Scott Huff features the 309 Bowl and previews this week’s SOL football games.
By Scott Huff
The calendar might read September 1, 2017- but both host Quakertown and visiting Souderton are already involved in preparation for an important Bowl Game on that very date.
It is the prestigious 309 Bowl Game - complete with an intense rivalry between neighboring schools and a proud gridiron tradition.
“Right now we are in possession of the 309 Bowl Trophy,” said Souderton head coach Ed Gallagher of the trophy the Indians won after last season’s 26-20 victory over Q-town. “I keep it in my office, but this week it will be on display in the locker room.
“Our games with Quakertown have gone back and forth over the years,” added Gallagher. “This year we play them at Quakertown and that is such a great atmosphere with the fans being close to the field.
“Our games with Quakertown, North Penn, and Pennridge are the games that the kids love to play the most,” continued Gallagher. “Now that Quakertown is not in our conference, we have to play the game early in the season. But that is fine with us.”
The 309 Bowl began when current Central Bucks East head coach John Donnelly was the head coach at Quakertown.
“John started the whole 309 Bowl thing, and we continued it,” said current Panther head coach George Banas. “I try not to hype it too much – but I admit that it is a nice trophy.
“The games with Souderton really don’t need to be hyped too much,” added Banas. “We play CB East, Souderton, and CB West in our nonleague schedule – and the kids love to play those teams.
“And then we have Pennridge on Thanksgiving,” continued Banas. “I love our schedule.”
The fact that the game will be the second game for both teams before Labor Day doesn’t seem to be that bothersome for either coach.
“With the offseason that you now have for the players it really isn’t that hard,” said Gallagher. “The players are prepared – the only drawback is that you only have a week of contact before the season starts and that affects blocking and tackling.”
“In reality, I would rather have two scrimmages and 10 games,” said Banas. “I would like it better if we played the first game the first week of school. But it isn’t a big deal.”
Both Souderton and Quakertown began the season with victories as the Indians routed Penn Wood (37-14) and the Panthers edged CB East (15-12).
“We got off to a good start – Penn Wood looked awfully good on film,” said Gallagher. “Playing Quakertown at Quakertown is going to be a real challenge, though.”
“Beating CB East was nice because the players saw a positive result from all the hard work they did in the offseason,” said Banas. “Playing at home is always great – a great crowd, a great student section, and a great band. I know that our side of the stadium will be filled – and I’m sure Souderton will travel well and fill the other side.”
And at the end of the night the winner will take home that impressive 309 Bowl trophy.
This Week in the Suburban One League
****Game of the Week****
Pennridge Rams (1-0) @ Neshaminy Redskins (1-0)
Last Year: Neshaminy 31 – Pennridge 24
Neshaminy 26 – Pennridge 21 (Playoff Game)
Last Week:
Pennridge 41 – Norristown 7
Pennridge featured three players with two touchdowns each in its huge win over Norristown. Josh Pinkney rushed for a game-high 134 yards and scored two touchdowns for the Rams, while Ryan Garner scored a pair of touchdowns for the winners. Kyle Schetter scored on an interception return and also scored on a TD run.
Neshaminy 14 – Roman Catholic 7
Neshaminy needed a terrific defensive effort to defeat Roman. Marcus Griffin scored on a 25-yard interception return to register the only points in the second half to secure the win. Mike Crescenzo rushed 21 times and scored a TD for the winners.
****Game of the Week II****
Souderton Indians (1-0) @ Quakertown Panthers (1-0
Last Year: Souderton 26 – Quakertown 20
Last Week:
Souderton 37 – Penn Wood 14
Souderton led 24-6 at the half at coasted to its win over the Patriots. Jeremy Tammaro led the Big Red in rushing with 76 yards and scored a touchdown, while quarterback Dean Dipisa fired a touchdown pass for the winners.
Quakertown 15 – CB East 12
Quakertown held CB East scoreless in the second half to rally for the win. Quarterback Brad Bryan completed 10 passes for 130 yards and completed the game winning TD pass in the second half to insure the victory.
****Game of the Week III****
North Penn Knights (0-1) @ Downingtown East (1-0)
Last Year: North Penn 23 – Downingtown East 6
Last Week:
La Salle Explorers 41 – North Penn Knights 28
North Penn fell behind state ranked power La Salle 28-0 but rallied to close within 28-21 in the second half. Steve DePaul did not start the game but came in to quarterback the Knights and passed for 157 yards. Justin Henley started the game at quarterback and moved to receiver where he caught five passes for 113 yards and a touchdown.
Downingtown East 47 – Plymouth Whitemarsh 6
Downingtown East will also be one of the elite teams in District One and proved that fact with the rout over PW. Cougar running back Brassir Stocker returned a kickoff for a touchdown and also had two rushing scores. Quarterback Bryce Lauletta fired a pair of touchdown strikes for the winners.
The Rest of the Story
Central Bucks West (1-0) @ Council Rock South (1-0)
Last Year: CB West 28 – CR South 7
Last Week:
Central Bucks West 21 – Hatboro-Horsham 13
Central Bucks West quarterback Joshua Crecca rushed for a pair of short touchdown runs and also passed for 93 yards in the Bucks season opening win over Hatboro-Horsham.
Council Rock South 28 – Cheltenham 0
Council Rock South recorded a shutout in its win over Cheltenham. Christian Jabbar completed 12 passes and fired a pair of touchdown passes to lead the Golden Hawk offensive attack.
Council Rock North (1-0) @ Central Bucks South (1-0)
Last Year: CB South 35 – CR North 6
Last Week:
Council Rock North 14 – West Chester East 13
Council Rock North overcame a 13-0 deficit to capture its opening night win. Michael Welde rushed for a game-high 112 yards on 22 carries and scored a touchdown. The Rock North defense limited WCE to just 35 yards rushing.
Central Bucks South 38 – Abington 6
Central Bucks South was impressive in its dominant win over Abington. Ryan Watson rushed for a game-high 94 yards and scored 4 touchdowns for the Titans, while quarterback Jack Johns completed 11 passes for 83 yards.
Perkiomen Valley Vikings (1-0) @ Upper Dublin Cardinals (0-0)
Last Year:
Did Not Play
Last Week:
Perkiomen Valley 38 – Downingtown West 0
Perkiomen Valley led 17-0 at the half and cruised to the victory. Junior quarterback Cole Peterlin passed for 161 yards and a score and also rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown. Ryan Cerula scored on a run and returned an interception 102 yards of the final Viking touchdown.
Upper Dublin did not play
Bensalem Owls (1-0) @ William Tennent Panthers (0-1)
Last Year: Bensalem 23 – William Tennent 17
Last Week:
Bensalem 20 – Frankford 14
Bensalem opened its 2017 season on a successful note with the non-league win. Keith Parrish rushed for a game-high 129 yards for the Owls, while quarterback Drasaun Moore scored 2 touchdowns for the winners.
Upper Moreland 41 – William Tennent 14
William Tennent was led on the offensive side of the ball by Sean Bragen. Bragen rushed for a team-high 66 yards on 13 carries and scored on a 46-yard touchdown pass.
Harry S Truman Tigers (1-0) @ Avon Grove (0-1)
Last Year: Did Not Play
Last Week:Harry S Truman 48 – Methacton 0
Harry S Trumanwas perfect on defense and near perfect on offense as the Tigers rolled to the victory. The defense registered 6 sacks in the win. David Akinwande rushed for a game-high 114 yards and 2 scores, while quarterback Dylan Snelling threw 2 touchdown passes for the winners.
Kennett 25 – Avon Grove 23
Avon Grove lost a heart breaker at the end of the game against Kennett. Kevin Francis led the Red Devils in rushing with 188 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries. Quarterback Shane Wolford completed 9 passes for 162 yards.
Penn Wood Patriots (0-1) @ Pennsbury Falcons (1-0)
Last Year: Did Not Play
Last Week:
Souderton 37 – Penn Wood 14
Penn Wood could not contain Souderton in its opening night loss to the Indians. Quarterback Desman Johnson was a bright spot for the Patriots as he completed 10 passes for 138 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Pennsbury 27 – Academy Park 20
Pennsbury quarterback Zach Demarchis was the featured player offensively as the Falcons soared to the win. Demarchis completed 11 passes for 158 yards and 2 scores – both TD passes went to David Burke. Demarchis also rushed for 128 yards and a score.
Upper Moreland Golden Bears (1-0) @ Phoenixville (0-1)
Last Year: Phoenixville 33 – Upper Moreland 19
Last Week:
Upper Moreland 41 – William Tennent 14
Upper Moreland running back Caleb Mead was outstanding in the Golden Bear victory. Mead rushed for a game-high 259 yards on 20 carries and scored a touchdown for the winners. He also returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown. Sterlen Barr rushed for 98 yards and scored 2 touchdowns for the Golden Bears.
Great Valley 50 – Phoenixville 31
Phoenixville led 18-9 deep into the second quarter but was outscored 41-13 the rest of the way in its opening season loss. The highlight for the Phantoms was an 83-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Bobby Strunk.
Central (1-0) @ Wissahickon Trojans (1-0)
Last Year: Central 27 – Wissahickon 21
Last Week:
Wissahickon 20 – Martin Luther King 10
Wissahickon received touchdown runs from Antaun Lloyd, John Dixon, and Jalen Smalls as the Trojans marched to an opening season win over MLK.
Central 17 – George Washington 12
Central opened its season with a victory against a fellow Philadelphia Public League opponent in GW.
Central Bucks East (0-1) @ Hatboro-Horsham (0-1)
Last Year: CB East 24 - Hatboro Horsham 6
Last Week:
Quakertown 15 – CB East 12
Central Bucks East could not hold its first half lead in a non-league loss to Quakertown. Evan O’Donnell completed 10 passes for 153 yards and a score and also rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown.
Central Bucks West 21 – Hatboro-Horsham 13
Hatboro-Horsham was competitive in its non-league game with Central Bucks West. Quarterback Chris Edwards accounted for an even 100 yards of total offense passing for 50 yards and rushing for 50 yards
Plymouth Whitemarsh (0-1) @ Abington Ghosts (0-1)
Last Year: Plymouth Whitemarsh 7 – Abington 0
Last Week:
Downingtown East 47 – Plymouth Whitemarsh 6
Plymouth Whitemash did not fare well on either side of the ball in its opening season loss to District One power Downingtown East. The only scoring on the night for the Colonials came on the foot of placekicker Stephen Longo who booted a pair of field goals.
Central Bucks South 38 – Abington 6
Abington struggled on both sides of the ball in its loss to CB South. The Ghost offense was led by Darryl Davis-McNeil who rushed 20 times for 88 yards, while Keenan Lambright scored the lone touchdown for Abington.
Bishop McDevitt (1-0) @ Cheltenham Panthers (0-1)
Last Year: Cheltenham 33 – Bishop McDevitt 29
Last Week:
Bishop McDevitt 43 – Lincoln 32
Bishop McDevitt trailed 26-22 in the first half but rallied to outscore Lincoln 17-6 in the second half to secure the win.
Council Rock South 28 – Cheltenham 0
Cheltenham struggled on offense in its opening season loss to Rock South. Tyler Cain led the Panthers in rushing with a team-high 45 yards.
Springfield Spartans (0-1) @ Lower Merion (0-1)
Last Year: Did Not Play
Last Week:
Boys Latin 34 - Springfield 6
Springfield opened its 2017 season with the loss to Boys Latin. The Spartans did not field a team in the 2016 season. The lone Springfield touchdown came on a 10-yard run by Kyle Brunner.
Chichester 30 – Lower Merion 19
Lower Merion opened its season with an 11-point setback. The Aces hope to rebound against the Spartans this week as both teams seek first victories.
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