SOL Game of the Week: Souderton vs. Pennridge
So you think Chris McCabe might be a little excited for Friday night’s SOL contest at Souderton?
“I probably won’t sleep tonight,” Pennridge’s senior captain said in a telephone interview on Thursday. “I’ll sleep, but as soon as I wake up tomorrow morning, it will be the first thing to cross my mind.
“I’m not going to be able to sit still in school because that’s all I’ll be thinking about all day. There are a lot of people on my football team that are really pumped for this game.”
There are plenty of players on Souderton’s side who are equally pumped for the showdown between the neighboring schools.
“We have friends on both sides,” Souderton captain Cody Muller said. “It’s great to play them again finally. It’s like North Penn was last year – it’s a great cross-town rivalry.”
Friday night’s showdown at Indian Stadium renews a rivalry between the neighboring schools, and if the players are excited, so are both communities. The last time these two teams played was in 2002.
The score?
Pennridge 55, Souderton 0.
Souderton coach Ed Gallagher was the offensive coordinator for that Pennridge squad.
“Our program was at a different level than they were,” Gallagher said. “I think we’ve brought our program up to that upper level, and we have a good program right now.
“Pennridge has really built on the end of the year success they had last year. Not only is this a good rivalry. I think it’s a very good matchup of two good football teams that are both in playoff contention, and both teams are going to be scratching and clawing to get this win.”
Gallagher is looking forward to facing his former team.
“It’s absolutely great,” he said. “The only thing I said when I got the (Souderton) job was I didn’t want to play them right away because I knew we were going to be a little overmatched, but five years later, I have no problem playing them. I think it’s going to be a good matchup. I think our kids are well prepared. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Pennridge opened its season 3-1 while Souderton is 2-2. Both teams are coming off disappointing losses. Central Bucks West upset Souderton 38-35 while Pennridge fell to North Catholic 28-14.
“We made a lot of mistakes,” Ram coach Randy Cuthbert said. “We turned the ball over. We played poorly in the first half and tried to come back, but we dug too deep a hole.
“Hopefully, there are things we learned from that, and the kids are really looking forward to this game, so I don’t think either team will be flat.”
In their loss to North Catholic, the Rams were limited to less than 150 yards total offense, and star quarterback Brad Herrmann had just 80 yards rushing and passing combined.
“After the game, we all knew we had to step it up at practice, and we had to get ready this week,” McCabe said. “Tomorrow night we’re going to have to minimize out mistakes and work together as a team.”
While the Indians will look to contain Herrmann, the Rams, according to Cuthbert, hope to do the same to Souderton running back Justin Powell, who rushed for 145 yards in the loss to West.
“He’s the type of kid that can take a game over,” Cuthbert said. “We’re going to have to contain him and limit his big plays. He’s the major concern when they have the ball.”
The Indians have a list of injured players that has been growing with each passing game. To name just a few - seniors Cory Sholly and Carlos Cicacci are both lost for the year with torn ACLs. In last week’s loss to West, running back Derek Brown and defensive tackle Ian Eisenhart were banged up.
“We’re still a good football team,” Gallagher said. “I’ll stick to that because I believe we are. I’m not going say, ‘We’re not what we would have been.’ This is our football team, this is what we’re going to put on the field, and I’m proud of the effort that they give.
“I still think we’re going to win a lot of games the rest of the year.”
Senior captain Cody Muller echoed that sentiment.
“It’s rough to lose some of our starters, but we have a lot of young kids who have a lot of talent,” the Indians’ standout defensive lineman said. “They work hard, and they’re willing to step up.
“Peter Jenne was put in the game last week. He hadn’t played varsity for most of the year, but he stepped up and made some plays. It’s going to be a fun game. People are going to step up.”
Muller and his teammates hope to put their loss to West behind them with a strong showing against the Rams.
“When we were up 21-7 (over West), we thought ‘It’s going to be a good game. We’re going to stick with it and keep driving,’” the senior captain said. “It was rough to see it slip away like that.
“A win tomorrow night would be great and would definitely get us back on track again, keep us rolling.”
Game time is set for 7 p.m. on Friday night at Indian Stadium.
“We’re looking forward to it,” Cuthbert said. “They’re a neighboring district. Most of the kids have played with and against each other in midgets.
“It’s really good the game is back on the schedule. There’s going to be a lot of interest in it. The bleachers on both sides are going to be full. I think it’s going to be a great game to watch. I think the kids are going to really enjoy it. I know we’re really looking forward to it.”
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