Top 20 High School Football Rankings

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Top 10 State Wide 4A Rankings  

Southeastern Pennsylvania Football

Featuring District 1, 12, the Philadelphia Catholic League and the Inter Ac

November 12, 2007

Playoff results from across the Commonwealth

(4A and 3A teams)

The playoffs are in full force now so let’s take a look to see who is beating whom and what all of that might mean to our area teams.

In Philly’s district 12 semi final, there were two highly competitive games at Northeast’s Charlie Martin Memorial Stadium. George Washington (10-1) got a stiff battle from Overbrook (6-4) but hung on for a 21-19 win. Running back James Johnson ran wild with 207 yards rushing. The other contest featured undefeated Bok Vo-Tech battling hard in a defensive struggle before pulling out an 8-0 win against Northeast. Bok opted to play in the Public League championship against Washington rather than in the PIAA 3A playoffs  this weekend against Pottsgrove. Franklin High (10-1) goes in their place. The Electrons finished 2^nd to Bok in the 3A division after losing to the Wildcats 30-28 so there is no drop-off.

Moving to district 2/4/11 finds last year’s silver medalist Liberty (10-1) looking good after shutting out East Stroudsburg South 35-0. That was Liberty’s fifth shutout of the year and eighth occasion where they held a team to 12 points or less. They play district 2’s Hazelton (10-1) in the district semi final. Hazelton edged Easton (7-4) 36-29 in two overtime periods. Wyoming Valley West (10-1) struggled with Delaware Valley (9-2) before winning 48-42. They move on to play undefeated Parkland (11-0) who shutout Emmaus 17-0. That’s seven consecutive shutouts for the Trojans who could get their eighth this weekend.

Moving to the 3A classification in district 2/11 shows West Scranton (10-1) and Berwick (9-2) both winning to give us what appears to be a great game this weekend. West Scranton routed Crestwood 27-2 while the Dawgs dropped Dallas 42-20. The other half of their bracket features district 11 teams. Northwestern Lehigh (7-4) had it going against Lehighton and won easily 44-22. Blue Mountain (7-4) pulled the shocker upsetting Allentown Central Catholic (5-6) in Allentown. Considering Blue Mountain plays in the Berks-Inter County League with Pottsville, Muhlenberg and Governor Mifflin, maybe it wasn’t so shocking. Northwestern and Blue Mountain play next.

In district 3, Northern remained undefeated at 11-0 after an easy 35-0 win against Hamburg. They’ll play Daniel Boone (8-3) this weekend instead of a rematch with Greencastle-Antrim since Boone beat the Blue Devils 17-10 in overtime at GA! Gettysburg (10-1) had no trouble with Northern Lebanon (7-4), winning 38-3 at home. They play West York (10-1) at home since WY handled Solanco 23-7. The lower half of the bracket has Elizabethtown (10-1), Lampeter-Strasburg (9-2), Red Land (10-1) and Hershey (9-2) advancing after solid performances. Etown routed Shippensburg 35-7 while Lampeter-Strasburg was pounding Conrad Weiser 49-21. Red Land beat prideful Manheim Central 16-6. The Barons fall to 6-5. Hershey beat Cocalico (7-3) 34-7 to get another shot at Red Land who beat them 13-3 in the regular season.

Out west in district 7 at the 4A classification, all the big guns won including Pittsburgh Central Catholic (11-0), McKeesport (10-1), North Allegheny (11-0) and Gateway (10-1). That is one impressive Big 4. Central Catholic made a statement beating a good Bethel Park team 38-6. They’ll play McKeesport next after the Tigers survived against Norwin in overtime 35-28. Norwin ends the year at 7-4. North Allegheny stays undefeated by beating Penn Hills 24-7. Gateway fell behind but rallied to eliminate defending champ Upper St. Clair 32-20. They play North Allegheny next.

In district 10, Cathedral Prep beat McDowell 14-13 and get a bye this week. The Brashear Bulls from the Pittsburgh City League in district 8 are 11-0 after beating Carrick 62-14. They play Allderdice (7-4) next. Brashear beat the Dragons 32-6 in league play.

There were a few of surprises in district 3/6 where three Mid Penn teams were eliminated from contention. It’s good seeing other areas and leagues stepping up to go toe to toe with the Mid Penn where to some degree the league has reached absurd to mythical status as the ONLY conference in the district. That simply isn’t true as we’ve attempted to demonstrate over the years with powerful teams coming out of the Lancaster-Lebanon League and the Berks League. Berks reps Governor Mifflin (10-1) and Muhlenberg (9-2) beat State College (6-5) 31-7 and Cumberland Valley (7-4) 33-30 respectively. State College is a young team and CV hasn’t returned to the golden years as some have suggested but, those are still powerful statement games for the Berks. The one that stands out to some although it really shouldn’t is Wilson (8-3 from the LL) going to Altoona and coming home with a 7-6 win. Wilson is one of the most successful team in the district with an 81-21 won-loss since 1999! Moving on, Harrisburg (9-1) beat Lower Dauphin 28-0 and gets those Muhls from Muhlenberg at home. Wilson plays 10-1 York in another road game after the Bearcats beat Dallastown 21-6. In the bottom bracket, a good looking Manheim Township (10-1) team from Lancaster beat Red Lion 27-7. They get Central Dauphin (8-3) at home after the Rams beat Warwick 36-19.  We mentioned Governor Mifflin beating State College 31-7. Their reward is another Mid Penn team, Bishop McDevitt (9-2), who beat Central York (7-4) 31-7.

Staying in the West but moving to the 3A classification in district 4 sees the Seals of Selinsgrove routing East Juniata (3-8!) 44-7. Jersey Shore (6-5) beat Columbia Montour Vo-Tech (6-4), 33-16 and gets Selinsgrove next.

In district 9, St. Mary’s (8-3) beat Clearfield 30-14 and move on to play Bradford (7-2) who had a bye. St. Mary’s lost to Bradford in league play 31-12.

District 6 saw Hollidaysburg (9-2) defeating Somerset (7-4) 21-7 while Indian Valley (9-2) got a road win against Bellefonte (7-4), 28-16. The winners face off this weekend. Hollidaysburg is looking for some here after losing to Indian Valley in league action 28-21. Should be a good one. The winner plays Perry (4-6) from district 8 who has a bye.

In district 10, top seeded Titusville (10-0) plays always dangerous Strong Vincent (8-2). The other half of the bracket is a rematch between defending 3A champ General McLane (7-3) and Slippery Rock (6-4). GM beat them in the regular season 56-21.

We’ll wrap up the tour in district 7 where there were no real surprises. There was one where Pine Richland (10-1) destroyed Chartiers Valley 58-23. Few expected a 35 point margin. A good and young Char-Val team ends the season at 8-3 so look for them next year. PR moves on to play undefeated Thomas Jefferson. TJ is 11-0 after routing West Allegheny 49-21. It’s doubtful they’ll have as easy a time with the Rams who have been on a roll since losing mid season at Knock, 25-20. This should be one of the best games on the slate. The bottom bracket saw Montour stay undefeated at 11-0 with a 20-7 win at home against Trinity. They’ll play Knock who moved to 9-2 after beating Highlands 28-7. Of course this is great opportunity for both schools but especially Knock to avenge the season and home opener where they lost to the Spartans 21-14.    

PIAA State Top 10

1. North Allegheny (11-0) North Allegheny had little trouble with Penn Hills in the quarterfinal last week where they rolled to a 24-7 win. The Tigers defense is so good they held Penn Hills to a mere 43 yards rushing. They’ve only allowed 98 points the entire season. Superior line play that has been a quiet strength this season again paved the way with Tiger backs accumulating 208 yards rushing. Conversely, Penn Hills’ quarterback Tom Fulton was hounded all night and threw 3 interceptions. The district 7 semifinal is next where Gateway represents a formidable threat. They have speed everywhere, a zillion division one recruits and the propensity to gather penalties by the bushels. That could be their downfall here against a poised and steady group.       

2. Pittsburgh Central Catholic (11-0) The Vikings made it look easy last week, dispatching a decent Bethel Park squad by the unlikely score of 38-6. This one was over by the end of the 1^st quarter with Central racing out to a 21-0 lead. Quarterback Tino Sunseri and tailback Dan Vaughan were as efficient as ever, particularly Tino, completing 13 of 15 passes for 220 yards. With an excellent and sizeable offensive line, they are just blowing teams away. This week they run into the only thing that has threatened them this year, speed, lots of it in the form of the Tigers from McKeesport. They have speed everywhere, an aggressive defense and the Flexbone that demands constant discipline from opposing defenses. The Tigers will be Central’s stiffest test to date.

3. Gateway (10-1) Gateway actually got a test last week when defending 4A champ Upper St. Clair stepped up to gave them a difficult game. Not only did the Panther’s hold a 7-6 half time lead, they held a 14-6 lead into the 3^rd quarter. But this is a team with veteran leadership that is not supposed to lose to a rebuilding Upper St. Clair team. They didn’t. A 26 point explosion took all the closeness out of it as the Gators prevailed 32-20. The next challenge is their most severe since the second game of the season at McKeesport where they won 17-6. This week sees them on the road against North Allegheny where the Tigers are allowing but 9.5 points per game.   

4. Parkland (11-0) Parkland had the unenviable task last week of defeating a strong opponent not only for the second time this season, but the second time in the last three weeks. The opponent was Emmaus, whose only losses were to Easton by 1, Liberty by 14 and Parkland by 7, two weeks ago. In another close encounter, Parkland pulled out a 17-0 win that advanced them to the quarterfinals against Wyoming Valley West. WVW (10-1) defeated Delaware Valley (9-2) in a wild one last week 48-42. Their only loss was at home to Hazelton, 28-12. Hazelton (10-1) plays Liberty (10-1) in the other bracket of the district 2/11 playoff. A schedule read says WVW is in big trouble here against a defense that has not been scored on in 7 consecutive games.   

5. McKeesport (10-1) The Tigers are 10-1, fresh off a narrow win against a team that in any other year could win the WPIAL. That would be the Norwin Knights who gave McKeesport fits before falling in overtime, 35-28. They did the same against Central Catholic in the regular season but fell short after a tremendous comeback to lose 28-20. The problem for McKeesport this week is a Pittsburgh Central Catholic teams that is well balanced and has a sharpshooter of a quarterback in Tino Sunseri. He spreads the ball around, has a great Oline and a strong back in Dan Vaughan. He threw to 8 receivers last week, making them a difficult team to defend. The Tiger’s run the Flexbone, an option attack that requires precision in timing and a quick thinking, cool quarterback. They have that in J.J (James) Eckels who is in his first year as a starter after playing defense last year. He’ll need to be at his best to get them off to a good start.     

6. Central Bucks South (11-0) Central Bucks South got their first ever play-off win last week when they defeated Haverford 34-7. For the second week in a row, running back Eric Reynolds rushed for 260 yards. He also got 2 touchdowns, one going for 85 yards to.bring his season total to 2553 yards and 34 touchdowns. The next opponent is Downingtown West. West hammered Hatboro Horsham in the 1^st round 49-28. They are a typical Downingtown team with a big line, decent speed and a physical approach to the game. What separates this team from other editions is their standout quarterback Nolan Kearney who has a gun and at 6-4, 220, is a real threat to run. West will be able to keep it close, perhaps more if the Titans misfire.     

7. Ridley (10-0) Ridley and Interboro battled on even terms through the first quarter of last week’s playoff opener in Folsom. In the 2^nd quarter, the big Raider line took over and dominated for the rest of the game. You sensed it was the beginning of the end when Ridley recovered an Interboro fumble late in the 1^st quarter on their own 1 yard line following a nice drive by the Bucs. A steady diet of running backs Andrew Hodges and Matt Tassoni along with superior line play led the Raiders down field on a 99 yard drive and touchdown that had to deflate the Bucs. That scenario was repeated throughout the night as the Raiders prevailed 34-6. Running back Andrew Hodges rushed for 200 yards while quarterback Steve Egee was 5 of 5 for 85 yards. Glen Mills is up next after winning their game at Perkiomen Valley, 36-26. The Bulls are fast and physical with game breakers at quarterback and running back.     

8. Neshaminy (10-1) Neshaminy had no trouble winning their 1^st round game against Upper Dublin last week. Upper Dublin had a good year, finishing the season in a tie for the Suburban One-American Conference title with Wissahickon. But they came into the postseason off a thorough 41-14 pounding by Wissahickon, causing concern about their confidence, especially on the road against a traditional power like Neshaminy. So no one was surprised to see the Redskins rout the Cardinals 42-7. This week’s opponent is their old antagonist North Penn. Both are members of the Suburban One-National Conference, along with Central Bucks South making this arguably the top conference in the state. The Skins beat North Penn in the regular season at home by the startling score of 31-7 and everyone knows how difficult it is defeating a strong team twice in the same season. The last time that situation occurred between these two was in 2004 where North Penn won the regular season game 31-30 but lost in the playoffs 51-34.       

9. Harrisburg (9-1) Harrisburg improved to 9-1 after beating Lower Dauphin 28-0. The score is misleading unless you knew that the score at the end of the 1^st quarter was 20-0. In other words, Lower Dauphin slammed the offensive door shut on the big Cougar attack over the last 3 quarters to make a good showing. What really stands out in this one is the Cougar defense holding the Falcons to -3 yards rushing and only 101 yards of total offense. That rates a “wow” despite their doing that for most of the season. The D came up with another defensive touchdown in the game to raise the total to 11 defensive touchdowns for the year! Muhlenberg (9-2) is up next as the Cougars move into inter-county play against the Berks County power. Muhlenberg played a heck of a game last week going into hostile territory to beat Cumberland Valley 33-30. Comparative scores are more interesting than indicative but for the record, Harrisburg beat CV in the regular season 41-0. Both play in the Mid Penn Commonwealth division. Muhlenberg plays in the Berks-Inter County Section One Division. They came in 2^nd this year behind Governor Mifflin and must be sky high with the road win in Mechanicsburg last week. They’ll need it as they move into an entirely different reality taking on Harrisburg’s big, super quick team on the road.   

10. North Penn (9-2) You’ve got to give it up to North Penn, playing without their quarterback Justin Davey who is probably lost for the season with a shoulder injury. The Knights are nicked in a few other areas as well but it didn’t seem to affect them against Wissahickon. Anthony Taggart stepped in for Justin Davey at quarterback and performed well. Others really upped their level of play especially on the line and on the ground where 3 different backs had excellent outings. Quick and elusive Ronnie Akins ran for 114 yards on 10 carries. He had 2 touchdowns. Tyler Smith is another key performer for the Knights. He rushed for 72 yards on 6 attempts and got a score. Steady Mike Katch at fullback pounded ahead for 64 yards on 2 carries for 2 touchdowns. That was way too much for the Trojans who fell 36-9. If they can mimic that performance against Neshaminy it will be way too much for them as well. One thing seems certain, it is unlikely North Penn will be held to 7 points as they were in the regular season 31-7 loss.

Honorable Mention

East: Liberty, Downingtown West, Henderson

West: Bishop McDevitt, Norwin, Bethel Park        

Southeast PA Top 20

            1. Malvern Prep (9-0) Malvern Prep ended Inter-Ac play with a convincing 26-18 win over previously undefeated Chestnut Hill Academy. The Friars’ defense held CHA to 72 yards rushing. In a fitting conclusion to the season, Malvern plays 2^nd ranked St. Joseph’s Prep on Thanksgiving Day.

            2. St. Joseph’s Prep (8-2) The Hawks were idle with a bye last week after winning the Red Division regular season title and their 55^th consecutive regular season Catholic League game. The streak goes back to 1999. Think about that one for a while! I’d like to thank Ted Silary for that information and more. Check out his great site at TedSilary.com. 4^th seeded Cardinal O’Hara is up next after a convincing defeat of LaSalle 31-7, in the Catholic League Red Division opener. St. Joe’s won in the regular season 16-7 and could be in for a major struggle here with O’Hara’s quarterback Tom Savage again healthy.

3. Central Bucks South (11-0) See Top 10 write up above.

4. Ridley (10-0) See Top 10 write up above.

5. Neshaminy (10-1) See Top 10 write up above.

6. Henderson (10-1) In a contest between two evenly matched heavy weights, Henderson recovered from a 20-13 deficit against Conestoga to pull out a thrilling victory in the final minute of play. Quarterback John O’Donnell scored on a 4 yard keeper to set the stage. Then, after setting up for the point after, a timeout was called where the decision was made to go for the 2 point conversion. Senior Russell Jacob got the call and followed his big fullback Jabari Khan (5-11, 215) in for the score. The win advances them to 2^nd round action where they’ll play fellow Ches Mont member Downingtown East. The Warriors shut out the Cougars two weeks ago in regular season action, 20-0, but will likely face a stiffer test here with East all pumped up after the Souderton win. 

7. Downingtown West (9-1)             See Central Bucks South write up in the Top 10.

8. North Penn (9-2) See Top 10 write up above

9. Unionville (3A, 11-0) Unionville opened post season play with an impressive 27-10 win at home against Phoenixville. The Phantoms are from the Pioneer Athletic Conference and drop to 7-4. Unionville moves deeper in the district 1/12 playoffs against Garnet Valley (9-1). This is a rematch of a game played 5 weeks ago that saw Unionville come away with a 13-7 decision. They played that one without quarterback Matt Carroll who is now healthy. G-Val’s playing good football but it is always tough winning in Unionville. Ironically, the enormity of Garnet Valley’s win at Strath Haven gets Unionville’s attention as much as anyone’s.    

10. West Catholic (9-1) West Catholic eased up some last week with a bye to get healthy for a physical Bishop McDevitt team coming in pumped after defeating Kennedy Kenrick 35-0 in the Blue Division playoff opener last week. West hasn’t lost to McDevitt since 2001 and they shouldn’t lose here. But, McDevitt is coming in hot. They’re on a 3 game winning streak and have won 6 of their last 7. West has had close calls their last two outings and needs real focus here with the Lancer’s coming in on a roll. 

11. Downingtown East (8-2) How about Downingtown East going into hostile territory and coming away with 14-13 win in Souderton? Souderton was in control for most of the game with a 13-0 lead mid way through the 4^th quarter. But it’s a 48 minute game and it really doesn’t matter when you score your points. The Cougars scored theirs in the last half of the 4^th quarter to snag the win. Real credit has to go to the understated Cougar D that held Souderton to 23 points below their season average. This week’s game doesn’t get an easier with another road trip to Henderson where they lost in the regular season 20-0.

12. Souderton (9-2) Souderton’s stellar season came to an abrupt close last week with an eye catching 14-13 home field loss to Downingtown East. That’s a tough way to end things (everyone should have a Thanksgiving day game) but they should feel positive about winning the Continental title and securing their 4^th consecutive 9 win season.   

13. Conestoga (8-3) They say it’s a game of inches but it’s also a game of minutes. Conestoga ran out of them last week in West Chester when Henderson’s Warriors scored in the last minute of play to eke out a 21-20 win. Those of you that played football know the pain Conestoga and Souderton are experiencing losing close games late. The Pioneers can get some of the “feel good” back Thanksgiving Day against Great Valley. The Pats are 5-6, have won 3 straight and are .500 with the win here.   

14. Father Judge (8-2) Father Judge had the week off (a bye week) to get the regular season ending loss to North Catholic out of their system and prepare for Roman Catholic in the Red Division semifinal. They beat Roman once this year in a tight 14-7 game. The rematch should be just as difficult with Roman coming in strong following their win against North Catholic last week. Judge hasn’t won 9 games since 2001.

15. Roman Catholic (9-2) You know Roman is feeling good after handling North Catholic last week in the Red Division playoff opener. They were coming in off a disappointing 36-7 regular season ending loss to St. Joseph’s. All those positive vibes should have them ready for a strong performance this weekend against a rested Father Judge team. Roman would love to give them some payback for the 14-7 loss this year. This should be a great game with a lot of emotion and a lot of good players flying around the field.

16. Garnet Valley (3A, 9-1) After looking very ordinary in Unionville 5 weeks ago, the Jaguars reversed things to appear absolutely extraordinary when they came into Wallingford and put a 42-6 hurtin on the chameleon like Panthers. It was as bad as the score suggests with the Jags out-distancing Strath Haven in yardage 410 to 180! What a great win for G-Val who moves on to 2^nd round action for another shot at Unionville.     

17. Glen Mills (9-2) Glen Mills took their big attack North and defeated Perkiomen Valley 36-26 in 1^st round action. And they played shutdown D as well holding Perk to 73 yards rushing. From the Bulls perspective, this was a stampede with 5 backs rushing for a total of 260 yards. Bernard Pierce got 159 of them on 30 carries. Quarterback Francis Drummond was on target, completing 8 of 18 throws for 234 yards! The next opponent is Ridley where the Bulls must bring their “A” game to be successful. The Raiders are big enough across the front to stand up to a team like Glen Mills and possess a diverse offense and a stubborn D. Ridley needs to bring it too or the Bulls will run over them.   

18. Chestnut Hill Academy (9-1) Despite losing 26-18 to Malvern Prep in the final game of the season, the Hillers had a successful campaign. In fact, they are on a terrific run of 6 consecutive winning seasons where they’ve won 44 of their last 56 games. Not bad.

19. Strath Haven (3A, 8-3) There is a first time for all things but few expected to ever see Strath Haven on the wrong end of a 42-7 score. But that’s what happened in the PIAA 3A 1^st round playoff game against Garnet Valley. This one got out of hand real quick with Garnet Valley jumping out to a 27-0 half time lead. It ballooned to 42-0 before the Panther’s punched one in. At the end of the day and despite the disappointment of a team used to higher achievements, 8-3 isn’t all that bad.

20. Archbishop Wood (8-2) First year coach Steve Devlin did a heck of a job at Wood this season especially when you consider they lost 20 seniors to graduation. They were flying all over the place in the regular season closer to West Catholic where the lost competitively, 21-12. Their 6-1 Blue Division record earned them a bye week where they’ll play Archbishop Carroll (8-2). Carroll survived 1^st round action by defeating Saints Neumann-Goretti, 30-22. This is not the same team Wood shellacked in the regular season 30-0. In its place is a solid group who since that loss, have gone on a 6-1 tear, including a narrow 29-21overtime loss to West Catholic. This is a dangerous spot for Wood but it sure looks like a great game to see.   

Honorable Mention

Interboro (8-3)

Haverford (7-4)

Upper Darby (7-4)

Cardinal O’Hara (6-5)

North Catholic (6-4)

Archbishop Carroll (9-2)

Hatboro Horsham (8-3)

Pottsgrove (3A, 9-2)

Lansdale Catholic (2A, 10-1)

Bayard Rustin (3A, 8-3)

Perkiomen Valley (9-2)

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