INTER-AC PREVIEW – The statistics are impressive. There’s no other way to say it.
Through 29 non-league football games, the Inter-Academic League teams are a composite 24-5. That’s just, well, amazing.
Superfluous? Not really. Just consider the league’s overall body of work.
Episcopal Academy is 5-0 and has outscored its opposition by 149-62.
Penn Charter is also undefeated. Among its four victories are two shutouts and a margin of 146-35 in point differential.
Haverford School is 4-1, its only defeat a 27-24 heartbreaker against Perkiomen Valley. In their four victories, the Fords’ offense has averaged 44 points per game.
Germantown Academy is also 4-1. Its four-game winning streak is highlighted by two shutouts and a 156-32 scoring advantage.
Springside-Chestnut Hill Academy is also 4-1. Take away a 21-14 loss to Blake Mountain, the Blue Devils have outscored their foes – two of them from the large-school Catholic League Red Division – by 147-69.
Malvern Prep is 3-2. Among the Friars’ successes was a 21-12 win over defending Catholic League large-school champion La Salle.
Starting today, the six squads will begin competing against one another. Haverford School enters the fold riding a three-year championship streak (one shared). Because every team has performed so admirably thus far, it is anyone’s guess as to which will finish as champ.
Does Haverford School have the most pressure?
“We are excited about the start of Inter-Ac play,” said Haverford School coach Mike Murphy. “We don't talk about being the defending Inter-Ac champ because we are not – last year's team was, and they are gone. That has been our mentality all year long. I am proud of our team.
“We know emotions will be high as they always are, especially week one in the league. I think the Inter-Ac is unique and great because it is essentially a five-week playoff run.”
Senior quarterback Tommy Toal acknowledged that league contests are usually more intense than those of the non-league variety, particularly this year because of what appears to be league parity.
“Every week is a playoff game,” said Toal. “It is our main goal every year to win the Inter-Ac. That is what we work for every day. The Inter-Ac seems to be very balanced this year. It’s exciting. We have been looking forward to proving ourselves within the league.”
After the Fords watched their 21-game overall winning streak snapped by Perkiomen Valley, the team encountered a brand new challenge.
“Once the winning streak was ended it felt like a weight had been lifted,” said Toal. “It was one less thing we had to worry about, and we got to just focus on ourselves more and not teams that came before us.”
Toal has tossed nine touchdown passes while deftly spreading the wealth, as five different receivers have crossed the 100-yard plateau. Coming off an epic, 301-rushing performance against Archbishop Carroll of Maryland, senior Malik Twyman has accrued 824 yards and 10 touchdowns on 108 carries. The Fords’ defense has notched six interceptions.
The Fords visit Penn Charter today at 3:15. The Quakers were the only Inter-Ac team to give Haverford a major scare last fall, a 41-40 classic. Senior quarterback Mike Hnatkowsky has thrown nine touchdowns while sophomore Edward Saydee has rushed for 311 yards and scored six TDs. Attempts to reach Penn Charter coach Tom Coyle were unsuccessful.
Tonight at 7 PM, Episcopal will visit Malvern Prep. The Churchmen believe that the regular season has prepared them for anything down the road.
“In the five games we’ve played, we really have seen just about anything you could see in a football game,” said senior tight end and defensive lineman Kyle Virbitsky. “We’ve blown teams out, won tight games, and even came from behind to pull out a win. There is a different feel with this team than any other I’ve been on. The way we get after lifts, compete at practice, and invest time in the film room have been on a different level compared to previous years.”
Aided by senior quarterback CJ McAnally (6 passing touchdowns, 2 rushing, 1 interception return) and a rushing corps that has scored 13 touchdowns, the Churchmen possess a healthy mix of experience and youth.
“One of our strengths as a team is no doubt the leadership of the seniors,” said Virbitsky. “Not only are the captains great leaders, but all the seniors, in my eyes, have really bought into making this year special and it has been contagious throughout the team.
“The underclassmen have also been huge. Our offensive line is almost all juniors, and our running back (DeeWil Barlee, 6 TDs and 305 yards rushing) is a sophomore. All of these guys are two-way guys, too, and they have really stepped up.”
Virbitsky said the team’s goal is obvious.
“Winning the Inter-Ac has been our goal since the beginning of summer when our workouts started,” he said. “It’s a five-week season from now until November 11, and the goal is to go 1-0 each week. We are ready.”
Not surprising, Malvern Prep possesses the same exact goal as Episcopal. Despite missing injured junior running back O’Shaan Allison, the Friars can score in droves.
“We can control the line of scrimmage,” said Zac Fernandez. “We also have a bunch of good athletes at our skill positions who we are confident can get the job done.”
Fernandez described the Friars as a “really close-knit team.”
“We all have each other’s backs,” he said, “So when the going gets tough, we know we can count on each other. I think that is a really important quality to have.”
Being a senior definitely squashes procrastination.
“Ever since us seniors were freshmen, we have strived to win the Inter-Ac title, and that's what we intend to do this year,” said Fernandez, Malvern’s leading running back and receiver, with five total touchdowns 449 yards from scrimmage. “We have put in a lot of work and now it's time to show it. Malvern has such a rich football tradition, so it is not only important to our team, but our community and alumni as well. It's going to be a lot of fun and I'm really looking forward to it.”
Teammate Mike Fay, a receiver/safety, concurs.
“Winning the Inter-Ac is at the top of the list for our team right now,” said Fay. “It is something that I have wanted to do since my freshman year, and nothing would be better than taking the title back to Malvern my senior year.
“One of the main things that have allowed us to have success this year is the trust we have in each other and our coaches. We trust that each player is going to do their job each play, and we know that our coaches are going to put us in positions to succeed every play. We have also had some underclassmen step up in big-time scenarios, which is a huge upside for the rest of the season.”
On Saturday at 3:00, visiting Springside-Chestnut Hill Academy will face Germantown Academy. Not one of the pre-season favorites, the Blue Devils’ 2016 resume has opened many eyes.
A particularly notable victory was a 42-28 win over Catholic League Red Division toughie Father Judge.
“That was a very impressive and strong win,” said senior wide receiver/defensive back Tyler Hugee. “We were predicted to lose by a few touchdowns and were obviously the underdogs coming from a small Inter-Ac school. The prior week, we had upset Roman Catholic and some doubters had said that it was a fluke win. We proved that it was not.”
SCH only lost three starting seniors, providing players such as senior quarterback Matt Rahill (11 passing TDs), seniors Matt Hoffman (5 TDs), and Jack Cucinotta (3 TDs) vital experience that has translated into high-level performances this fall.
“We are sharing the ball a lot and throwing to every receiver, so the other defenses do not really know what's about to hit them,” said Hugee. “Our coaches have us running on all cylinders on offense and defense.
“The thing that saved us this year was our conditioning and work ethic. Many people showed up to the summer workouts and even worked out on our ‘off’ days, and now going into the second half of the season, we are still in great shape.”
Opponent Germantown Academy offers an early indicator of SCH’s title potential.
“There have been a lot of contributing factors to our strong start this year,” said senior quarterback Kyle McCloskey, who has thrown nine scoring passes, three to junior Mike Reilly. “We didn't start strong in the first game, but since then our offense and defense have both stepped up in big ways.”
The Patriots’ defense is top notch, with 10 interceptions already. So is their offense, which has turned the ball over only once in the past four games.
“This is anyone's league, and the team that is going to win is the team that shows up week in and week out,” said McCloskey. “I personally can't wait to get into it.”
McCloskey isn’t alone.
(John Knebels can be reached at jknebels@gmail.com or on twitter @johnknebels.)