9. Downingtown West 28, Downingtown East 7
Downingtown West’s Terrence Gainer celebrates with fans. (Nate Heckenberger – For Digital First Media)
Time for the backup.
With the weight of a Downingtown East defender forcing his face mask into the turf, Downingtown West’s Ryan Wetzel heard the roar of the crowd and assumed the worst.
After a 28-point loss to Coatesville the week prior, as well as losing star quarterback Will Howard for the season, a lot of folks outside of the West locker room were assuming the worst, Friday, as well.
But in the 15th edition of the Battle of the Brandywine at Kottmeyer Stadium, what Wetzel saw when he finally picked his head up was a microcosm of the night for the Whippet faithful.
“I got tackled, so I was on the ground, but I heard the crowd go crazy so I was thinking I needed to get up at tackle the guy who picked it off,” Wetzel said. “Then I saw Jackson (Luneburg) running down the field with the ball. It was great.”
West may have been down Howard, but it got plenty of will from senior captain, Wetzel, who practiced at quarterback this week for the first time since his sophomore year.
With the injury moving him from his tight end/h-back duties, Wetzel had a magical night, completing 11 of 15 passes for 154 yards, while rushing for 53 yards and two scores as the Whippets gave Downingtown East its first loss of the season, 28-7, in the Ches-Mont National tilt.
