By: John Knebels

Photos/Videos: Aaron Mitchell, James Williamson, Alexandra Conroy (Episcopal Academy), Alex Duda (Father Judge), John Leuzzi (St. Joe's Prep) and Liam Turnbach (La Salle). Videos edited by Austin Ampeloquio. 

PHILADELPHIA –Touchdown . . . touchdown . . . touchdown . . . touchdown . . . touchdown . . . touchdown.

Yep. On six different occasions, Neumann-Goretti sophomore Tysheem Johnson did something special to make the public address announcer shout that word to the crowd in the Saints’ 54-14 Catholic League Blue Division victory over visiting Bonner-Prendergast. 

No one had ever scored six touchdowns in a Neumann-Goretti uniform. Until now.

“It was an amazing feeling,” said Johnson. “I didn't expect ever to have a game like that. I was only hoping for three TDs, but after I did that in the first quarter, my coach (Albie Crosby) said I needed six. So with the help of my quarterback and offensive line, I accomplished that.”

Johnson was asked how his teammates responded during the one-man onslaught.

“They were like, ‘That’s a ‘Bama (football haven University of Alabama) offer you’re getting after this,’” he said. “It was crazy.”   

B-P junior Charles Ingram gained 81 yards on 15 carries while sophomore quarterback Kyle Lazer scored on two rushes.

In other Blue Division action . . . 

West Catholic survived a 36-35 shootout against Archbishop Carroll at Drexel University. After Carroll junior Richie Kimmel stripped the ball and recovered it in the end zone, and junior quarterback Russell Minor-Shaw (8 for 17, 200 yards, three touchdowns) threw a 24-yard strike to senior Dan Morgan on a fourth and 20, the Burrs trailed, 14-0.

But West Catholic rebounded to take a 28-21 lead on a pair of touchdown passes from junior quarterback Zaire Hart-Hawkins to senior Seth Degree on lengths of 60 and 44 yards. Carroll tied the score in the fourth quarter when senior Koran Butler caught a 15-yard pass.

To put it mildly, the loss was difficult to digest for Carroll.

“I was kind of expecting them to go for two in a game like that,” said Kimmel, a linebacker. “I could tell they wanted nothing less than to win that game after they started to make a comeback, and so did we, but it didn’t turn out the way we wanted. 

“But that’s in the past. Our guys learned to put that behind us and focus on going 1-0 every week from now on. We just use that heartbreaking game as motivation to win out the rest of the season and never face a loss like that again. We were hit with adversity and now we’re on track to handle that adversity and bounce back even stronger.” 

In a 55-28 victory over Lansdale Catholic, undefeated Conwell-Egan (4-0) experienced a first in school history – three players eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark in the same game. 

Senior quarterback Alex Goldsby (9 carries for 107 yards, two touchdowns), sophomore Dajuan Harris(15-110-2), and senior Patrick Garwo (10 carries for 114 yards, one reception for 54 yards, two touchdowns) joined senior Terome Mitchell (one reception for 51 yards and a touchdown; fumble recovery for a touchdown) for a memorable victory. 

“We came out slow and knew that’s not how we play,” said Garwo, referring to an early 14-6 deficit. “So we had to come together and just do what we do. We just had to lock in on defense and be disciplined.”

Senior lineman Dwayne Majors isn’t surprised by the Eagles’ success. 

“We are psyched to play every game,” he said. “We have a lot to prove and our goal every week is to be 1-0. That’s what we do week in and week out. Take one game at a time.”

Bishop McDevitt overcame a defensive battle and edged Cardinal O’Hara, 12-7. Sophomore Jon-Luke Peaker rushed for 150 yards and a touchdown – his fourth straight game with 150 yards or more on the ground. Junior quarterback Lonnie Rice, who along with senior Zay Scott made an interception, scored his seventh touchdown this fall.  

“Everyone did their job and they executed. It was all about execution and when you do your job, you get a ‘W.’”   

The Catholic League Red Division begins in two weeks.

Archbishop Ryan is the talk of the town after a 45-30 win over Chester improved its record to 4-0 and a composite 165 points along the way. Junior Julian Jones scored the first three touchdowns and finished with 67 yards on 15 carries. Senior Jahlil Sanders threw two TD passes; senior teammate Kyron Long added a 65-yard scoring heave off a trick play.

Sophomore sensation Tyreek Chappell caught five passes for 150 yards and scored his seventh and eighth touchdowns of the young season. 

“We’re always psyched to get out on the field,” said Jones. “It was a good win. Chester is a tough team, but we have a tough team, too, and we were ready for them. We played hard, but that wasn’t our best. We could’ve done a lot of things better, but we got the ‘W’ and that’s what matters at the end of the day.”

St. Joseph’s Prep seems like they’re about to dominate. The Hawks defeated rugged Our Lady Of Good Counsel (MD), 34-27, at Widener University. 

“It was just a huge team win,” said McCord. “We never quit on each other and there was no doubt between us that we were going to pull it out. It feels great, but we got to get better and improve every week.”

The Prep is idle this week. Their first division opponent will be rival La Salle, which will also gets a one-week hiatus. The good news for the Explorers is that it comes after their first win, a 58-28 blowout over Haverford School that included over 500 yards on the ground.

Archbishop Wood also enjoyed its first success, albeit in nail-biting fashion. The Vikings squeaked past Pope John (NJ), 22-20, as junior Tom Santiago gained 165 yards and scored two touchdowns on 21 carries. Senior quarterback Jake Ross, who has taken over for injured former starting senior Jake Colyar, completed 10 of 18 for 150 yards and a touchdown to senior tight end Bill Cook. Senior Jalen Cobb caught four passes for 92 yards.

“We worked hard for it all summer, and it’s a confidence builder for the whole team,” said senior defensive back Brad Otto. “It’s definitely a weight off our shoulders. Now we’re going to keep going. There’s no looking back.”

Colyar, who hopes to resume playing by the postseason, concurred. 

 “It was really important for us,” said Colyar. “We needed to get our first win. Hopefully we can keep it rolling.”

Roman Catholic dropped a 28-14 decision to Springside-Chestnut Hill Academy. In defeat, sophomore Nadir McLeod connected on a 51-yard scoring pass from senior Jeff Grosso while sophomore Shamar Ellis also scored. 

Father Judge dropped a 31-21 slugfest against Germantown Academy. Senior quarterback Shane Dooley gained 96 yards and scored twice rushing. He also threw for 258 yards and a 22-yard touchdown pass to junior Darrell Tripline. Senior Katob Joseph (93 yards) and junior Shane McGovern (85) also enjoyed big nights.

(John Knebels can be reached at Jknebels@gmail.comor on Twitter @johnknebels.)