Harriton football squad set to kick off 2021 fall season

Lower Merion >> While the Harriton High School football team has a numerically small roster of less than 40 players, the Rams feature some fine athletes who will be displaying their talents this fall.
One of them is junior wide receiver/free safety Matt Krebbs (6-0, 165), who received first team All-Central League honors as a sophomore last fall at safety. He also returns punts and kickoffs for the Rams.
“Matt Krebbs is a dynamic player, both on offense and defense,” said Harriton head coach Justin Mellor. “He can do it all.
“We have a nice group of pass receivers, led by Krebbs. And [junior quarterback] Logan Rothberg throws the ball well, was a starter last year for us as a sophomore, and worked his tail off in the weight room during the offseason.
Rothberg (6-0, 170) will be throwing to a senior receiving trio of Krebbs, Kyle Barnes (6-0, 170) and Aden Newman (6-2, 160) as well as sophomore Jay Cahow (5-7, 132).
The Rams’ primary running backs will be Ben Fisher (5-9, 190) and Josh Smith (5-11, 185).
Mellor sees the key to the Rams’ offense as the offensive line, led by senior center Ryan Marsh (5-10, 230), who received second team All-Central League honors last fall.
“We have a bunch of newcomers such as Sam Groover and Andrea Muller (6-3, 215) who are new to football but will be counted on,” said Mellor. “Holden Daggett (5-10, 200) has been an incredible teammate and sacrificed for the team moving to guard from running back. Seth Rubin (5-10, 185) is a scrappy player with a great motor at the other guard.”
On defense, Mellor sees his team’s biggest strength at linebacker, with Smith, Fisher, Daggett, junior Jeremiah Patterson (5-7, 148) and freshman Colin Sullivan (6-2, 185). Junior Sage McNeil (5-5, 180) and senior Khalief Deas (5-11, 175) also should see time at linebacker.
“We will play a 3-3 stack on defense with an attacking mentality,” said Mellor. “We will need our linebackers to make a lot of tackles as the same newcomers on the offense line will also be counted on to learn quickly on the defensive line.”
The Rams defensive backfield features some fine athletes with Krebbs, Barnes and Rothberg. Up front, Marsh will be the nose guard, and the defensive ends will be Groover and junior John Timmons (6-2, 180).
Harriton, which posted an 0-6 record last fall, kicks off its 2021 campaign at Methacton Aug. 27, then will start its Central League schedule.
“Our program is built on creating a positive experience for all involved,” said Mellor. “We emphasize maximum effort, a positive attitude, and togetherness. If each member of the team can epitomize those three traits, we will have a successful year.”