There’s a feeling of expectancy surrounding Pennsbury’s football team this season.
Some of it is unspoken, some of it is not, but there’s no mistaking the fact that this Falcon squad is a team on a mission, a mission that begins in earnest with the start of the Suburban One League season on Friday night when the Falcons take on Council Rock South at Falcon Field.
Both teams enter the game with identical 3-0 records.
“This game is huge for us,” Pennsbury senior Dyamond Ruffin said. “This year we can set our mark, and we can show everybody what kind of team we are.“We believe we’re a state championship team. We really do.”
The Falcons are certainly playing defense like a team with title aspirations. Last week, they forced four turnovers in a 42-0 rout of Glen Mills, and their defense has been allowing an average of less than 200 yards a game.
They promise to pose a tough test for a Rock South squad that needed a late three-yard run by quarterback Billy Fleming to eke out a 6-3 win over Conwell Egan last week.
“When they talk about bringing ‘A’ games, you have to be on your ‘A’ game in all phases of the game – offense, defense, special teams,” Rock South coach Vince Bedesem said. “There are a lot of things you talk about – eliminating mistakes, creating your own opportunities, playing field position.
“When you talk about a lot of the clichés of the sport – these are things you have to do when you walk into a game of this caliber at Falcons’ Field.”
The Golden Hawks will have to contend with an offense that is led by quarterback Brandon Pepper, running back Dante Devine and University of Pittsburgh-bound wide receiver Eric Williams.
“Defensively, we have been playing very, very good football, and we have to continue to do that,” said Bedesem, whose team has allowed just 17 points in its three games combined. “It will start with our front four – Derek Shatz, Nick Eife, Matt Emilius and P.J. Gallo, our interior linebackers – Hunter Shaw, Mickey Laporta, and our outside linebackers – Andrew Haviland and Justin Lesher.”
Talk to Haviland, and he sounded confident.
“We’re just going to have to play our game,” the Golden Hawks’ senior linebacker said. “I think our defense will be fine – we’ve done very well this season, and our offense has to do what they normally do.”
What the Golden Hawks ‘normally do’ on offense is confound opponents with their triple option attack.
“You have to make sure you’re disciplined enough to take your option responsibilities,” Pennsbury coach Galen Snyder said. “It probably slows you down a touch because you can’t overrun the plays.
“You can’t really be overly aggressive because it works to your disadvantage against that offense in particular.”
Last year, the Falcons defeated Rock South 27-20, and they are confident they can contain the Golden Hawks’ potentially dangerous attack.
“The key to stopping them is discipline and unselfish football,” said Ruffin, a member of the Falcons’ linebacker corps. “If everyone can complete their assignment, everything will fall into place, and we will be able to stop them.
“Not only do we practice, but we also study. We study what they do. The key is discipline. You have to be smart – know your assignment, and everything will follow.”
This year’s squad, according to Ruffin, shares a special camaraderie.
“A lot of us have been playing together for four years,” he said. “We treat each other like we’re brothers. We’re a family.
“We’re very close. We hang out together outside of school. It’s been great.”
The Golden Hawks have been hit with a barrage of injuries this season, and Haviland points to the squad’s senior leadership as significant in bringing the team together.
“We’ve all been playing together for four or five years, and we’re all stepping up big time,” he said. “Even the young players – we have some sophomores who have been stepping up, and it’s all been working out good so far.
“When the injuries happen, you just have to move forward. There’s not a lot you can do.”
Excitement is building for Friday’s showdown that pits the two SOL powers.
“It’s going to be packed,” Ruffin said. “I was asking kids in class if they were going to come to this game because of what’s at stake. This is where we can start - we can become 1-0 in our league. It’s very exciting.”“It’s a big rivalry,” Haviland added. “We’re all very excited about it, and we’re working real hard. We definitely want to come out 4-0.”
Kickoff is at 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on WBCB 1490 AM with a tape delay on the internet at www.wbcb1490.com, which can be accessed on the LINKS page of SuburbanOneSports.com.
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