Football Preview: Ellis, Upper Darby have sights set high
UPPER DARBY >> The last time Upper Darby was considered a legitmate threat to win a Central League championship, the year was 2015 and running back Isaiah Bruce was shattering all sorts of school and county records.
Seven years later, the Royals are contenders again. Some coaches in the league have mentioned the Royals as a team to watch, while others have ranked them as a top-three squad in the league.
Third-year coach Dave Barr would prefer to pump the brakes on the preseason chatter … just a bit.
“I hope that they’re right,” Barr said. “We’re in that middle part of … we’re starting to gain confidence because we’re starting to understand what we want to be. We’re finally starting to do all those things right, beginning in the offseason and then in the summer and in summer camp. We don’t have to worry about being dressed right, being on time or being in the right spot. We’ve gotten that part down. If that leads to confidence on the field, awesome.
“But we still have a lot of work to do. We have five new starters up front (on the offensive line). We graduated our five best players on defense (including All-Delco lineman Julien Laventure), so we’re going to be pretty new. When you get into your third year — and our staff has stayed exactly the same, except for one — the kids start to know who we are and what we expect. All of these things have started to fall into place for us.”
Upper Darby ended 2021 with victories in five of its last six games, including a 28-21 decision over Haverford on Thanksgiving. It was UD’s first win in the rivalry series since 2009. The young man who made the victory a reality was quarterback Montez Ellis, whose 31-yard touchdown pass to Covenant Horace with 26 seconds to play was the difference.
Ellis is back for his senior year. He is one of the most dynamic players in Delaware County. The team co-captain transitioned from running back to quarterback in the middle of last season and produced some gaudy numbers. He finished fifth in the county in rushing yards (1,389) and tied for sixth in rushing TDs (16).
Ellis is not a natural passer, but he’s put in a lot of work to improve his skills at quarterback.
“I worked on my footwork in the pocket, stepping up in the pocket, my rollout game, my three steps and all my dropbacks, my pass concepts … everything,” Ellis said. “Just making sure I’m evolving at the quarterback spot and still keeping my same skill levels that I had when I was at running back. I’m making sure that I know what everybody’s got to do on the team. I just went ahead and put that pressure on me because I’m one of the leaders.”
Ellis (5-foot-8, 195 pounds) is co-captain alongside senior tight end/linebacker Jason Bateman (6-1, 168) and senior running back/linebacker Marcus Kemp (5-7, 184).
“It is my job to make sure that everybody is here because we want to be a program,” Kemp said. “We want to be a good football team and as a captain I know that’s one of my responsibilities, making sure everyone is believing in each other and taking this seriously.”
Senior lineman Ahmad Dixon (6-3, 280) begins his second year starting at offensive and defensive tackle. Barr considers him a “great leader.”
“It’s important to get the young guys trained up and for them to know the playbook and up to task as soon as possible,” Dixon said. “Our shirts say L.E.O., which stands for Love Each Other. Everyone here loves the sport of football and we are coming together as a family. … It’s L.E.O. all the time.”
Bateman is a quiet player who leads with his play on the field and dedication to the program.
“Jason is the epitome of L.E.O.,” Barr said. “He’s always putting somebody else first. He won’t say much, he wasn’t voted captain because he’s a talker. We kind of calculated it out from January until summer camp. We had 93 workout-type events that we did and Jason made 92. And the one he missed, he called me like three times, ‘Coach, you know I’m not gonna be there right?’ I kept telling him, ‘Jason, you’re good, man.’”
Other returning starters include senior wide receiver/safety Jihad Cave (6-3, 185), who Barr calls the leader of the defense; senior tight end/defensive back Namir Jefferies (6-2, 185), senior running back/linebacker Dishon Lee (5-8, 175) and junior lineman Kaleel McLaughlin (6-2, 235). Junior linebacker Kamar Perlote (6-2, 175) started several games last year, but was raw. He has potential to be a key cog in defense. Senior linemen JT Senkow (5-10, 225) also saw action last fall, but could potentially start both ways this year.
UD travels approximately half a mile up Lansdowne Ave. Friday night to play Bonner-Prendergast. Garnet Valley visits in Week 2. Every UD home game will begin at 5 p.m. this year.
“We have a standard and we tell the guys, this is what it is, can you meet it? The guys that do are out here with us,” Barr said. “We have 94 guys here today, who are doing it. So that’s awesome.”
