Football Preview: Penn Wood seeking answers to ‘strange, tough’ questions
LANSDOWNE >> In July, questions abounded at Penn Wood’s football camp.
That’s typical for most high school teams. But for coach Ato Troop, who’s had plenty of success during his tenure with the Patriots, it’s a little unusual.
Last spring, the Patriots did not live up to their potential, although it’s hard to assess a five-game season during a global pandemic. It’s unfair to judge any team based on a shortened season, which had been postponed from the fall until spring due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Even still, the Patriots stumbled to the finish line after a strong 3-0 start, suffering lopsided losses to Chester and Cheltenham on their way out.
“It was strange, it was tough at times,” Troop said of the spring. “But the biggest thing is we got a chance to get our kids five games. We went 3-2, which we kind of felt disappointed about. A lot of teams might be happy about that, but for us, it was like, ‘OK, 3-2, big deal.’ It was five games, no playoffs. We could have played a sixth game but the kids just weren’t feeling it.”
The Patriots said goodbye to a strong core of seniors, including dynamic Malik Brooks and standout defensive lineman Christian Suber. Only three returning players, quarterback Jason Kempf and running back/linebackers Mike Keene and Jayon Hailey, saw significant action on varsity in the spring. The rest of the team, as of late July, was a mystery for Troop and his coaching staff.
The status of running back Jordin Jones, a would-be senior who accrued 761 yards of total offense in five games last spring, was unclear at the time, but Troop wasn’t expecting him to return.
“We’re so young; we’ve lost some really good rising freshmen to private schools this year,” Troop said. “Us and Upper Darby, we get crushed. We never have a lot of kids to begin with, One year we had 50 at the most. So it’s a work in progress and we are younger than most years.”
Keene is excited for his opportunity with the team, an experienced player who is being counted on to make an impact. The linebacker unit is Penn Wood’s clear strength, and Keene will be one of the leaders of the team, though he is only a junior.
“It’s definitely going to be a learning experience for me and the other juniors. There’s only a couple of seniors out here,” Keene said. “We’ve got to put the whole team on our backs and teach the new guys everything we know in the quickest time possible. After last season we didn’t really get a break, just a couple weeks off and now we’re right back in it. The guys who have the experience from last year are probably the strongest guys here … and the linebackers are the core of the defense. We know we have to hold it down and set an example for the rest of the guys.”
Kempf will begin his second season as the No. 1 quarterback. He showed flashes of potential in the spring, passing for 312 yards and three touchdowns. Kempf was taking over for Desman Johnson Jr., who broke school and county records during his time with the Patriots.
“He should be more prominent this year,” Troop said of Kempf. “He had some big shoes to fill, obviously, replacing Des, who physically could do some things (Kempf) couldn’t do, so we sort of had to tailor the offense around his strengths. That’s one thing we’ll be doing this year is getting him comfortable. We have some guys he can get the ball to, like Jayon Hailey, he’s a really good kid, and Mike Keene’s another one.
“We do have some skills that will help us out, but we won’t have the normal experience that we’ve had the last couple of years. I guess all public schools go through that cycle and we are now.”
