the coach over there. He’s got them believing. They play Upper Dublin this week, which is a tough one, and then they finish with Truman in week 10. They’re on the outside looking in as far as district playoffs, but they’re not that far outside. They’re at number 18 now, which at this point of the year is something that hasn’t happened for Bensalem in a long time. If they were able to find a way to beat Upper Dublin, which is a huge, huge task and then beat Truman, I think they would find themselves making the district tournament, but that’s a lot to ask.
“Junior Aidan Mayfield scored three touchdowns in Bensalem’s win over Council Rock North. He’s a very good player – he had a rushing touchdown, a receiving touchdown, and he returned a punt for a touchdown. They’re hanging in there in every game, and that’s what you love to see. Normally, at this time of year, we’re not talking about Bensalem. For them to be there – again for Alex Houston, their head coach – it’s a good job, and you need that. Winning builds confidence, and it also builds interest, and you have more kids coming out for the team. That can only help you down the road.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Upper Moreland edged Wissahickon by one point in overtime and this week will fact PW. Your thoughts.
Drew Markol: “Upper Moreland – in a wild game – squeaks past Wissahickon 28-27 in overtime. Wissahickon had scored on the first possession of overtime. Quarterback Nolan Pounds scored on a 10-yard run, but Wissahickon decided to go for two after an Upper Moreland penalty. They don’t get it, so it makes it 27-21. Upper Moreland gets the ball, and Aidan Tuffy scored on a run, and Luke Sword makes the extra point to give Upper Moreland the 28-27 win. What a great game. Wissahickon is 4-4, and they’re 0-3 in the conference, but they’re showing signs too that they’re getting there.
“For Upper Moreland, Alex Foley, the senior quarterback, threw three touchdown passes in the game. Tuffy had one of them, and the junior tight end.- Larry Hughes, a very good player – caught one too for Upper Moreland. It was another really good game.
“I don’t have a problem with ties. I don’t really like going into overtime unless it’s a playoff, but these kids do wonderful things. Upper Moreland took advantage again. They were able to stop the two-point run when they had a chance. They’re 7-1, and in the power rankings, right now they’re number seven. They do have to play Plymouth Whitemarsh, a 6A team, this week and then they finish up next week against their archrival, Hatboro-Horsham. If you get in that top eight in the district playoffs – and they’re number seven, you can host a first round game. If the season ended today, Upper Moreland would be hosting Marple Newtown in the first round.
“A lot of coaches – two of their main goals are to make it to the district tournament and to host a game, and Upper Moreland can do that.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: PW defeated Springfield Twp 42-0 in a battle of then SOL American Conference unbeaten squads. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Plymouth Whitemarsh, which is playing up in 6A this year, took care of business against Springfield Twp, a smaller classification school, and beat them 42-0. The Colonials had a 28-0 lead at the half, and they weren’t threatened after that. Their quarterback Caiden Leszczynski threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Chase Rarrick and he threw another one to Chase Smith to make it 14-0. Then PW gets an interception return of 55 yards form Michael Bongard, and all of a sudden, it’s 20-0. Then, Leszcynski finds his third receiver, Marcus Laffredo. It’s nice when your quarterback is throwing the ball around to three receivers for touchdowns. That versatility is hard to stop. It’s 28-0 at the half, and the rout is on. PW adds in a pair of touchdowns – one in the third quarter and one in the fourth quarter – to win going away. The win keeps them undefeated in the conference at 3-0. They’re 6-2 overall and seeded number nine in the 6A power rankings. They would play Neshaminy, number eight, if things ended now, but they’d have to go on the road to do it. If you’re PW, your number one concern is Upper Moreland this week and then win next week, and hopefully, you squeak into that top eight. We’ll see.”
SuburbanOneSports.com: Central Bucks defeated Pennridge in a National Conference battle Saturday. Your comments.
Drew Markol: “Let’s go back to the National Conference. CB West put together as quiet as CB West can put together a season, which isn’t easy for them, but they’re 6-2. They beat Pennridge 38-7 last week. West’s only losses are to Souderton and CB South, two other district playoff teams. They lost to South on a last-second miraculous play by the Titans for that win. Against Pennridge, the game was 7-7, and then West scored 31 unanswered points. Ryan Clemens, the running back had over 250 yards rushing. Senior quarterback Noah Miller, in his first year as quarterback, threw for 150 yards. West has done a nice job all season, and they keep it going. They have a huge game against North Penn this week at home with a lot of district power ranking ramifications attached to that one. Clemens had a couple of touchdown runs, Clemens kicked a field goal. He does so much for that team. This win by West was a lot of Clemens, a lot of Noah Miller. That’s a nice one-two combination. Clemens has been doing this for years now for CB West. He’s only about 5-6 or 5-7. Ed Gallagher of Souderton said he’s the best running back he’s played against. That’s pretty high praise.”
Drew Markol’s picks
(Winners in bold)
Abington @ Pennsbury
Upper Dublin @ Bensalem
Pennridge @ Central Bucks East
Central Bucks South @ Neshaminy
North Penn @ Central Bucks West
Cheltenham @ Harry S Truman
Quakertown @ Council Rock South
Hatboro-Horsham @ Wissahickon
The Pingry School @ New Hope-Solebury
Upper Moreland @ Plymouth Whitemarsh
William Tennent @ Springfield Twp
Souderton @ Council Rock North
Lower Moreland @ Murrell Dobbins HS
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