Lynch can’t play, but will be part of new Marple-Penncrest tradition

NEWTOWN SQUARE — Tyler Lynch can say he gave everything he had to the Marple Newtown football program.

The senior wide receiver and defensive back will not be in full uniform Wednesday night when the Tigers travel to Central League rival Penncrest for an inaugural Thanksgiving eve game.

Lynch will be pacing the visitor’s sideline on crutches, cheering his teammates and hoping for victory. His football season had ended in October in a game against Ridley.

“I tore my ACL, meniscus and sprained my MCL. I also had some complications during surgery,” Lynch said. “I’ve been non-weight bearing for 4½ weeks now.”

On Tuesday, Lynch was cleared “about 50 percent,” meaning he could begin to use crutches and ditch the wheelchair he’d been glued to since the injury.

Unfortunately, season-ending injuries are all too common for Lynch.

“In my first lacrosse game last season, I broke my hand and missed the whole year,” he said. “Now I’ll miss my entire lacrosse season again.”

The last eight or ninth months have been a physical and mental challenge for Lynch, but he has come to grips with his situation and is excited to watch his teammates play one final game to cap the 2019 campaign.

Lynch expects to join fellow co-captains Ryan Lain (junior lineman), Robbie Reilly (senior linebacker) and Jelani Estes (senior wide receiver/defensive back) at the 50-yard line of Louis Scott Field for the pre-game coin toss.

“It sucks, it’s really tough to swallow, but all the tears that I have for football have already been shed,” Lynch said. “I just really want to be there for the seniors (Wednesday) night, and definitely to be there for our young guys and encouraging them. I’ve gotten used to it and I’ve been making the best of a tough situation.”

Prior to being sidelined for the season, Lynch was one of the Tigers’ top performers on offense and defense. He posted 16 receptions for 131 yards and three touchdowns.

“It’s going to be surreal, knowing it’s our last time, especially for myself and some others who have no intent to play college football,” he said. “It’s definitely going to be emotional. … But I just want to go out there and have as much fun as possible, one last time.”

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Marple Newtown coach Chris Gicking had been hoping to establish a new Thanksgiving rivalry ever since he was hired to become the 11th head coach in program history in 2014. Beginning in 1934, the Tigers had a 41-year rivalry with Springfield. When that holiday game ended, the Tigers played Cardinal O’Hara for two years before beginning a series with Conestoga that lasted 24 years.

After years of finding no dance partner, Gicking got word that Penncrest was interested. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering Penncrest’s first-year coach Ryan Smith had been a part of many Turkey Bowls as a player at Sun Valley and coach at Chichester.

Gicking likes the idea of keeping the game on Thanksgiving eve, knowing it’s the only show in Delaware County.

“We wanted to bring back a Thanksgiving tradition, like the way it was before,” Gicking said. “We had the rivalry with Conestoga and, if you go way back, we had Springfield for so many years. We tried getting Springfield, Conestoga and O’Hara, but none of those schools wanted to do it. Finally, I heard this past offseason from Penncrest, they wanted to start a tradition. I thought, great, we’ve been trying to do it for a few years now. We’re hoping to build a really good tradition with this game. obviously there are still teams in Delaware County and in the state and the country who still do this. It’s a big day, it’s a family day. When you think of Thanksgiving, you think of family, football and food.”

The Tigers and Lions met at Marple Newtown Oct. 11 for their regular season contest. Junior quarterback Joey Paoletti threw for 189 yards and three touchdowns in the Tigers’ 35-8 victory.

Gicking doesn’t see a problem playing the same Central League opponent twice in one season. This will not become another Haverford-Upper Darby, which is always reserved for Thanksgiving, even if that means ceding previous district playoff points. Marple Newtown (7-4) and Penncrest will not sacrifice playoff points because they want to play on Thanksgiving eve, long after the district postseason has concluded.

“I think it’s excellent that we are playing them twice,” Gicking said. “You have to think of the playoff points. Whoever wins in the regular season … that’s points for you and other teams in the Central League. You want to take care of your school, but you also want to look after your league. That’s why it’s important to play in the regular season. You’re not just doing it for yourself or for Penncrest, it’s also important for those Central League teams.”

Marple Newtown’s last game was played in the District 1 Class 5A tournament against Unionville, a 28-10 loss Nov. 1. Penncrest (3-7) hasn’t seen game action since a 21-14 win over Harriton to end the regular season Oct. 25.

“It was a little difficult, trying to get focused again, but it wasn’t a big thing,” Reilly said. “It’s going to be fun, we’re all looking forward to the game and we’re all ready for it.”

Many of the Marple Newtown players have fond memories of playing in the St. Annie’s-St. Pius Turkey Bowl. 

“That was a great memory, a great experience, when we were kids,” Lain said. “It’s nice to not have that last playoff game be the last game of the year. You have an opportunity to play one more game. We know this game means so much to both of these teams. It’s the last time our seniors get to play together and we know we have to bring everything we have because we know it’s going to be a really tough game.”