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FOOTBALL: Hungry St. Joseph’s Prep and Dangerous Roman Catholic Headline PCL Red Division Football

By John Knebels, 09/29/22, 4:30PM EDT

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Photos/Videos: Zack Beavers, Donna Eckert, Kathy Leister, Marc Narducci, Lou Rabito, Dominick Stuhl, Krystal Williams & Mark Zimmaro

By: John Knebels

PHILADELPHIA CATHOLIC LEAGUE RED DIVISION PREVIEW:

PHILADELPHIA – Truth be told, there isn’t usually a whole lot of intrigue when it comes to Catholic League Red Division football.

Since its conception seven years ago, St. Joseph’s Prep captured titles in 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. The global pandemic muted 2020, and La Salle took the honors last year.

But in the PIAA Class 6A PCL final, the Prep overwhelmed La Salle, 35-7, before advancing to the state championship final in pursuit of its seventh state title since 2013. The Prep lost, so this year, the Hawks have a renewed vigor.

“We play faceless opponents every week,” said Prep senior wide receiver Owen Garwood. “It does not matter who lines up across from us because we focus on our standard and nothing but our standard. Every game we play is the most important simply because it is the next game. The main goal is still the state championship. 

“This is a very experienced team. It does not matter how much time anyone gets as a starter because our coaches prepare us to be ready to play no matter what happens. I have trust that even the backups would be able to hold their own in a prime-time game.”

Already, the Hawks have participated in four “prime-time” non-league contests, losing the first at St. Thomas Aquinas in Florida, then rebounding to defeat St. Peter’s Prep at Rutgers University, New Jersey’s Erasmus Hall at Franklin Field, and Gonzaga in Washington, DC.

A slew of All-Catholics return, and despite a couple of key injuries, the Hawks appear primed to compete for another state crown, let alone a division championship.

Key statistics thus far: Aided by senior tackle Joe McMahon, All-Catholic center Julian Cervantes (senior) and guard Lakeem Steele (junior), junior  quarterback Samaj Jones has thrown for 10 touchdowns, three each to junior All-Catholic David Washington and junior Elijah Jones (7 catches, 230 yards), while accruing 193 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Junior All-Catholic Kahseim “Caddy” Phillips has rushed for 311 yards and three scores on 53 carries.

Defensively, senior All-Catholic linebacker Cole Nilles (23 total tackles, fumble recovery) joins junior linebacker Nick McGlynn (17 total tackles, three for losses), senior lineman Matt Dumond (17 total tackles, two sacks), and sophomore safety standout Anthony Sacca (14 solo tackles, 7 assists, fumble recovery). Junior All-Catholic cornerback Omillio Agard has returned from an earlier injury; senior All-Catholic linebacker Josiah Trotter and senior All-Catholic wide receiver Mike DiTrolio have also missed time because of injuries, but they are expected to return.

St. Joseph's Prep vs. St. Peter's Prep - PSD Highlights by Marc Narducci

St. Joseph's Prep vs. Erasmus Hall - PSD Highlights by Zack Beavers

The Hawks, who open division play against Archbishop Wood October 1 Cardinal O’Hara High School, also sport a dangerous return man in junior Brandon Rehnmann (5 returns for 98 yards), who also averages 35.1 yards per punt with a long of 51 yards, and junior kicker Skyler Sholder, who is a perfect 6 for 6 in extra points and has smashed a 42-yard field goal.

“We’ve had some great tests so far in our non-league schedule,” said Prep coach Tim Roken. “We learned a lot about who we are as a team and what we need to improve on as we move onto a tough PCL schedule. We want to focus on one day at a time, one week at a time, and make sure we are taking steps forward as a program.”

The only other Red Division team with a winning record is Roman Catholic. The Cahillites soundly defeated Wilson West Lawn, Trinity, West Catholic, and Perkiomen Valley by a collective 144-39.

Roman’s most impressive performance, however, was in a 10-0 loss to a Malvern Prep team that may be one of the state’s top squads.

“Our defense has played exceptionally well thus far, and our offense has been explosive,” said Roman coach Rick Prete. “We need to continue to improve in special teams. We also need to capitalize on opportunities in the red zone. We would like to see less three and outs on offense.”

Among the Cahillites’ five returning All-Catholics are senior Mao Howell (324 yards and five touchdowns on 65 carries), junior Tyseer Denmark (30 receptions for 540 yards and four touchdowns), senior linebacker Jordan Montgomery (20 solo tackles, 1.5 sacks, and two interceptions), senior linebacker Brandon Mack (18 total tackles and a fumble recovery), and senior Jamieal Lyons (21 solo tackles and three sacks).

Roman Catholic vs. Wilson High School - PSD Video by Dominick Stuhl

Other standouts include senior Jamir Robertson, who leads the running game with 518 yards and six touchdowns on 85 rushes and has eclipsed 100 yards on three occasions; freshman quarterback Semaj Beals, who has completed 74 passes in 124 attempts for 972 yards and eight touchdowns, with three of them snared by junior Trey Woodley (12 catches for 175 yards); senior Jason Patterson, credited with 20 tackles, four assists, and an eye-popping 7.5 sacks; junior Jah Jah Boyd, who returned an interception 90 yards for a touchdown; sophomore offensive tackle Kahlil Stewart; senior cornerback Richard Mosley (eight total tackles, interception); and senior defensive tackle Rakeem Refile

Roman will visit Father Judge September 30 and hope to avenge last year’s bitter 21-20 loss that was decided on the final play of the game.

Defending champion La Salle followed an impressive season-opening 38-27 win at North Penn with three straight losses to Malvern Prep, Harrisburg’s Bishop McDevitt, and Haverford School by an uncharacteristically collective 112 to 14.

But these are the Explorers, a proud bunch who, despite early struggles, eagerly await division competition.

“I would say it does feel like a new season heading into our league,” said senior defensive lineman Darold DeNgohe. “As a team, we tend to not dwell on the past. We had some ups and down to start the season, but that only pushes us to do better and fix our mistakes.”

La Salle’s offense displayed its capability against North Penn when junior Stevie Davis rushed for a career-high 238 yards on 31 carries while freshman quarterback Gavin Sidwar enjoyed an excellent debut by completing 12 of 16 passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to sophomore James Dolan

Senior All-Catholic Nole Henry has caught 12 passes for 219 yards and two scores.

The Explorers’ defense is sparked by senior linebacker Mike Fileppo (30 total tackles), junior linebacker Matt Wills (16 TT), the aforementioned DeNoghe (15 TT; three sacks), junior cornerback Carson Wakefield (19 TT), senior All-Catholic defensive back Mekhi Johnson (interception). Senior All-Catholic linebacker Sean McFadden is reportedly returning to the fold from a high ankle sprain this week in a non-league tilt October 1at Calvert Hall in Maryland. The Explorers will meet rival St. Joseph’s Prep at Franklin Field the following week.

“The strength of our team so far has been our ability to move forward and not give in to all of the negativity going on around us and focusing on the task ahead,” said DeNgohe.

Father Judge finished 2-3 in the preseason. Returning All-Catholics include junior Nymeir Appling (13 tackles, three interceptions) and junior Eric Smith (punt return for a TD). Over the last four games, senior Jake Marquis has rushed for 374 yards and five touchdowns on 52 carries while on defense has produced 22 tackles and 10 assists, second on the team to senior Brayden McLaughlin (24-11). Junior quarterback Tyler Yerkov is a threat both passing (three touchdowns) and running (four scores). Senior Tearran Peete (28 overall tackles), junior Sean Broderick (27, two sacks), and senior Andrew Wenger (16) need to be accounted for.

“We started off slow and lost a couple games we should have won,” said senior two-way starter Dylan Rome, who has been involved in 11 tackles, defended six passes, and caught four passes for 40 yards. “We bounced back and won two in a row and then had another tough loss. We have to work on being more consistent when we are good when we play to our ability.

“PCL play is very tough. There is a lot of good teams and we have to come ready to play every game from now on.”

Father Judge vs. Archbishop Ryan - PSD Highlights by Mark Zimmaro

The Crusaders open on September 30 against visiting Roman Catholic. 

Archbishop Wood sandwiched a win over Northeast around losses to Inter-Ac toughies Malvern Prep and Haverford School. The Vikings’ offense has scored three touchdowns, two of them via passes from sophomore quarterback Frankie Mawson to junior tight end Markus Dixon (6 catches for 147 yards)

Wood’s defense has shown flashes behind a senior crew of Luke Shaeffer (19 total tackles), senior Brian Nangle (13), senior Eric Gardner (eight TT, three of them for loss), senior Cole Evans (7 TT, two of them for a loss), senior Dariel Tiburcio (10, and one interception), and Malachi Generette (interception).

“This year we wanted to work on our effort and character,” said first-year coach Dave Armstrong. “Playing respectable so that when you look in the mirror, you can be proud. That seems to be helping us.

“We definitely need to work on the little things – proper technique, alignment, etc.”

The Vikings face a stiff early test when they take on St. Joseph’s Prep October 1 at Cardinal O’Hara High School.

*** Individual statistics courtesy of Ed “Huck” Powers.***

(Contact John Knebels at Jknebels@gmail.com or on Twitter @johnknebels.)