By Peter DiGiovanni
pdgiovanni07@gmail.com
@PeteDLNontwitter
The 2023 scholastic football season is finally upon us, and without running the risk of sounding too provincial, it seems like the District 1 6A championship will go through the Ches-Mont National Division this season.
With apologies to defending champion Garnet Valley — who should blow through a less than stellar Central League once again — the big three of the Ches-Mont, Coatesville, Downingtown East and Downingtown West, all have loaded rosters.
And, at least for this observer, it is pretty hard to choose between any of the talented trio. All three have major strengths without a lot of apparent weaknesses. Last season Coatesville and Downingtown West did not play each other because of an online threat that scuttled the game. This matchup between the two could decide the league championship this season, and the pair’s games with Downingtown East will also have major league and district implications.
With Coatesville, the defense is perhaps the best defense head coach Matt Ortega has had since he took over the Red Raiders in 2010. With game breakers in Francisco Hall and Amir Haskett, people are not going to score a lot of points against the very physical Raiders.
The question mark at Coatesville is the offense and sophomore quarterback Matt Ortega, Jr. It seems the Red Raiders always have guys that can run the football effectively, so the onus is on the passing game for Coatesville to thrive. The Raiders non-league slate features tough trips to Pennsbury and Central Dauphin.
Downingtown West returns quarterback Quinn Henicle, and arguably the best receiving corps in the district in Dean Hangey, Jake Kucera and tight end Ryan Campbell. The Whippets will score points and have six starters back on a defense that allowed 17 points per game last season.
The one road block for the Whippets is a nonleague matchup with tough Perkiomen Valley. And head coach Mike Milano knows how to win a district title as the Whippets accomplished that feat in 2019.
Downingtown East is known as a team that loves to run the football. And with Kent State commit, Ayden Harris, at running back, and a giant offensive line, this could be the best Cougars team in a number of years. And that is saying something as Downingtown East advanced to the District 1 6A semifinals last season before bowing to Garnet Valley.
The Downingtown East defense has eight starters back and Cougars’ head coach Michael Matta thinks his secondary, led by Mike Leo, may be the best the Cougars have had in a while. A possible landmine comes with a road trip to powerful State College in Week 1.
So, the Ches-Mont National Division should — with Garnet Valley, Central Bucks West and Perkiomen Valley — be the leaders in the district playoff race. All three squads have long time head coaches and all three work extremely hard with football being a 12-month process with a heavy emphasis on the weight room.
No matter who wins the Ches-Mont championship this season, all three should be in the top eight in the final district playoff standings. And all three teams will be battle tested for the playoffs by having to play each other during the regular season.
The real winners in 2023 will be the fans who choose to come out and watch a football season like no other in recent memory with three big time squads all playing in Chester County. All three could win the district championship and all three have a realistic expectation of doing just that. Until St. Joseph’s Prep is somehow removed from the PIAA, the district title is the realistic ceiling for all public schools.
So, we have Ortega, Matta and Milano going head-to-head in games that will feature some of the best 6A teams in the entire state. All three deserve whatever heights they reach this season. All three programs take this high school football thing very seriously and all desperately want to beat each other with grudging respect towards each other.
It all adds up to Chester County being at the forefront of the District 1 and state football 6A scene. It will be a wild ride so sit back and enjoy the quality, passion and story of the 2023 football season, one like no other in recent memory that provides such high level football week in and week out. It really does not get much better than what this big trio will bring to the gridiron this season.
