La Salle College High School Football: Chronicle 2013

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1 by Chris Jastrzembski, WEXP Sports Blog, August 11, 2013 Training Camp Preview Today begins the first day of La Salle Sports for the school year, with practices and tryouts beginning. One of the biggest events during this time is training camp. Throughout these next two weeks, we will have news about what s going on in camp, including interviews, videos, and possibly new things that have not been done in years past. Let s take a look at some key stories that we will cover in the next couple of weeks. 1. The arrival of QB Kyle Shurmur This has been the most talked about subject at La Salle since early this calendar year. He s 6-foot-4 and weighs 210 pounds, and is the son of current Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur. This will be his first year as a starting QB and he also gets to work with offensive coordinator Brett Gordon (Shurmur will be wearing Brett s old number on the field this season, #9 [editor s note right now, it seems to be number 14]). It will be interesting to see what the two-sport athlete (also a swimmer) brings to this team and if he can pick up where current Kutztown QB Chris Kane left off. Shurmur also wanted to play safety this year, but head coach Drew Gordon is not open to that idea for this year only. 2. No-Huddle Offense Along with a new quarterback also comes a new offense Drew Gordon will use this year. He s been developing new plays and new play calls for the offense, as well as figuring out where some guys on defense might take some snaps of the other side of the ball. Gordon has also talked to NCAA referee and science teacher Mr. Gerry Evans about the rules of using a no-huddle offense in high school, which has its differences compared to college and the pros. 3. Filling the Gaps Many of the starters from last year are gone, including the majority of the offensive and defensive lines. Guys like Tyler Fallon, Bill Frusco, and a healthy Dave Geppert are expected to anchor at least one line. Ryan Coonahan is expected to replace Jon Naji as a defensive end. Matt Raczak becomes the new kicker and punter, replacing Ryan Winslow, and we also see the return of LB Brendan Daly, who did not play last year. He has been working very hard to get back into football form, being one of the best players during offseason lifts as well. Another player that should be healthy is RB Jordan Meachum, who was on-and-off with injuries last year, starting with the first game of the regular season. He is a very important part of the run-game and needs to stay healthy all year long as he plays a crucial part of the ground-game as well as the entire offense. 4. Team Chemistry It is always an important part for a successful team. Many of them know each other already, whether it was working out with one another or hanging out down the shore. But it is also a good time to get to know the sophomores, Shurmur, and the guys that are new to the team this year. Here-and-there, flareups are going to ensue, but that is how camp usually is, and that is what makes a team bond together with one another. Take the lacrosse team from last year as an example. Although many of them played with each other the year before, they all had one similarity, which was to win the State Championship. Everyone worked with one another to get better during the offseason as well as during the spring. That ended up in the ultimate goal of a trophy and a big 30-pound Hershey bar, something the football team wants to get for the first time since

2 by Dennis C. Way, Times Herald, August 18, 2013 Football: Shurmur looking forward to leading Explorers SPRINGFIELD In the early part of this offseason, La Salle High head football coach Drew Gordon had few alternatives when it came to the offense his Explorers planned to run this year. With last year s starter Chris Kane lost to graduation and no viable starter in sight, Gordon planned to go with Jimmy Herron, a gifted athlete who was primarily a wideout and defensive back but who was used as the quarterback when the Explorers offense went into a wildcat formation last season. Herron was our quarterback and we were going to run option, Gordon said. And then, one day in February, the phone rang. When Gordon answered, the voice at the other end of the phone belonged to Pat Shurmur, the former Philadelphia Eagles tight ends and quarterbacks coach who had worked for the team from 1999 to 2008 and who had just recently been re-hired by new Eagles head coach Chip Kelly as the team s offensive coordinator. Pat was calling about his son Kyle, a highly touted quarterback who was the starter for powerhouse St. Edward High School in Cleveland. With the Shurmurs moving back into the area, Pat was looking for the best place for Kyle to go to school. Someone had suggested La Salle and Pat was investigating the school. I had heard (the Shurmur family) were looking around, Gordon said. I told him to have his son come to the school for a day and see if he liked it. Kyle visited, and apparently liked what he saw. And the Explorers have a new quarterback. I just felt real comfortable on my visit, the quarterback said. I ended up visiting both Saint Joseph s Prep and La Salle and both were great schools. My parents said to go where I felt most comfortable, and that was here. It just came down to feeling a little more comfortable here. I really hadn t heard much about La Salle. When my dad was here the first time working for the Eagles I had heard a lot about St. Joe Prep from the Mornhinwegs (the son of former Eagles offensive coordinator, Marty Mornhinweg, Skyler attended the Prep), and Juan Castillo s sons played at the Prep, and both were very passionate about the school. But I liked it here. Shurmur, who is also a competitive swimmer, added that athletics had little to do with his decision. It really was a school decision, he said. There would have been very little difference playing football and swimming here or at St. Joe. I felt it was a win-win situation. But I was happier here. Because of who his father is, Kyle automatically becomes the most examined player on the La Salle roster, with all the preconceived expectations built in. It is a subject the junior signal-caller has considered. I ll just take things one day at a time, he said. The way I see it, I m just a kid who plays football at La Salle. I know that people will single me out because of who my father is, but we re two different people. I m just one of La Salle s quarterbacks. A quarterback who was gushing with praise for the Explorers former quarterback, Brett Gordon, the head coach s son, who knows something about playing in the shadows of a famous quarterback, and who has given Shurmur a crash course in the complicated La Salle offense. Brett s great, Shurmur said. He s made things very simple and slowed the game down for me. He s been great, as have all of the coaches. Brett has taken a lot of his time to show me things, I ve put a lot of time into it and it s starting to get easier. It hasn t taken long for Shurmur to fit in, and he already has a La Salle athlete s goals. 2

3 I want to win the PCL, Shurmur said, and the state championship. Individual accolades can only take you so far. I just want to win. With Shurmur under center the Explorers will go back to the multi-faceted offense that has annually put them in the state-title chase. He gets it, Coach Gordon said. He has that kind of mind from being around it all of these years. And these days, Coach Gordon has little trouble naming his starter. ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT Jimmy Herron LaSalle College HS David Mika Eastern PA Football, August 21st, 2013 Jimmy Herron La Salle College HS Height: 6-0 Weight: 175 Class of: 2015 Position(s): ATH/QB/KR/PR/WR/S Jersey: # 3 Years with Varsity: 2-years Other Sports: Baseball Starting experience: 1-year 2012 Stats: Herron rushed for 533 yards on 101 carries and seven touchdowns. In the wildcat he passes for 235 yards on 13 of 23 passes and three touchdowns. He caught 37 passes for 668 yards and nine touchdowns. On defense he had two interceptions. Honors: 2nd team All-Catholic at WR, 1st team Daily News All-league at ATH; 3rd team Daily News All- City at ATH Coaches Q&A with Drew Gordon: What kind of leader is he? He is a quiet kid. He is more of a leader by example. He comes and does what he is supposed to do. He s a very smart kid. He understands everything we try to do. He is very coachable and always working to get better. He is a team player first and will play anywhere on the field if it would help the team. He plays all over the field for you. Talk about his strengths? I think his best position is outside. He is not a big kid, but has good speed and instincts. He understands what he is doing out there whether it is at receiver, quarterback or safety. He is a student of the game. One of the things a like about him is even in practice he will lineup against our best player so he can get better. On defense his strength is anticipation and speed. LINEBACKER SPOTLIGHT Zaire Franklin LaSalle College HS David Mika, Eastern PA Football, August 24th, 2013 Zaire Franklin, La Salle College HS Height: 6-1 Weight: Yard Dash: 4.6 3

4 Class of: 2014 Position(s): MLB Jersey: # 4 Starting experience: 1-year 2012 Stats: He had two interceptions. Honors: 1st team AAAA All-Catholic; 1st team All-Area, 1st team All-City and Class AAA All-State honorable mention Coaches Q&A with Drew Gordon: What are his strengths on the field? His biggest asset is his speed. He is a good athlete. He has a strong football IQ. He is a student of the game. He watches a lot of film and he asks a lot of questions. He is our leader on defense. Schools of Interest: Committed to Syracuse By Joseph Santoliquito, CBSPhilly, August 26, 2013 Kyle Shurmur Takes Over At La Salle Philadelphia, PA (CBS) Kyle Shurmur is a little deceiving. For one, he s heavier than he looks. Another is that he s in a new role, a role suited for him, a role it seems he s held for years. He hasn t. For the first time this season, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound junior will be a starting high school varsity quarterback. He ll be the hub for five-time defending Philadelphia Catholic League champion La Salle, arriving at this destination via St. Edward, of Lakewood, Ohio, a powerhouse program in a stud football state. Shurmur also arrives with a deep football pedigree as the son of Pat Shurmur, the Eagles offensive coordinator and former head coach of the Cleveland Browns who was once an All-Big 10 center at Michigan State. As for Kyle, he likes the fact that he s been around NFL teams ever since he can remember picking up a football. He also likes being his own person and sure, he takes pride in being Pat Shurmur s son, but there is a growing possibility that maybe one day Pat Shurmur will be recognized as Kyle Shurmur s dad. It starts now. This will be a new experience for me, said Kyle, who got varsity reps last season at St. Edwards in a back-up role. I was looking at La Salle and St. Joe s [Prep], and I saw the great job La Salle [coaches] Brett and Drew Gordon do every year with their offense. But it wasn t about football, it was about going to a great academic school. Me and my parents, we both loved St. Joe s Prep and La Salle. They are both great schools, but I liked La Salle a little more, so choosing either school was a win-win for me. Shurmur should excel in the high-flying offense the Gordons draw up. They throw a lot at their quarterbacks, and it appears Kyle has absorbed most of it. Though Drew Gordon, the Explorers head coach, wants to ease Kyle into his new position. In the time we ve had Kyle I like his poise and maturity; he knows what he s doing. You can tell he s a self-confident kid, Drew Gordon said. We ll see how it goes. I m not saying anything else until he plays. The other thing that shows is you can tell he s from a football background, and he s grown up in that atmosphere. Kyle s traveled the country and he s received knowledge a lot of kids his age haven t. He has a pretty good football IQ. But no one really knows anything until we play. 4

5 Kyle is taking the same approach. For me, it s all about winning, Kyle says. Individual stats don t matter, it s all about winning and leading La Salle into the Catholic League playoffs and to a state championship. It will be a challenge this year, something new for me, since I ll be starting for the first time. I m sure I ll be a little nervous at first. I have to take it one step at a time. I feel like there is a lot of talent on this team and we ll be pretty solid. Though again, Kyle Shurmur is a little deceiving. It s not just football with him. He also happens to excel in another sport swimming. It s deeply entrenched in Kyle s blood, from his mother, Jennifer Shurmur, a standout swimmer at Michigan State, where she met Pat. His oldest sister Allyson is senior team captain for Boston College s swim team and Erica, the second-eldest Shurmur, swims for her parent s alma mater, Michigan State. Hey, you won t find me wearing those Speedos, I wear the compression shorts, said Kyle, laughing. But I do enjoy swimming. You can say it s in my blood, too, along with football. But football is my main sport. It s what I grew up playing and it s what I plan on doing in college. Kyle aims to swim for the Explorers this winter, but his start may be stunted by how deep he can lead the Explorers in the state playoffs. La Salle has owned the Philadelphia Catholic League, but that streak will be threatened by Prep this season. Kyle is aware of it all. He knows about the rivalry, he also knows the scrutiny that s bound to follow, being Pat Shurmur s son. I take a lot of pride in that, but he s dad to me, Kyle said. My dad lets be my own person and allows me to do my thing. There are of things I got from him. He allowed me to watch film and break things down when I was in seventh and eighth grade. But at the end of the day, I m just another player at La Salle. That s the way I look at it. My goal is pretty simple just to win. That s all, just win and enjoy being a La Salle football player and have fun. If that s not your goal, you shouldn t be playing football. I try to be a pretty bottom-line guy. I m going to do what I have to do to make everyone around me better. Everything else will take care of itself. Don t be deceived by Kyle Shurmur. He may be a first-time varsity starter, but Michigan State and Penn State are already interested in him. Chances are that list will grow. by Tim McManus, Inquirer Game 1, August 31, 2013: La Salle 34 North Penn 7 La Salle Takes Down North Penn Kyle Shurmur stood in the shotgun formation, hands at his sides, his gold helmet cocked toward the La Salle sideline as he awaited the play. He spent a lot of time in that pose Saturday night. What happened next was more often than not excellent in La Salle's 34-7 rout of North Penn at Plymouth Whitemarsh. Shurmur's debut created the perfect storm of anticipation: The 6-foot-4 junior made his first start after transferring from Ohio powerhouse St. Edward. He did so for arguably the area's premier program against a marquee opponent before a standing-room-only crowd. And he's the son of Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur. The results will do little to dampen the excitement. Shurmur went 16 for 25 for 185 yards and two touchdowns. He hummed the ball to six receivers and showed little trouble running the Explorers' nohuddle offense. Aside from a late fumble and a miscue on a shotgun snap, it was a smooth debut. "Some good, some bad," Shurmur said. "I really need to get better, take care of the ball more. Starting Monday, this game is behind me." The Shurmur era got off to a slow start as the Explorers went three 5

6 and out on their first possession. He warmed to the task as the half progressed. Shurmur completed a 22-yard pass on fourth down from the 27-yard line to set up Jordan Meachum's 5-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. In the second, Shurmur threaded a 5-yard touchdown pass through a tight lane to wide receiver Jimmy Herron on a slant route. "He puts the ball right on your numbers every time," Herron said. Shurmur got plenty of help from an offense that returned just one starter. Meachum carried 19 times for 110 yards and a touchdown. The defense, led by Syracuse recruit Zaire Franklin, allowed just an early fourth-quarter touchdown. "We help each other out. We trust each other," Shurmur said. "I feel like we're going to be a special team this year." Shurmur stood six-deep at the back of the postgame huddle as his teammates bobbed up and down. He might not be at the center of the celebrations yet, but that, too, seems just a matter of time. by Tim Hindin, Times Herald Defense makes a statement for La Salle Saturday night featured a match up that pitted perennial state powerhouses North Penn visiting La Salle. The first offensive and defensive drives for the Explorers did not look promising, as the offense went three and out and the defense allowed the North Penn offense to drive 40 yards and pick up three first downs. "First series we were slow,' La Salle defensive lineman Ryan Coonahan said. "Everyone was slow, a little tired, just getting back into it and then after they got a couple big plays, we played how we normally do and shut them down.' The Explorers were able to keep North Penn off the scoreboard that drive. In fact the La Salle defense stifled the Knights' offense for the rest of the game. The only blemish on the Explorers' defense was a two-yard touchdown run by North Penn fullback Luke Berry set up by a 43-yard reception by wide receiver Justin Hudimac. The La Salle defense allowed only 53 yards of total offense in first half and only 121 after the Knights first drive of the game. With the defense dominating, it allowed to the Explorers' offense to stay on field and continually score. LaSalle took a 14-0 lead into the locker room, and after forcing a North Penn punt on its first two series out of halftime, the offense put two more touchdowns on the board. "They said, defense keep giving us the ball we've got to score,'' Coonahan said. "We kept stopping them [the offense], got two scores and it kind of put [North Penn's] momentum down once we got up What made La Salle's defense most effective was the physicality upfront. The Explorers' defense was able to control the line of scrimmage. "That starts with practice, Coonahan said. "We run a real tough practice, our defensive line coach makes us work on defensive days getting prepared. They know the blocking scheme what they do, so it gets us ready for each game.' With La Salle controlling the line of scrimmage the Knights could not get their running game going, something that the North Penn offense is predicated on. "Our plan was stop the run, make them pass because we know they want to run, Coonahan said. La Salle hopes its statement win can be one to carry momentum and send the message that they are still a team to be reckoned with in PIAA Class AAAA. "We lost a lot to graduation this year so people are kind of looking down on us, Coonahan said. "This was a great confidence booster, to come out of the gates [and get a win] especially against North Penn. This is what we all dream about since we were freshmen, senior year North Penn, so it really sets the tone for the season. 6

7 by Todd Thorpe, Phillyburbs.com North Penn pounded by La Salle PLYMOUTH MEETING The high-powered, multidimensional offense that puts a lot of points on the scoreboard is almost expected when playing La Salle football teams. North Penn had that to deal with in its nonleague season opener Saturday night. But the Knights also had to deal with a strong, physical defensive front seven, and it was that unit that dominated for most the game. What resulted was a long night for the Knights, who dropped a one-sided 34-7 game to the Explorers at Plymouth Whitemarsh. I just think it was execution on offense, North Penn senior quarterback Austin Shearer said. They were getting through. I don t think it was anybody s fault. They were just getting through. It hasn t been often in recent years that North Penn s trademark physical running game has had so much trouble moving the ball. It s usually the one that smashes the other team in the mouth. The shoe was on the other foot Saturday. We make too many simple mistakes that we shouldn t be making, NP coach Dick Beck said. Maybe we make some mistakes here early, but snapping the ball late, fumbling snaps, stuff like that. That s a little bit frustrating. La Salle is a very good team. I think we can be good. But obviously you can t play like we did tonight and expect to be even close to La Salle. Ironically, the Knights held the Explorers to a quick three-and-out on the game s first possession, and then North Penn marched on an 11-play, five-minute drive to the La Salle 38. But the drive stalled there, and the offense pretty much remained dormant the rest of the way. At the half, North Penn had just 68 yards of total offense, and that carried over to the second half. The Knights only score, a 2-yard run by senior Luke Berry, came when they trailed They ve got very aggressive linebackers, Beck said. Obviously, (La Salle standout linebacker Zaire Franklin) is a very good player. We weren t sealing. I think we were cutting back a little too much. The aforementioned, high-power La Salle offense showed up, too, and it came by air and on the ground. Quarterback Kyle Shurmur, a junior transfer and the son of Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, had flashes of brilliance in his La Salle debut. Shurmur was 16-for-25 for 179 yards and two touchdowns. Explorers junior running back Jordan Meechum rushed for 105 yards and a score and caught one of those TD passes. For North Penn, it s back to the drawing board to get ready for another very good opponent, as it hosts Archbishop Wood on Friday. We ve got to look at the film first off, Shearer said. To see what we can do better as a team, every position, and then look at Wood and (St. Joseph s Prep), and the teams to come. It s tough with the first three games being (against such quality opponents), but it will make us tougher as a team. I think we ll be ready. by Kev Hunter, GametimePA.com North Penn no match for La Salle in opener 7

8 PLYMOUTH MEETING - North Penn had to wait until early in the fourth quarter Saturday night for its first points of the season. Off of play action, quarterback Austin Shearer lofted a deep ball down the left sideline to an open Justin Hudimac, who caught it in stride and took it down to the La Salle two-yard line for a 43-yard again. On the next play, fullback Luke Berry powered his way over the goal line for a touchdown. Down 27-7, it would be the Knights' only score in an otherwise frustrating night. "We were trying to get that the whole game,' Shearer said of the deep ball. "It was hard because they were bringing a lot of heat. We thought they would bite on it because we were running the ball a lot and it was nice to get that ball downfield and break the shutout, have a little bit of pride.' North Penn fell 34-7 to its non-league rival on a hot, humid night on the turf at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School. The Explorers controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and held North Penn to just 56 yards on the ground. "We make too many simple mistakes that you can't make,' Knights coach Dick Beck said. "Maybe they're mistakes you make here early in the season, but snapping the ball late, fumbling snaps, stuff like that. That's frustrating.' After a promising opening drive culminated in a turnover on downs at the Explorer 38, North Penn (0-1) would gain only two first downs the rest of the half. During that span, La Salle (1-0) took control of the contest. The Explorers moved the ball 62 yards on their second series of the night and took a 7-0 lead on a fouryard run by Jordan Meachum, who was able to bounce it to the outside and race his way to the corner. The key play of the drive came on a 4th-and-10 at the Knight 27, with Shurmur hitting Levi Hardy on a deep slant to set up the first score. Two possessions later, Shurmur hit Jimmy Herron on a short slant, good for a five-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead. The Knights had to punt three times in the second quarter and their last possession of the half ended with an interception. La Salle sacked Shearer twice in the first half and also plugged up the running lanes. "They have very aggressive linebackers,' Beck said. "We weren't sealing them, and I think we were trying to cut back a little too much. North Penn was again forced to punt on its opening series of the third quarter and soon after, La Salle was on the march again. The tough running of Meachum yielded three first downs on the drive, which was capped off by a 17-yard touchdown run up the gut by Jared Walls. The Explorers were in control at "La Salle's a very good team,' Beck said. "I think we can be good but you can't play like we did tonight and expect to be even close to La Salle. The Explorers scored on their only two possessions of the third. The second TD required a little bit of improvisation by Shurmur, who was flushed out to the right but bought time and found Meachum in the end zone for an 8-yard scoring pass and a commanding 27-0 lead. "We don't have a lot of experience on the varsity level but we're gonna embrace that, help each other out, said Shurmur, a junior. "We trust each other.' In a matchup of two programs used to making deep runs into the playoffs, La Salle was the team that played pretty much mistake-free ball. After Berry's score, La Salle finished things off with a 12-yard touchdown pass from backup quarterback Chris Ferguson to Charles Headen. North Penn will aim for its first win on Friday night, when the Knights host Archbishop Wood. 8

9 "We'll be back strong, Shearer said. by Huck Palmer, Ted Silary s Website The Explorers have won the last five PCL 4A championships (6 of the last 7 counting a PCL Red title in 06) and have reached at least the state semifinals in the last four years. They won a state title in 09 and were runner-ups 10. So, success is nothing new to them. Reloading has become commonplace and at this point one could think it s expected. Still, they were hit reasonably hard by graduation a year ago. They returned only one offensive starter and three on defense, so new faces are in abundance for Drew Gordon s club. Well, it s only one game, but if the Explorers didn t pass their first test with flying colors, then they came pretty darn close. North Penn is a huge school and typically a District 1 power. Sure, they could be down a little this year, but such a convincing win isn t anything to look down at. La Salle was methodical early and then downright business-like later on. They outgained the Knights 415-to-165 and doubled them 22-to-11 in first downs. Seventy-six of NP s yards came on their lone touchdown drive at the end of the third quarter and into the fourth. As most football fans in this area know long-time Eagles coach Andy Reid was let go at the end of last season. This led to a coaching search that eventually brought Oregon s Chip Kelly to the Eagles. In turn, Kelly tabbed Pat Shurmur as his offensive coordinator. Where is all this leading? Well, Shurmur has a son, jr. QB Kyle Shurmur, who opted for La Salle with his family moving to the area. Even though the younger Shurmur had never started a game at St. Edward s, an Ohio power, all indications have been that he is a keeper. Tonight was our first look. Personally, I liked what I saw. A good sized kid at 6 4, 215-lbs, who did well maneuvering around the pocket to help buy additional time. All total, he finished 16-of-25 for 181 yards, including two scores to jr. WR/DB Jimmy Herron (5 yards) and jr. RB Jordan Meachum (8 yards). La Salle s staff always does a good job with their quarterbacks, so there is no reason not to think that many good days lie ahead for this kid. La Salle also got another transfer QB this offseason in soph. 6 3, 190-lbs Chris Ferguson (Upper Dublin)). They are high on this youngster as well. He closed out the scoring with a 12-yard TD to soph. WR Charles Headen. It was his only attempt of the game. La Salle s other two scores came on runs from Meachum (4 yards) and soph. RB Jared Walls (17 yards). Meachum rushed 19 times for 107 yards in the game. He runs hard and low to the ground. Walls added 31 yards on 5 totes, while another soph. RB Nick Rinella (5-72) also impressed. Shurmur s top targets were sr. WR Levi Hardy (5-86) and Herron (5-32). La Salle s grunts included soph. C Matt McDermott, G s sr. David Geppert (6 3, 260-lbs) and sr. Bill Frusco, and T s jr. Aidan Kerrigan and sr. Vince Cicalese. Sr. FB Nick Buckley blocked well all evening. Defensively, jr. WR/DB AJ Greseszak snatched a pick. Sacks were had by sr. LB Zaire Franklin (Syracuse), sr. DE Ryan Coonahan, and soph DL Conor McCracken. Sr. LB Ryan Brady and sr. DB Tamar Turner were active all night and evenly split 14 stops. Franklin added six. Next week, the Explorers take on 2A power Imhotep Charter in what should be an early-season test for both squads. There will be a lot of people around these parts looking to see how this one ends up. The game is scheduled for Saturday night at 6 o clock at the Northwest Super Site (former home to Germantown's program). North Penn La Salle LS: Jordan Meachum 5 run (Matt Raczak kick) LS: Jimmy Herron 5 pass from Kyle Shurmur (Raczak kick) 9

10 LS: Jared Walls 16 run (kick failed) LS: Meachum 8 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) NP: Luke Berry 1 run (Andrew Kirsch kick) LS: Charles Headen 20 pass from Chris Ferguson (Raczak kick) North Penn La Salle First Downs Yards Rushing Yards Passing Total Offense Comp. Passes, Int Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards Punts-Avg Sacked-Yds. Lost North Penn Rushing: Berry 10-53, 1 TD; Wright 5-18; Akins 3-9; Dickinson 4-7; West 1-4; Posavec 1-0; Jones 1-(-7); Shearer 6-(-25) Passing: Shearer , 106 yards Receiving: Hudimac 2-53; Akins 2-26; Berry 2-11; Dickinson 1-9; Quinn 1-7 La Salle Rushing: Meachum , 1 TD; Rinella 6-73; Walls 7-25, 1 TD; Buckley 3-17; Shurmur 7-(-2) Passing: Shurmur , 179 yards, 2 TDs; Ferguson 1-1-0, 12 yards, 1 TD Receiving: Hardy 5-85; Herron 5-31, 1 TD; Coonahan 1-30; Grezeszak 3-20; Headen 2-17, 1 TD; Meachum 1-8, 1 TD Interceptions: Grezeszak by Rick O'Brien, Inquirer Staff Writer, September 6, 2013 Powers La Salle, Imhotep to clash It's only Week 2, but Saturday night's matchup between La Salle and Imhotep Charter is expected to have the electric atmosphere of a playoff game. La Salle, the Catholic League's five-time defending Class AAAA champ, is ranked No. 2 in Southeastern Pennsylvania; Imhotep, a Public League Class AA powerhouse, comes in at No. 6. For Imhotep, the 6 p.m. contest at Johnston Memorial Stadium in Mount Airy is a chance to gain major respect for both its program and the sometimes disrespected Public League. Both teams impressed in their season openers. The Explorers easily handled North Penn, 34-7, and the Panthers raced past Cardinal Mooney (Ohio), 49-21, at Youngstown State. Here is a closer look at the nonleague contest. Coaches: Drew Gordon is in eight seasons at La Salle; Albie Crosby, a former West Catholic assistant, is 15-1 in his second year at Imhotep. History: This is the first meeting between the squads. Neighbors: For La Salle, it's a short drive down Cheltenham Avenue to Mount Airy. 10

11 Quick fact I: The Explorers' Zaire Franklin, a senior tight end and linebacker, played youth football for the Oak Lane Wildcats. One of his coaches was current Imhotep assistant Eric Richardson. Quick fact II: Since Crosby took over last year, the Panthers have outscored foes by Solid debut: In his first start for La Salle, Kyle Shurmur, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound junior quarterback, completed 16 of 25 passes for 181 yards and two touchdowns. Return tallies: Imhotep scored twice on interceptions against Cardinal Mooney, with Shaquille Jones and Zahir Wright finding pay dirt from 71 and 70 yards, respectively. Junior catalysts: La Salle's Jordan Meachum carried 19 times for 108 yards vs. North Penn; Imhotep's Nasir Bonner, a Division I-A prospect, netted 143 yards on 16 tries against Cardinal Mooney. Big up front: Imhotep's offensive line includes center Gordon Thomas (6-foot, 305 pounds), guards John Carlo-Valentine (6-4, 285) and Aaron Ruff (6-5, 280), and tackle Taleem Muhammad (6-6, 300). Quotable I: Gordon on the Panthers' mammoth linemen: "It'll be difficult. David Geppert [a 6-3, 260- pound senior] is the only one close to that size." Injury report: La Salle's Mike Koller, a senior defensive back, remains sidelined because of a concussion suffered in training camp. X factor: In addition to being a force at strong safety, Imhotep's Deandre Scott is a threat as a running back, Wildcat-formation quarterback, and punt returner. Quotable II: Crosby on the Explorers: "It's La Salle. You know they're always going to be disciplined and well-coached." Analysis: Key for La Salle is keeping Bonner and company from ripping off big gains. Imhotep can't allow Shurmur time to set up and throw to a sure-handed receiving corps. Pick: The Explorers overcome the Panthers' size and speed advantage with late-game savvy. La Salle, Game 2, September 7, 2013: Imhotep Charter 40 La Salle 28 by Rick O Brien, Inquirer Imhotep Tops La Salle, Makes Statement Several bobbled catches, a solid rushing attack fueled by a mammoth offensive line, and a turnovercausing defense paved the way for a major early-season statement. Imhotep Charter gained respect for its up-and-coming Class AA program and the Public League by pinning a defeat on Catholic League AAAA power La Salle on Saturday night at Johnston Memorial Stadium in Mount Airy. "This shows that we can play with anybody," said Imhotep's Deandre Scott, a senior multipurpose standout. In highlight-reel fashion both times, junior wideout Dennison "D.J." Moore snagged touchdown passes of 53 and 26 yards. "I just did my best to concentrate and keep my eyes on the ball," he said. Moore's first TD, after he found his way past La Salle's last line of defense, was a bobbling catch. On the second, the 6-foot, 185-pounder separated himself from two defenders in the back of the end zone and made a leaping grab. Imhotep is 2-0, having opened the season with a romp over Cardinal Mooney (Ohio). That spells major trouble for coming Public League AA foes. Against the Explorers, who impressed in a Week 1 romp over North Penn, the Panthers intercepted junior Kyle Shurmur three times and recovered two fumbles. "You don't block and tackle, you're not going to beat anybody," said La Salle coach Drew Gordon, whose squad was without star tight end and linebacker Zaire Franklin (injured finger). The Panthers, who last 11

12 season went 14-1 and advanced to the state semifinals, netted 177 yards on the ground. A gigantic offensive line included center Gordon Thomas (6-0, 305), guards John Carlo-Valentine (6-4, 285) and Aaron Ruff (6-5, 280), and tackles Taleem Muhammad (6-6, 300) and Antoine Williams (6-3, 280). Late in the second quarter of a tie, a controversial call - officials ruled that Shurmur had fumbled before crossing the goal line - shifted the momentum. With two TDs in the last 32 seconds, Imhotep led, 26-14, at halftime. Imhotep's Andre Dreuitt-Parks completed 7 of 12 throws for 215 yards and three scores; Shurmur hit on 20 of 38 for 385 yards and three TDs. by Dennis C. Way, Gametimepa.com Football: Imhotep powers past La Salle in high-scoring affair PHILADELPHIA One minute and 25 seconds. That turned out to be the difference in La Salle High's football team celebrating a terrific early-season win, and being on the losing end of a loss to Imhotep Charter in a non-league contest played Saturday night at the Northwest Supersite in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. Imhotep had all but offered a challenge to the Explorers, getting the message through to La Salle that it could hang with any team in the state, including the perennial Class AAAA powerhouse and Philadelphia Catholic League champs. And after jumping out to a 14-0, first-quarter lead, it appeared the Panthers' boasts might be proven true. Instead, La Salle roared back to tie the game at 14 early in the second quarter and were driving to take a lead into halftime in the closing moments of the first half. Then it happened. After reaching second-and-goal inside the Imhotep 1-yard line, the Explorers were turned away on consecutive running plays. Facing fourth down, La Salle called timeout, then lined up to go for the touchdown. But it was not to be. La Salle quarterback Kyle Shurmur fumbled before crossing the goal line and the Panthers Quadeem Starks recovered in the end zone with 1:30 left in the half. Not content to rest on the glory of their goal-line stand, the Panthers went for broke. And four plays later, quarterback Andre Dreuitt tossed a 53-yard scoring pass to DJ Moore to give Imhotep back the lead. Two plays into La Salle's ensuing possession, Shurmur was sacked and fumbled, with the Panthers recovering at the La Salle 35. From there, Drueitt found Nasir Bonner for a second Panthers score in the span of 28 seconds. The Panthers took a lead into the break, and never lost it. The Explorers fought back gamely, forcing a fumble on Imhotep's first possession of the second half and turning it into a 34-yard touchdown pass from Shurmur to Jordan Meachum to cut the deficit to But after holding Imhotep on the following series, Shurmur and the Explorers offense was exploited again, this time when a Shurmur pass was batted into the air and into the hands of Randell Hunter, who strolled into the end zone for a 25-yard score. With a lead, the Panthers ran out the clock, although a 16-yard, Shurmur-to-Levi Hardy touchdown pass pulled the Explorers within with 11:22 left in the game. Imhotep got a 50-yard return of the ensuing kickoff by Braheem Garland to set up the night's final score, a fourth-down, highlight-reel pass play from Drueitt to Moore, who made an incredible leaping catch over Meachum in the back of the end zone with 8:36 to play. 12

13 Shurmur was terrific in defeat for La Salle, throwing for 361 yards and three scores. But the junior quarterback was intercepted three times, sacked five times and lost a pair of fumbles. The Panthers scored on their first two possessions, with Bonner scoring from the 3-yard line after a 62- yard pass play from Dreuitt to Moore on Imhotep's first play from scrimmage. Mike Waters polished off a nine-play, 97-yard drive with a 17-yard scoring run with 2:46 left in the first quarter. La Salle cut the deficit in half when Shurmur found Hardy for a 74-yard touchdown pass just 51 seconds later. An 18-yard run by Meachum tied the game with 9:23 left in the half. But then came the fateful 1:25. The explosive Panthers finished the game with 403 yards of total offense. by Ted Silary This isn't supposed to happen. The biggest reason the PIAA groups schools by enrollment classifications is that small ones are not good enough -- again, supposedly -- to beat big ones. But here we are, two weeks into the season, and a Class AA school (Imhotep) owns an impressive victory over one (La Salle) in the Class AAAA grouping. Later in the season, when these schools are trying to win league/city/state championships, will this one still matter? Hard to say, but there's no doubt 'Tep experienced major euphoria before what basically amounted to a full house at Ben Johnston Memorial Stadium, in Mt. Airy. (If those folks standing behind the fences would have been forced to park their butts in the stands, we would have been talkin' capacity crowd.) Meanwhile, one of the most satisfying things in sports is watching a medium player turn into a very good player. For Exhibit A, we give you 'Tep jr. QB Andre Dreuitt. Though he had some decent moments last season, he never seemed completely confident. But in this one, he delivered some PERFECT passes on long tosses off streak/fly patterns and even a slightly misdirected rocket turned into gold. In all, Dreuitt went 7-for-12 for 212 yards and three TDs, two to jr. WR Denniston "DJ" Moore (3-128) and one to jr. RB Nasir Bonner (3-65). Coach Albie Crosby showed immediate brass, calling for a long pass on Imhotep's first play. Dreuitt's long pass was RIGHT there and Moore made a terrific catch for a 61-yard gain, gathering in the ball with his right hand. Bonner then scored on a 4-yard run. Dreuitt's other biggies were a 53-yard TD to Moore and a 35-yard score to Bonner. His oops turned out to be his only completion of the second half and it upped the Panthers' lead to with 8:36 left. Under pressure for one of the few times all night, Dreuitt whipped one down the middle to Moore. Right with DJ was La Salle's own No. 23, jr. DB Jordan Meachum. The latter gained inside position and -- thwap! -- the ball hit off his hands... right into Moore's for a 14-yard TD. The ball did not go up or sideways much at all, so Moore showed great concentration. In retrospect, the game's most vital sequence unfolded over the last 1:30 of the first half and 'Tep reaped two TDs to jump in front, Jr. QB Kyle Shurmur lost the handle on a try for a 1-yard burrow and sr. DB Quadeem Starks recovered one step into the end zone for a touchback. On fourth down, Moore gathered in the 53-yard strike from Dreuitt to make it with 32.4 seconds left on the clock. On La Salle's second play thereafter, soph DE Jordan McCray used a hard pop to separate Shurmur from the ball and jr. DE Qwamere Wright-Downing recovered on La Salle's 35 with 11.7 ticks left. Dreuitt sent one to the left corner and... ohhhhhh! Bonner snagged it for another TD at 4.9. Quite a turn of events. Instead of being up by maybe 21-14, La Salle was now down by The Explorers did show resolve as the second half began and moved with after 4:10 as Shurmur hit Meachum for a 33-yard TD. They even followed with a three-and-out as sr. DB Ryan Brady notched the third-down stop. But disaster was 13

14 in the bullpen, warming up with vigor. As Shurmur tried to pass on third and 22, the Panthers swarmed and his pass was semi-batted. The ball settled right into the arms sr. LB Randell Hunter, who had no trouble mad-dashing his way to a 25-yard TD. Imhotep's big'uns, as mentored by Marcus Fulton, were sr. C Gordon Thomas, sr. G Aaron Ruff, soph G John-Carlo Valentine, sr. T Taleem Muhammad and jr. T Antoine Williams. The MAJOR playahs on the DL were sr. down lineman Tyrone Barge and Wright- Downing at E. They blew things up pretty much non-stop. Shurmur had a a crazy night. Though he lost two fumbles and threw three picks (under relentless pressure), he broke the school record for passing yards in one game with 384. That effort topped 378 by Drew Loughery in He logged 20 completions in 37 attempts with most of the yeoman work being done by sr. WR Levi Hardy (4-120, two TDs) and Meachum (6-128, one TD). It must be noted that star jr. handyman Jimmy Herron did not see the field for many offensive snaps; he concentrated on DB. Dreuitt, meanwhile, went 7-for-12 for 212 yards, thanks almost completely to Moore (3-128) and Bonner (3-65). Sr. RB Deandre Scott added 99 yards on 10 rushes. La Salle sorely missed the presence of franchise sr. LB Zaire Franklin, who was out with a broken finger. Though he tried hard to rally his teammates from the sideline, nothing beats being out there. Soph DL Anthony Piscopo was in on two sacks for La Salle jr. DL Keith Wagner's big tackle enabled sr. DE Ryan "Pride of Oreland" Coonahan to record a fumble recovery. by Armand Vanore, EasternPAfootball.com Imhotep vs. LaSalle Complete Review and Analysis Anyone who was able to witness last night s non-conference District 12 showcase game between the La Salle Explorers and Imhotep Panthers were treated to more than the five dollar charge to get into Cedarbrook area s Benjamin Johnson stadium. Showcase is a term that can truly be used when describing this classic in Imhotep s dramatic victory. Momentum is crucial in high school football and this one had more momentum changes than the amount of wins these two teams had combined in Momentum and the ability to make a play when a team needs it are what sets teams like these apart and last night was no different. Highly rated stars and sensational coaching staffs littered the field in this one and the overall skill level that both teams implored gave the audience a night they will remember for years. Coach Drew Gordon, who has guided his Explorers to four consecutive Eastern Pa, AAAA championship games and two Hershey appearances had the task of rebuilding an offensive line depleted by graduation. The new line is a work in progress but the group played stellar in last week s dismantling of North Penn. New addition, junior quarterback Kyle Shurmur appears the perfect fit for this squad, replacing last year s incumbent QB Chris Kane. Shurmur now compliments a skill core of players that will perfectly suit his talents for the next two years. Albie Crosby s Panthers boast a huge offensive line and skill positions he effectively runs by committee which will give any team they play this year and next, more obstacles than they may be able to handle. The job he has done with this small AA school in not only developing talent but molding kids into responsible students is truly remarkable. Imhotep got off to a quick 14-0 lead when QB Andre Dreuitt-Parks connected on a beautiful 62 yard pitch and catch to Denniston Moore which set up Nasir Bonner s TD. They then ran off a nine play drive ending with Soph Mike Waters 12 yard scamper. Everything seemed to be going Imhotep s way but the next six minutes provided the first momentum change. Almost as if a light switch was turned on, Shurmur, in only his second high school start hit a streaking Levi Hardy for a 74 yard touchdown followed by Jordan Meachum s 18 yard touchdown. 14

15 If that six minute span got the Explorers going, the last minute and a half of the second quarter proved to be their greatest nightmare. Tied at 14, LaSalle had the ball on the Panther 1 and were stuffed on three consecutive plays. The last one, a sneak by Shurmur was held up by a referees meeting. The end result, a controversial fumble in the end zone and a switch in possession. The play eventually turned into a 14 point turnaround when The Panthers Moore made a sensational juggling act, 52 yard TD reception a couple plays later. Five seconds later, Shurmur was sacked and fumbled away to the Panthers Qwamere Wright- Downing which was followed by Bonner s 35 yard reception TD from Dreuitt Parks. La Salle is a football team that will never, ever be counted out. That can be corroborated with their almost come from behind win in last year s Eastern championship versus Coatesville. After forcing an Imhotep punt, Gordon had Shurmur throw on five consecutive plays, the last a strike to Meachum for a TD and crawling to within Momentum took a double shift on the next few plays on the Explorers next possession when Randell Hunter intercepted a Shurmur pass taking it to pay dirt and giving the Panthers the lead that would not be challenged from that time on. This sudden rivalry may turn out to be the first for these two programs. What a night enjoyed by all including the assortment of college recruiters who were in attendance. All in all, what a way to start the season in SEPA. Imhotep (2-0) starts conference play next week vs. Roxborough while La Salle takes on non conference foe Cardinal O Hara. Long Hitters: Noticeably absent in most of the Explorer game plan was Herron who did not run at all out of the wildcat. That will certainly be added in time in Coordinator Brett Gordon s scheme. Shurmur and Herron didn t seem to be on the same page with their connections but rest assured the two will be a force in time. La Salle LB Zaire Franklin (Syracuse commit) did not play due to a broken finger and was a huge loss for the Explorer D. Shurmur is all of the 6 4 listed in the La Salle guide. He threw for 381 yards. He has a terrific arm and at times lacked touch on a few incompletions that could have gone for long gains. His upside is huge for this team. He should get serious Division 1 interest. All three of Moore s receptions were circus catches that had the crowd gasping. Imhotep s starting offensive line averages over 275 and may most likely be the largest, most athletic line in the state, regardless of classification. Imhotep receivers were heard on the sideline telling Dreuitt-Parks to just throw the ball deep and they will get under the throws. Junior Ryan Brady played a monster game for La Salle with 13 tackles, a few eye popping hits, and two receptions on offense. Ditto for Soph Shaka Toney and Tyrone Barge for the Panthers. Barge and Toney created havoc the entire game for Shurmur. Dreuitt-Parks has made tremendous strides in his play in the last year. The junior is also getting Division 1 looks. Hardy s combination of size, speed and hands will make him an effective bookend with Herron in La Salle s passing scheme. by Dan Spinelli, Ted Silary s Website My final season as a high school sports reporter for TedSilary.com began in quite dreary fashion. The theme of tonight s nonleague matchup between La Salle and traditional Public League power Imhotep Charter was one step forward and two steps back for the Explorers. Every time La Salle seemed to close the gap during a game in which they never led, the Panthers again pulled away. Imhotep Charter has a great mix of athleticism and discipline, and even amongst a slew of penalties, they maintained a solid team force that simply overpowered La Salle. By the end of tonight s contest, La Salle was sorely reminded of its mortality amongst other city powers. There were some silver linings for the Explorers and, of course, they will be noted. But, alas, the recapping MUST be done. Shall we proceed? 15

16 La Salle owned the game s first possession, and after a trio of first downs, turned the ball over on the Imhotep 37-yard line. Imhotep took over and proceeded to give the crowd en masse at the Northwest (nee Germantown) Super Site a tutorial on how to dominate with athleticism. On first down, Panther junior QB Andre Dreuitt completed a pass to star junior WR/K/P DJ Moore. Moore caught the ball onehanded, collected it, and ran 59 yards with the ball. As a sportswriter, you have to call 'em as they are. Moore was beyond impressive all the night, and the fact that he is only a junior made my jaw drop when I realized it. He is a versatile, quick, athletic player that certainly will cause nightmares for days in the minds of La Salle s coaches. Imhotep scored one play later on a 4-yard touchdown run by junior RB Nasir Bonner. The Panthers converted their 2-point conversion attempt to take an 8-0 lead. A note here on La Salle s defense: they definitely felt the loss of senior linebacker Zaire Franklin, who sat out of tonight s game with some type of injury (his arm was in a cast). Franklin, who has committed to Divison-1 Syracuse for football, was not only a vocal leader of the defense but a ferocious tackler. After a punt by La Salle on the next drive, Imhotep embarked on a 97-yard drive to the end zone (you can get the feeling of my blood boiling during this madness). The drive was helped by a nice 15 yard run by Imhotep senior Deandre Scott when the Panthers were nearly down-and-out, with 3rd and 10 from their own 3-yard line. Panther sophomore RB Mike Waters capped the brilliant drive with a 17-yard touchdown run. The PAT (not taken by DJ Moore, whose hand was a bit bruised up after his one-handed catch) was blocked by La Salle senior DB Steve Hudak. Hudak, who is committed to Brown University to play lacrosse, is a definite leader on the La Salle defense and he made a number of crucial plays, including a brilliant stop later in the game on a kickoff return that stole a touchdown from Imhotep. Imhotep led 14-0 with 2:46 remaining in the first quarter. La Salle fans finally saw some action on the Explorers next drive. On second down from their 25-yard line, La Salle junior QB Kyle Shurmur connected with senior WR Levi Hardy for a 74-yard touchdown. A quick point on Hardy: he is incredibly quick, which is not surprising, considering that he was part of a national championship track-and-field team that won the Distance-Medley-Relay at the Penn Relays this past April. In tonight s game, he used his athletic talents to score two touchdowns for the Explorers. Shurmur is also a true athletic specimen 6 4, 215 lbs. He has an incredible throw and outstanding vision, but he had a tough night tonight with 3 interceptions. After Hardy s TD, the Explorers cut Imhotep s lead to After entering the second quarter down seven, La Salle tied the game on a 19-yard touchdown run by junior RB Jordan Meachum. Meachum must have had a boatload of yards in tonight s game, as he shaped up to be Shurmur s favorite receiver in the second half. Even though the Explorers could never really get their running game going, Meachum was a force as a wideout for La Salle. It will be a pleasure to see him further develop this year. When La Salle got the ball back, an unfortunate development occurred during a goal-line drive by the Explorers. La Salle tried three times from 1st and Goal at the 5- yard line, but could not find paydirt. On 4th down, Shurmur seemingly crossed the plane, but in the confusion/ruckus of the goal line, Imhotep ended up with the ball. The ensuing result was a touchback, as the fumble was recovered in the end zone, and Imhotep rattled off another serious drive. Dreuitt tossed a 52-yard touchdown to his favorite target, DJ Moore, and suddenly La Salle went from taking a lead to falling behind the Panthers (the PAT was missed). And it does not improve: on La Salle s next possession, Shurmur fumbled, Imhotep recovered, and the 12-yard loss associated with the fumble put Imhotep in good field possession for another attempt at the goal line. Dreuitt chose Nasir Bonner for this 35-yard touchdown pass (with under four seconds left in the half) and Imhotep led at halftime. Moore and Bonner finished the half with two TDs each. 16

17 A plethora of pernicious penalties began the second half. A solid sack of Dreuitt by sophomore Anthony Piscopo and junior Ryan Brady preceded two straight penalties by Imhotep. La Salle senior Bill Frusco then knocked the ball loose on a 3rd and 22, with senior DE Ryan Coonahan recovering the ball. After a series of penalties on the Explorers, Shurmur tossed a beautiful 33-yard pass to Meachum. Now again here comes the one-step forward and two steps back. After an Imhotep punt, La Salle s next possession appeared promising. But on 3rd and 22 from the La Salle 38-yard line, a Shurmur pass was deflected by Imhotep senior LB Randell Hunter, who scooped up the pass and returned it for a Panther touchdown. The Imhotep lead would last into the fourth quarter. The Explorers took a solid step forward in the fourth quarter when Levi Hardy collected a 23-yard touchdown pass from Shurmur, reeling it in one-handed in front of Imhotep defenders. The game saw its final score at the 8:36 point in the fourth quarter, in a very telling play. Imhotep had possession on 4th down and 7 from the La Salle 14-yard line, and everyone knew where the ball was going. Even my mother at home knew where the ball was going. All eyes were on DJ Moore and he delivered. To the Explorers credit, the defense was obviously prepared for such a play but Moore s sheer athleticism was difficult to handle. He collected a 26-yard touchdown pass and put his team up That score would last us to the end. It was a tough night for the La Salle Explorers. But only time can tell what type of team these Explorers will shape up to be. It is only the second week of the season. There is time to revise, to develop, and to win. Here s to the 2013 La Salle Explorers! As we all know, the night is darkest before the dawn! La Salle Imhotep I - Bonner 3 run (Bonner run) I - Waters 17 run (kick failed) L - Hardy 74 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) L - Meachum 18 run (Raczak kick) I - Moore 53 pass from Drueitt (kick blocked) I - Bonner 35 pass from Drueitt (run failed) L - Meachum 34 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) I - Hunter 25 interception return (Moore pass from Drueitt) L - Hardy 16 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) I - Moore 14 pass from Drueitt (pass failed) TEAM STATISTICS La Salle Imhotep First Downs Rushing Yards Passing Yards Totals Yards Passing Penalties Fumbles lost Punts-Avg

18 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING LA SALLE: Meachum 13-78, 1 TD; Brady 3-26; Buckley 1-13; Rinella 2-5; Shurmur 7-(-23). IMHOTEP CHARTER: Scott 7-88; Bonner 14-43, 1 TD; Waters 8-38, 1 TD; Raynor 9-33; Dreuitt 3-(-21). PASSING LA SALLE: Shurmur ints., 352 yds., 3 TDs. IMHOTEP CHARTER: Drueitt ints., 214 yds., 3 TDs. RECEIVING LA SALLE: Meachum 6-127, 1 TD; Hardy 4-120, 2 TDs; Buckley 3-29; Herron 2-31; Headen 1-16; Coonahan 1-15; Brady 1-11; Walls 1-3. IMHOTEP CHARTER: Moore 3-129, 2 TDs; Bonner 3-65, 1 TD; Clemons INTERCEPTIONS LA SALLE: None. IMHOTEP CHARTER: Hunter; Starks; Scott. SACKS LA SALLE: Piscopo 1.5; Wagner 1.5. IMHOTEP CHARTER: Wright-Downing 3; McCray; Barge 0.5; Toney 0.5. by Dennis C. Way, GametimePA.com, September 11, 2013 Football: La Salle looking for a lift against Cardinal O'Hara SPRINGFIELD When the scholastic football schedules were released this year, it's likely both the football teams of La Salle High and Cardinal O'Hara took a gander at Week Three and promptly put a large red circle around the date of their meeting. The Explorers, coming off a fifth straight appearance in the PIAA Class AAAA state semifinals, are an established area power. But those that follow football in Southeast Pa. felt that this was the year the Lions would give the Explorers a run. Blessed with the talents of receiver Thaddius Smith, a Boston College recruit, running back JT Blyden, a University of Massachusetts recruit, placekicker/punter Steve Weyler, a Villanova signee and standout quarterback Dashawn Darden, among others, O'Hara seemed to be the Explorers' equals in skill and ability, and the two had the football watchers as excited as a chow hound parked in front of a Thanksgiving Day dinner. But a funny thing happened on the way to a duel between two Philadelphia Catholic League powers - O'Hara lost its first two games of the season, to Archbishop Ryan in the season opener in Ocean City, N.J. and last week to Academy Park. Worse yet, the Lions have yielded 80 points in two games, 43 to Academy Park last week. Meanwhile, the Explorers after an impressive opening-week win over North Penn came a cropper against a big, fast and talented Imhotep Charter squad in Week Two. So what does that mean when the Explorers and Lions square off Friday (7 p.m.) at Cardinal O'Hara High School? "I would have said, at the start of the season that this was going to be a good one,' said La Salle head coach Drew Gordon. "And it still should be.' It should be because there'll be too much talent on both sidelines, and it's not like the two squads are a combined 1-3 because they were upset by a couple of underachievers. "I can't tell you what's gone wrong with (O'Hara's) defense,' Gordon said, "but they're obviously not playing the type of defense they want to play. "It looks like the same defensive scheme they've been using, and they have good players back there. But Ryan is very good team with a great running back (Father Judge transfer Samir Bullock), and Academy Park has big-time speed. Those are two good football teams.' At the same time, Gordon tipped his hat to Imhotep. 18

19 "We made a lot of mistakes, offensively and defensively,' the coach said. "We never touched the quarterback, and we turned the ball over five times. And we were still in the game with 6:00 left. "But (Imhotep) is very good. I liked their quarterback (Andre Dreuitt) going into the game and I like him even more after it. Plus, their defensive front is very good. They have great size, and they can play.' As for O'Hara, Gordon said La Salle will do little differently in terms of scheme. "We're going to keep doing the same things,' he said. "But we have to run the ball better. We haven't been consistent with the running game.' La Salle, again, will also face tremendous speed in Smith (10 catches, 123 yds.), Darden (102 rush yds., 209 passing yds. and four passing TDs) and Blyden. "O'Hara isn't as big as Imhotep,' Gordon said, "but they're not small. "It should be interesting.' As for strategies, look for Dan Algeo's Lions to utilize their speed and get Smith and Blyden in as many one-on-one situations as possible and for the defense to get after La Salle quarterback Kyle Shurmur, a ploy that was successful for Imhotep. La Salle has to blunt that speed by getting to Darden in passing situations and doubling Smith whenever possible. The records may not be what most expected when the season began, but this should still be an eyepopper. Game 3, September 13, 2013: La Salle 28 Cardinal O Hara 14 by Dennis C. Way, GametimePA.com Football: Crazy plays favor La Salle in win over Cardinal O'Hara SPRINGFIELD Last week La Salle High's football team was introduced to the loss column by Imhotep Charter, in a contest void of both an ineffective running game and a few positive breaks. Those factors were not absent Friday night, however, when the Explorers bounced back with plenty of both to defeat Cardinal O'Hara, 28-14, in a non-league contest at O'Hara's Lions Stadium. Jordan Meachum led a devastating rushing attack with 179 yards on the ground and the Explorers used a crazy play at the end of the first to get back in the win column. "We practiced real hard all week, we were going at 110 percent,' Meachum said, "and I think that brought us up to our A game.' But initially, it was O'Hara that took control, rumbling 70 yards on nine plays to take the lead on the game's series. Quarterback Dashawn Darden was 3-for-3 on the drive, including a 20-yard strike in the left corner of the end zone to a leaping Thaddius Smith for the touchdown. La Salle quickly answered, however, with a seven-play, 62-yard scoring drive capped by Jordan Meachum's 6-yard score around left end. Shurmur was 3-for-3 on the jaunt for 37 yards. After La Salle's David Geppert spilled Darden for a 5-yard loss on third down on the Lions' next possession, forcing a punt, the Explorers put together a 15-play drive that got as far as the Lions 12-yard line before a holding penalty helped bring it to a halt. A missed 36-yard field-goal attempt then turned the ball over to O'Hara. Once more the Lions threatened, due primarily to a 66-yard scramble by Darden, who bobbed and weaved all the way to the Explorers

20 But this time it was the Explorers' defense that stood firm. And helped by a sack by linebacker Ryan Brady, the home team came away without points when a fourth-down pass from Darden to JT Blyden fell short of both a touchdown and a first down. The stand, however, did not deter O'Hara, which, keyed by a big punt return by Lamont Veal, came right back to take the lead. Beginning at the Explorers 40 with 1:00 minute left in the half, it took the Lions three plays to take the lead, the final snap being a 25-yard slant from Darden to Smith to put O'Hara on top with 23 seconds left before halftime. Then things got bizarre. Taking over after the ensuing kickoff at their own 36, Shurmur threw to Charles Headen for seven yards and Meachum ran for 15 more, with La Salle taking timeouts after each play. The Explorers were at the O'Hara 42 and went with the Hail Mary for the final play of the half. This time, La Salle's prayers were answered but not in the traditional way. Shurmur's long heave to the end zone was intercepted by Smith. But instead of taking a knee, Smith tried to run the ball out, and fumbled. The ball was recovered in the end zone by Headen, and La Salle had a touchdown and a tie. "After the interception, (Smith) came across, Charlie Hemcher hit him and he fumbled, Meachum said, "and Charles Headen picked up the ball. "We dropped some passes and made a few mistakes, O'Hara head coach Dan Algeo said. "We hurt ourselves, offensively. The Explorers carried the jolt of that gift into the third quarter and scored on their first possession when Shurmur deftly lofted a pass over a Lion linebacker's outstretched paw and into the grasp of Meachum, who sashayed into the end zone for a La Salle lead. "(The play at the end of the first half) gave us a lot of momentum, Meachum said. It definitely gave us a jump. After a Meachum 52-yard touchdown was negated by penalty on the next La Salle possession, the Lions had life. And near the end of the third quarter it appeared as though the Lions may make the most out of their second gasp. But La Salle had one more big play in its arsenal and this one was defensive. After a 40-yard run by Veal and a 14-yard scramble by Darden got O'Hara within the shadow of the Explorers' goal line, O'Hara had a first-and-goal at the La Salle 7. But on the very next snap the Lions fumbled before reaching the goal line and La Salle recovered, O'Hara would not threaten again. "We were exactly where we wanted to be, Algeo said of the untimely turnover. "But hey, I was proud of our guys. I thought they gave a great effort. "It seems like every week we're looking at a great running back, and we saw another one tonight. And that Shurmur is a heck of a quarterback. He's going to be tremendous. Two series later sophomore Nick Rinella capped a nine-play, 76-yard drive with his first varsity touchdown, 12-yard TD run with 4:29 left in the game. And the Explorers had successfully rebounded with some help from a couple of factors that had been MIA just a week ago. 20

21 by Anthony J. Sanfilippo, GametimePA.com Football: Effort is there, but mistakes mean O'Hara still winless MARPLE Cardinal O'Hara coach Danny Algeo called the La Salle football team, "One of the best teams in the state.' That being said, his squad was two plays away from beating the Explorers. But sometimes, when the breaks don't go your way, all you are left with is a case of the woulda, coulda, shouldas. Cardinal O'Hara had La Salle on the ropes a few times in this contest, but it could never deal the knockout blow, and instead fell victim to its own mistakes in a loss. What makes the defeat all the more painful is that the killer mistakes were not mistakes of foolhardiness but rather mistakes of effort. They were errors committed by key players trying to go the extra yard. Take for instance the play that swung the momentum. With O'Hara up a touchdown on the final play of the first half, La Salle quarterback Kyle Shurmur heaved a 42-yard Hail Mary toward the end zone. There, he was intercepted by Thaddius Smith, who was on the receiving end of both Lions' touchdowns. It was a heck of a half for Smith and probably would have gone down as one of the tops in the county had he not tried so hard after the pick. Rather than just take a knee and lead his Lions off the field at halftime up seven points, Smith tried to run out of the end zone with the ball and lost it as he was being tackled in the end zone. A very alert Explorers tight end Charles Hemcher (editor s note: Hemcher forced the fumble, and Charles Headen recovered) pounced on the loose ball, and just like that the game was tied. It was a crazy play, but more importantly it swung the momentum of the game. La Salle got the ball to start the second half and scored with a heavy dose of Jordan Meachum on the ground. The Explorers junior running back ran the ball on four consecutive plays before beating the O'Hara linebackers down the seam for a 43-yard touchdown reception from Shurmur to put La Salle ahead for good. Meachum had a huge game for La Salle, rushing for 166 yards and compiling another 61 through the air. "I don't think there's ever been a year where we've played so many good running backs, Algeo said. "The kid from (Archbishop) Ryan, the kid (Jerry) Lanier from Academy Park, now Meachum. I don't know what Del Val Charter has, but I assume they have some runners and then after that we have the (Archbishop) Wood running backs then Haverford school has (Phil) Poquie then with Roman you have Dimetri Kelly and Bonner has the kid who transferred from Carroll (Ricky Wilson) and (Joe) DePhillipo I've never seen a year like this where every week we have to face a good running back and La Salle's kid (Meachum) is among the best. O'Hara (0-3) had a chance to tie it entering the fourth quarter, but fullback Matt Penza was lunging for extra yards near the goal line when the ball popped out and the Explorers recovered on their own two yard line, thwarting an O'Hara chance. The Explorers methodically changed the balance of the field position over the next couple possessions and were able to put the game away on an 11-yard run by Nicholas Rinella. O'Hara quarterback Dashawn Darden did his best to keep O'Hara in the game, rushing for 90 yards on 10 carries and throwing for 130 more, including two touchdowns to Smith in the first half, but even his stellar performance fell short. "There were a couple of plays they took from us and that was the difference, Darden said. "Overall though, I think we had a good game. Our line blocked well, our receivers did well, our running backs 21

22 played well. We had a good game. It just wasn't enough. Now we have to regroup and come out strong next week. by Ted Silary Even if you're young, we'll assume you've heard of Franco Harris and The Immaculate Reception. (If not, that's why they invented Google -- smile.) Tonight there was an AMAZING play that we'll tag the Non- Immaculate Interception. Buckle your seatbelts because herrrrrre we go. It's the last play of the first half and the ball's on O'Hara's 42. La Salle jr. QB Kyle Shurmur lofts one way downfield beyond the goal line with the hope that HIS guy will catch it. It's one of those classic jump-ball situations with multiple guys converging. Everyone leaps (in the area of the left hash mark) and O'Hara sr. DB Thaddius Smith comes down with the ball. Yes, he should have just knocked it down, but he's a competitive kid. Right after making the pick, Smith uncorks a fancy move and no doubt starts to think, "I could take this 100 yards the other way!" But numerous guys are in the vicinity and the sideline isn't THAT far way. In other words, he's kind of boxed in. Then... the ball is on the turf, thanks to a poke from jr. TE Charlie Hemcher, and La Salle soph WR Charles Headen is making the recovery... for... a... touchdown!!! Unbelievable!!! Hemcher, who's listed at 6-2, 185, had not played on offense all night. On this play, Hemcher (slot) and Headen (wide) had lined up on the left side of La Salle's offense. The coaches were hoping Hemcher could use his height/grit to outbattle O'Hara's d-backs. Instead, he wound up making the DEFENSIVE play of the evening. The crazy play, which unfolded in the part of the north end zone closest to O'Hara's sideline, lifted the Explorers into a tie. As you can imagine, they returned for the second half with all kinds of good vibrations and the first possession produced a TD, a 43-yard, straight-down-the-middle hookup from Shurmur to jr. RB Jordan Meachum, who beat his defender by roughly five yards. O'Hara did hang tough, but disaster struck again on the first play of the fourth quarter as possession was lost on a rush just two yards from the goal line. Sr. DB Steve Hudak made the recovery and La Salle added the clincher with 4:29 showing on an 11-yard scamper by soph RB Nick Rinella. Shurmur (16-yard pickup off a flush-job) and Meachum (26-yard burst right before the TD) made large contributions on that possession. Meachum slapped together quite a memorable performance, accounting for 223 scrimmage yards. He rushed 27 times for 162 and one TD while adding three snags for 61. With star jr. WR Jimmy Herron unavailable (health issue; not believed to be serious), Headen became the prime target and turned eight catches into 66 yards. Shurmer went 13-for-23 for 143 yards and, in retrospect, did not mind throwing that one pick AT ALL. Rinella rushed for 66 yards on nine totes. The big-'uns were sr. C Bill Frusco, sr. G Dave Geppert, soph Gs Matt McDermott/Anthony Piscopo, jr. T Aidan Kerrigan and sr. T Vince Cicalese. For O'Hara, sr. QB Dashawn "Day-Day" Darden passed 11-for-22 for 131 yards and two TDs to Smith (3-51) while adding 90 yards on 10 carries. Sixty-six came on a true thing of beauty and excitement, a keeper that took Day-Day to the right sideline and then saw him come close to waving byebye to everyone; he would have scored in the LEFT corner. Sr. DB Mick Barrett made the TD-saving tackle at the 11 and the possession died at the 3 as Meachum made the stop on a pass to sr. RB T.J. Blyden. Jr. SS Ryan Brady was a game-long force for La Salle's defense. Geppert made a few big plays while sr. DE Ryan Coonahan and Kerrigan combined for a 10-yard sack. Like last week, La Salle sr. LB Zaire Franklin (Pitt) was unavailable due to a broken finger. O'Hara also missed some starters with injuries; star sr. K-P Steve Weyler ('Nova) was among them. His soph brother, Jimmy, handled the punting while jr. L Jack Horan, a left-footer, went 2-for-2 on PAT. The game, scheduled for 7, didn't begin until 7:20. Why? Soccer! O'Hara beat Ryan, 2-1, in sudden death, on the same field and that contest didn't end until 6:12. The teams didn't appear on the field until 6:20, so the refs decided to provide a full 22

23 hour of preparation. Granted, the home and visiting stands aren't the biggest ever, but a LARGE crowd was on hand. Lots of standees on O'Hara's side. Among the visitors: Jim Algeo, father of O'Hara boss Danny and an all-time great man during his coaching days at Lansdale Catholic. O'Hara's honorary captain was mid-'80s lineman David Pacitti, who went on to play at Villanova. Not counting David, O'Hara merely had 10 captains! At least that was how many guys came scrambling over when Danny asked the captains to pose for the website pic. Yes, 10 captains. Legendary! Card O Hara La Salle COH: Thaddius Smith 20 pass from Dashawn Darden (Jack Horan kick) LS: Jordan Meachum 6 run (Raczak kick) COH: Smith 25 pass from Darden (Horan kick) LS: Charles Headen fumble recovery in end zone (Raczak kick) LS: Meachum 43 pass from Kyle Shurmur (Raczak kick) LS: Nick Rinella 12 run (Raczak kick) Card O Hara La Salle First Downs n/a n/a Yards Rushing Yards Passing Total Offense Comp. Passes, Int Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards n/a n/a Punts-Avg. n/a n/a Sacked-Yds. Lost n/a n/a Cardinal O Hara Rushing: Blyden 8-42; Darden 10-90; Veal 4-45; Penza Passing: Darden , 131 yards, 2 TDs. Receiving: Smith 3-51, 2 TDs; Veal 2-29; Blyden 2-20; Pierce 2-24; Jackson 2-7. La Salle Rushing: Meachum , 1 TD; Rinella 9-66, 1 TD; Buckley 2-3; Shurmur 1-16; Brady Passing: Shurmur , 143 yards, 1 TD. Receiving: Headen 8-66; Meachum 3-61, TD; Rinella Interceptions: None Game 4, September 21, 2013: La Salle 23 Malvern Prep 17 by Rick O Brien, Inquirer La Salle Tops Malvern In Sloppy Affair At this time next year, La Salle's Nick Buckley will be preparing to be a stalwart defender for Bellarmine University's lacrosse squad. For now, he's enjoying his last season as a rock-solid blocker in football. In 23

24 a driving rain Saturday night at Plymouth Whitemarsh, Buckley, with his all-out approach at fullback and tight end, helped the Explorers fight past upset-minded Malvern Prep, 23-17, in a sloppy nonleague contest. The 6-foot, 190-pound senior visited Bellarmine, a Division I program in Louisville, Ky., last weekend. "The school is awesome," he said. "Louisville has a great atmosphere. I fell in love with the city. That made the decision pretty easy for me." In football, Buckley's primary duty is clearing running room for halfbacks Jordan Meachum, Nick Rinella, and Jared Walls. He also, when opponents blitz, tries to protect quarterback Kyle Shurmur. "I love playing football," said Buckley, 18, from Oreland. "I've been playing since I was in the fourth grade. These guys are my best friends. We're like brothers." In its final tune-up before beginning Catholic League Class AAAA action against Archbishop Ryan, La Salle, ranked No. 6 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, overcame a rash of penalties and two turnovers. "A win is a win," Explorers coach Drew Gordon said. "It wasn't pretty, but we'll take it." La Salle (3-1) did not clinch the victory until it posted a safety - Malvern Prep's Alex Hornibrook was called for intentional grounding in the end zone - with 1 minute, 12 seconds to play. Shurmur completed 13 of 27 throws for 276 yards and a pair of first-half touchdowns. Meachum, sidelined in the late going by ankle and shoulder miseries, was on the receiving end of both scores. Late in the third quarter, Shurmur connected with Jimmy Herron over the middle for a 74-yard TD that put the hosts in front, Herron caught the ball at the Malvern 46, then darted toward the left sideline. The No. 11-ranked Friars (2-1) took a brief third-quarter lead, 17-14, on Hornibrook's 28-yard TD pass to Troy Gallen. But they could not overcome four turnovers, including Herron's interception at the Malvern 45 with 2:44 remaining. La Salle's defense was energized by the return of linebacker Zaire Franklin, who sat out the last two games with a broken finger. The Syracuse recruit registered three sacks. by Dennis C. Way, GameTimePA.com La Salle holds off Malvern Prep in rainy conditions WHITEMARSH In a game completed in a raging deluge Saturday night, La Salle High used three touchdown passes from Kyle Shurmur and late turnovers to hold off Malvern Prep, 23-17, in a nonleague monsoon at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School. Shurmur tossed two scoring passes to Jordan Meachum and the go-ahead score to Jimmy Herron in the third quarter. Herron's interception with 2:44 left sealed the victory. But it wasn't as if the Explorers coasted to the win. The Friars moved the ball continually throughout the game, and only a couple of ill-timed giveaways and Explorers' holds on fourth down preserved the win. Both offenses flexed their respective muscles early in the game, but didn't produce points. Shurmur guided the Explorers to the Malvern 23 on the game's first series, but was intercepted by Friar Jordan Majors. Malvern used a 35-yard run by Troy Gallen to help move into the red zone, but its first drive died on downs at the La Salle 19. It wasn't until late in the quarter that the Explorers were able to cash in, and that came after recovering a muffed punt at the Friars 28. Three plays later, Shurmur found Meachum over the middle for 30 yards and a touchdown with 3:09 left in the quarter. But the Friars were just getting started. 24

25 Malvern answered with a 14-play march of its own, culminating in a 27-yard field goal by Jonathan Dollfus with 9:06 remaining in the half. After the Explorers' ensuing drive came up empty, Malvern went 58 yards on seven plays, with quarterback Alex Hornibrook hooking up with his favorite target, Andy Pancoast, for a 12-yard TD with 3:27 remaining before halftime. But as they would throughout the remainder of the game, Shurmur and the Explorers offense roared right back after the visitors scored. Shurmur went 5-for-6 for 71 yards on a 74-yard drive that culminated with a fourth-down, 4-yard touchdown pass to Meachum with 56 seconds left before the break. The Explorers almost came away with more points after pinning the Friars deep in their own end after the ensuing kickoff. After a punt, La Salle got the ball back at the Friars 43 and got as far as the Malvern 21 before time ran out in the half. La Salle sat on its lead until late in the third quarter, when Hornibrook (17-for-36, 252 yds.) capped a gorgeous 9-play, 95-yard drive with a perfectly executed middle screen to Gallen, good for 28 yards and a touchdown with 3:58 left in the quarter. On the drive, the southpaw quarterback was 4-of-4 for 94 yards. But just 18 seconds later, La Salle was back in front when Shurmur hit Herron on the slant and the senior receiver didn't stop running until he had completed a 74-yard scoring play for the go-ahead score. Shurmur would finish 13-for-28 for 276 yards. By quarter's end, the Explorers had had the ball for just 2:32 in the period, but held a lead. By this time, the light rain that had begun in the first half had become a downpour, and would continue for the remainder of the game. The weather clearly affected both offenses, with both sides moving the ball, only to be interrupted by a weather-induced penalty or turnover. Midway through the fourth quarter, for example, Shurmur's short pass was intercepted by leaping lineman John Nassib. But Malvern fumbled the ball back to La Salle on the following snap. Malvern would not cross midfield in the final quarter. And finally, Hornibrook was intercepted by Herron to in the closing minutes to effectively lock up the win. In the closing minute, the Friars quarterback was flagged for intentional grounding in the end zone, resulting in an Explorers safety. by Ted Silary As things turned out, La Salle needed clutch plays on two "last" defensive stands. And the identities of the guys who made them was not a surprise. Not even remotely. What was a surprise? That they were playing. Through the first two weeks, star jr. WR/DB Jimmy Herron was sluggish due to what was feared to be mono or some other similar ailment. He even sat out the Week Three win over O'Hara and there was great concern among the coaches over how his situation would evolve. Ah, but there he was at Plymouth-Whitemarsh, posting a strong overall performance and making an interception with 2:44 remaining to preserve a lead. Alas, the Explorers failed to add more points and Malvern would have had one last chance at a game-winning drive, albeit a 94-yarder. Franchise sr. LB Zaire Franklin (Pitt), who's now wearing No. 52 (instead of No. 4) because OL duties have been added to his grid life, wasn't interested in letting the spectators see drama unfold. On third and 10, he powered into the end zone, bear-hugged jr. QB Alex Hornibrook and forced him into an intentional-grounding scenario. That play, correctly, was ruled a safety with 1:12 left and once soph RB Nick Rinella recovered the onsides 25

26 version of sr. Jon Dollfus' free kick, La Salle ran out the clock with kneeldowns. Wait, Zaire Franklin saw action? Hadn't he been telling people all along that a broken finger on his right hand would keep him sidelined until next week's game vs. Ryan? Indeed. Luckily for coach Drew Gordon, Franklin's get-backout-there timetable was moved up slightly. It's impossible to say, of course, whether La Salle would have won this contest had Herron and Franklin still been unavailable, but a strong guess is "no." Aside from that late pick, Herron added three catches for 121 yards and the last was a 73-yard score -- the play: just run your butt off and jr. QB Kyle Shurmur will get it to you in stride -- that gave La Salle a lead with 3 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter... RIGHT after Malvern had seized the lead on a 28-yard, perfectly-executed, middle-screen flip from Hornibrook to sr. handyman Troy Gallen (Delaware). Until right near the end of the first half, when he notched his first sack, Franklin wasn't much of a factor. But, man, did he ever regain the touch beyond intermission. He made a number of stops at or behind the line and his 10-yard sack helped to assure Malvern faced third-and-20 on the play that produced Herron's pick... Meanwhile, did we mention the weather yet?! Holy Soaked to the Skin! This was an all-timer. The rain, just a hint of a drizzle, began shortly into the proceedings. For a while, strangely, the rain wasn't much of a factor, even as it seemed to intensify. You'd look up into the lights and say, "We should be soaked. How come we're not?" But later, buckets time! Millions and millions and millions of raindrops came cascading down and if P-W's field still featured grass and dirt instead of turf, bodies would have been lost forever in the mud. To the teams' credit, the weather didn't affect the outcome TOO much. Sure, there were some drops and lost handles, but overall things weren't bad. Consider this: Despite the conditions, the QBs combined to pass from 527 yards and five TDs. Shurmur went 13-for-27 for 276 and three (the other two went to jr. RB Jordan Meachum) while Hornibrook, a lefty with height and a pocket presence similar to Shurmur's, went 16-for-36 for 251 and two (the other went to sr. WR Andy Pancoast). Meachum's TD started the scoring and came on a 30-yard toss straight down the field. Shurmer showed perfect touch on that one, lofting the ball over a linebacker right into Meachum's arms. Dollfus responded with a 27-yard field goal 9:06 before halftime and Malvern claimed a 10-7 lead at 3:27 on the 12-yard connection to Pancoast, who made his catch at about the 4 and then used fancy footwork to spin away from the middle of the field and get to the right corner. La Salle then mounted the night's most impressive drive as Shurmur clicked again and again, in quick order, with assorted pass-catchers; he finally got the six-points with a 4-yard flip to Meachum. The aforementioned back-and-forth sequence in the third quarter made it Malvern, then La Salle. Meachum finished with 109 yards of rushing/receiving before dinging an ankle (nothing serious). Rinella thus wound up with 12 carries and toughed out 39 yards. Sr. WR Levi Hardy turned three snags into 59 yards. Gallen produced 230 scrimmage yards, thanks to rushing and receiving. Pancoast (5-45) and sr. handyman Matt Brown (4-66) helped in the pass-catching department... There was an interesting and lengthy pregame moment involving Malvern sr. TE-DE John Nassib (he would post a pick) and La Salle sr. lineman Dave Geppert. During warmups, both guys were in groups of players who wound up standing maybe 10 yards apart in the midfield area. And gradually, we had a staredown!! Ha, ha. Nassib (his brother, Ryan, is the former star QB for Malvern/Syracuse who's now with the NY Giants) and Geppert stared daggers through each other. It was a classic. Thanks to assistant Joe Redican, I was able to meet Malvern's new basketball boss, John Harmatuk, who enjoyed great success in Texas. Good luck, sir! Also had some pregame fun with ex-mcdevitt basketball player Tom Casey, who's the uncle of La Salle sr. DE Ryan "The Pride of Oreland" Coonahan. "Case" decided that the nickname should remain in use, even if it drives Ryan crazy (smile). After all, as Case pointed out, my first "Pride of Oreland" guy was La Salle player John Butler, and all he did was become Penn State's current defensive coordinator. Not bad, eh? (For the uninformed, Oreland is a small town in Springfield, Montgomery County, not far from La Salle. 26

27 by Jeff Kerr, GameTImePA.com Football: La Salle thwarts Malvern in the rain PLYMOUTH MEETING - Saturday Night's showdown between Malvern Prep and La Salle College Prep had the makings of a passing scrimmage offensive coordinators would drool for. And then the heavy rains hit Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School. The team that possessed the lead when the rains came down had an excellent shot to come away with the victory. La Salle was the benefactor of Mother Nature on this night. The Explorers shut down the Malvern offense in the fourth quarter and held on to win in a nonleague game at a drenched P-W. Both teams combined to throw 62 passes on the night, plenty of which came between the first three quarters. Malvern quarterback Alex Hornibrook completed 15-of-35 passes for 236 yards, 157 of which came in the second half. He also threw two touchdowns. The elements cooled Hornibrook off and kept him from regaining any rhythm, as he only managed to execute one pass once the rain hit. Friars coach Kevin Pellegrini admitted to becoming too pass-happy in a one possession game. "I'll look back and know I threw the ball a little too much in the second half, said Pellegrini. "But that's what film is all about and you try to get better every day, myself included. While Hornibrook was trying to keep the Friars in the game, Explorers quarterback Kyle Shurmur was putting on a passing clinic for the La Salle faithful. Shurmur, the son of Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, ended his night 13-for-27 with 277 yards and three touchdowns. His most impressive pass was a 74-yard touchdown bomb to Jimmy Harron on a deep post pattern that gave La Salle (3-1) a lead with 3:29 to play in the third quarter. "He's a really nice player,' Pellegrini said. "We tried to mix it up (the defense). (La Salle) does a lot of reading from the sidelines so we wanted to give them different looks and have them think about what will be called. We wanted to put (Shurmur) in a decision making process. The Friars defense did force Shurmur to throw two interceptions, but ultimately his big throws cost Malvern the chance to steal a game on the road. Troy Gallen led Malvern (2-1) with five catches for 116 yards and a touchdown. He also led the Friars in rushing with 95 yards, but a crucial fumble on his final carry halted the potential winning drive with 5:48 to play. La Salle managed the game clock from that point. The Explorers gave the Friars one final chance to win, starting at their own six-yard line with 1:31 left. It was too much for Malvern to handle in the heavy rain as Hornibrook took an intentional grounding penalty in his own end zone. La Salle took the safety and ran out the clock from there. Pellegrini was proud of his team's effort despite the tough conditions, but hoped to pull off the upset. "I'm not overly excited we just hung with them as we did make our mistakes and shares with turnovers, Pelligrini said. "I do feel really good about this team and the players feel really good about the team we have. We just came up a little bit short, but all of us will come back and work Monday and turn it right around. Malvern Prep La Salle

28 LAS: Meachum 30 pass from Shurmur (Rascak kick) MP: Dollfus 27 FG MP: Pancoast 12 pass from Hornibrook (Dollfus FG) LAS: Meachum 4 pass from Shurmur (Rascak kick) MP: Gallen 28 pass for Hornibrook (Dollfus kick) MP: Herron 74 pass from Shurmur (Rascak kick) LAS: Safety Malvern Prep La Salle First downs Yards rushing Yards passing Total yards Passing Fumbles-Lost Penalties Punts-Avg RUSHING - La Salle: Meachum 13-61; Rinella 11-37; Shurmur 2-11; Buckley 3-4; Brady 2-4; Herron 2-2; Headen 1-(-2); Team 3-(-19). Malvern Prep: Gallen 17-95; Brown 4-10; Paulus 4-8; Hornibrook 3-(-24). PASSING - La Salle: Shurmur 13-27, 277 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT. Malvern Prep: Hornibrook: 15-35, 236 yds, 2 TD, INT. RECEIVING - La Salle: Herron 3-122, TD: Hardy 3-61; Meachum 3-49, TD: Hemcher 1-24; Brady 1-8; Headen 1-8; Buckley 1-5. Malvern Prep: Gallen 5-116, TD; Pancoast 5-46, TD; Brown 4-56; Nassib SACKS - La Salle: Franklin 2; Brady. Malvern Prep: None. INTERCEPTIONS - La Salle: Herron. Malvern Prep: Andrews; Nassib. by Joe Stokes, EasternPAFootball.com, September 25th, 2013 There are loads of great games to follow this weekend and one great contest to review has the La Salle Explorers traveling to Philadelphia Catholic League rival Archbishop Ryan on Saturday afternoon. The Explorers enter this contest 3-1 after defeating Malvern Prep in a heavy rain last Saturday night. QB Kyle Shurmur passed for 3 TD s with two of those scores credited to receiver Jordan Meachum. The La Salle defense held off a Malvern surge to hold this hard fought win. The Archbishop Ryan Raiders are undefeated at 4-0 and also played on a wet field last Saturday night. They had an easier time than the Explores with a win over the Chichester Eagles. Running back Samir Bullock led the way with 256 rushing yards and four TD s. This is a classic run vs. pass contest as both teams have high powered offenses. The weather looks to be perfect so favor the passing of La Salle to win a close one. Prediction: La Salle 44 Archbishop Ryan 35 by Rick O Brien, Inquirer, September 28, 2013 Ryan faces first big test in La Salle 28

29 Despite winning its first four games by a combined score of , Archbishop Ryan has been knocked by some for a perceived soft schedule. That makes Saturday afternoon's matchup against Catholic League Class AAAA rival and perennial power La Salle a possible statement game for the surging Raiders. "This is a big game for us, obviously," Ryan fifth-year coach Frank McArdle said. "If we can play well against La Salle, I think people will know we're a good football team." In a highly anticipated league opener, La Salle, 3-1 and ranked No. 6 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, and No. 8 Ryan (4-0) will square off at 1 p.m. at George Washington's Mickey Young Stadium. "After what they've done so far, the Ryan kids believe in themselves," La Salle coach Drew Gordon said. "They're used to winning." Here is a closer look at the contest. Last year. In Week 5, with Jimmy Herron having a hand in three scores, the visiting Explorers blanked the Raiders, Drought. The Raiders' last victory in the head-to-head series was in 2006, by a decision. Position switch. On offense, La Salle's Zaire Franklin, who returned from a finger injury in last week's win over Malvern Prep, has moved from tight end to left tackle. "He's a tenacious blocker," Gordon said of the Syracuse recruit and hard-hitting linebacker. "It's just a matter of him learning his blocking assignments." Spark plug. Ryan tailback Samir Bullock, a transfer from Father Judge, has carried 71 times for an areabest 904 yards and 11 touchdowns. Probable. Jordan Meachum, La Salle's go-to rusher, will likely play after missing the first three days of practice this week with an ankle injury. Questionable. Ryan fullback Bobby McDevitt may sit out a third straight game because of a knee injury. If he does, Burkey Peterman will fill that spot. Strong-armed QB. La Salle's Kyle Shurmur has connected on 62 of 113 passes for 985 yards and nine TDs. "He makes a lot of good reads," McArdle said. Threats. The main targets for Ryan quarterback Mark Ostaszewski are wideouts Bobby Romano, Connor Golden, and Jason Dones. Quotable. "La Salle rarely, if ever, beats themselves," McArdle said. "If you make mistakes against them, they're going to kill you." Pick. It's tempting to pick Bullock and the red-hot Raiders, but we expect the Explorers to emerge with a hard-fought victory. La Salle, Game 5, September 28, 2013: La Salle 28 Archbishop Ryan 14 by Rick O Brien, Inquirer Zaire Franklin leads La Salle over Ryan Four yellow school buses idled in Washington High's parking lot Saturday afternoon and waited for one more rider to board. The last rider, walking back from the dusty football field, said he was the one who determined what was "the party bus." 29

30 La Salle's Zaire Franklin led the Explorers past Archbishop Ryan, 28-14, and the half-hour ride back to Wyndmoor, he said, was a chance to "let loose and have some fun." They worked hard, Franklin said, and the Explorers wanted to enjoy their impressive Catholic League AAAA opener. "At least until Monday," said Franklin, who is orally committed to Syracuse. A few minutes earlier, the linebacker was surrounded by his teammates as they huddled close and waited for his cue. "It's party time," he shouted, as he does after each win, and his teammates began to jump wildly around him. He is the team's unquestioned leader and helped the defense buckle down twice in the first half to hold the Raiders scoreless inside the red zone. In the huddle, Franklin said, he just tries to keep his defense focused. He knew how important those stops would be. On offense, Franklin moved from tight end to left tackle and made room for running backs Jordan Meachum and Nick Rinella to score on short gains, and, most important, he added extra protection for quarterback Pat Shurmur. Shurmur threw for a pair of touchdowns, both to top target Jimmy Herron. The 6-foot-1 junior receiver hauled in a 23-yard score near the end of the half and waited for Shurmur, who greeted him with a leaping chest bump. The pair have worked tirelessly together since Shurmur moved from Ohio after his father, Pat, was hired as the Eagles' offensive coordinator. Herron said Shurmur is the "most knowledgeable player" he's ever played with. They watch game film on Shurmur's smartphone during their 8 a.m. homeroom, talk football on their way to English class, and practice each night until 6:30. "All we talk about is football," Shurmur said. "It's, 'Hey, what's up?' and then it's football." by Mike Prince, GameTImePA.com La Salle thumps Archbishop Ryan It didn't matter which side of the ball it came from, but the entire La Salle Explorers football team did its job on Saturday. The running game was top-notch, the passing game was rather efficient and the defense was stellar for the Explorers, who outgained Archbishop Ryan in total offense in a first half which saw La Salle build up a 21-0 lead going into the locker room. The final result was a win for La Salle over the host Raiders in a Philadelphia Catholic League Class AAAA afternoon meeting at George Washington High School. Jordan Meachum and Nick Rinella ran in touchdowns in the first quarter and quarterback Kyle Shurmur found Jimmy Herron for a 23-yard touchdown pass late in the first half to open the game up and give La Salle its three-touchdown lead. Shurmur then found athlete Jimmy Herron for a 34-yard pass the first of two touchdown catches for Herron, who led the way with 54 rushing yards on eight carries to go along with his 90 receiving yards and two touchdowns on six catches. "Jimmy has been great the last two weeks, La Salle coach Drew Gordon said. "He was sick for awhile, but now, he's back and he's just a player. Offensively, defensively and even on special teams we put 30

31 him in anywhere and he does his job. We put him in at wildcat today and he did more than he has done in the past with that, so he did a really great job today. The Raiders (4-1, 0-1) managed to get a pair of touchdowns "Our pass defense was atrocious at times,' Gordon said. "We missed some plays, but I just thought that our run defense did well and we had a great stop at the end of the first half in our red zone that really helped. By the end of the first half, La Salle (4-1, 1-0) had allowed only 95 total yards from scrimmage on defense. By the end of the game, the Explorers had racked up 362 total yards of offense to 244 for the Raiders, who were undefeated entering Saturday afternoon's game. "This was a huge win because we really thought we could've played better in our previous four games,' Herron said. "We are really focused on playing strong now. With this win, I think we can get it rolling in the Philadelphia Catholic League. The Explorers, despite using Herron and Nick Rinella for a majority of the handoffs, used a running backby-committee-type offense, something which Herron said really helps out the offense. "Using a bunch of running backs really helps because it keeps everybody fresh, Herron said. "Everybody gets the ball and it really helps a lot. It was a good game today and we did some good things, but you always have to keep getting better. We'll go to the film and try to work on stuff and get better every week. Besides Herron's big day, Shurmur played well for La Salle, completing 15 of 24 passes for 174 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Rinella ran 17 times for 81 yards and a score, while also catching three passes for 24 yards. La Salle managed 21 first downs on the afternoon. The Explorers will look to remain undefeated when they face Father Judge next Saturday. "We just have to work harder at it,' Gordon said. "We'll take this win, but we have a lot to work on. by Armand Vanore, EasternPAFootball.com La Salle Over Ryan in Conference Opener The La Salle Explorers exploded for 21 first half points and cruised to a victory over previously undefeated Archbishop Ryan in both team s conference opener at George Washington high Saturday afternoon. Explorer coach Drew Gordon used a plethora of running backs and the consistent passing of Kyle Shurmur which kept the Raider defense off balance for most of the first half. Ryan came into the game averaging over 45 points a game rolling over opponents with their smash mouth style of play and the running of junior sensation Samir Bullock. La Salle countered with a very aggressive front seven that kept Bullock pretty much at bay all afternoon and limiting the Raiders to three and outs on their first three possessions. The Explorers offense put two touchdowns on the board with still three minutes to play in the first quarter with touchdowns by Jordan Meachum and Nick Rinella. Just before the half La Salle thwarted a Ryan drive at their own 13 then went 87 yards in five plays including Jimmy Herron s 40 yard wildcat run and a 23 yard touchdown reception from quarterback Kyle Shurmur, which gave the Explorers a three score advantage that the Raiders would not be able to recover. La Salle takes on Father Judge next week as Ryan plays Roman in conference games. by Ted Silary 31

32 As the Raiders learned today, before a large, involved crowd at Washington, proving you're good is not quite as easy as believing it. Ryan hoped to become 5-0 for the first time since 1988, but a slow start went a long way to keeping that from happening. How slow? Ryan's first three offensive series resulted in three-and-outs. Meanwhile, La Salle reached paydust on its second and third drives and major air was released from all spectators' balloons. Heck, I'm thinking even La Salle's fans wanted to see a goodie, to at least witness how well their still-developing squad would react to semi-adversity. Remember, we're still in September. Lots of plots to still unfold. Anyway, La Salle's first two scoring drives required 15 plays and were capped with short runs -- a 4-yarder for sr. Jared Meachum and a 1-yarder for soph Nick Rinella. Neither score came gift-wrapped, as in something resulting from a turnover. The Explorers had to drive, and that they did. Four guys ran the ball and jr. QB Kyle Shurmur targeted three different receivers. Early in the second quarter, the Raiders' fans got a chance to stir as sr. DB Jason Dones picked off a pass and sr. WR-DB Connor Golden, who would slap together an outstanding performance, posted a reception worth 17 yards. But again La Salle's defense stiffened and Ryan headed for the locker room still owning a zero. La Salle, meanwhile, boasted 21 points and the sole reason, pretty much, was jr. WR-wildcat QB Jimmy Herron. On an 83-yard drive, he ran for 40 out of the wildcat and caught a flip from Shurmur for 23 and a TD. Third quarter? Here come the Raiders! Jr. RB Samir Bullock returned the kickoff 58 yards and Golden (5-141) soon was catching, in stride straight down the middle, a 46-yard score from sr. QB Mark Ostaszewski. Next came a you-get-six, we'll-get-six sequence. Herron faked a slant, then peeled back into the left corner for a 20-yard score from Shurmur. On Ryan's series, Ostaszewski tried to give it a go (he'd hurt an ankle a few minutes earlier while playing defense), but had to depart. On came frosh Matt Romano, brother of sr. Bobby. His first toss produced a 14-yard gain to Golden. After an incompletion, he turned into a keeper into 15 yards. Coach Frank McArdle turned to the players on the sideline and noted, with gusto, "Our freshman is playing his (butt) off! Maybe the rest of you could do the same!" Those guys took it the right way, showing even more emotion. Romano then sent one to the right corner and a leaping Golden made a tremendous, heavilychallenged snag for a 25-yard TD. Late fireworks were not to come. Ryan managed only two more first downs as La Salle, mostly, played the control-the-ball, ride-things-out card to the hilt. The one downer was an interception by -- hey, guess who! -- Connor Golden. Counting Shurmur, seven guys ran the ball for La Salle and the stalwart turned out to be Rinella (17-82). Shumur finished 15-for-25 for 167 yards and the two scores to Herron (6-85). Bullock, so impressive this season, found numerous dudes in his world all afternoon. He thus had to settle for 57 yards on 18 rushes. Bullock and Ostaszewski lost yardage a combined seven times as sr. LB Zaire Franklin (Syracuse), sr. DE Ryan "Even More the Pride of Oreland" Coonahan and soph DT-DE Anthony Piscopo were highly active. There was also a batted pass that was caught for a loss. Pretty sure Coonahan was the batter. The grunts were sr. C Bill Frusco, jr. G Aidan Kerrigan, sr. G Amir Furman, Franklin and Piscopo at the Ts. La Salle truly lost yardage on only one of its plays. Golden also was The Man on that play. (There was one other loss, but that came when Shurmur dropped the ball while retreating. Nobody made it happen.) La Salle Archbishop Ryan LS: Jordan Meachum 4 run (Matt Raczak kick) LS: Nick Rinella 1 run (Raczak kick) LS: Jimmy Herron 23 pass from Kyle Shurmur (Raczak kick) AR: Connor Golden 44 pass from Mark Ostaszewski (Joe Stock kick) 32

33 LS: Herron 25 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) AR: Golden 25 pass from Matt Romano (Stock kick) La Salle Ryan First downs Rushing yards Passing yards Total yards Passing Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards Punts-avg RUSHING La Salle: Meachum 5-20, TD; Shurmur 4-(-5); Herron 8-54; Rinella 17-81, TD; Brady 2-7; Walls 5-21; Buckley Archbishop Ryan: Bullock 18-62; M. Romano 1-15; B. Romano 1-9; Ostaszewski PASSING La Salle: Shurmur , 174, 2 TD. Archbishop Ryan: Ostaszewski , 76, TD; M. Romano 2-3-0, 48, TD; B. Romano RECEIVING La Salle: Herron 6-90, 2 TD; Buckley 3-18; Headen 1-17; Walls 1-16; Coonahan 1-9; Rinella Archbishop Ryan: Golden 5-129, 2 TD; Smith 1-(-5). INTERCEPTIONS La Salle: None Archbishop Ryan: Dones, Golden. SACKS La Salle: None. Archbishop Ryan: None. by Nick Carroll, Inquirer Game 6, October 5, 2013: La Salle 17 Father Judge 16 La Salle rallies to beat Judge La Salle erased a sizable first-half deficit Saturday to beat visiting Father Judge, 17-16, and avoid the upset in a Catholic League Class AAAA football matchup. Father Judge took a 16-0 lead in the second quarter after Marquis Seamon broke a 66-yard touchdown run, but The Inquirer's sixth-ranked team in Southeastern Pennsylvania stormed back. 33

34 Kyle Shurmur, son of Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Nick Rinella to put La Salle on the board before half. After La Salle made it a one-score game with a field goal in the third quarter, Shurmur led a touchdown drive that concluded with the game-winning score, a 7-yard pass to Jimmy Herron, with less than two minutes left in the game. by Dennis C. Way, GameTImePA.com La Salle rallies late to top Father Judge SPRINGFIELD How bad was the La Salle High football team's first half Saturday afternoon? Put it this way, the tongue lashing the Explorers got at halftime might have been the highlight. "There's no reason why we shouldn't have been (read the riot act at halftime),' said Jimmy Herron. "That was the worst half I've ever played and it was the worst half of football I've been a part of. But since there are two halves in a football game, the Explorers were, how's the best way of putting it, motivated to make amends after intermission. And while film of the second half won't wind up in Canton, it served La Salle quite well especially the final 4:32. In that time, quarterback Kyle Shurmur led La Salle on a nine-play, 56-yard scoring drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Herron with 2:15 left that gave the Explorers a come-from-behind, win over a very tough Father Judge team and set up next week's Philadelphia Catholic League Class AAAA showdown game against Saint Joseph's Prep. "All of our guys are very determined and resilient, Shurmur said. "We just keep playing, no matter what. "When you're facing adversity, you look for the guy next to you to make a play and he looks for you to make a play. And we kept playing. Adversity might not be a strong enough word. The first-half lowlights for the Explorers included an interception on the first play from scrimmage, a three-and-out on the next series and a lost fumble two plays into series No. 3. With 1:00 left in the first quarter La Salle was staring at a 10-0 deficit. And it would have been worse if Tamar Turner didn't block a 42-yard field goal attempt by Judge's Connor Foley. But it did get worse with 8:04 left in the half when Judge's Marquis Seamon broke off a 66-yard touchdown run that put the visitors up, Lost in the jubilation of the Crusaders' touchdown was the fact that Ryan Coonahan blocked the extrapoint attempt. But that fact would show up in spades later on. La Salle managed to get on the board on the series following the Seamon touchdown when Shurmur got Nick Rinella isolated on a defender in the Judge secondary. Rinella caught the pass, made the defender miss and the Explorers were on the board with 6:52 left in the half. But there was still one more eye-rolling possession before halftime put a merciful end to La Salle's misery. After Anthony Piscopo pounced on a Judge fumble to set up the Explorers at the Judge 35 in the half's final 5:50, La Salle gained a first down at the Crusaders 11. That first-and-10 quickly became first-andtwo when a pair of offsides calls against Judge moved the ball to the Crusaders 3-yard line. But not happy with their good fortune, the Explorers were whistled for back-to-back holding calls that moved them back to the 23. And three plays later, the promising drive ended via an interception at the Father Judge 2-yard line. 34

35 According to the Explorers, the paint was in danger of getting rattled off the walls in the locker room at the half. But to a man, the Explorers knew they had it coming. "Everybody knows we're playing the Prep next week, Herron said, "and you try not to think about something like that, but maybe we did. "We definitely didn't come out strong enough today. In the second half, the La Salle defense took it upon itself to hold the Crusaders just where they were. And in a performance that makes the current government shutdown look shabby by comparison, the Explorers put the screws to Judge. The second half found Judge gaining just 76 total yards while managing just four first downs (one coming on a penalty). Meanwhile, La Salle pulled within a score when Matt Raczak finished off a 13-play, 72-yard drive with a 19-yard field goal to cut Judge's lead to with 4:25 left in the third quarter. Still, things looked dire when La Salle had to punt the ball away from midfield with 6:51 left in the fourth. But after one more defensive stop, the Explorers got the ball back at their own 44 with 4:32 on the clock. And this time, the Explorers cashed. Shurmur got things going with a 22-yard pass play to Levi Hardy. Then, facing fourth-and-three at the Judge 22, Shurmur scrambled for exactly three yards to keep the drive alive. A false start penalty moved La Salle back five, but on the next snap, Shurmur found Herron on a fade route, and the receiver made a great catch over coverage and just barely inbounds at the Judge 3. "That was something we saw in the coverage, Herron said. "Their corner was inside so we went to the fade. Faced with the prospect of scoring "too soon, Rinella carried to the 1, but a delay-of-game call pushed the Explorers back to the 6-yard line. And after a Shurmur incompletion, La Salle was looking at third down. But on the next snap, Herron cut inside, Shurmur delivered a strike and the game was tied until Raczak added the tiebreaking point-after. "That was the same thing, Herron said. "This time the corner was cheating to the outside so we went inside. Kyle put the ball right there, all I had to do was squeeze it. La Salle put the squeeze on Judge's final two possessions, and the comeback was complete. "The important thing was getting the win, Shurmur said. "I didn't feel I played well at all today and we all made a lot of mistakes. "But despite all of that our team found a way to win, and I'm proud of them. Judge La Salle FJ - Carroll 1 run (Foley kick) FJ - Foley 28 FG FJ - Seamon 66 run (kick blocked) L - Rinella 44 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) L - Raczak 19 FG L - Herron 6 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) 35

36 Judge La Salle First Downs 9 15 Rushing Yards Passing Yards Totals Yards Passing Penalties Fumbles lost Punts-Avg RUSHING FATHER JUDGE: Seamon , 1 TD; Thaenrat 13-24; Carroll 5-(-12), 1 TD. LA SALLE: Meachum 16-52; Rinella 6-30; Shurmur 5-14; Herron 3-13; Brady 1-4; Buckley 2-4. PASSING FATHER JUDGE: Carroll int., 56 yds. LA SALLE: Shurmur ints., 227 yds., 2 TDs. RECEIVING FATHER JUDGE: Seamon 1-28; Monteleone 1-17; Rush 1-11; Thaenrat 1-0. LA SALLE: Headen 5-72; Rinella 3-58, 1 TD; Herron 3-32, 1 TD; Hardy 3-31; Buckley 1-14; Walls 1-11; Hemcher 1-9. INTERCEPTIONS FATHER JUDGE: Cunningham; Rush. LA SALLE: Hudak. SACKS FATHER JUDGE: Nigro. LA SALLE: Skowronski 0.5; Franklin 0.5. by Joe Stokes, EasternPAFootball.com, October 9, 2013 This weekend s weather may add to the challenges as a coastal storm was projected to keep most area fields wet on Friday night. The featured game for most high school football followers could well be the Catholic League showdown between St. Joe Prep vs Plymouth Whitemarsh High School on Friday night. It seems that these two teams are always in the thick of both league championship and playoff contention this time of year. These schools first played in 1915 with St Joe Prep leading the series However LaSalle has won 8 out of the last 12 contests. The Hawks of St Joe scored an impressive win over Archbishop Wood last Saturday with QB Chris Martin passing and Olamide Zaccheaus catching while the defense kept Wood off the scoreboard in the final 34 minutes of this game. The LaSalle Explorers needed a last quarter surge to sneak past Father Judge last Saturday afternoon. Coach Drew Gordon will have to figure out a way to slow down the speedy Hawks or this game could get ugly. This game can be seen live on The Comcast Network Friday 7 PM St. Joe Prep 35 LaSalle 20 by Dennis C. Way, GameTimePA.com, October 10, 2013 Football: La Salle, St. Joe's Prep ready for another dogfight WHITEMARSH - Has there ever been a La Salle - Saint Joseph's Prep football game that had no bearing on the Philadelphia Catholic League or state playoffs or even state rankings? Probably, but certainly not in the past decade. The Explorers and Hawks have combined to win 10 of the past 13 Philadelphia Catholic League championships they've battled for, and in most cases they have had to defeat one another to snatch that brass ring. 36

37 Another chapter in the La Salle-Prep wars will written Friday night (7:00) at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School when the two square off in another - what else? - important contest. Or, as Prep head coach Gabe Infante put it, "In this one, you throw out the records. The reality is, this will be a very well-played game. "I won't have to give a fiery speech to the team for this one. This is why you come to this school. On the surface, the winner of this game has the upper hand on the PCL Class AAAA regular-season title. But beneath the surface reasons, these two proud programs just flat-out love beating each other in anything. As for the football portion of the rivalry, the preseason scuttlebutt had the Hawks as the favorite this season, based primarily on the experience level of their players. While the Prep was the young up-andcomer a season ago and La Salle the senior-laden veteran, the two, so it was said, would reverse roles this year. Not so, said Infante. "I think we're on the same level, the Prep mentor said. "We have four new offensive linemen, three new defensive linemen and a brand-new linebacking crew. "Where we're experienced is at quarterback and some key skill spots. To that end, Infante went about maturing his team as quickly as possible with a challenging non-league schedule that including traveling to Texas to take on nationally ranked Dallas Jesuit and following that up the next weekend by taking on perennial New Jersey powerhouse Don Bosco Prep. The result is a team that had the poise to bounce back and shut down Archbishop Wood in the second half a week ago to post a come-from-behind win. But as the coach himself said, this week you throw out the records. And the bottom line is, both teams are awfully good. "They're good, said La Salle head coach Drew Gordon of the Prep, "very much like last year, with probably a little more maturity. "I think we'll be competitive, but this will still be a learning experience for us. "I see a team that might be better than last year's, said Infante about the Explorers, who ended their season in the state semifinals. "People talk about our experience, but I think where we're experienced is in the tough competition we've played. "Our kids have been exposed to a lot of different types of competition. As for Friday's game, with the relative inexperience both clubs have up front, that's likely where the game will be won or lost. La Salle will try and spread out Prep's defense to get its playmakers in space. Making that strategy difficult is an ever-changing Hawks defense, that according to Gordon, "is a pressure defense that shows you a different look on just about every down. "Their defense is very good and they play together very well. They hustle on every play and they just keep coming and coming. Infante said the key for his defense is stopping the Explorers running game. "Everyone thinks all (La Salle) wants to do is throw the ball all over the park, he said. "But what makes them so good is that they're balanced, and they've beaten a lot of teams by running the ball. So we have to start with the running game. So when La Salle has the ball, look for the Hawks to bring seven and eight defenders into the box to either discourage the run or to get after La Salle quarterback Kyle Shurmur (93-for-168, 1,356 yds., 13 TDs). Shurmur has a long list of playmakers at his disposal and will hand the ball or throw it to Jordan Meachum (490 rushing yds., 247 receiving yds.) and Nick Rinella. 37

38 Jimmy Herron, Charles Headen and Levi Hardy have combined for 52 catches and 803 yards. "Their passing offense isn't good, Infante said, "it's exceptional. They do a great job moving personnel around. When Prep has the ball, the Explorers defense will be faced with much the same dilemma as the Hawks defenders. "They've got four real good skill people, said Gordon of the Prep offense, "and they move them around. They'll put their running backs out to catch passes and there are a variety of things they can do. "And their quarterback (Chris Martin) I just love. He's the stabilizing force that makes it all work. "He's calm, intense and makes everything function properly. Plus, he's a good player. "Offensively, we want to steal a page out of (La Salle's) playbook and be balanced, Infante said. "We have to take shots when they're there. We have to be us and distribute the football, make sure everyone touches the ball. I don't want their defense to be able to focus on any one of them, and we have to attack them where they're vulnerable. Doing the primary attacking is freshman sensation De'Andre Swift (36 carries, 236 yds.), running and receiving threat Olamide Zaccheaus (39 carries, 261 yds.), who burned La Salle in the two teams' first meeting last season and the aforementioned Martin (41 carries, 225 yds., 55-for-83 passing, 698 yds., 7 TDs). As is the case in any Prep-La Salle meeting, picking a winner is an impossibility, but being there is a must. "Our biggest challenge will be staying composed and making sure everyone does their job, Gordon said. "Our guys can't get caught up in the moment. "But this is a big game, you can't downplay it. by Rick O Brien, Inquirer, October 11, 2013 Game on for Prep, La Salle La Salle struggled last week, falling behind Father Judge by 16 points before escaping - on a late touchdown pass and extra point - with a victory. St. Joseph's Prep overcame a slow start against Archbishop Wood. With 24 unanswered points, the Hawks posted a triumph over the previously undefeated Vikings. La Salle's eked-out win and the Prep's major turnaround against a powerhouse have many listing the Hawks as a clear favorite against the Explorers in Friday night's showdown between Catholic League Class AAAA rivals. Prep coach Gabe Infante, however, is not buying into such thinking entering the 7 p.m. contest at sureto-be-packed Plymouth Whitemarsh. "They've got a collection of really good football players," he said. "On offense, they're very, very balanced. They're running and throwing the ball effectively." This could be the first of two season meetings. As was the case last year, they could square off again in the Catholic League playoff final. Here is a closer look at Friday's game. Rankings. The Prep (4-1 overall, 1-0 Catholic League AAAA) is ranked No. 1 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer; the Explorers (5-1, 2-0) are No. 6. History. The Hawks lead the overall series, The Explorers have won six of the last seven meetings and eight of the last

39 Last season. In a Week 7 contest marred by 12 turnovers, the Hawks, aided by Olamide Zaccheaus' 198 rushing yards, prevailed, A month later in the league final, La Salle survived, 28-27, in overtime. The Hawks, down by 14-0 at intermission, rallied to force the extra session. On the go. The Prep's no-huddle, spread offense is fueled by quarterback Chris Martin and a number of dangerous backs, including Zaccheaus, Vince Moffett, and freshman De'Andre Swift. Passing fancy. La Salle's Kyle Shurmur has completed 94 of 169 passes for 1,377 yards and 13 TDs. "The thing that scares me is his quick release," Infante said. "And he spreads the ball around. He's not targeting one kid." Shurmur's primary targets are Jimmy Herron, Levi Hardy, and Charles Headon. Jordan Meachum and Nick Rinella are receiving threats out of the backfield. Front four. The Prep's improving defensive line features ends Armen Ware and David DellaPorta and tackles Joe DuMond and Jake Strain. Open-field terrors. With their quickness, Zaccheaus, Swift, handyman John Reid, and wideout Jawan McAllister are home-run threats for Prep. Stalwart. Syracuse recruit Zaire Franklin serves the Explorers as a hard-hitting middle linebacker and offensive tackle. Quiet leader. For the Prep, Martin has hit on 56 of 85 throws for 711 yards and seven TDs. He is also a running threat. Analysis. La Salle, even after sputtering in recent weeks, can't be counted out. But the Prep's offensive weaponry and overall speed spell a comfortable win for the Hawks. Pick. Prep, Game 7, October 11, 2013: St. Joseph s Prep 35 La Salle 28 by Rick O Brien, Inquirer St. Joe's Prep holds off La Salle St. Joseph's Prep, buoyed by a splendid offensive showing early, struck the first blow in its heated series with Catholic League Class AAAA archnemesis La Salle. Focusing on the present instead of a possible playoff meeting next month vs. the Explorers, the Hawks found the end zone four times in the first half and held on for a victory Friday night before an overflow crowd at Plymouth Whitemarsh. "We'll probably meet them again," Prep senior two-way back Vince Moffett said, "but we take each game as it comes. We don't look ahead. Our next game is the most important one to us." Last year, the Prep took the regular-season matchup. La Salle turned the tables with an overtime triumph in the league final. "We just viewed this as another game," Hawks senior quarterback Chris Martin said. "It's always big when it's La Salle, but the fans probably get more into the hype than the players." In the first half, while building a 28-7 advantage, the Prep netted 333 yards of offense and 13 first downs. The Hawks are ranked No. 1 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer. Before the break, Martin (19 for 27 passing, 242 yards, three TDs) completed 13 of 18 tosses for 183 yards and two touchdowns. His 1-yard keeper was the night's first tally. "Our tempo was where we wanted it to be," Martin said. "Our line was getting it done, our receivers were making big catches, and our running backs were finding the holes." 39

40 Martin delivered a 14-yard, first-quarter TD pass to wideout Jawan McAllister. In the second quarter, Olamide Zaccheaus went 66 yards on a direct snap from center to put the Prep (5-1 overall, 2-0 Catholic League AAAA) comfortably in front, After the Explorers' Nick Rinella scored on a 19-yard run, rising Prep freshman De'Andre Swift turned a dump pass from Martin into a 31-yard score that made it "It's amazing watching him with the ball," Martin said of the aptly named Swift. "He breaks tackles, hurdles people. He really can make things happen with his quickness." No. 6-ranked La Salle (5-2, 2-1) climbed back in after intermission, first with a 16-play, 80-yard drive capped by Kyle Shurmur's 9-yard TD toss to Levi Hardy. Down by at the start of the fourth quarter, Shurmur (14-for-24 passing, 182 yards, two TDs) connected with Rinella for another score, a 20-yarder, and Ryan Brady trimmed the gap to seven with a 2-yard dive. In the final minute, after La Salle reached the 50, Moffett made a clinching interception on a pass over the middle intended for Hardy. by Dennis C. Way, GameTimePA.com St. Joseph's Prep holds off La Salle comeback bid WHITEMARSH - Even before his La Salle High football team faced off against arch-rival Saint Joseph's Prep Friday night at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School, Explorers head coach Drew Gordon said the game, win or lose, would be a learning experience for his young team. It was. And while not all of the lessons in the Prep's victory were positive, Gordon was not at all upset over the outcome. "We're making the same mistakes over and over again, Gordon said, after the Prep took a 21-point lead into the fourth quarter, then needed a late interception to hold off La Salle's comeback bid. "In the second half we started making some tackles and the defense played a lot better. "And our kids did a good job coming back. It was a long road back after the Hawks did pretty much what they wanted through the majority of the first half. While La Salle did not gain a first down until the 8:00 mark of the second quarter, the Prep flew up and down the field like a cat that meandered too close to the fire. With quarterback Chris Martin at the controls, the Hawks went 67 yards on 12 plays on their second possession, taking the lead on Martin's 1-yard plunge with 7:10 left in the period. It was more of the same on the Hawks' next series, as Martin threw for 53 yards and ran for another 13 as Prep doubled its lead on Martin's 18-yard strike to Jawan McAllister. Meanwhile, the Explorers could do nothing against the Hawks defense. In fact, La Salle's best play in the first period was made by its defense, when AJ Greseszak intercepted Martin in the end zone to turn the Hawks away from yet another scoring opportunity. La Salle finally got on track late in the half, moments after dropping behind, 21-0, on Olamide Zaccheaus' 66-yard touchdown run with 2:28 left in the second quarter. Beginning at their own 20 after a touchback, Jordan Meachum ripped off a 61-yard gain on a short screen pass from quarterback Kyle Shurmur, then Nick Rinella swept right end for a 19-yard score. 40

41 But La Salle would still go into halftime down by three touchdowns after an interception by Prep's Ryan McNulty set the Hawks up at the Explorers 31 in the half's final minute. On the first play following the turnover, Martin tossed an inside screen to freshman standout De'Andre Swift, who juked one Explorers defender and bolted into the end zone to give the Prep a 28-7 lead at the break. Stung, but still standing, the Explorers regrouped at halftime and returned a different team. "Some of the kids were down at the half, Gordon said, "but we told them they were holding their own, and it was the mistakes and missed tackles that were stopping them. La Salle opened the half with a 16-play, 80-yard touchdown drive, capped by Shurmur's 9-yard scoring pass to Levi Hardy. The Prep responded with a 67-yard drive of its own, capped by Martin's 22-yard scoring pass to Swift to restore the 21-point cushion. But the Explorers refused to fold. After pinning the Hawks deep in their own territory, the Explorers defense forced a punt that set the La Salle offense up at the Prep 20. Two plays later, Shurmur hit Rinella on a crossing pattern, and the 20-yard score drew the Explorers within two touchdowns. A Keith Wagner sack ended the Hawks next series and a 31-yard punt return by Jimmy Herron gave the home team the ball at the Hawks 27. After the running of Meachum got the Explorers close, Ryan Brady bucked in from the one, and amazingly, with 3:58 left, the Explorers were within a touchdown of a tie. Prep ran off most of the clock, but after the Hawks drive died on downs at the La Salle 37, the Explorers took over with 51 seconds left. A 13-yard scramble by Shurmur got the ball to midfield, but on the next snap his pass went through the hands of the intended receiver and into the hands of Prep's John Reid. The game and lesson were over, but Gordon and his team had their heads up. "Our defense was great in the second half, Gordon said. "The thing we were afraid of coming in were the big plays, and they hit a couple of them. "But I think the kids learned they were a lot tougher than they thought. And that's going to help the rest of the way. by Ted Silary In effect, in front of many spectators (not exactly a shock) and very few raindrops (thank you, weather gods), the Prep made three visits to The Comfort Zone. The first two, it turned out, were unofficial. Based on results through Week Six, lots of observers figured the Hawks, despite their youth, could win this one by anywhere from 10 to 14 points. Instead, the spread was seven and the win was not assured until 25.4 seconds remaining, when sr. S Vince Moffett capped a great performance by posting an interception at the Prep's 41 and sr. QB Chris Martin (ditto) followed with an ah-this-feels-good kneeldown. TCZ first was visited 2:28 prior to halftime as jr. RB Olamide Zaccheaus, out of a wildcat formation, took a snap and mad-dashed 66 yards for a score. That made it 21-0 and folks were thinking, "Wow, is this game actually gonna become a blowout?" Visit No. 2 was made with 1:08 left in the third quarter as frosh RB D'Andre Swift -- no "e" between the D and ' -- scrambled out of the backfield straight down the middle and turned a leaping, in-stride catch into a 22-yard TD. That made it and at least a few people began heading for the parking lot. Obviously, La Salle mounted responses both times to provide hope 41

42 that a rematch, if one occurs, will turn out to be quite the game-long classic. Early, the 'Splorers truly sputtered. They did not "earn" their initial first down until 8:09 was left on the second-quarter clock and quote marks were used because it came on one of the game's many along-the-line penalties. While the Explorers were struggling, the Prep was jumping to a 14-0 lead thanks primarily to Martin. He posted score No. 1 on a 1-yard sneak and hit sr. WR Jawan McAllister on a 14-yard fade to the right corner. On those two drives, Martin passed 7-for-9 for 94 yards while showing a perfect combo of touch and accuracy. On the game's first play (though the drive didn't work out), he'd hit jr. WR John Reid for a 24- yard gain. The approach's early success made folks think the Hawks would stick with it throughout, which turned out not to be the case. Anyway, that 66-yard scoring burst occurred four plays after Zaccheaus made an end-zone interception. Interestingly, the third play was also a wildcat-formation run (by Reid). Though obviously reeling, La Salle quickly regrouped as the first play, a swing pass from jr. QB Kyle Shurmur to classmate RB Jordan Meachum, produced a 61-yard gain to the 19. Soph RB Nick Rinella, who's becoming quite the frisky force, followed with a right-side sweep for a score. A TFL by sr. DE Ryan Coonahan helped to create a three-and-out, but Shurmur's pass was picked off by sr. LB Ryan McNulty, who uncorked a 30-yard return to the 16. Alas, McNulty, who'd set an early defensive tone with a pair of TFLs, got a little excited and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty backed up the ball to the 31. No sweat. Martin flipped a middle screen to Swift and the result was twist, turn, see ya in the end zone!! The third quarter featured a pair of methodical drives. La Salle opened with 16 plays for 80 yards and the score came on Shurmur's 9-yard, left-corner fade to sr. WR Levi Hardy. The Prep responded with 12 plays for 67 yards and the 22-yard score to Swift. In the fourth quarter, the Hawks called their final timeout with 6:29 left and almost always used the entire play clock in slightly-back-on-their-heels fashion. La Salle, meanwhile, countered with a 20-yard score on a middle screen to Rinella and a 1-yard bull rush by jr. FB Ryan Brady (his only carry of the game). That latter score was posted with 3:58 left. It was a little early for an onsides kick, so the ball floated down at the 14, and Zaccheaus managed a 14-yard return. Stops by Brady and sr. DB AJ Greseszak prevented the first two plays from earning a first down, but Martin then hit Swift for nine yards and the latter added a 12-yard rush. On third-and-four, Brady and sr. LB Zaire Franklin (Syracuse) combined to hold Swift to no gain. Sr. DB Tamar Turner then broke up a fourth-down pass at Shurmur scrambled for 13 yards, to exactly midfield, before Moffett did his lateheroics- muffling act. Here's guessing Martin got a great night's sleep. He was involved in 40 plays, passing 18-for-25 for 226 yards and the three scores while adding 62 yards and a TD on 15 carries. He was quite the even distributor, hitting four guys four times apiece (and one guy twice). Swift compiled 105 yards of rushing/receiving while Zaccheaus had 114. Shurmur went 14-for-25 for 167 and two scores. Meachum turned 20 totes into 106 yards while adding that one long catch. Rinella rushed/caught for 81 yards. Huck, who watched the game on TV, credited Moffett with a lofty 14 tackles (12 solos). McNulty made seven (five) along with his pick and TFLs. Soph CB Shawn Harris had seven (six). For La Salle, Brady hustled for nine tackles (five) while Franklin and sr. DB Stephen Hudak halved 16. Jr. LB Aidan Kerrigan, sr. DL Dave Geppert and jr. DB Jimmy Herron thirded 18. Jr. DL Keith Wagner earned the lone sack. by Dan Spinelli 14, Ted Silary s Website On this rainy and bitter October night, two of Philly s most potent football teams went to battle. And tonight, the St. Joe s Prep Hawks stood tall at the end. In a sometimes lopsided game, the Explorers capped off an impressive fourth quarter comeback to fall just short of the Hawks, Even though the local news media has done an impressive job dissecting the game, I would like to add my two cents 42

43 before closing the book on this PCL regular season matchup. I hope you will oblige me as we journey through the final moments of this hard-fought football game. After looking at the game s final minutes, I ll touch on some key players from St. Joe s Prep and then more fully analyze La Salle s performance. At the 3:58 mark of the fourth quarter, I scribbled the words crunch time at the top of my notes. Down 35-28, La Salle needed to make a huge defensive stop. They kicked off to the Hawks, who received the ball at the 28 yard line. On 3rd and 2 from the Hawk 35 yard line, St. Joe s senior quarterback Chris Martin completed a ten yard strike to freshman phenom D Andre Swift. On the ensuing play, junior RB Olamide Zaccheaus moved the chains again with a twelve yard run. La Salle head coach Drew Gordon burned two timeouts as the Explorer defense attempted to hurriedly preserve the chance for one last La Salle offensive drive. Finally, it came to 4th down for St. Joe s from the La Salle 37 yard line. Now, I hesitate to ever pass judgment on the decisions of high school head coaches. What do I, a seventeen year old fan, know about football that a veteran head coach does not? That being said, St. Joe s head coach Gabe Infante decided to go for it on fourth down. Meanwhile, my expectation was that the Hawks would try for a hard count to pull the Explorers offside, or maybe simply take a delay of game penalty to give their punter more room to kick. Instead, the Hawks tossed a long ball down the left sideline. After almost being intercepted, the ball was dropped, giving the Explorers possession. On 1st and 10 from the La Salle 37 yard line, Explorer junior QB Kyle Shurmur rushed for the first down. As the clock ticked below forty seconds, Shurmur lined the Explorers up again only to toss a gameending interception to Hawk junior DB/WR John Reid. Though the end came rather unexpectedly, this was a game that many thought would be over well before the forty second mark of the fourth quarter. In fact, the local news media had roundly predicted a St. Joe s victory. And the Explorers first half performance seemed to prove these predictions soundly correct. The Explorers trailed 28-7 at halftime. They did not record a first down until the 8:12 mark of the second quarter! In many ways, La Salle struggled during this game. But, and as I will accentuate throughout this article, they absolutely did not quit. To rebound from a 21 point deficit to end the game on a game-tying drive in St. Joe s territory well, that shows spirit and tenacity. No member of the Explorer football team will deny that at times La Salle struggled and committed mistakes, but their ability to mount a nearly successful comeback in a high-pressure environment is utterly admirable. Of course, credit needs to be given where it is due. Hawk QB Chris Martin completed 18 of 25 passes for 226 yards and three TDs. Two of those scores were hauled in by the freshman Swift, who on the day hauled in 4 catches for 65 yards. Zaccheaus rushed 10 times for 75 yards and a touchdown while Martin himself ran for 15 times for 62 yards and an additional score. No one at Plymouth-Whitemarsh tonight can doubt the offensive might of the St. Joe s Prep Hawks. Their game-plan was strong and was executed very well. From the beginning, the Hawks assaulted La Salle s secondary with a relentless array of passes. After Martin tossed a red-zone interception to Explorer sophomore DB AJ Greseszak late in the first quarter, the Hawks began running the ball a bit more. They eventually achieved a terrifying equilibrium with Zaccheaus and Martin s running complementing the catches by Swift and senior WR Jawan McAllister. For my beloved Explorers, there were, of course, some silver linings in this loss. Chief among them was the hustle displayed by senior LB/TE Zaire Franklin, who has now stepped up to a role on both sides of the ball. His hustle is apparent in each play he is in, and hardly is he not involved in a tackle. Syracuse, as I m sure they know, is getting a good man next year. Meanwhile, senior DE Ryan Coonahan again made an impact as a leader on the defensive line, and was involved in a number of tackles. Senior DB Steve Hudak held the fort back in the secondary, where he, Grezeszak, and junior Jimmy Herron, chased around the likes of Zaccheaus, McAllister, and Swift. Also making stops on defense were seniors Tamar Turner and Raekwon Caswell. I was really impressed by a pair of La Salle underclassmen who 43

44 ran the ball spectacularly: junior Jordan Meachum, who rushed 20 times for 106 yards, and sophomore Nick Rinella, who rushed 3 times for 17 yards and two touchdowns. Also, the O-line was superb, only allowing one sack throughout the game. Sophomore Anthony Piscopo, junior Aidan Kerrigan senior Tyler Fallon, and senior Bill Frusco, as well as Franklin, all stayed tough throughout the grueling grind of a game. In fact, the La Salle-St. Joe s Prep game lasted for almost three hours. The first half took two hours! Meanwhile, on special teams senior Matt Raczak showed the incredible depth of La Salle s kickers and punters. After superstars Mike Bennett and Ryan Winslow, Raz is following straight in their footsteps. Complementing him on special teams is the incredible abilities of Grezeszak (whose name I have autocorrected now about fifteen times), Herron, and sophomore Charles Headen. La Salle moves onward to a battle with Roman Catholic next week at Northeast High. As we trudge through the remainder of the regular season, one popular adage remains true, You re never as good as you think you are, and you are never as bad as you think you are. Keep up the good work, La Salle. We are all rooting for you. Hail La Salle! St. Joseph's Prep La Salle SJP: Chris Martin 1 run (Pat Walsh kick) SJP: Jawan McAllister 14 pass from Martin (Walsh kick) SJP: Olamide Zaccheaus 66 run (Walsh kick) LS: Nick Rinella 19 run (Matt Raczak kick) SJP: D'Andre Swift 31 pass from Martin (Walsh kick) LS: Levi Hardy 9 pass from Kyle Shurmur (Raczak kick) SJP: Swift 22 pass from Martin (Walsh kick) LS: Rinella 20 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) LS: Ryan Brady 1 run (Raczak kick) La Salle St. Joe s First downs n/a n/a Rushing yards Passing yards Total yards Passing Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards n/a n/a Punts-avg. n/a n/a RUSHING La Salle: Meachum ; Shurmur 5-21; Herron 2-12; Rinella 3-17, TD; Brady 1-1, TD; Walls 2-10; Buckley St. Joseph s Prep: Moffett 5-13; Swift 8-40; Zaccheaus 10-75, TD; Martin 15-62, TD; Reid 1-9; Bell 2-1. PASSING La Salle: Shurmur , 167, 2 TD. St. Joseph s Prep: Martin , 226, 3 TD. 44

45 RECEIVING La Salle: Herron 3-26; Buckley 1-7; Rinella 8-64, TD; Hardy 1-9, TD; Meachum St. Joseph s Prep: McAllister 4-39, TD; Reid 4-47; Swift 4-65, 2 TD; Zaccheaus 4-39; Montague INTERCEPTIONS La Salle: Greseszak. St. Joseph s Prep: Moffett, McNulty, Zaccheaus. SACKS La Salle: n/a St. Joseph s Prep: n/a by Dennis C. Way, Times Herald, October 18, 2013 Times Herald Preview Capsule LA SALLE AT ROMAN CATHOLIC TIME: Friday, 7 p.m., at Northeast High School RECORDS: La Salle is 5-2, 2-1 after losing to Saint Joseph's Prep, Roman Catholic is 3-4, 1-1 after defeating Cardinal O'Hara, LAST SEASON'S GAME: La Salle defeated Roman, in the regular season meeting and in the PCL Class AAAA semifinals. OUTLOOK: The Explorers look to get back on the winning track against a Cahillites team that has won three of four and that is very dependent on RB Dimetri Kelly (198 carries, 1,144 yds.) to run the football. That's not to say Roman is a one-man gang offensively, as QB Brendan Regan (37-for-70, 358 yds., 1 TD) and receiver Patrick McCourt (20 catches, 168 yds.) are a potent pitch-catch duo, but with Kelly averaging 28 carries a game, it might not be a bad idea for the La Salle defense to clog the line of scrimmage. As for the Explorers, they would like to minimize mistakes, as they have averaged three turnovers and seven penalties a game over the last six weeks. Nifty note: La Salle owns eight straight victories over Roman, with the Cahillites' last victory coming during the 2007 season. Game 8, October 18, 2013: La Salle 35 Roman Catholic 14 by Chris Fries, GameTimePA.com La Salle battles past Roman Catholic Kyle Shurmur's 302 yards passing led La Salle to a dominant win over Roman Catholic at Northeast High School on Friday night. The Cahillites opened the scoring with an impressive first drive and a 45 yard bomb from Brendan Regan to A.J. Frazier to put Roman Catholic up 7-0. However, Shurmur and the Explorers' offense responded with a scoring drive of their own and dominated the game from that point forward. "We did very well, La Salle coach Drew Gordon said. "We still have a tendency to shoot ourselves in the foot, but we played well. Shurmur connected with his favorite target of the night, James Herron, for a 36-yard touchdown for La Salle, which tied the game at 7-7 with 2:37 left in the first quarter. Shurmur hit Herron 15 yards down field and Herron quickly cut inside of the Roman Catholic corner and sprinted for the goal line. 45

46 Nick Rinella gave the Explorers the lead five minutes before the half when he found a big hole in the middle of the field and took advantage with a 28-yard touchdown run. La Salle went into the half looking poised to run up the scoreboard in the second half, but they found trouble early in the third quarter. After a three-and-out by Roman Catholic, the Explorers put together a spectacular drive that started at their own 21-yard line. Shurmur spread the ball out to several receivers, hitting Nick Buckley, Jordan Meachum and James Herron on the way up the field. But on fourth-and-9 at the Cahillites 18-yard line, La Salle decided to take a shot at the end zone, instead of kicking a field goal, and the gamble proved to be a detrimental choice. As Shurmur tried to sling a pass to Herron in the end zone, Roman Catholic corner Dimetri Kelly jumped the route and took it 98 yards the other way for the pick six. "It was fourth down and we knew we had to throw to the end zone to convert, Shurmur said. Despite the interception, Shurmur kept his composure and led the Explorers on three consecutive scoring drives to bury the hopes of the Cahillites and secure the victory for La Salle. Shurmur threw for another touchdown and rushed for one as well. "He's always very calm, Gordon said. "He doesn't get over excited. I don't think a whole lot bothers him. Jordan Meachum carried his load as well on the ground, scoring the go-ahead touchdown on a 3 yard run. Meachum finished with 93 rushing yards for the game. "I like the way (Meachum) plays, Shurmur said. "He plays like its backyard football and he's looking to break one to the house on every play. Although Shurmur's leadership and Meachum's running ability proved to be of great value for the Explorers, the La Salle quarterback felt the whole team showed the same determination and resiliency in the win over Roman Catholic. "We never get too up or too down, Shurmur said. "We keep fighting. It's a good quality of our team. La Salle will face West Catholic on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Plymouth-Whitemarsh next week. by Aaron Carter, Daily News La Salle's Rinella cool under pressure NERVOUS? NOPE. La Salle sophomore Nick Rinella is usually cucumber cool. Well, not exactly. "In the locker room before the game I'm a little nervous," he said. "Usually my teammates tell me, 'Just calm down, you'll be fine, do what you do,' and that settles me down just knowing they trust me." The 5-8, 160-pound jack-of-all-trades running back certainly earned a little more faith after helping the Explorers to a win over Roman Catholic last night in a Class AAAA Catholic League matchup at Charles Martin Memorial Field. Rinella finished with two touchdowns on the ground, five catches for 106 yards in the air and a receiving score. His quarterback, Kyle Shurmur, wasn't bad either. The junior went for 187 yards and two scores, and also added his first rushing touchdown on the year. La Salle (3-1 CL) showed poise late and dominated the second half with a 21-point outburst that seized control. Roman (1-2) went ahead 7-0 in the first on a 45-yard pass from Brendan Regan to A.J. Frazier. But La Salle, as it did all night, answered with a run. Shurmur hit junior Jimmy Herron with a 36-yard scoring strike, and then handed off to Rinella, who broke free for a 28-yarder that made it

47 Dimetri Kelly's 98-yard interception return for a TD knotted the game in the third quarter, but Rinella capped an impressive nine-play, 64-yard march with a 4-yard plunge. "It's a great feeling that the coaches and players trust me and I can deliver for them," Rinella said. For Roman's Kelly, 62 yards on 16 carries was enough for his family to breach 5,000 career yards rushing. In two seasons at Roman, Marcus Kelly finished with 2,853 yards. Dimetri now has 2,153. However, the night belonged to Rinella and the Explorers, who await today's Father Judge-St. Joseph's Prep matchup at Plymouth-Whitemarsh. At 2-0, Prep is in the Class AAAA driver's seat. "We feel great," Rinella said. "We've been playing a little sloppy the past couple games, but we came out and played great. We think we have a great shot at Prep." Roman Catholic La Salle RC: AJ Frazier 45 pass from Brendan Regan (Phil Isaac kick) LS: Jimmy Herron 36 pass from Kyle Shurmur (Matt Raczak kick) LS: Nick Rinella 28 run (Raczak kick) RC: Dimetri Kelly 98 interception return (Isaac kick) LS: Rinella 3 run (Raczak kick) LS: Rinella 19 run (Raczak kick) LS: Shurmur 1 run (Raczak kick) La Salle Roman First downs n/a n/a Rushing yards Passing yards Total yards Passing Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards n/a n/a Punts-avg. n/a n/a RUSHING La Salle: Meachum 16-86; Shurmur 5-(-3), TD; Herron 1-3; Rinella 8-40, 2 TD; Brady 1-7, TD; Walls 5-19; Headen 1-4, Brooks 1-3. Roman Catholic: Kelly 16-62; Chaney 2-9; Regan 3-9. PASSING La Salle: Shurmur , 287, 2 TD. Roman Catholic: Regan , 65, TD. RECEIVING La Salle: Herron 8-97, TD; Buckley 2-27; Rinella 5-106, TD; Hardy 3-28, TD; Meachum Roman Catholic: Godfrey 2-15; Kelly 1-3; Frazier 2-53, TD. INTERCEPTIONS La Salle: none. Roman Catholic: Kelly, TD. 47

48 SACKS La Salle: n/a Roman Catholic: n/a by Nick Carroll, Inquirer La Salle College High School Football: Chronicle 2013 Game 9, October 26, 2013: La Salle 42 West Catholic 12 The Explorers turned three first-half turnovers into touchdowns and pulled away for a home win at Plymouth-Whitemarsh. Jimmy Herron caught a touchdown pass from Kyle Shurmur and returned an interception for a score. Jordan Meachum rushed for two touchdowns, and Shurmur scored on a sneak. Aidan Kerrigan had the first interception of his career. by Ted Silary Somewhere out there, Chris Lorditch is beginning to sweat. The beads are little for now, but by this time next year they could be golf ball-sized. Lorditch was a great receiver at Wood (class of 2007) and then had some terrific moments at Harvard, and he still holds the Catholic League record for career TD receptions with 27. O'Hara's Thaddius Smith owns 22, but he's a senior and his career could include just two more games. Even just one if Bonner-Prendie exacts revenge in a AAA semi. Same for N-G's Jamal Custis, though it's possible the Saints will add one (or even two) while awaiting Thanksgiving. La Salle WR Jimmy Herron is only a junior, however, and his total stands at 17. Two came in this one and were part of a three-score night for the ever-productive two-way star. Herron wasted little time before imposing his will. On the game's second series, he zoomed right down the middle and caught a well-placed bomb from jr. QB Kyle Shurmur for a 53-yard TD. His other score was posted 6:04 from game's end on a 13- yard, right-corner fade. On this play, La Salle employed a trips left and sent Herron out to the right by himself. For versatility's sake, Herron notched his other TD on a 47-yard interception return. This one capped a four-td, second-quarter outburst and featured two entertaining visuals. First, Herron used a straight-arm to fend off a tackle attempt by jr. QB Antoine McCollum. Then, McCollum tried to steal the ball, or at least knock it free. Herron broke away and frolicked into the end zone. Herron finished with six snags for 99 yards as Shurmur went 11-for-21 for 160. The Jimster now boasts 73 career receptions for 1,191 yards and the 17 TDs. Actually, he never boasts at all and that makes him very popular with his teammates and coaches. La Salle's four-td outburst began right after jr. WR Ahkil Crumpton made what was likely THE play of the night, thus drawing West within 7-6. Crumpton caught a short pass from McCollum and was major-swarmed. I'd have to think at least one ref (if not more) was ready to blow his whistle within a tenth of a second when Crumpton battled free and roared down the right sideline for a 51-yard score. It was the classic example of why guys should ALWAYS play hard 'til the whistle. So much for momentum, however. Jr. RB Jordan Meachum (11-84) went straight up the middle for a 55- yard TD on the very next scrimmage play and three turnovers helped the Explorers add three more scores in roughly eight minutes. The turnovers: INT by jr. LB Aidan Kerrigan (tipped the ball; gathered it in), fumble recovery by soph Jared Walls (on a kickoff) and INT by Herron (on that aforementioned play). Shurmur and Meachum had 1-yard runs for the outburst's middle two TDs. West's second-half score was an 18-yard run by sr. RB Greg White with 48.7 seconds left in the third quarter. White finished with 134 yards on 14 carries thanks to bursts for 65, 45, 18 and 18 again. Wait, that's 146, right? True, but he also 48

49 suffered losses of 14 and 8 yards and otherwise was kept in bottled-up mode by the 'Splorers. Sr. LB Ryan Brady numbered six solos among 10 tackles while sr. DE Ryan "Still the Pride of Oreland" Coonahan logged five stops behind the line. His two sacks and three other TFLs were worth 22 yards. Sr. Nick Mazza forced the fumble that was recovered by Walls. For West, frosh LB Marque McDuffy and jr. LB David Swen had matching stats (five solos among seven tackles) while sr. DE/hybrid Romeo Gunt, jr. LB Neil Satterwhite and soph LB Amir Postley thirded 18. Gunt bagged two TFLs as did the other DE, sr. Jalil Branch. Sr. DT Anthony Ukaha made a visit to Sackville. by Dan Spinelli 14, Ted Silary s Site In the 2013 edition of this annual battle of Philadelphia s two Christian Brothers powers, the La Salle Explorers emerged victorious. Contrary to other West-La Salle games of the past, tonight s matchup was never close. La Salle led by as much as 35-6, and ended up cruising to a victory. Even though the Burrs of West Catholic never gathered enough momentum to make the game competitive, they continually wowed the crowd with stunning displays of athleticism, most notably in the almost video game-like moves of senior running back Greg White (14 rushes for 134 yards, 1 TD). Meanwhile, Explorer junior Jimmy Herron had a stellar day, reeling in 2 TD passes and earning another TD on a pick-six. The running theme for the game was both teams constant ability to break tackles. Time and time again, plays that seemed dead were revived when the offensive player would just escape a tackle. Overall, this game provided a good prelude to what will be a brutally competitive Catholic League 4A playoff season. After a West Catholic three-and-out to begin the game, La Salle struck paydirt on only their second offensive play of the game. After a penalty which caused La Salle to have 1st down and 24 from their own 46 yard line, junior QB Kyle Shurmur connected with Herron on a 53 yard TD pass. Senior K/P Matt Raczak easily kicked through the extra point for a 7-0 Explorers lead. After trading punts, West took back the ball, starting at their own 5 yard line. After a third-down keeper by West junior QB Antwain McCollum earned the Burrs a new set of downs, Greg White broke loose for his first WOW moment of the game. Even after White s 66-yard romp to bring the Burrs deep into Explorer territory, West still could not force a touchdown, having to turn the ball over. On a related note, West Catholic s inability (or lack of a desire) to kick a field goal resulted in a bunch of turnovers-on-down in the La Salle red zone, as well as two missed 2-point conversions. The first quarter ended inconspicuously enough, with a 7-0 lead by La Salle. In the game s second quarter, things really began to get interesting. Case in point: West Catholic only ran a handful of offensive plays all quarter. Meanwhile, La Salle was collecting points in a variety of ways. But it was the Burrs who struck first. On the third play of the quarter, McCollum connected with junior WR/DB Akhil Crumpton on a second down pass. Crumpton appeared to be toast as La Salle senior DB Mike Koller had Crumpton s jersey in his grasp. In an utterly bizarre turn of events, Crumpton spun free from Koller and broke loose down the right sideline. He made it to the endzone and suddenly it was 7-6 La Salle. Without blinking an eye, Jordan Meachum got a handoff, and the junior RB tore down the right sideline for a touchdown. The Explorers took back the lead, 14-6, with 10:30 left in the quarter. But oh, hold onto your seatbelts, the fun is not over yet. On West Catholic s first play after the kickoff, junior LB Aidan Kerrigan (oh yes the last name is familiar think Connor ) collected an interception from McCollum, again giving La Salle possession. After a three-minute long offensive drive, Shurmur took the ball himself from 1 yard out for another touchdown. Now, La Salle led On the ensuing kickoff, West Catholic turned the ball over again. Junior RB/LB David Swen received Raczak s kick, but soon fumbled it. In the rush for the ball, Explorer sophomore RB Jared Walls came up with possession. 49

50 After an elongated drive, Meachum scored on a 1 yard plunge. In less than ten minutes, La Salle had expanded their lead from 7-0 to Finally, as if the second quarter could not get any wilder, Jimmy Herron intercepted another McCollum pass. He returned it about 40 yards for another Explorer TD, and a 35-6 lead. Yet again, Greg White refused to let the crowd get their blood pressure medication and simply relax. He broke free for a 45 yard run, but with under a minute left West Catholic could not convert a fourth down in the red zone. At halftime, the score remained The second half toned down the excitement a bit. It took 11 minutes and 12 seconds before the score changed. Greg White s exploits finally resulted in a touchdown, as he rushed in from 18 yards out to put West Catholic back into contention with a score. With six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Shurmur connected with Herron for a 13 yard score, which gave the game its final score of The lack of offensive power in the second-half can quite sensibly be credited to the excellent defense of both teams. For La Salle, senior DE Ryan Coonahan was involved in more tackles than I can possibly remember. He also sacked McCollum twice. Along with Coonahan, La Salle s defense was assisted by a string of underclassmen, including Aidan Kerrigan, Ryan Brady, Anthony Piscopo, Jim Herron, and AJ Greseszak. The senior leaders included DB Steve Hudak, DL Bill Frusco, DL Ryan Seiss, DL Tom McClain (who assisted Coonahan on one sack), and LB Zaire Franklin. The huge impact of sophomores and juniors on the defense ably reminds the La Salle fans of how potent this football team will be in the years to come. On Friday night against Father Judge, La Salle will begin its playoff run. I had a moment of nostalgia during this game, as I remembered the first game I ever reported on for TedSilary.com (involving West Catholic and Roman Catholic) way back in August of Very soon (probably sooner than I would like), my reporting tenure at this website will come to an end. Hopefully, this football team will give me many more games to write about before the season comes to an end. Hail La Salle! by Mike Prince, GameTimePA.com Herron powers La Salle past West Catholic Entering the 2013 season, La Salle was extremely inexperienced, and wasn't sure how its season would go. Nine games later and the Explorers are a one-loss team getting ready for the playoffs. And junior Jimmy Herron is a big reason for that. As one of only a few returning starters on the team this year, Herron impressed, and continued to do so against West Catholic, scoring three touchdowns one defensive while helping La Salle to a win over the Burrs in a meeting of Philadelphia Catholic League teams on Saturday night at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School. Herron caught touchdown passes from 53 and 13 yards out and returned an interception 47 yards for another score to help the Explorers to build a 29-point lead by halftime. "I think we (the offense and the defense) feed off each other all the time, said La Salle running back Jordan Meachum, who ran in two scores. "That pick-six by Jimmy (Herron) was great and I felt it on the sidelines with our entire offense. The defense played hard tonight. Herron's big night started with a 53-yard touchdown catch thanks to a perfect pass from Kyle Shurmur less than two minutes into the contest. After the Burrs (7-2, 4-0), who are Class AA of the PCL, scored a touchdown of their own early in the second quarter, the Explorers went absolutely off, scoring 28 unanswered points before halftime. 50

51 Meachum ran a touchdown in from 53 yards out and minutes later, Shurmur ran one in from one yard out on a quarterback sneak. Meachum followed less than five minutes later with a one-yard touchdown run and Herron capped off the half with his pick-six late in the half. "They were great tonight, La Salle coach Drew Gordon said. "Our defense was great and we got good field position because they (West Catholic) don't have a good punting game and we were able to stop the run. We ran the ball well and we were able to get good field position all night. The Explorers also won the turnover battle, committing none themselves while West Catholic threw a pair of interceptions and also lost one fumble, all leading to La Salle points. The two teams traded touchdowns in the fourth quarter, but the game belonged to La Salle from the second quarter until the end. "I think we're ready for the playoffs, said Meachum, whose Explorers will host Father Judge next Friday night at 7 o'clock at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School in a PCL Class AAAA semifinal. "I think this was one of our best games that we've played all season and I think if we can keep it up, we'll go far in the playoffs and hopefully toward the state championship. Gordon, while happy with the win, had other thoughts regarding his team's chances moving forward. "We have to get a lot better, he said. "We missed too many tackles and had too many holding penalties and it's been like that all season. Tonight was not better and I don't think we'll go very far if we keep that up. The Explorers were led by Meachum, who rushed 11 times for 84 yards and two scores to go along with his one catch for 15 yards. Nick Rinella rushed eight times for 38 yards and also caught one pass for nine. "Jordan played well. He does a nice job and he's a tough runner and he had that nice touchdown run tonight, Gordon said. "Without him and Nick (Rinella), we probably wouldn't be where we are right now. Shurmur completed 11 of 21 passes for 160 yards and two touchdowns under center, while also running in a third. Along with his defensive score and two receiving touchdowns, Herron caught six passes for 99 yards. Meachum, a junior, said he's very surprised by his team's success during this regular season and believes that the Explorers have a bright future. "I'm very surprised that we are where we are considering our inexperience, he said. "But we have this year and, of course, next year, so we're hoping for big things right now. West Catholic La Salle LS: Jimmy Herron 53 pass from Kyle Shurmur (Matt Raczak kick) WC: Ahkil Crumpton 51 pass from Antwain McCollum (run failed) LS: Jordan Meachum 55 run (Raczak kick) LS: Shurmur 1 run (Raczak kick) LS: Meachum 1 run (Raczak kick) LS: Herron 47 interception return (Raczak kick) WC: Greg White 18 run (pass failed) LS: Herron 13 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) La Salle West First downs

52 Rushing yards Passing yards Total yards Passing Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards Punts-avg RUSHING La Salle: Meachum 11-84, 2 TD; Shurmur 3-1, TD; Herron 1-2; Rinella 8-38; Brady 1-4; Walls 7-33; Brooks 1-3; Ferguson 1- (-3); Buckley 2-2; center snap 1- (-13). West Catholic: White , TD; McCollum 6-31; Wortham 2-23; Postley 1-0; center snap 1- (-7). PASSING La Salle: Shurmur , 287, 2 TD. Roman Catholic: Regan , 65, TD. RECEIVING La Salle: Herron 6-99, 2 TD; Buckley 1-3; Rinella 1-9; Hardy 1-15; Walls 1-19; Meachum West Catholic: Crumpton 3-65, TD; Amara 4-40; White 1-2. INTERCEPTIONS La Salle: Kerrigan; Herron, TD. West Catholic: none SACKS La Salle: Coonahan. West Catholic: Ukaha. by Rick O Brien, Inquirer, October 30, 2013 Father Judge vs. La Salle Father Judge (6-3) and La Salle (7-2) will square off in a Catholic League Class AAAA playoff semifinal at 7 p.m. Friday at Plymouth Whitemarsh. Here is a game-by-game look at the playoff series between the Crusaders and Explorers, courtesy of La Salle historian and ex-burholme baseball coach Bill Wasylenko: Nov. 4, 2011 (Semifinal): La Salle 26 - Father Judge 16. RB Tim Wade rushed for a school-record 290 yards as the La Salle offensive line dominated the Judge defense. Wade scored one touchdown, and RB John Palermo added a 35-yard jaunt for another. QB Matt Magarity tossed a TD pass to WR Colin Buckley, and kicker Ryan Winslow added two field goals. La Salle's final possession ran 7 1/2 minutes off the clock, and ended in a Victory formation. Nov. 5, 2010 (Semifinal): La Salle 34 - Father Judge 7. Kevin Forster stepped in for the injured Matt Magarity at quarterback, and he ran for two first-half touchdowns of 52 and 46 yards to help the Explorers coast to victory. LB Mike Piscopo got the Explorers out to an early lead with a 31-yard interception return for a touchdown. RB Jamal Abdur-Rahman added a 51-yard burst for a touchdown in the third quarter. Nov. 15, 2008 (Final): La Salle 28 - Father Judge 20. Avenging a loss earlier in the season, La Salle won their second PCL championship in 3 years by defeating the Crusaders. The Explorers overcame three turnovers, two of which directly led to touchdowns, Drew Loughery's fade pass to Sam 52

53 Feleccia in the end zone started the La Salle scoring, and Loughery teamed up with FB Mike Donohoe for two touchdown passes, and they reversed roles on a two-point play. Kicker Mike Bennett made good on two clutch field goals. Nov. 15, 1997 (Quarterfinal): Father Judge 47 - La Salle 14. Avenging a regular-season loss, the Crusaders rolled over the Explorers, as 4 turnovers and several dropped passes led to the onslaught. The Explorers trailed at half by just 26-14, but Judge tailback Jim Casey rushed for 222 yards on 29 carries to lead the Crusaders. Nov. 11, 1995 (Quarterfinal): La Salle 21 - Father Judge 0. La Salle's defense held the Crusaders to 111 total yards. Mike Mattia opened up the scoring with a 47-yard TD pass from soph Brett Gordon. Gordon and Mattia also connected from 8 yards out after Drew Middlemiss intercepted a pass and returned it into Judge territory. La Salle iced the game in the third quarter on Gordon's pass to WR Brian Curci. Nov. 11, 1994 (Quarterfinal): Father Judge 28 - La Salle 7. A potent offense, combined with two Explorer fumbles, allowed the Crusaders to cruise to victory. La Salle's lone score came on a touchdown pass from QB Dan McNichol to RB Mike Brown. Nov. 13, 1992 (Quarterfinal): Father Judge 14 - La Salle 2. Again, the Crusader defense stifled the Explorer offense. With 4:32 left, La Salle drew to within 7-2 as Andrew Wickersham sacked the Judge punter for a safety, but a touchdown pass off a fake field goal with 1:37 left sealed the game for the Crusaders. Nov. 16, 1991 (Semifinal): Father Judge 17 - La Salle 7. In a bitter playoff loss, La Salle's undefeated season (with one tie) came to an end, as Father Judge used two touchdowns by RB Jacob Bonelli and a tough defense to keep the Explorers at bay. QB Geoff Crawford's 80-yard run for a touchdown was called back. The Explorers finished the season at after defeating St. Joseph's Prep on Thanksgiving. Nov. 11, 1989 (Quarterfinal): La Salle 14 - Father Judge 0. La Salle's first playoff win EVER (City Championship games weren't technically playoff games!). La Salle's defense allowed only 54 yards of offense to the Crusaders, but the game was scoreless into the middle of the 4th quarter. Finally, La salle scored on a 7-yard pass from QB Chris Massella to TE Dave Demara with 6:42 left, and RB John Slowick iced the game with a 58-yard insurance TD late in the game. Game 10, November 1, 2013: La Salle 35 Father Judge 0 (Semifinal) by Nick Carroll, Inquirer La Salle shuts down Judge Kyle Shurmur needed only one playoff game to set city history Friday in La Salle's 35-0 win against Father Judge in a Catholic League AAAA semifinal matchup at Plymouth Whitemarsh. Shurmur, son of Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, set the city playoff record with five touchdown passes in his first postseason start at La Salle. The record, which takes the Catholic League, Public League, and Inter-Ac League into consideration, was previously four, shared by six players. In total, the junior completed 18 of 22 passes for 258 yards, as La Salle, ranked sixth in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, topped 13th-ranked Father Judge. Jimmy Herron caught three of the scores and finished with six catches for 167 yards. With the win, La Salle will play the winner of Saturday's semifinal between St. Joseph's Prep and Roman Catholic next week. 53

54 by Dennis C. Way, GameTimePA.com La Salle lights it up in rout of Father Judge WHITEMARSH - At some point during this past week, La Salle High quarterback Kyle Shurmur got the lowdown on the Philadelphia Catholic League playoffs. Sure, the junior transfer from St. Edward High School in Ohio has enjoyed a terrific season under center for the Explorers. But the PCL playoffs, he undoubtedly was told, was a different animal, a bubbling cauldron of pressure with foes sending blitzes never before seen while every receiver is double covered and every audible is matched with a perfect corresponding defense. And that's just in the first half. But those voices of doom, however loud, didn't bother Shurmur. Nor did the Father Judge defense Friday night at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School as the quarterback coolly and calmly threw for 268 yards and five touchdowns - in just three quarters of action - as the Explorers blew away the Crusaders, 35-0, to move into next week's PCL Class AAAA final. The game, against the winner of Saturday's Saint Joseph's Prep-Roman Catholic semifinal, will be played Saturday night at a site yet to be determined. "Yeah, people talked to me about the playoffs, Shurmur said, "but just the idea that there's no tomorrow motivates everybody. "You have to give your best on every play. Shurmur had his best to give, but he also had senior wideout Jimmy Herron, who was nothing short of fantastic, hauling in seven of his passes for 166 yards and three touchdowns. His 17-yard, sliding touchdown grab early in the second quarter, in fact, had to be seen to be believed. Shurmur and the Explorers came out throwing, a strategy that was not necessarily in the original game plan. "Judge usually runs a lot of 4-3 (defensive alignment), said La Salle head coach Drew Gordon, "but tonight they came out in a 4-4 with a cover three, and that played right into our passing offense. So Shurmur went to work on the game's initial drive, hitting Charles Headen for 10 yards, finding Herron for 35 and ultimately collaborating with Herron again for a 27-yard score. Judge's first possession ended with a sack by Explorers lineman Fletcher Grady, and the Explorers went right back to work, this time traversing 53 yards on nine plays, with Shurmur finding Jordan Meachum over the middle on fourth down for a 12-yard score to double the La Salle lead. Judge put together an impressive drive of its own, but was slowed by a crucial holding call, and ultimately came up empty when Mike Koller broke up quarterback Zach Carroll's fourth-down pass from the Explorers 22. That put the ball back into the hands of Shurmur, who immediately found Herron down the middle of the field for 50 yards. Four plays later, from the Crusaders 17, Shurmur went to Herron again, and the senior responded with a sliding grab just inside the right pylon with a receiver draped over his back. The highlight-reel catch didn't go unnoticed. "That catch was unbelievable, Gordon said, "and Herron was fantastic all night. The three-touchdown bulge held up into halftime, but the Explorers went for the jugular in the third quarter. First, they scored at the end of an eight-play, 57-yard drive that began with a 10-yard pass play to Nick Rinella and ended with a 10-yard scoring strike to Headen with 7:25 remaining in the third. 54

55 La Salle put it on ice and kicked in the running clock when Shurmur fired a fourth-down, 15-yard strike to Herron with 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter. "(Herron) is very football savvy, Shurmur said. "He's very smart, and he keeps on finding ways to get open. "But there were plenty of other guys that stepped up tonight. Our defense played well. It was a good team win. And where that win puts La Salle is back in a familiar place - the PCL final - likely against a familiar foe, the Prep. "I think what we learned the first time we played (Prep) was that they're better than us, from a talent standpoint, Gordon said. "But I don't think we played with confidence in that first game. "And I think these last two weeks have helped our confidence. by Huck Palmer, Ted Silary s Website Roughly a month of ago the Explorers used a late fourth quarter touchdown to nip the Crusaders, 17-16, in a hard-fought regular season tussle played between these squads. So, a repeat of that nip-and-tuck affair probably loomed in the minds of many tonight. Not an unreasonable thought, right? Ahem, think again. La Salle s offense, led by jr. QB Kyle Shurmur and jr. WR Jimmy Herron, was simply surgical throughout. Its performance was a masterpiece, actually. Shurmur tossed a city league postseason record FIVE touchdowns in all; with three going to Herron. And the dominance started right from the getgo, too. The Explorers needed just 5 plays and 2:24 of clock to cover 80 yards for the game s first score. A 35-yard toss-and-catch featuring the aforementioned duo got things rolling on the game s second play. Then, three plays later, the Shurmur-to-Herron partnership connected for 27 yards in the right side of the end zone. Judge s first possession produced a a three-and-out and a punt back to LaSalle. This time the Explorers were much more methodical in their marching ways. On a fourth-and-9 from the twelve, Shurmur neatly found jr. RB Jordan Meachum on an inside post for the second La Salle TD. This drive covered 53 yards on 10 plays. Next, a promising Judge drive would stall at the LS 22-yard line, as a 14- yard holding penalty was a killer in this sequence. Wasting little time when getting the ball back; Shurmur connected with a leaping Herron over the middle. The play covered 50 yards and placed the ball at the FJ 28-yard line. Three plays later, Shurmur while rolling to his right, found a sprawling Herron in the front of the end zone near the cone. Just a tremendous grab by Herron! With the game just over 14 minutes old the Explorers held a commanding 21-0 lead and would basically never look back. To start the second half the La Salle defense forced a three-and-out and set-up the offense at their 43-yard line. It would take LaSalle eight plays to march the necessary yardage. Shurmur tossed TD #4 to soph. WR Charles Headen (7-46) on a nicely orchestrated bubble screen covering ten yards. Touchdown #5 would come a short time later and the next time the Explorers had the ball. Again, they converted on fourth down. This time the scoring play covered 15 yards to Herron, who easily secured his third entry to paydirt. With 29.2 seconds left in the third quarter we entered mercy rule proportions. This would be the end of the night for Shurmur, Herron, and company. For the game, Shurmur finished 18-for-22, for 258 yards. Herron ended with 7 catches for 167 yards. That receiving yardage came a single yard short of a La Salle record; held by Colin Buckley ( 11) with 168 yards. Herron now holds 20 receiving TDs over the last two seasons. The city record for a career is 28. Shurmur s 5 passing TDs broke the record of four that was held by six players before tonight. Interestingly, offensive coordinator and Explorer all-timer Brett Gordon was not one of the six. However, three other former LaSalle QBs were among those sharing in the tie: John Harrison ('06), Drew Loughery ('08), and Chris Kane ('12). Brett may have not shared in the touchdown 55

56 record, but his tutelage with all four of these kids certainly assisted in their achievements. All total, La Salle churned out 411 yards on 63 plays from scrimmage. They amassed a staggering 25 first downs in the game. Meachum led eleven ball carriers with 68 yards on 14 carries. The troops on the OL were outstanding. They included: sr. C Bill Frusco, sr. David Geppert and soph. Matt McDermott, and sr. Zaire Franklin and soph. Anthony Piscopo. Rotating in were sr. Vince Cicalese, sr. Tyler Fallon, and jr. Aidan Kerrigan. The Explorers defense wasn t too shabby either. Six times they sacked FJ quarterbacks. Notching these were; sr. DE Ryan Coonahan (4 stops total), jr. DL Keith Wagner, jr. DL Fletcher Grady, Piscopo, and sr. Raekwon Caswell (Two). The Explorers used a team approach to hold the Crusaders to 154 yards of offense. Sr. DB Mike Koller had five pass defends. LaSalle will now play in their sixth straight championship game and 7th in eight years. They have won all of these. For Judge, soph. RB/DB Yeedee Thaenrat is a keeper. I really like this kid s potential and I foresee some big outings coming his way moving forward. In this one he produced 87 of his 93 rushing yards (10 carries) in the first half. He dinged his knee on the kickoff to start the second half and was down for a few minutes. He later came back and ripped-off a 59-yard TD on a screen pass. Alas, the score was brought back on a holding call. Yep, it was that kind of night for the Saders. Jr. QB Zach Carroll ended 8-for-18, for 57 yards. Soph. WR Prince Smith made three catches for 20 yards. Defensively, jr. DE Jowell Agyedu notched a pair of sacks. Sr. DL Tom Bayer (Sack) had some impressive moments with five total stops. Sr. DE Anthony Galasso recovered a fumble. Sr. LB Jim Galasso had a game-high seven stops, while Smith added 5 solo tackles. Judge was hampered by nine penalties in the game. La Salle will play the winner of tomorrow s Roman/SJ Prep Semifinal. by Dan Spinelli 14, Ted Silary s Website A realization hit me, while watching this PCL semifinal matchup between La Salle and Father Judge, that from now on each La Salle football game I watch could be my last one as a student. It s a very strange feeling knowing that the end is so close. As I shared these feelings with AJ Carabello, the press box assistant for his dad and La Salle s PA announcer, Mr. Carabello, he simply looked at the scoreboard and said, Danny, I don t think this will be your last game. With a 35-0 final score, I think AJ had the right of this one. La Salle was never in danger of losing this game, as Explorer junior QB Kyle Shurmur put on a show with five TD passes (the most in city playoff history), three of which went to WR Jimmy Herron. Herron now has six total touchdowns over the last two games. Shurmur s other touchdown passes connected with junior RB Jordan Meachum and sophomore WR/DB Charles Headen. The Explorer defense also played fantastically, with sacks on Judge junior QB Zach Carroll recorded by La Salle sophomore Anthony Piscopo, junior Keith Wagner, and two each (!) by seniors Ryan Coonahan and Raekwon Caswell. For Father Judge, their defense was anchored by the stellar play of sophomore Prince Smith. Additionally, sophomore LB Hunter Joseph recorded a nice sack. The theme of today s game was passing both teams moved the ball well in the air, but La Salle especially had success. In the game s first drive, Shurmur moved the Explorers almost exclusively with passing plays, including a 35 yard connection with Herron. A 27-yard touchdown pass, also to Herron, capped off that first drive. After a punt by the Crusaders, Shurmur again moved the Explorers right down the field. In a time-consuming drive, the Explorers ended up having a 4th down and 9 from the Judge 12- yard line. Shurmur passed to Meachum for the touchdown, putting the Explorers up 14-0 with 2:16 remaining in the first quarter. 56

57 Judge s ensuing drive brought us into the second quarter, and it included some sterling runs by Crusader senior Marquis Seamon. He began the drive with two consecutive 10-yard runs, bringing Judge into La Salle territory. The drive began to fall apart when a Judge holding penalty gave them a 1st down and 24 at the La Salle 32-yard line. Not even an offside penalty on La Salle could resuscitate the Crusader drive as they faced 4th down and 14 from the La Salle 22-yard line. As Zach Carroll dropped back to pass, he faced incredible pressure from Explorer senior LB/OL Zaire Franklin, who nearly sacked the quarterback. Carroll tossed the ball away, giving the Explorers possession. Shurmur began another La Salle possession with (you guessed it) another long pass to Herron. On 1st down, Shurmur tossed a 52-yard pass to Herron, giving the Explorers great field position deep into Judge territory. The drive ended with a 17-yard pass to Herron, putting the Explorers up 21-0 with 9:53 left in the second quarter. The score would remain that way for the rest of the half. Judge did mount another drive into the red zone, but had to settle for a field goal attempt from senior K/P Connor Foley. His 36- yard attempt did not go through the uprights, leaving the score at 21-0 La Salle at halftime. Judge received the ball to begin the second half, and partially due to a Coonahan sack, ended up having to punt on a three-and-out. The next Explorers drive was the Charles Headen show. Of the eight offensive plays run during the drive (two of which were called back due to penalties), Headen was the main player, both as a running back and receiver, in four of them, including the capstone touchdown. With 7:25 remaining in the third quarter, Shurmur found Headen in the end zone for a 10-yard score. The Explorers were now up on the Crusaders The game s final points were scored near the end of the third quarter. A 15-yard pass from Shurmur to Herron cemented a relationship worth 18 points in tonight s game. Up in the stands watching tonight s game was Harvard freshman Sean Coleman, who reeled in four touchdowns in last year s PCL championship, watching his virtual protégé, Jim Herron, continue a La Salle legacy of multi-sport athletes. Late in the game, Explorer fans saw another taste of La Salle sophomore QB Chris Ferguson, who replaced Shurmur early in the fourth quarter. Ferguson handed the ball off a lot to junior RB Justin Campanella, who was pretty consistent in his runs. The backup Explorers also moved the chains quite nicely on a third-down pass to senior Peter Brooks. When the backup offense got the ball back late in the game, it seemed almost like they could drive for another touchdown. Ferguson tossed a beautiful ball to Brooks, and then a 17-yard one to junior TE Ian McIntosh for two consecutive first downs. Unfortunately, a fumble recovery by Judge ended the drive at the Judge 17-yard line. Regardless, the underclassmen on this football team again showed why La Salle can be confident in its team s success for years to come. Before signing off, I do want to give a shout-out to Father Judge for winning the PCL Championship in soccer on Tuesday of this week. While my good friends at Lansdale Catholic were not able to pull out a win, both my LC friends and I all agreed that the Judge student section was fantastic during the soccer game. It was nice to see so many kids out to support their school. Congrats! Onward we go to face the winner of the Roman-SJ Prep game next week in the PCL Championship. I am lucky enough to be able to witness four Catholic League championship games in four years as a student. Hopefully, I ll be able to witness four wins. Hail La Salle! Father Judge La Salle LS: Jimmy Herron 27 pass from Kyle Shurmur (Matt Raczak kick) 57

58 LS: Jordan Meachum 12 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) LS: Herron 17 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) LS: Charles Headen 10 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) LS: Herron 15 pass from Shurmur (Raczak kick) La Salle Judge First downs n/a n/a Rushing yards Passing yards Total yards Passing Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards n/a n/a Punts-avg. n/a n/a RUSHING La Salle: Meachum 14-68; Shurmur 6- (-7); Rinella 4-11; Walls 4-13; Brooks 1-4; Ferguson 1-8; Buckley 1-1; Campanella 4-9; Osterman 3-16; McIntosh 1-17; Felix 1-5. Judge: Seamon 3-0; Carroll 3- (-12); Thaenrat 10-93; Kovacs PASSING La Salle: Shurmur 18-22, 258, 5 TD; Ferguson 1-1, 8. Judge: Carroll 8-18, 57; Kovacs 0-2, 0. RECEIVING La Salle: Herron 7-167, 3 TD; Rinella 1-10; Hardy 2-23; Meachum 1-12, TD; Brooks 1-8; Headen 7-46, TD. Judge: Thaenrat 1-3; Rush 2-13; Smith 3-20; Galasso 1-10; Seamon INTERCEPTIONS La Salle: none Judge: none SACKS La Salle: Coonahan, Wagner, Grady, A. Piscopo, Caswell (2). Judge: n/a by Dennis C. Way, GameTimePA.com, November 8, 2013 La Salle, St. Joseph's Prep collide for Catholic League AAAA title WHITEMARSH - It might have finished as a close seven-point game when La Salle last played Saint Joseph's Prep back on Oct. 11. But anyone who was there knows differently, including La Salle head coach Drew Gordon. "I think (Prep) took their foot off the accelerator, Gordon said, recalling the Prep victory in which the Hawks held a 21-point lead at one juncture, "and we were able to come back on a couple of punt returns that gave us opportunities to score. "We didn't defend very well in the last game, we didn't cover people. And I don't know if we're good enough to cover them. 58

59 That question will be answered Friday night at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School in front of an overflow crowd when the Explorers (8-2) seek their sixth straight Philadelphia Catholic League AAAA championship against the favored Hawks (7-2) in what could turn out to be one more La Salle-Prep classic. But Gordon knows his team will have to play better than it did four weeks ago if it is to pull off consecutive PCL championship No. 6. "We have to do a couple of things differently, Gordon said. "We're going to have to be able to cover them better and we're going to have to be able to put pressure on the quarterback, which is something we haven't done well all year. The Hawks entered the 2013 season as one of the teams thought to be in the state-championship mix, a preseason balloon that was burst when the Hawks were blown out, 42-0, in the season's second week by New Jersey powerhouse Don Bosco Prep. Prep then ran off five straight wins before falling victim to a very good Archbishop Ryan team two weeks ago, But if postseason games are all about matchups, La Salle doesn't seem to have many in its favor against this year's Hawks, who have speed to burn in the persons of Jawan McAllister (23 catches, 291 yds.), Olamide Zaccheaus (73 carries, 550 yds., 241 rushing yds.), freshman sensation De'Andre Swift (21 catches, 288 yds.) and John Reid (28 catches, 442 yds.). "All four of those guys can beat you from the receiver or the running back position, said Gordon of the Hawks' penchant for moving the playmaking foursome around in various formations. "Zaccheaus is as good as there is and Swift plays like a senior. Since the Explorers and Hawks last hooked up, Gordon said he's watched them play twice. "I don't think they've changed much, he said. "They're doing the same things and doing them well. "But then we haven't changed that much either. Gordon's love-hate relationship continues with Prep quarterback Chris Martin (107-for-165), 1,363 yds., 17 TDs, 450 rushing yds.). He loves to watch the senior signal-caller play - just not against La Salle. "He's the guy who makes it all go, Gordon said. "In that first game, he really threw the ball well, but we weren't covering them anyway. This time around, the Explorers will have to pick their poison. If they send pressure, the Hawks quartet of playmakers will likely get man-to-man coverage in the secondary. If they sit back, Martin still has enough quality options to find a matchup he likes. On the other side of the field, the Hawks can choose to pressure Explorers quarterback Kyle Shurmur (157-for-270, 2,264 yds., 24 TDs), or play the Explorers straight up, making La Salle's running game even more vital. If La Salle running back Jordan Meachum (163 carries, 840 yds.) has a productive game, La Salle will stay in the contest until the end. Ultimately, the Hawks are under no pressure to do anything out of the ordinary. It's a game plan that worked well the first time these two teams met, and the onus is on La Salle to change, or suffer the same fate. "The good thing is, we played pretty well against Father Judge, Gordon said, "and I hope that gives our players confidence going into this game. The interest in the game is at its usual fever pitch. A thousand tickets each went to La Salle and Prep. All were gone in less than two days. "Our kids are excited, Gordon said. "One of the kids commented this week most of our team didn't play much against Prep last year, so for them this is their chance to win championship. 59

60 "But I think we're the underdogs, and we should be. We're defending something, and (Prep's) trying to get it. by Rick O Brien, Inquirer, November 8, 2013 Game On: Prep vs. La Salle La Salle aims to stretch its impressive run of consecutive Catholic League football titles to six. St. Joseph's Prep, motivated by the heartbreak of last year's title-game loss to the Explorers, looks to claim its first crown since The archrivals will battle for the Class AAAA championship - and the right to play for top PIAA District 12 honors - at 7 p.m. Friday in front of what is sure to be a capacity-plus crowd at Plymouth-Whitemarsh. In an Oct. 11 meeting, the Prep built a 28-7 halftime advantage and then held on for a victory. Here is a closer look at the highly anticipated final. Weather. A clear, 43-degree night is forecast. Records. La Salle, ranked No. 4 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, is 8-2 overall; No. 3 Prep is 7-2. Coaches. La Salle's Drew Gordon is (.790 winning percentage) in eight seasons at La Salle; Gabe Infante is (.667) in four years at the Prep. History. The Hawks lead the overall series, Rematch. In last year's final at PW, La Salle prevailed in overtime, 28-27, on a 5-yard slant pass. The Prep scored first in the extra session, but missed the point-after kick. Round 1. In this season's first clash, the Explorers, despite trailing by at the start of the fourth quarter, had a chance to even things in the final minute. The Hawks made a clinching interception near midfield. Fast tempo. The Prep's no-huddle, spread offense averages 30.4 points. It is spurred by quarterback Chris Martin, halfbacks Olamide Zaccheaus and Vince Moffett, and handyman John Reid. Peaking. La Salle has won three consecutive games by a combined score of Junior QB Kyle Shurmur threw for 258 yards and five touchdowns in last week's 35-0 romp over Father Judge. Dangerous rookie. In the first meeting, Hawks freshman De'Andre Swift turned two screen passes into scores of 31 and 22 yards. New wrinkle. Look for La Salle's Jimmy Herron, a speedy receiver, to line up sometimes at QB and direct a read-option play. Key role. La Salle's defensive line, featuring end Ryan Coonahan and tackle Keith Wagner, must keep Martin and company from finding open space. Top targets. Shurmur spreads the ball among Herron and fellow wideouts Charles Headen and Levi Hardy. Jordan Meachum and Nick Rinella are threats out of the backfield. Analysis. Shurmur's red-hot arm will keep it close, but we expect the Hawks, with Martin's experience and overall savvy playing a big part, to end the Explorers' five-year reign. Pick. Prep, Game 11, November 8, 2013: St. Joseph s Prep 30 La Salle 20 PCL Champ) by Rick O Brien, Inquirer Prep captures Catholic crown 60

61 After leaving North Jersey four years ago and taking over as football coach at St. Joseph's Prep, Gabe Infante began the "process" of building a consistent winner. His dedication and one-game-at-a-time approach paid off Friday night, as the Hawks topped archrival La Salle, 30-20, and earned the Catholic League Class AAAA crown before an overflow crowd at Plymouth Whitemarsh. "I'm proud of everyone who believed in us, believed in the mission," Infante said after presenting Prep athletic director Jim Murray with the championship plaque. "It's a great thing to enjoy the fruits of your labor." The Hawks claimed their first league title since In doing so, they ended La Salle's five-year reign and avenged last season's title-game loss to the Explorers. "This win was for the seniors from last year's team," Prep junior John Reid said. "I'm still in touch with all of them. They're like my brothers. We came into this game with those guys in mind." Next weekend, at a site and time to be determined, the Prep (8-2) will play for the District 12 Class AAAA crown against the winner of Saturday's Public League final between George Washington and Frankford. A big question for the Hawks moving forward is the health of senior quarterback Chris Martin, who suffered a left-knee injury early in the fourth quarter against La Salle. He left Plymouth Whitemarsh on crutches. "My knee buckled," the 5-foot-10, 185-pound senior said. "I really don't know what happened. I'll have to get it checked out." Martin, a second-year starter, completed 8 of 12 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns. "Chris made some big throws for us tonight," Infante said. Senior wideout Jawan McAllister, who has committed to play baseball at Pittsburgh, hauled in scoring passes of 30 and 57 yards. "He considered giving up football after his sophomore year," Infante said. "We convinced him to stay. To see him contribute like that in a big game, it's a pretty cool thing." The clincher early in the fourth quarter was junior halfback Olamide Zaccheaus' 12-yard TD burst out of the wildcat formation. That put the Hawks ahead, A Prep defense that held La Salle (8-3) to one score through three quarters was headed by linemen Jake Strain and Joe DuMond, linebackers Ryan McNulty and Dillon DeIuliis, and backs Reid and Vince Moffett. Early in the second quarter, DeIuliis blocked a punt, and McAllister recovered the ball at the La Salle 9. The Hawks cashed in on the next play, with Martin finding Reid over the middle. A missed extra-point kick left it at "He's a once-in-a-lifetime player," Infante said of Reid, who later made a one-handed interception. "What makes him great is his competitive spirit." For the Explorers, Kyle Shurmur completed 22 of 36 throws for 223 yards and a score. Fellow junior Jordan Meachum carried the ball 17 times for 106 yards. by Aaron Carter, Daily News Prep captures Catholic AAAA title with win over La Salle After the St. Joseph's Prep student section spilled onto the field to celebrate the school's victory at Plymouth Whitemarsh for the Catholic League AAAA championship, from the massive scrum came the quip of the night. "Hey, our centerfielder had a pretty good night," screamed a fan. 61

62 Senior Jawan McAllister, who committed to Pittsburgh to play college baseball, caught two touchdown passes that helped dethrone La Salle, the reigning five-time CL champion. "It feels great," McAllister said from a field teeming with happy teens. "We've been working for this moment since the heartbreak of last year. So it feels great to finally get this win and be a champion." Motivated by last season's overtime loss to the Explorers in the championship, Prep's senior class - with help from younger teammates - earned the redemption it sought. Senior quarterback Chris Martin went 8-for-12 in the air for 172 yards and three touchdowns. McAllister's only two catches netted him 87 yards. But it was a few underclassmen that helped the Prep nab important early momentum. Senior Pat Walsh started the scoring with a 25-yard field goal with 8:31 left after the game's opening drive. On the ensuing kickoff, sophomore Joe DuMond forced a fumble that Walsh recovered at the Explorers' 30-yard line. Nineteen seconds later, Martin hit Jawan McAllister in stride down the right hash mark for a 30-yard score that put La Salle down, 10-0, before it could even muster an offensive play from scrimmage. The Explorers responded with an 11-play, 63-yard march that ended with a Kyle Shurmur QB sneak from 9 inches out. Half-the-distance penalty yardage on three-consecutive Prep infractions moved the ball from the 2 to the quarter-inch line before Shurmur snuck into the end zone. But, Prep seized control once again. "[Last year] was tough," McAllister said. "We started a long process, but we came up short. So this year, our one goal was to finish." Dillon DeIuliis thundered through the Explorers' line on fourth down and blocked a punt recovered by McAllister. Once again, Prep immediately capitalized with a 9-yard TD pass from Martin to junior John Reid on the next play. "We finished this year," McAllister said, "but we want to keep this going through states." The Prep built on its 16-7 halftime lead when Martin and McAllister connected again for 57 yards for a 23-7 advantage with 3 minutes left in the third. The Prep seniors knew little of a world where La Salle didn't reign supreme. So when junior running back Olamide Zaccheaus took the ball out of a wildcat formation on a left-side sweep, neither McAllister nor Martin hesitated to get physical. "I didn't really see too much, because I was busy blocking," McAllister said with a laugh. "When I turned and looked, I saw Chris making a great block. And that's the reason we scored." Zaccheaus finished with 109 rushes and that 12-yard score. La Salle junior Jordan Meachum finished with 108 yards on 17 carries. Junior quarterback Kyle Shurmur went 21-for-35 for 209 yards and a TD pass to junior Jimmy Herron. The Explorers figure to return with a talented senior squad next season, but for this year the Catholic League title belongs to the Prep. "We talked about it all the time," McAllister said of the senior class. "But we took every game one step at a time. And we knew that if we took our time and stayed focused that this day would come." by Nick Iuele, GameTimePA.com St. Joseph's Prep topples La Salle Although scoring points is essential to winning football games, it is usually the defense and special teams that separate two teams when titles are on the line. St. Joseph's Prep had the latter going for it on Friday night and used it to take home a Philadelphia Catholic League Class AAAA title. 62

63 St. Joseph's Prep converted turnovers into points in the first half to separate itself early and then hung on to down La Salle Although the Explorers played well, SJP showed mastery at shifting momentum and built up enough to take La Salle out of the game. La Salle was primed for a comeback, but simply ran out of time. "We hung in, but we made too many mistakes, La Salle coach Drew Gordon said. "All the sins of the past came back to haunt us. They are a good team. We were down 10-0 before we even really had the ball. It may not have been a blowout heading into halftime, but SJP had staked their claim in the contest early on. After Pat Walsh kicked an eight-yard field goal to put his team on the board, the Hawks' defense forced and recovered a fumble on the ensuing La Salle drive. On the very first play after the recovery, quarterback Chris Martin hit Jawan McAllister with a 30-yard touchdown strike to increase the lead to 10. La Salle had a nice drive of its own that resulted in a Kyle Shurmur one-yard touchdown plunge and then posted a three-and-out on defense at the end of first quarter, but the Hawks were keen on making big plays all night. When the Explorers attempted a punt one minute into the second quarter, Mike Crone got to the kicker and blocked it, setting the table for Martin's second touchdown pass of the night. La Salle could not put the ball in the end zone for the rest of the half and went into halftime down "Their defense and special teams came up big and ours didn't at all, Gordon said. "We had some dropped passes and too many penalties. You can't get 10-yard holding penalties on first down. But still, they were the better team, that's all. They deserved to win. The Hawks snuffed out any hope of a comeback in the third quarter. The defense was stingy and once again did not allow the Explorers to score, while Martin put an exclamation point on his night by hitting McAllister again with a 57 yard touchdown toss. Just to further the point, SJP running back Olmamide Zaccheaus scampered for a 12 yard touchdown run at the top of the final quarter. At that point, the Hawks went into a prevent defense and the Explorers took advantage of what little time they had left. Shurmur, who had a big game going 21 of 35 for 215 yards, led a late aerial assault, peppering the field and moving the ball. Nick Rinella ran in for a two-yard score and Shurmur threw a touchdown pass to Jimmy Herron, but it was too little too late. The early-game mistakes and SJP poise took La Salle out of the game and sent them home for the season without a PCL crown. "We have a lot of young guys, so hopefully they come back and this loss helps us next year,' Gordon said. "I hope they feel this and don't want that feeling to come back again. by Joseph Santoliquito, CBSPhilly.com St. Joe s Prep Makes History With First Title Since 2005 PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., (CBS) They know all of the steps. They re deeply ingrained, beginning way back in what seems like light years ago in August, before anyone puts their shoulder pads and helmets on. It s the process that St. Joseph s Prep coach Gabe Infante preaches. Step by step, gameby game, no one game bigger than the other. It s why Infante was able to stand there on the sideline prior to his team s game against five-time defending Catholic League champ La Salle, looking straight in the face of history with the same placid expression he opened the season with. St. Joe s Prep took a mighty step on a chilly Friday night at Plymouth Whitemarsh, winning the Catholic League championship for the first time since 2005 with a victory over La Salle before 8,000. The Hawks, now 8-2, will play the Public League champion, either Frankford of George Washington, next Saturday at 4 p.m. at Northeast High School for the District 12, or City Championship. 63

64 Prep beat La Salle behind some stellar defense, and three touchdown passes by senior quarterback Chris Martin. I think we were able to do this because, honestly, we felt all along that this was just another game, said Martin, who injured his left knee late in the game. This feels great, and it s great to win a championship, but this is a team that wants to play in December [for the state title]. It s all about taking steps in the process. A process everyone knows. St. Joe Prep defensive end Jake Strain was a one-man wrecking machine. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound junior had seven tackles, four for minus-10 yards in losses, including a sack. This was Step 10, and our goal isn t to stop here at the Catholic League championship, Strain said. All week it was hard not to buy into the hype of this game and playing for the Catholic League championship against La Salle. We heard from everyone, all of our friends in school, from everywhere. Don t get me wrong, it was nice to bring the league championship home, but our focus will continue to be on ourselves and what we have to do. What Prep needs to do is continue to play the way it did against the Explorers. Before La Salle knew what happened, St. Joe s was up 10-0, thanks to an opening drive that led to a Pat Walsh 25-yard field goal with 8:31 left in the first quarter. Walsh figured prominently again in the Hawks second score, when he recovered a La Salle fumble. The Hawks went right for the jugular on the next play, when Martin lofted a 30-yard touchdown strike to an open Jawan McAllister with 8:17 remaining in the first quarter. And just like that, Prep was up, La Salle responded on its next possession, when junior quarterback Kyle Shurmur, son of Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, engineered a 10-play, 63-yard drive. A big play in that series was when Prep jumped offsides on a fourth-and-five at the Hawks 25. The play gave the Explorers a fresh set of downs, and eventually led to Shurmur pouring into the end zone from a yard out, making it 10-7 with 1:49 left in the first quarter. Junior Dillon DeIuliis blocked punt early in the second quarter put Prep in prime position to add to its lead. It didn t take long for Martin to find the end zone again, this time hitting John Reid for a 9-yard TD pass and a 16-7 Prep lead. Olamide Zaccheaus sealed it with a 12-yard TD run with 9:49 to play, which gave Prep a 30-7 lead. La Salle added a few cosmetic scores, but the Explorers never led and were never in the game after halftime. This was great, but we re looking at the big picture, Zaccheaus said. We re at Step 10. Everyone on this team knows all of the steps. by Armand Vanore, EasternPA.com St. Joe s Wins the PCL, AAAA over LaSalle Plymouth Meeting, Pa.: The St. Joe s Hawks ended LaSalle s five year, PCL, AAAA championship win streak, last night at Plymouth Whitemarsh stadium. The win will enable the Hawks to secure a date next week for the District 12 championship and a chance to pursue their dream of a state championship. Although LaSalle ran an astounding 85 plays to the Hawks 34, this game was decided on the Hawks ability to cause a couple of early special teams turnovers which put the Explorers in an immediate hole. After the Hawks Pat Walsh booted a 25 yard field goal he recovered Charles Headon s fumble on the ensuing kickoff at the Explorer 30. One play later, Hawk QB Chris Martin hit Jawaan McAllister, who was running a skinny post for a touchdown and a 10-0 lead only four minutes into the game. 64

65 The Explorers for their part were able to maintain ball control with some long play drives which kept the Hawks defense on the field for large chunks of the game. Quarterback Kyle Shurmur led them on an 11 play, seven minute drive which culminated with the QB s 1 yard touchdown pulling them to within 3 points before the first quarter ended. St. Joe s next special teams highlight came during LaSalle s next possession when Dillon DeIuliis blocked a punt deep in Explorer territory. Martin then hit John Reid with a 9 yard touchdown pass on the next play. The Explorers were presented a golden opportunity when Steve Hudak intercepted a Martin pass at the Hawk 23 to open the third stanza. St. Joe s defense held firm and caused LaSalle to turn the ball over on a loss of downs when Shurmur s final two passes of the drive fell incomplete at the 15. Five plays later, Martin hit McAllister again for a 57 yard TD pass which took most of the steam out of the Explorer team and large contingent of fans who came out in droves to support their team. Olamide Zaccheaus scored on the Hawks next possession which gave them a 30-7 advantage which LaSalle could not overcome. The Hawks victory came at a price though. Starting LB, Nick Vandevere (collarbone) and Martin (knee) left the game with injuries and did not return. Martin s could be a major issue because he is a two year starter and a true leader of this team. Hopefully, he will be able to return for their playoff run. The Hawks secured a date next week vs. the Frankford/George Washington winner and District championship. Notes: Both Matt Raczak and Walsh had excellent hang time on their punts. Each had punts which pinned the opposing team within their own 5 yard line. Explorers Hudak played a spirited game for the Explorers. The DB played very physical on the Hawks WR s and his interception was of the high point variety at the beginning of the second half. The Hawks Vince Moffett played a stalwart game at safety with multiple tackles and pass breakups. In the midst of the Hawks injuries, defensive leader Tom Johnson, who was plagued all year with a foot injury, returned and played a major part in stopping many of LaSalle s drives. by Ted Silary The word "choke" gives off such bad vibes, it is truly despised by those accused of having done so. Had the Hawks been guilty of choking more than once while failing to win a CL championship since 2005? Again, that's a VERY strong word, but four times in the interim they'd been unable to secure the championship after winning the regular season title. As this one ended, and the players stormed the field from the east sideline and were greeted by hundreds of students surging at them from the south end zone, one young adult could be heard above the roar. "It's about damn time!" he said. A moment later, another adult came out with, "We finally beat those guys." La Salle had captured five AAAA crowns from '08 through '12 while Roman (in '07) and La Salle (in '06) had triumphed in Red. The Prep's first-placethen-agony stumbles had occurred in '06, '07, '09 and '12. So, with those in mind, you can guess what this group very much needed in the early going to prevent any thoughts of, "Oh, crap. Here we go again." Right you are: Good early moments. And the Hawks certainly got them. Sr. RB-S Vince Moffett returned the opening kickoff 40 yards to the La Salle 46 and three plays later caught a 32-yard toss from sr. QB Chris Martin to place the ball at the 6. A collision on a would-be handoff from Martin to jr. WR-RB John Reid threw the drive for a gigantic loop, but sr. Pat Walsh salvaged something by nailing a 25-yard field goal. The kickoff provided major rosiness, also. A hit by soph DL Joe DuMond dislodged the ball from 65

66 soph KR Charles Headen and -- hey, check it out -- Walsh recovered at the 30. Zip. Score. On the first play, Martin hit McAllister in stride for a 30-yard TD, Walsh added the kick and those two scores, just 14 seconds apart, made it The reaction of Prep fans featured high-volume yells AND big sighs of relief. The sighs turned out to be justified. Granted, this win was not collected in going-away fashion, and it wasn't secured until jr. DL Armen Ware stopped jr. QB Kyle Shurmur on a conversion run with 9.7 seconds remaining, but there were pockets of comfort along the way and very few people, I'd imagine, were saying to themselves down the stretch, or even before, "La Salle's gonna find a way to win this." It was the Hawks' time. And they played as if they knew it. Aaron "Ace" Carter's DN ink went to McAllister, who turned his two catches into scores. The other, a 57-yard streak up the left sideline (he beat his defender by 2-3 yards and made the snag in stride), came with 3 minutes left in the third quarter and lifted the Prep's lead to In two playoff games this season, McAllister boasts five catches for 147 yards (29.4) and four TDs. Jawan's main sport is baseball, and that's what he'll be playing at Pitt. We've seen that before in this family, of course. Jawan's brother, Jon, was a diamond all-timer at Chestnut Hill Academy, but also had some special receiving moments. He has stuck with baseball in college and now can be found at Long Island University. As anyone who even remotely knows me is well aware, I love kids who play two or even three sports and that's especially so if they already have a D-I ride in one and still stick with the other(s). La Salle has turned that scenario into an art form, especially with lacrosse guys sticking with football, so major props to Jawan for his dedication and especially for his contributions in this game and last week's vs. Roman. To its credit, La Salle battled back from the 10-0 deficit and slapped together an 11-play, 63-yard drive that ended with a sequence that likely had NEVER occurred in city history. After a 1-yard run by jr. RB Jordan Meachum moved the ball to the 2, the Prep was hit with encroachment THREE STRAIGHT TIMES, moving the ball to the 1, to the 1/2, then to the 1/4. So, when Shurmer powered into the end zone, he did so from the 9-inch line. Legendary! A hard tackle by sr. LB Zaire Franklin and a broken-up pass by Meachum forced a three-and-out, but La Salle was also throttled and sr. P Matt Raczak had to punt. Thwap! Jr. S Dillon DeIuliis raced in from Raczak's right and blocked the ball with a dive. McAllister recovered at the 14 and twisted forward to the 9. Freebie time. Martin immediately hit Reid for a 9-yard score to make it 16-7 (and there it stayed as Walsh sent his kick to the right). On its last drive of the half, La Salle did advance to the Hawks' 24. But Ware and DuMond combined for an 8-yard sack, then sr. MLB Ryan McNulty dumped Shurmur for four more yards. Not too long into the third quarter, the Prep gambled when faced with second-and-9 from its 2. Martin tried a short, right-side fade, but was victimized for a leaping pick by sr. DB Stephen Hudak. However, this drive also came up empty. TFLs for McNulty and jr. DL Jake Strain helped to make it happen, as did a batteddown pass on fourth down by Strain. The ensuing possession was when McAllister posted his 57-yard, thing-of-beauty TD. Down by 16, La Salle offensive coordinator Brett Gordon called for a trick play. Shurmer sent a backward pass to Meachum on the right side. Jordan backwarded the ball to Shurmur on the left. Kyle momentarily bobbled, however, and his long throw downfield was intercepted by Reid. The Prep did almost nothing. La Salle followed WITH nothing and Moffett made a fair catch of Raczak's 34- yard punt at the Hawks' 36. Bingo. Martin hit jr. RB Olamide Zacchaeus for 18 yards. Frosh RB D'Andre Swift added runs for 8 and 3 yards. An interference call placed the ball at the 20. Swift ran for 3. An encroachment call took things to the 12. Then, Zaccheaus lined up as the wildcat snap-taker and zipped around left end for a TD. But there was one BIIIIIIG problem. Stationed on the left wing, and serving as Z's lead blocker, was Martin. And while doing his thing, he went down in a heap. Much later, he hobbled out of the stadium on crutches and his left knee was covered with a soft cast. He'll undoubtedly get X- rays and we'll see how things play out. Best of luck to Chris, who in the two playoff games has gone 17- for-29 for 319 yards and six TDs. La Salle scored on its final two possessions. Each one required lots of 66

67 time, however: almost 4 minutes, then just short of 6 minutes. Soph RB Nick Rinella ran 2 yards for the first one. The second one came at 9.7 as Shurmur rolled right and hit jr. WR Jimmy Herron with a 2-yard pass. Amazingly, La Salle ran 42 of the game's first 58 plays and wound up winning that overall contest, La Salle went down to defeat in part because it almost never posted big plays. Its first pass bagged 28 yards and a hook-and-lateral two plays before the last score produced 21 yards (sr. WR Levi Hardy flipped the ball to Rinella, who scampered 14 yards to the 2), but otherwise the gains came in drips and drabs. In his fourth season, coach Gabe Infante, a North Jersey native, now owns a CL title and is the first non-philly-area guy to accomplish that feat since... Lord only knows. Going back to at least the mid-'50s, all previous coaches of CL champs were raised in Philly or the close-by suburbs. Almost all, of course, were products of CL schools. Pretty amazing... More to be added to this report Saturday morning... Is it possible the dominance goes all the way back to 1926 and 27? Roman s coach back then was Gene Oberst. I found a Wikipedia entry saying that he was born in Kentucky. Not sure if he moved here as a kid or popped up here as an adult. Research for another day. A few minutes ago, on NBC10, anchorlady Rosemary Connors was setting up the sports segment when she said, Before we get to the pro stuff, a shout to St. Joseph s Prep for winning the Catholic League football championship last night. She didn t add this: her twin brother, John, is an assistant with the Prep, and starred there as a lineman. The twins late grandfather, Tex Flannery, was La Salle s forever coach. There were occasional substitutions, of course, but the Prep s defense featured Ware and Strain at the ends, DuMond and sr. Steve Robinson at the tackles, sr. Ryan McNulty at MLB, soph Shawn Harris and jr. Thomas Johnson at OLB (first game back after a LONG stint of inactivity due to a broken ankle; he likely had the night's best pop in pass coverage), Reid and sr. Rob DiSanto at CB, and Moffett and DeIuliis at the safety spots. The grunts: soph Ed Mooney at C, jr. Mark Ehrlich and jr. Shane Davis at G, Robinson and jr. Jon Daniel Runyan at T. Numerous underclassmen are starting for the Hawks, so the 2014 season should be very productive as well. The Prep s next foe will be the winner of today s Pub AAAA final between Frankford and Washington. Congrats to La Salle on its five-year run of championships (and six in seven years). Many special moments provided by classy players/coaches. Best wishes to La Salle soccer coach Bob Peffle, who is stepping away from the baseball program to spend more time with family. Bob, who formerly performed baseball miracles at his alma mater, Frankford, was on hand to babysit the Explorers student rooters. They come no better. Best of luck, Bob! La Salle St. Joseph's Prep SJP: FG Pat Walsh 25 SJP: Jawan McAllister 30 pass from Chris Martin (Walsh kick) LS: Kyle Shurmur 1 run (Matt Raczak kick) SJP: John Reid 9 pass from Martin (kick failed) SJP: McAllister 57 pass from Martin (Walsh kick) SJP: Olamide Zaccheaus 12 run (Walsh kick) LS: Nick Rinella 2 run (Raczak kick) LS: Jimmy Herron 2 pass from Shurmur (run failed) 67

68 La Salle SJP First downs 21 7 Yards rushing Yards passing Total offense Passing Fumbles-lost Penalties Punts RUSHING La Salle: Meachum 16-93, Rinella 11-15, TD; Herron 5-10, Shurmur 8-12, Walls 2-(-1) St. Joseph's Prep: Zaccheaus 8-127, TD; Martin 6-12, Reid 1-4, Swift 4-14 PASSING La Salle: Shurmur 21-35, 215, TD, INT St. Joseph's Prep: Martin 8-11, 180, 3 TDs, INT RECEIVING La Salle: Rinella 6-74, Herron, 4-27, TD; Headen 4-31, Hardy 3-27, Meachum 4-38, Buckley 1-18 St. Joseph's Prep: McAllister 2-87, 2 TD; Reid 3-24, TD; Zaccheaus 1-15, Swift 1-10, Moffett