HAVERFORD — The football team, cheerleaders and band paraded to Cornog Stadium for the Haverford home opener Friday behind a bright red 1926 Model T Ford with a giant “H” on the rear, symbolizing the program’s storied past.
Give the Fords a thumbs-up for their creativity, and another compliment to longtime Havertown resident and Model T restorer Tom Reisch, who assists head coach Bob Newman with the varsity softball team and whose wife Kathy taught at Haverford Middle School for several years.
Fords coach Luke Dougherty called it another example of the community support that makes being part of the Fords special.
The downer on this otherwise enjoyable night was that the Fords and their new triple option offense misfired a bit, kind of like a Model T getting used to unleaded gasoline after a lifetime of leaded.
Quarterback Jude Cook’s 18-yard scoring run on fourth down and Jack Steigerwald’s 30-yard field goal lifted Conestoga to a 9-8 Central League win over the Fords. This despite Haverford leading at the intermission on Liam Taylor’s two-yard touchdown run, set up by a 78-yard completion to Buddy Coacher.
The Fords (0-2, 0-1) have had their struggles with the Pioneers.
“Three years ago we were banged up a little bit and they ran a kick back to sort of put it away in the fourth quarter,” Dougherty said. “Last year we lost to them on a last-second field goal. This year we just didn’t make it happen.”
Make no mistake, the Pioneers (1-1, 0-1) had to play their best defense against the Fords through their opponent’s last play of the game. A throw by Taylor sailed just over the outstretched hands of an open receiver in the end zone with 24 seconds left. Exciting as the play was, the Conestoga pass rush flushed Taylor from the pocket, and the sophomore quarterback actually was over the line of scrimmage when he let it go.
Pioneers coach Matt Diamond was all but holding his breath until Cook’s kneel down.
“You know that they just needed to get into field goal range and they were going to be throwing it,” Diamond said of the Fords. “But at the end of the day we’re happy and fortunate to be walking out with a win. I’m happy and proud of our guys. Luckily our front was able to get some pressure to force some errant throws and we found a way. It wasn’t pretty.”
After a scoreless first quarter the Pioneers grabbed a 3-0 lead on Steigerwald’s field goal capping a lengthy drive with 7:50 left in the first half.
The Fords tied it 91 seconds later on Taylor’s sneak. Holder Jake Napp’s two-point pass to Charlie Turner on a fake conversion kick made it 8-3 Fords at the intermission.
Coacher intercepted a Cook pass late in the half giving the Fords the ball at the 24-yard line of the Pioneers, but with the clock running down a 36-yard field goal attempt by Ryan Corbett, the backup kicker, was blocked.
“He has the leg, a great leg,” Dougherty said. “Their kid came off the edge, timed it up right and got it. The kids fought hard.”
The Fords’ transition to the triple option is beginning to fulfill its promise of big plays yet remains a work in progress. The Pioneer defense morphed into a 5-2 in the second half with linebackers Tom Costigan and Charlie Newhall crashing down.
Haverford has been playing football since 1913, all of five years after the Model T began production. The Fords are 507-503-42 according to compilations by EasternPaFootball.com. In the Central League only the Pioneers and Lower Merion have more victories, and they’ve been playing football since 1897, along with Radnor.
Dougherty believes the school spirit, including the four-wheel Ford with the upgraded flashy wooden wheels will help Haverford get back on track.
“It’s a new tradition,” Dougherty said. “A guy in the community brought out the Model T and it was very cool. It got these guys fired up for the game. We have a great community. To have the Model T, our cheerleaders and the band lead us in, our community is just amazing.
“…It makes the loss a little bit harder because we know how important this is to the community. But it keeps us coming back every week fighting and wanting to get better.”
