PAC divisional football rivals Owen J. Roberts, Perkiomen Valley meet again in district first round

As Pioneer Athletic Conference champions for a second straight year, Perkiomen Valley now looks forward to challenging themselves against the best District 1 has to offer.

They don’t have to look far for the first encounter.

Owen J. Roberts, who gave the Vikings all they could handle in Week 5, makes the trip to Thomas J. Keenan Stadium this time, highlighting the area’s District 1 playoff slate for the first week of the playoffs.

Class 6A: No. 15 Owen J. Roberts (6-4) vs. No. 2 Perkiomen Valley (9-1), 7 p.m. Friday >> There were some nervous moments for the Wildcats before the seedings became official, but in the end OJR found themselves solidly into the playoff field after a crossover win against Pottsgrove.

Their reward is a rematch with the PAC champs, who controlled the first half of the Week 5 matchup before allowing the Wildcats back into the game late. OJR ran out of time on the PV 22-yard line that night, a last-ditch pass landing just out of bounds in an effort to tie the game.

PV doesn’t give up much on defense (14.6 points per game, a number that shrunk to 10 PPG against PAC competition) so OJR coach Rich Kolka plans to rely heavily upon the guys who got the Wildcats here. That means senior leaders like top rusher Hunter Rhoads, PAC-leading receiver Danny Cashman, and three-year starting quarterback Mike Reed.

Cashman sits 54 yards short of an OJR single-season record for receiving yards.

“For us, the goal every year is to qualify for the 6A playoffs,” said Kolka. “It’s the most difficult bracket to make. Now, our goal is to advance to Round 2.”

One x-factor for OJR could be the deployment of Derek Hinrichs as a change-of-pace quarterback. It’s worked on numerous occasions this season, including last week when Hinrichs picked up 48 yards in the second half against Pottsgrove.

A prolific defensive line led by UConn commit Brandon Kelley alongside Christian Gregory hopes to confound Perkiomen Valley’s protection, an offensive line that paves the way for Jake Stewart (6.6 yards per carry, 8 rush TD) and Ryan Klimek (6 YPC, 8 TD on only 76 carries). When PV looks to the air, Michael Poruban (31 catches, 508 yards, three TDs) is the preferred target of sophomore QB Patrick MacDonald.

But it’s the Vikings’ defense who figures to determine the outcome here either way. If they play like they did for the first three quarters against OJR six weeks ago, it’ll be a rough night for the ‘Cats. But if OJR can duplicate its fourth-quarter performance?

PV’s defense is led up front by senior DT Shane Nelson, who scored a pair of sacks in the PAC title win over Pope John Paul II. Robbie Sturges and Carter Euker are standouts in the Vikings’ linebacker level.

“OJR runs the ball well, but they’ll take shots down the field too,” said PV coach Rob Heist. “We can’t allow explosive plays, and we can’t turn the ball over. They played us very well in that first game.”

Class 6A: No. 9 Ridley (7-3) at No. 8 Spring-Ford (7-3), 7 p.m. Friday >> The Rams and Raiders were virtual equals in the power rankings this season; Spring-Ford earning the right to host Friday’s game by a narrow margin. For the hosts, the key is simple – keep it up.

Spring-Ford has averaged 50 points per contest since a Week 6 setback at Perkiomen Valley, led by sophomore QB Matt Zollers (six TDs over the past two games, 1744 pass yards and an impressive 22 TD/1 INT this season.)

Central League representative Ridley features a dynamic passing attack of its own, as Paul Jackson, Kimir Stephenson, and Khameen Powell comprise one of the better receiving corps in Delaware County, and Owen Bosak keeps Ridley’s traditionally tough running game on track.

It looks like a tossup at Coach McNelly Stadium on Friday, and Spring-Ford coach Chad Brubaker says matching the Raiders’ physicality is the key to getting SF’s playoff run off on the right foot.

“Our goal is to be district champions,” said Brubaker. “Why not us?”

Class 5A: No. 15 Upper Merion (4-6) at No. 2 Strath Haven (10-0), 7 p.m. Friday >> It’s good news and bad news for Upper Merion when game planning for undefeated Strath Haven this weekend.

The good news? The Panthers are almost certainly running the ball.

The bad news is they do it better than just about anyone.

Through 10 weeks, the Panthers have run the 451 times to only 18 passes. Why? Because they’re averaging 8.2 yards per carry with 49 rushing TDs. Anthony Crawford and Bob Fooskas do most of the damage, but it’s a collective effort for the devastating co-Central League champions.

Upper Merion’s best chance to stay with Haven lies in the versatility of Villanova commit Nolan Clayton, whose impressive performances at tight end and defensive end are recently joined by the addition of a wildcat QB formation. QB Zayd Etheridge also has weapons like Preston Thomas and Marcus Crittendon at his disposal should the Vikings find themselves needing to throw. Defensively, LB Zander Gutkowski will be a key to slowing Strath Haven’s powerful offense.

Class 5A: No. 10 Phoenixville (6-4) at No. 7 Springfield-Delco (7-3), 7 p.m. Friday >> The winners of Upper Merion/Strath Haven meet the winner of this game. Springfield-Delco comes in on a five-game winning streak, while Phoenixville looks to recover from a tough two-game stretch to end the regular season.

Anthony Ciarlello says Phoenixville needs to start small with their goals in hopes of reversing that trend. “When we talked about setting goals – we need to score,” he said. “We’ve gone eight quarters without finding the end zone. We need to find ourselves again.”

The Phantoms’ offense runs through 1,000-yard rusher junior Sam Moore, while Darius Watson and Ahmid Spivey also figure to see chances in the offensive gameplan. Defensively, the key will be shortening Springfield’s possessions, as the Cougars are at their best when controlling the ball and the pace of the game.

Class 5A: No. 11 Methacton (5-5) at No. 6 Kennett (7-3), 7 p.m. Friday >> Methacton’s first trip to Districts in recent history begins in Chester County, where the Blue Demons romped to a Ches-Mont American title this season. Kennett running back Julian Sparacino is at or near the top of everyone’s Player of the Year list after last week’s school record-breaking 311-yard performance in a win over Great Valley.

On the season, Sparacino’s averaging 7.1 yards per carry with 1486 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns.

Brian Kennedy says it’ll take a full team effort to come out on top Friday, and that start with QB Mike Wolbers, who leads a group of skill position players who’ve rounded into form over the season. Wes Conover’s breakout game last week (three rushing TDs) gives Methacton one more weapon in the running and special teams games.

Class 4A: No. 3 Springfield-Montco (5-4) at No. 2 Pope John Paul II (9-1), 2 p.m. Saturday >> The Golden Panthers played Perkiomen Valley to a standstill for much of last week’s PAC championship game, but they’ll need to put the disappointing outcome behind them in the two-week sprint to a District title.

Springfield-Montco visits this week, and while the Spartans have put together a winning season in 2022 it’s hard to envision them matching the depth and quality of the Perkiomen Valley defense. That could be good news for PJP QB Luke Terlesky as he looks to involve his array of offensive weapons led by Boyd Skarbek (964 yards, 18 TDs rushing; 258 yards receiving) and sophomore Braden Reed (42 catches, 702 yards, 6 TDs receiving).

But PJP will be challenged by Springfield’s heavy fronts on defense, and ball-control style when they have possession. To that end, coach Reed hopes for continued standout play from TJ Boccella, Ryan Lamson, and Makel Parker in the front seven.

Eastern Conference Championship: Williamsport (4-6) at Boyertown (5-5), 7 p.m. Saturday >> The Millionaires make the long trip from Williamsport for the 5A/6A Eastern Conference Final. For Boyertown, it’s an opportunity to host a postseason game after a bounce-back season and redeem last year’s Eastern Conference final loss to Fleetwood.

PAC leading rusher Cole Yesavage looks to follow up last week’s career performance when he set a Boyertown record with 307 yards, adding four touchdowns for good measure. The Bears as a team ran for 584 yards in a 62-31 win over Upper Perkiomen.

Williamsport comes in off a dominant 69-7 win of their own against Tunkhannock.

Hill School (3-5, 1-1 Mid-Atlantic Prep League) at Lawrenceville School (6-2), 2:30 p.m. Saturday >> Kayden White’s big year continues for the Hill, as he accounted for both touchdowns (one offensive, one defensive) in last week’s 14-13 victory over Kiski.

The Rams prepare to face their archrivals Lawrenceville, who’ve enjoyed an impressive campaign with victories against schools from Maryland, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. For local fans, the Big Red also topped Penn Charter 31-10 in week 4.