Week 4 Review: Unbeaten Owen J. Roberts, Pope John Paul II doing it with defense

Normally, an article like this one would start with a rhetorical “Can you believe this week marks the halfway point of the 2023 regular season?”

No need. The first four weeks have been amply eventful for most of the dozen teams that make up the Pioneer Athletic Conference.

Undefeated squads headline both the Liberty and Frontier Divisions, playoff contenders abound, and a total of nine crossover matchups thus far featured teams from each division that might offer a preview of Week 10, the traditional regular season-ending series of Liberty vs. Frontier crossover games.

With no further ado, here’s what you’ve missed if you took the calendar literally and waited until the end of summer to start following Fall sports.

Pioneer Athletic Conference Standings

Doing It with Defense – The Unbeatens

Owen J. Roberts and Pope John Paul II each represent the top of their divisions with 4-0 records, and they’ve taken similar paths to those marks.

The Golden Panthers’ explosive offense could easily be the main subject for this team, but the unit has been a luxury thanks to a defense that didn’t allow a single point through the first three contests including wins against 6A Chambersburg and local power Berks Catholic.

While they allowed some points last Saturday, the Golden Panthers atoned with four interceptions plus a blocked punt return for a touchdown in a 49-20 win over Father Judge.

On the offense, Boyd Skarbek leads the area in rushing at a gaudy 9.4 yards per carry and eight touchdowns, while Luke Terlesky’s thrown for 696 yards and 10 scores – about half of them to junior Braden Reed (349 yards, 5 TD).

In Bucktown, it’s a stingy defense and another emerging duo telling the tale. Since an opening 25-22 win against Conestoga, OJR’s allowed only 14 points – seven of those on a punt return.

A shutout win over Upper Merion Thursday night is the latest notch on the Wildcats’ belts. A young team featuring a host of sophomores and juniors is most evident on defense, but senior leadership comes in the form of dual-threat quarterback Derek Hinrichs, who’s got a pair of 100-yard rushing performances to his credit.

Freshman wide receiver Mekhi Graham provides big-play ability on both sides of the ball, accounting for a half-dozen receiving scores.

Hinrichs and Graham give the ‘Cats a duo that will be a challenge for any of the area’s defenses… including the two who lead our next section.

The Traditional Powers

Business picks up immediately in the Liberty Division, where the OJR/Perkiomen Valley/Spring-Ford round-robin takes place within the next three weeks.

The ‘Cats hopes of making it a three-team race start this Friday at PV, where they’ll contend with a 3-1 Vikings team that holds a win over Smyrna, the state champions of Delaware, to their credit along with wins against Chester and Cheltenham. Patrick MacDonald has the Vikings’ offense moving while sophomore Nathan Reedy emerged as another threat at running back with a 140-yard night against Cheltenham Friday.

But the story, as it often is, is a stout inside linebacking group of Carter Euker, Drew Kenworthy, and Sam Koehler.

One blemish against state-ranked Downingtown West gives the Vikings something else in common with Spring-Ford, who suffered their first setback at Manheim Township Friday.

Quarterback Matt Zollers continued to impress with 311 yards passing and two more touchdowns, raising his area-leading total to 16 scoring passes with nary an interception. He’s found a favorite target in speedster Mason Scott (496 yards, seven TDs), but Belal Abdelrahman (360 yards, two TDs) is forcing secondaries to pick their poison.

Both the Whippets of Downingtown West and the Blue Streaks of Manheim Township figure to be in the conversation well into November. It wouldn’t be any surprise to see either – or both – PV and Spring-Ford in that same discussion.

Surprised?

This season, there’s ample company at the 3-1 mark. Methacton and Phoenixville continue their ascension in Class 5A with only a single loss (Methacton to Plymouth-Whitemarsh; Phoenixville to Chester) but the story is the improvement of Pottstown, now 3-1 after a 28-12 win over Executive Education Academy Charter of District 11.

The transitive property doesn’t really work in football, but EEAC turned some heads in this area when they played Berks Catholic just about even in a 19-14 loss in week two. But the real story at Pottstown is the development of a true bread-and-butter offensive approach – powerful back Nahzir Booker running behind an improving offensive line.

Booker picked up 100-plus yards rushing and multiple touchdowns on the ground against EEAC, plus a defensive score for the second consecutive week.

“The biggest key was the line,” added Booker. “That was the biggest key that won the game.”

The hot start gives confidence to the 3-1 Trojans, but it’ll mean a whole lot more if they can keep the good times rolling when they host archrival Pottsgrove (2-2) Friday.

Parity?

It’s tough to draw consistent comparisons between the 6A school-laden Liberty Division and the 4A/5A contenders in the Frontier.

But it’s hard to ignore that:

The PAC has eight teams that would qualify for District playoffs if they started today – four from each division.
The combined record of the teams in each division is 14-10.
Through nine crossover games, the Liberty Division holds an ever-so-slight 5-4 head-to-head advantage.

To be continued in Week 10…

Suburban One League

It’s been a while for William Tennent, but the Panthers have a two-game winning streak riding into Friday’s non-conference showdown with Father Judge after a 24-6 win over Hatboro Horsham.

Following last week’s 21-20 triumph over Upper Merion, Tennent has back-to-back victories for the first time in four years and finds themselves in the thick of the 6A playoff race as they enter the meat of their schedule.

After three consecutive one-score victories to start 2023, Souderton made life a little easier on themselves this week in a 42-0 win over Council Rock North. Danny Dyches’ big start to his senior year continued with a pair of rushing touchdowns and a pick-six of defense.

The 4-0 Big Red are threatening for the top spot in District 1-Class 6A as they head to Truman this week.

Ches-Mont League

The battle for Downingtown should be a dandy this year.

The Cougars and Whippets stand at a combined 8-0, and along with 3-1 Coatesville they comprise perhaps the most interesting divisional race in the area.

Coatesville drew the short end of the scheduling stick this season, as they come to Kottmeyer Stadium to battle D-West on October 6 and return two weeks later for a matchup with the Cougars before the two Downingtown schools tangle in the final week of the regular season.

They all may just be previews, however, as a rematch of any combination of the three squads seems almost likely deep into the District playoffs.

Central League

When Springfield-Delco took Strath Haven down to the wire in week two, the Cougars announced themselves as bona-fide contenders in both the Central League and at the District level.

This week, they furthered the statement in a 22-0 win over a Marple Newtown squad with designs on making a similar leap in 2023.

The result brought Marple’s hot offensive start to the season to a screeching halt. The Tigers came into Friday averaging 51 points per game but were never the same after an opening-drive turnover at the Springfield one-yard line.

Springfield quarterback Ryan Whitaker threw for 140 yards and two touchdowns.

Marple Newtown looks to get back on track against Ridley this coming week. The Green Raiders claimed their first win of 2023 in a thrashing of Lower Merion.