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MVAL Power Poll
(FINAL)
1. Frederick (10-2)
2. Linganore (7-3)
3. Urbana (9-2)
4. Francis Scott Key (9-3)
5. North Hagerstown (9-2)
6. Westminster (5-5)
7. Walkersville (6-5)
8. Smithsburg (9-3)
9. Middletown (5-5)
10. Liberty (4-6)
11. Brunswick (5-5)
12. South Hagerstown (5-5)
13. North Carroll (4-6)
14. Boonsboro (4-6)
15. South Carroll (3-7)
16. Catoctin (4-6)
17. Winters Mill (3-7)
18. Thomas Johnson (2-8)
19. Century (3-7)
20. Tuscarora (1-9)
21. Williamsport (1-9)
22. Clear Spring (0-10)
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2004 MVAL Football Standings
Antietam Conference
Team...........Conference....MVAL.....Overall
x-North Hagerstown....7-0......7-2........9-2
Smithsburg...........5-2......7-2........9-3
Brunswick............4-3......5-4........5-5
South Hagerstown.....4-3......5-4........5-5
Boonsboro............4-3......4-4........4-6
Catoctin.............3-4......4-5........4-6
Williamsport.........1-6......1-6........1-9
Clear Spring.........0-7......0-7........0-10
Chesapeake Conference
Team...........Conference....MVAL.....Overall
x-Frederick...........5-1.......8-1.......10-2
x-Urbana..............5-1.......8-1........9-2
x-Linganore...........5-1.......7-1........7-3
North Carroll.......2-4.......4-6........4-6
Westminster.........3-3.......5-4........5-5
Liberty.............1-5.......4-6........4-6
Thomas Johnson......0-6.......1-6........2-8
Piedmont Conference
Team...........Conference....MVAL.....Overall
x-F.Scott Key.........6-0.......9-2........9-3
Walkersville........5-1.......6-4........6-5
Middletown..........4-2.......5-5........5-5
South Carroll.......3-3.......3-7........3-7
Winters Mill........2-4.......3-7........3-7
Century.............1-5.......3-7........3-7
Tuscarora...........0-6.......1-9........1-9
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2004 Antietam Conference Players of the Week
Week #1: Robbie Thompson-QB-North Hagerstown (passing: 8-16, 205 yds, 3 TD's)
Week #2: Eric Zwilsky-RB-Brunswick (rushing: 310 yds, 2 TD's; 365 total yds)
Week #3: Matt Fieser-RB/LB-Smithsburg (rushing: 21-164, TD)
Week #4: Allen Daniels-RB/LB-South Hagerstown (3 TD's, 2 INT's); Eric Zwilsky-RB-Brunswick (rushing: 13-209, 4 TD's)
Week #5: Robbie Thompson-QB-North Hagerstown (passing: 12-16, 139 yds, 3 TD's)
Week #6: James Barnes-RB-Boonsboro (rushing: 23-127, 2 TD's)
Week #7: Justin Thompson-RB-Smithsburg (rushing: 277 yds, 5 TD's)
Week #8: Eric Zwilsky-RB-Brunswick (rushing: 301 yds, 3 TD's)
Week #9: Leon Finley-RB-North Hagerstown (rushing: 121 yds, 2 TD's)
Week #10: Tyler Braithwaite-QB-Clear Spring (passing: 22-52, 384 yds, 5 TD's)
2004 Chesapeake Conference Players of the Week
Week #1: Cory Rhodes-QB-Frederick (passing: 9-14, 280 yds, 2 TD's; rushing: 123 yds)
Week #2: Matt Anuszewski-QB-Liberty (passing: 16-27, 240 yds, TD)
Week #3: Matt Castor-RB-Linganore (rushing: 16-305, 7 TD's)
Week #4: Sean Alder-RB-Urbana (rushing: 14-158 yards, 2 TD's)
Week #5: Mike Murray-QB-Urbana (passing: 11-18, 154 yds, 4 TD's)
Week #6: Kevin Clancy-QB-Westminster (passing: 20-24, 287 yds, 5 TD's, rushing: 8-18, 2 TD's)
Week #7: Matt Castor-RB-Linganore (rushing: 18-322, 3 TD's)
Week #8: Bruce Dorsey-RB-Frederick (rushing: 313 yds, 5 TD's)
Week #9: Bruce Dorsey-RB-Frederick (rushing: 308, 2 TD's)
Week #10: Bruce Dorsey-RB-Frederick (rushing: 20-167, 3 TD's)
2004 Piedmont Conference Players of the Week
Week #1: Layton Hersh-RB-FSK (rushing: 16-103; receiving: 1-30, TD; passing: 1-1, 21 yards)
Week #2: Layton Hersh-RB-FSK (rushing: 21-107; receiving: 3-105, TD)
Week #3: Joe Taylor-RB-Winters Mill (rushing: 27-202, 2 TD's)
Week #4: Mark Ferro-RB-Walkersville (rushing: 263 yds, 3 TD's)
Week #5: Joe Taylor-RB-Winters Mill (rushing: 27-176, 2 TD's)
Week #6: Mark Ferro-RB-Walkersville (rushing: 19-177, 3 TD's)
Week #7: Matt Angell-RB-FSK (rushing: 9-96, 2 TD's, 1 punt return TD)
Week #8: Mark Ferro-RB-Walkersville (4 TD's)
Week #9: Eric Bell-RB-South Carroll (rushing: 259 yds, 4 TD's)
Week #10: Mark Ferro-RB-Walkersville (rushing: 25-115, game-winning TD catch) ; Matt Angell-RB-FSK (rushing: 15-122, 2 TD's)
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2004 MVAL Playoff Results
3A West
Region Semifinals
1. Frederick 18, 4. Seneca Valley 7
2. Northwest 26, 3. Urbana 16
Regional Finals
2. Northwest 41, 1. Frederick 27
2A West
Region Semifinals
1. Fort Hill 57, 4. Walkersville 14
2. Francis Scott Key 23, North Hagerstown 9
Regional Finals
1. Fort Hill 56, 2. Francis Scott Key 0
1A West
Region Semifinals
1. Allegany 18, 4. Northern Garrett 13
2. Smithsburg 54, 3. Hancock 0
Regional Finals
1. Allegany 33, 2. Smithsburg 19
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Maryland Playoffs:
Regional Finals
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Frederick’s T.J. Taylor (12) is surrounded by Northwest players as he carries the football in first quarter action at Frederick on Friday night in the Class 3A West Region semifinals.
Staff photo by Sam Yu, FNP
MARYLAND 3A WEST FINALS
Cadets' fine season ends with loss
By Brandon Oland, Frederick News-Post Staff
Frederick, MD---After Northwest's 41-27 victory over Frederick in the Class 3A West region final, Cadets coach Vince Ahearn had a tough chore.
He had to say farewell to his fine senior class.
In the post-game huddle, Ahearn's voice quivered.
"To my seniors," said Ahearn, who then paused in an unsuccessful attempt to compose himself. "Thank you for four great years. Four wonderful years."
It was a tough way to end a fine season. Some of the Frederick Fanatics, who were rowdy all evening, tried to console the players afterwards.
As principal Denise Fargo-Divine watched the players file off the field, she wiped away tears. Running back Bruce Dorsey hugged his dad. Players cried. Assistant coaches teared up.
"This is my family," Frederick quarterback Cory Rhodes said. "Sometimes they are more than my real family because I spend more time with my team than I do my family. I'm with these guys for at least 12 hours a day, and I couldn't be more proud of what we've accomplished."
Northwest was just better on this night.
The Jaguars took advantage of two crushing Frederick first-half turnovers. After a first quarter interception by Frederick's Billy Gross fired the crowd up, the first shotgun snap of Frederick's drive sailed over Rhodes' head. Rather than fall on the ball, Rhodes tried to pick it up. As he bobbled the ball, three opportunistic Northwest defenders pounced on it and the Jaguars recovered the fumble at the Frederick 10-yard line.
On fourth-and-goal, Northwest quarterback Ike Whitaker scored on a 2-yard keeper to give Northwest a 6-0 lead, an advantage it never relinquished.
After hanging with Northwest for much of the first half, the Cadets self-destructed in the final two minutes of the half. Whitaker led the Jaguars on a six-play, 80-yard drive capped by a Salim Koroma 13-yard touchdown grab with 38.2 seconds left in the first half. Score: Northwest 20, Frederick 6.
The Cadets, as they did far too often on Friday night, got greedy. Instead of simply allowing the first half to end, the Cadets ran a quarterback draw play with just one second left on the clock. Rhodes fumbled, Northwest's Alphonzo Griffin scooped it up and scampered 60 yards for a backbreaking touchdown. The 2-point conversion gave Northwest a 22-point halftime lead.
"It was loud in the locker room at halftime," Whitaker said.
As the Frederick players walked of the field at the half, the opposing Northwest fans mocked them, chanting "this is our house."
They were right.
Frederick's secondary had no answers for Whitaker (15 of 18 for 216 yards) and favorite target Darren Brownlee (eight catches, 115 yards). Running back Tony Nelson had 16 carries for 113 yards and a fourth quarter interception that put an end to a last gasp Cadets comeback.
"We wanted to come in here and play a perfect game," Whitaker said. "A perfect game is no turnovers and no punts. We had no turnovers, and I only think we punted twice. I'd say that's perfect."
Frederick was far from it. Personal fouls came after great plays. Receivers dropped passes. Players lost their composure.
Even so, the Cadets made a game of it.
Rhodes (16 of 34 for 194 yards and 93 yards rushing) found sophomore Anthony Walker (four catches, 56 yards) for touchdown grabs on back-to-back second half drives. With just over 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Frederick trailed by just eight.
Whitaker had an immediate answer, hitting tight end Andrew Thomas on a 41-yard touchdown. On the play, Gross, who had two picks and was in perfect defensive position, just missed on an attempted interception. Thomas caught the ball and scampered to the end zone with not a defender in sight.
Frederick also elected to go for two after its first touchdown. A Northwest penalty negated the extra point.
The attempt failed. Rhodes threw an incompletion.
"If a couple things went our way, it would have been a different result," Frederick senior lineman Peter Malamet said.
But it wasn't.
So ends a wonderful journey for the Cadets. Frederick was the co-MVAL Chesapeake champs. Frederick won its first playoff game since 1985. And Dorsey had 127 yards in his final game. Before Friday night's game even started, he was already the school record holder for rushing yardage in a season
Unofficially, he finished with 2,155 yards, hardly a comfort after such a crushing loss.
"We had tons of support," Dorsey said. "We kind of feel like we let everybody down."
Dorsey's father, standing next to him, would have none of that talk.
"You had a great high school career," he said. "Be proud of it."
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Fort Hill defensive back Kevin Page upends Francis Scott Key running back Matt Angell during the Eagles' 56-0 defeat in the Class 2A West championship game Friday night in Cumberland. Angell was later called upon to play quarterback after Jimmy Gilford became the third QB this season to suffer an injury. KEN KOONS/STAFF PHOTO, CCT
MARYLAND 2A WEST FINALS
Francis Scott Key conquered at Fort Hill
By Patrick Stoetzer, Times Staff Writer
CUMBERLAND, MD---A different brand of football.
That's what Francis Scott Key faced Friday night, three hours away from home in Allegany County and smack dab in the middle of Big Red Country.
Fort Hill, hosting the Class 2A West final, controlled the game from the start and pounded FSK in a 56-0 win at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Fort Hill scored on five of its six first-half possessions - not including a Jordan Fradiska 65-yard interception return for a score - and kept Key (9-3) deep in its own territory nearly all night.
It's quite an atmosphere at the school perched atop a hill overlooking downtown Cumberland. Greenway Avenue Stadium seats about 7,000 and the Sentinels take the field by descending a flight of concrete steps that connect the school to the stadium. A large crowd usually erupts as an ear-splitting air horn blares out to signify Fort Hill's arrival.
That's how Friday's game began, and Key's players might have psyched themselves out right then. Not to mention the Eagles played a team that outscored its opponents by 35 points per game.
"They're better than Urbana," said senior lineman Dan Bridges when asked to compare Fort Hill to another opponent. "Bigger and stronger. We couldn't gang-tackle tonight. Usually we're all over the place, but we couldn't make the tackles this time."
The Sentinels (11-1) showcased running back Kevin Page in the first half - the senior manhandled FSK's defense for 192 yards and four touchdowns as Fort Hill opened a 42-0 halftime lead. Page scored on runs of 18, 19, 19 and 88 yards, the biggest of which came on a third-and-14 play early in the second quarter. Key trailed 14-0 but had Fort Hill pinned back deep until Page found a seam and dashed down the home team's sideline.
Page helped Fort Hill total 337 rushing yards; Francis Scott Key finished with 88 and called upon junior running back Matt Angell to play quarterback when sophomore Jimmy Gilford became the third QB this season to suffer an injury.
The Eagles went to the locker room at the half and Bridges said he started thinking about his final prep football game ending in a blowout.
"It hit me hard," Bridges said. "I wanted to [win] for everybody. Myself, the coaches, the fans ... we wanted it bad."
FSK coach John Baugher watched game tape of Fort Hill to prepare, but the Sentinels played on grass in those tapes. On Friday, Fort Hill's players seemed much faster on their artificial turf field to the Eagles.
"They were just better than we were," said Baugher. "There's just no doubt about it. They're the best team I've seen since I've been coaching and they played an awesome game tonight."
With his team trailing by four touchdowns early in the second quarter, Baugher knew there was little FSK could do.
"Any time you're facing a situation where the other team is bigger, stronger and faster than you are, it's very difficult to make adjustments," he said.
The coach praised his players for their stellar season, one that included Key's first county and Piedmont Conference titles, the Eagles first playoff victory and a school record-tying nine wins.
"There's not much you can do about this loss," said senior running back Layton Hersh, who led FSK with 74 yards on eight carries. "Just start over again next year for the juniors."
Francis Scott Key 0 0 0 0-0
Fort Hill 14 28 7 7-56
SCORING SUMMARY
F - Kevin Page 19 run (Ron Mallow kick)
F - Page 18 run (Mallow kick)
F - Page 88 run (Mallow kick)
F - Page 19 run (Mallow kick)
F - Josh Root 8 run (Mallow kick)
F - Jordan Fradiska 65 interception return (Mallow kick)
F - Root 4 run (Mallow kick)
F - Blake Hill 3 run (Mallow kick)
TEAM STATISTICS
FSK FH
First downs 5 14
Rushes-yards 32-88 36-337
Passing 1-5-1 2-3-0
Passing yards 8 56
Fumbles-lost 1-1 1-1
Penalties-yards 3-21 4-29
Punts-avg. 7-29 1-49
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
FSK - Layton Hersh 8-74, Ryan Blanchette 7-18, Matt Angell 13-4, Kyle Tracey 1-2, Bryan Hudson 2-(-4), Jimmy Gilford 1-(-6); FH - Kevin Page 14-189, Josh Root 8-73, Blake Hill 8-69, Jeff Lee 3-10, Tim Hodel 1-2, Casey Merritt 1-2, Branden Giffin 1-(-12).
Passing
FSK - Matt Angell 1-4-1 8; Jimmy Guiford 0-1-0 0; FH - Giffin 2-3-0 57.
Receiving
FSK - Bryan DeCarlo 1-8; FH - A.T. Zembower 1-43, Root 1-13.
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MARYLAND 1A WEST FINALS
Leopards fail to toe the lines
by BOB PARASILITI, Herald-Mail
CUMBERLAND, MD---When it was all over, the most efficient way to the Maryland Class 1A West championship wasn't by using a straight line.
It was behind a dominant one.
Allegany used its size and strength to overpower Smithsburg on both sides of the line of scrimmage as the Campers muscled their way to a 33-19 victory Saturday at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Allegany was quicker off the snap of the ball. It translated to 308 yards rushing on 45 attempts - a 6.8 yard per carry average - while the defense held Smithsburg to 239 yards of offense with 110 yards and all 19 Leopards points coming in the fourth quarter after the Campers took their first unit out of the game.
It led to Allegany winning the West title and advancing to the state semifinals next week against Potomac.
"We got beat up front," said Smithburg coach Buddy Orndorff, matter-of-factly. "Anytime you don't control the line of scrimmage, you're going to get your butt kicked. My hat's off to Allegany. This was the best game I saw them play this year and I've seen five of them."
Once was enough for the Leopards, who had trouble containing Allegany's defensive line of four tackles, anchored by 6-foot-3, 285-pound Dan Pluta in the center of it all.
"We knew they had two outstanding backs and we thought we had to win the battle on the line on offense and defense," Allegany coach Tom Preaskorn said. "What we did was put our two big guys at tackle on the inside and used our quick tackles on the outside."
It proved to be a solid front that Smithsburg's two 1,000-yard running backs - Justin Thompson and Matt Feiser - continued to run head first into the entire game. Allegany held the pair to just 37 yards in the first half, holding 11 of their 15 combined attempts to two yards or less.
With the running game chained to the backfield, Smithsburg was forced to lean on its passing game even more than was planned. The Leopards wanted to throw, but not as much as it became needed.
"We thought we could throw on them," Orndorff said. "We thought we could beat their secondary, but you got to have time to throw. It's tough for (quarterback Josh Daniels) to do that when he's running around back there and can't get set. They beat us off the ball and they are stronger than we are. They didn't show that on the film."
Daniels chipped away at Allegany's defense, hitting his first three passes for 18 yards before connecting with Dustin Mitchell on a 27-yard strike. But the Campers' pressure only allowed Daniels to hit 3 of his next 14 passes and threw him for 11 yards in losses.
With Smithsburg's offense contained, Allegany went into attack mode. The Campers rushed for 191 yards in the first half and built a 20-0 halftime.
Allegany running back Hunter Files ran for 154 yards and two touchdowns while fullback Randy O'Brien rushed for another 74 yards and a touchdown.
Allegany took a 6-0 with its first possession, marching 74 yards in seven plays before Files capped the drive with an 11-yard misdirection run.
Quarterback Austin Scell hit Donavin Vinson with a 12-yard scoring pass and Jeff Link swept for a 6-yard score to give the Campers the 20-point halftime advantage.
The Campers scored on their first possession of the second half on Files' 13-yard run and scored on O'Brien's 3-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter for a 33-0 lead.
With the game in hand, Preaskorn gave the starting defense the rest of the night off and Smithsburg took advantage of the change of personnel.
Feiser rushed for 44 yards on a 61-yard drive to put Smithsburg on the board with 9:21 remaining. The senior put the exclamation mark on his high school career with a 14-yard run for a touchdown on his final carry.
Thompson recovered an Allegany fumble and Smithsburg turned it into four-play scoring drive, capped by sophomore Troy Bradner's 8-yard run. Matt Thompson brought the Leopards within two touchdowns by intercepting backup quarterback Jacob Lewis' pass and returning it 82 yards for a touchdown with 1:18 remaining.
From there, time, and Smithsburg's chances, ran out.
"We couldn't put anything together," Orndorff said. "We didn't have any continuity on offense. We'd string together a couple of big plays and then - bang - we'd get hit behind the line or get a penalty. And then - bang - we couldn't pick it back up."
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Maryland Playoffs:
Regional Semifinals
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Frederick’s Bruce Dorsey (9) looks for daylight after breaking through the Seneca Valley line. He found plenty of daylight on Friday, rushing for 180 yards Staff photo by Sam Yu, FNP
Cadets defeat storied Seneca Valley, 18-7
By Brandon Oland, Frederick News-Post Staff
Frederick defensive tackle Mike Murphy did a celebratory belly flop into the mud. T.J. Taylor, not really the loud, obnoxious type, was screaming on the sidelines, his white uniform pants turned dark brown by the slop.
On a rainy, windy, chilly mess of an evening, bruising running back Bruce Dorsey rumbled for 180 yards and the Frederick defense would not budge, lifting the Cadets to an 18-7 victory over Seneca Valley, the state's most storied football program, in the Class 3A West Region semifinals.
Frederick (10-1) won its first playoff game since 1985 and will host the regional title game against the winner of tonight's Urbana-Northwest game.
Taylor, quiet off the field and rowdy on it, just couldn't contain himself afterwards. With time running out and a light rain still falling, Taylor kept turning towards the bundled up Frederick Fanatics and yelling.
"He's extremely intense on the field and off the field he's a totally different character -- and I emphasize the word character," Frederick coach Vince Ahearn said. "He's a real neat individual, and he really keeps everybody going."
Oh, Taylor kept them going. Along with linebacker Tommy Prazenica, Taylor spearheaded a Frederick defense that held Seneca Valley tailback Quintin Cosby, who came into the game with over 1,400 yards rushing, to just 10 yards on 15 carries.
"(Taylor) was on the backside all day and he was flying," Frederick receiver/defensive back/punter Billy Gross said. "He just would not be denied."
While Taylor hollered, Gross hobbled off the field with a relieved expression on his face.
Gross came within inches of having a terrible night. Instead, almost miraculously, he had a terrific one.
He coolly fielded a low snap on a second quarter punt, took a few steps to his left and booted the ball out of danger. In the fourth quarter, he somehow got off a 45-yard punt that an outstretched Seneca Valley special teamer tipped but couldn't quite block.
But the real saving grace came in the second quarter, a play that seemed to indicate Frederick was destined to win this one.
On fourth-and-two from the Frederick 26, Seneca Valley attempted a wide receiver pass off a reverse. Gross slipped in the mud and fell over at the 20. Jeff Koger threw a pass into the end zone in the direction of wide open receiver Bryant England, the man Gross was supposed to be covering.
"I thought that was the whole game right there," Gross said.
But England, with nobody within 20 yards of him, dropped the wet football in the end zone.
Rather than surrendering the touchdown, Frederick took over on downs with the game still scoreless.
It was that sort of night for Frederick's defense. Nothing Seneca Valley tried worked.
Pass? Nope. Tyler Newberry (6-of-14 for 95 yards) completed just one pass for over 12 yards.
Run? Sorry. Seneca Valley only had two runs over 10 yards and Cosby clearly had trouble with the field conditions.
"Their running back was more of a shifty, cut guy," Gross said. "Out here, in this weather, you can't do that."
The Screamin' Eagles also had two backbreaking turnovers in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, Dorsey used his straight-ahead running style to pound the Screamin' Eagles into submission. Dorsey hurdled the tiny Cosby on an eight-yard touchdown run that gave Frederick a 12-7 lead with nine minutes, 11 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
Quarterback Cory Rhodes (60 yards rushing, 62 yards passing) added a 21-yard touchdown run to seal it with three minutes, 28 seconds left.
"I knew it was over then with so little time left," Dorsey said. "I knew they couldn't come back at that point. It was a great feeling."
In the third quarter, the Cadets likely weren't feeling quite so great. Seneca Valley, buoyed by a 52-yard kickoff return by Shawn Perry, scored on a 20-yard England reverse. J.J. Veith's extra point gave Seneca Valley a 7-6 lead.
But the Cadets, as they have all season long, wore down their opponent in the final quarter. In a dominating performance eerily similar to Frederick's 13-3 win over Linganore earlier in the season, Frederick forced two fourth quarter turnovers, refused to give up any big plays and ran at will.
Frederick played just a few players on both sides of the ball. Seneca Valley had at least seven two-way performers.
"When guys are fresh, it makes a huge difference," Seneca Valley coach Fred Kim said. "When guys don't have to go both ways it helps, especially in the interior because that's a tough position to play. You're banging heads every single play."
And did that Frederick defense ever bang heads.
"A lot of people think we're cocky," Taylor said. "I'm not even going to lie. We do have a lot of confidence. We just love to make big hits. That's why we fly around."
Notes: Frederick's Anthony Walker hauled in a pivotal 34-yard reception to set up a one-yard touchdown run by Dorsey that gave Frederick a 6-0 lead in the third quarter. ... Tommy Gillmore had a fourth quarter interception for Frederick and Gerald Price recovered a fumble.
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Francis Scott Key defensive lineman Tim Hawkins knocks down North Hagerstown quarterback Robby Thompson's pass during the Eagles' 23-9 victory in the 2A West semifinal game Friday night in Uniontown. By KEN KOONS/Carroll County Times.
FSK notches first ever playoff victory
UNIONTOWN - Carroll County's winningest team over the last five years added another victory to the list, perhaps the most important in its history.
Francis Scott Key used the inclement weather to its advantage in Friday's Class 2A West semifinal against North Hagerstown and came away with a 23-9 win, the Eagles' first postseason victory in their third playoff appearance.
Key (9-2) totaled 252 rushing yards - led by junior Matt Angell's 133 and two touchdowns - and scored 16 unanswered points to deflate a high-powered North Hagerstown offense, one that piled up 412 points during the regular season.
Plenty of those Hubs points came from passing, but the cold wind and steady rain turned FSK's field into mush and grounded North's chances of throwing with success.
Key senior defensive lineman Andy Prince had to smile when he woke up Friday morning and witnessed the dreary forecast.
"I don't know what better kind of game you could have," Prince said. "It's rainy out here, the wind and all the mud ... it's an awesome feeling."
Prince likely meant he felt great about being a part of the program's recent run. Key is 39-13 since 2000 and the first Carroll team to complete five consecutive winning seasons.
The Eagles gave up nine points in 17 seconds late in the first quarter Friday. North Hagerstown's Dink Snowden tackled Angell in the FSK end zone for a safety. The Hubs (9-2) received a free kick and scored two plays later on a Leon Finley 54-yard touchdown run down the visitors' sideline.
That short scoring spurt was all North could muster, however. Hubs quarterback Robby Thompson, who threw for 1,242 yards and 19 touchdowns, finished with 32 yards on 4 of 15 passing and three interceptions. North Hagerstown had five turnovers Friday.
FSK senior Ryan Blanchette surprised the Hubs on FSK's first play after the kickoff, rumbling 57 yards up the middle and nearly scoring a touchdown. The Eagles converted on fourth-and-goal from the 3 on Angell's second score of the night.
Blanchette ran in the two-point conversion and Key led 15-9 with 11 minutes, 11 seconds remaining in the first half.
The teams traded three-and-outs until the Eagles went 69 yards in four plays - keyed by a 54-yard scamper from Angell - and Brett Wiley scored from 2 yards out. Layton Hersh added another two-point play to cap the scoring.
Angell sparked FSK's defense too, collecting two interceptions that halted North drives in Key territory.
"We took over," said Angell, who watched the Hubs begin to mentally break down late in the second half. "They talk a lot of crap out there. A couple of their guys I saw crying. Too bad for their seniors, but we came out and played our best."
Francis Scott Key will face today's Walkersville-Fort Hill winner next weekend in the 2A West final, but the Eagles and coach John Baugher were more concerned with soaking up Friday's victory than preparing for Week 12 just yet.
Baugher said he remembered the 1999 varsity team finished the season with two wins, and that group of kids started something special.
"We're just glad to be here," he said. "I think the program is rolling right now, and if we can continue to keep it that way I think we'll be OK."
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WEEK #10
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Linganore’s Matt Castor is hit by Urbana’s Bob Roche as he gains yardage. Staff photo by Doug Koontz, FNP
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Frederick’s T.J. Taylor, top, lunges over Thomas Johnson’s Jerame DuVall for a 13-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter of Frederick’s 39-26 win in the intracity game Saturday. Staff photo by Bill Green, FNP
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Catoctin’s Tony Hall carries the ball despite the takedown efforts of Brunswick’s Patrick Curry and Bryan Hsu late in the first half of Friday night’s game at Catoctin High School. Staff photo by Saul Stoogenke, FNP
Week #10 (November 5-6)
North Hagerstown 39, South Hagerstown 0
Walkersville 20, Middletown 13
Francis Scott Key 34, Winters Mill 07
Westminster 48, North Carroll 12
Liberty 26, South Carroll 23
Catoctin 26, Brunswick 7
Williamsport 51, Clear Spring 31
Frederick 39, Thomas Johnson 26
Boonsboro 36, Smithsburg 30
Century 14, Tuscarora 12
Linganore 18, Urbana 15
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WEEK #9
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Linganore’s Matt Castor is hit by a Thomas Johnson defender as he gains yardage in the first half of Friday’s game. Read the related story. Staff photo by Doug Koontz, FNP
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Westminster's Ryan Finch, right, is tackled by Matt Anuszewski, top, and Marc Fong during Friday night's game in Westminster.
CHRIS AMMANN/STAFF PHOTO, Carroll County Times.
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Week #9 (October 29-30)
Urbana 25, Francis Scott Key 7
North Hagerstown 34, Smithsburg 14
Brunswick 9, South Hagerstown 6
Westminster 35, Liberty 16
South Carroll 47, Tuscarora 35
Middletown 36 Winters Mill 7
Walkersville 42, Century 13
Frederick 37, North Carroll 0
Linganore 39, Thomas Johnson 10
Catoctin 54, Clear Spring 7
Boonsboro 37, Williamsport 0
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WEEK #8
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Week #8 (October 22-23)
Smithsburg 14, South Hagerstown 8
Urbana 20, Westminster 13
North Carroll 8, Thomas Johnson 0
Brunswick 41, Boonsoro 20
Middletown 35, Century 0
Linganore 42, Winters Mill 6
Walkersville 26, South Carroll 13
Frederick 42, Liberty 13
North Hagerstown 76, Clear Spring 12
Catoctin 37, Williamsport 23
Francis Scott Key 32, Tuscarora 28
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WEEK #7
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Staff photo by Saul Stoogenke, FNP
Frederick quarterback Cory Rhodes maintains possession while being brought down at the neck by Urbana’s Bob Roche during Thursday night’s battle at Frederick High School.
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Staff photo by Saul Stoogenke, FNP
Frederick’s Brian Lanning maintains possession of the ball while being flipped over in mid-air by Linganore defenders Tommy Ranshaw and Jon Sweadner helping the Cadets to a 13-3 victory at home Friday night.
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KEN KOONS/STAFF PHOTO, CARROLL COUNTY TIMES
Francis Scott Key's Layton Hersh moves up field against Century with Josh Tyler blocking Friday in Key's 22-8 victory.
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BRENDAN BUSH/STAFF PHOTO, CARROLL COUNTY TIMES
South Carroll's Tom Wheeler is pursued by Century's Steve Komaromy during the Cav's victory Thursday.
Week #7 (October 14-16)
Urbana 29, Frederick 16
Winters Mill 41, Tuscarora 30
South Carroll 14, Century 0
Francis Scott Key 50, Walkersville 0
South Hagerstown 25, Williamsport 7
Thomas Johnson 14, Middletown 12
North Hagerstown 40, Catoctin 13
Smithsburg 49, Brunswick 33
Linganore 47, Westminster 25
North Carroll 30, Liberty 28
Boonsboro 52, Clear Spring 0
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WEEK #6
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(KEN KOONS/CARROLL COUNTY TIMES STAFF PHOTO)
Winters Mill's Jordan Wike finds the hole between Century's Robbie Krug and Steve Scott on his way to scoring a touchdown Friday night in Eldersburg.
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(Staff photo by Doug Koontz , FNP)
Walkersville’s Mark Ferro is taken down by Frederick’s Peter Malamet during Friday night’s football game at Walkersville. Read the related story.
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Week #6 (October 8-9)
Frederick 13, Linganore 3
Francis Scott Key 22, Century 8
Westminster 62, Tuscarora 27
Liberty 21, Thomas Johnson 14
Middletown 38, South Carroll 6
Walkersville 30, Winters Mill 21
Urbana 42, North Carroll 12
South Hagerstown 59, Clear Spring 6
North Hagerstown 47, Brunswick 0
Smithsburg 53, Williamsport 0
Boonsboro 28, Catoctin 20
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WEEK #5
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TJ QB Brad Benson vs Urbana (Sam Yu, FNP)
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FSK QB Matt Angell vs. Middletown (Ken Koons, Carroll County Times)
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Week #5 (October 1-2)
Frederick 54, Walkersville 8
Linganore 49, North Carroll 0
Urbana 43, Liberty 0
North Hagerstown 27, Boonsboro 0
Winters Mill 22, Century 8
South Hagerstown 33, Catoctin 14
Westminster 39, Thomas Johnson 6
Brunswick 31, Williamsport 0
Francis Scott Key 23, South Carroll 20
Middletown 40, Tuscarora 12
Smithsburg 69, Clear Spring 24
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WEEK #4
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Catoctin QB D.J. Doyle hands off to Mike Lovejoy vs Smithsburg (Bill Green, FNP)
Week #4 (September 23-25)
Brunswick 81, Clear Spring 0
Francis Scott Key 14, Middletown 7
Frederick 20, Westminster 17
Linganore 49, Liberty 8
South Carroll 36, Winters Mill 14
North Carroll 12, Century 6
North Hagerstown 59, Williamsport 0
South Hagerstown 25, Boonsboro 20
Walkersville 20, Tuscarora 18
Smithsburg 31, Catoctin 6
Urbana 53, Thomas Johnson 12
Articles
North Hagerstown 59, Williamsport 0
by JACK HILL III/Staff Correspondent, Herald-Mail
The North Hagerstown football team made the Homecoming crowd proud Friday night at School Stadium.
The No. 3 Hubs struck early and often, building a 28-0 lead by the end of the first quarter and rolling to a 59-0 win over the Williamsport Wildcats in the MVAL Antietam Conference opener for each team.
North (3-1, 1-0) scored eight touchdowns, while kicker Brent Toms made all eight of his extra-point attempts and added a 26-yard field goal.
The first three scores for North came on a trio of touchdown passes from quarterback Robby Thompson. Split end Quielan Gantt caught the first and third scores on receptions of 8 and 12 yards, while slotback Darail Porter caught the second TD on a 20-yard play.
"We have been mainly trying to get focused," Gantt said.
"We have been having great practices," he said. "Every game is going to be a big game for us this year, because all of the teams are coming after us. It is going to be tougher. The line did a great job of blocking. They came out all fired up. They made holes for the quarterback and the running backs."
Thompson was 8 of 9 passing for 111 yards.
"Basically, we worked hard all week," Thompson said. "We put in new offensive plays. The hurry-up offense worked our way all the way. Our goals were to take control and dictate the pace of the game. Right now, I think that our potential is really high. I think that it grows with every practice."
The other touchdown for North in the opening period was a 5-yard run by Matt Ridenour.
The three touchdowns for the Hubs in the second quarter were a 12-yard run by Marcus Scott, a 15-yard fumble return by Porter and a 5-yard run by Lamar Harris.
Toms kicked his 26-yard field goal with 1:17 remaining in the first half to give the Hubs a 52-0 halftime lead.
Dean Staley added a 1-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
"We worked well," North coach Danny Cunningham said. "We came out with a little aggression tonight. The attitude and the intensity were there. We worked on making a statement and we made our statement early. We played solid, hard-nosed football. I think that we took advantage of getting the ball to our key playmakers. We took advantage of our field position all night."
Williamsport fell to 0-4 (0-1).
South Hagerstown 25, Boonsboro 20
by RYAN ALLEN/Staff Writer, Herald-Mail
BOONSBORO - Allen Daniels' two interceptions in a 30-second stretch late in the second quarter gave the South Hagerstown football team all the momentum it needed against Boonsboro on Friday night.
Daniels returned the second one 40 yards for a touchdown as South took a 13-6 halftime lead on its way to a 25-20 win.
With 33.6 seconds remaining in the first half, Boonsboro quarterback Zach Shoemaker fired a pass over the middle of the field, but Daniels stepped in front of the receiver from his linebacker position and raced down the right sideline to the end zone.
"He made a great read on the ball and once he caught it and bounced outside, I thought he would score," said South coach Greg Kellick, whose team improved to 2-2, 1-0 in the MVAL Anteitem Conference.
Boonsboro coach Clayton Anders said that was the play that changed the game.
"That play really hurt," he said.
Daniels' touchdown return capped a wild sequence which saw interceptions on three consecutive plays. In between Daniels' two interceptions, Victor Van Orden picked off a Mark Bryan pass to put the Warriors back on offense.
Boonsboro opened the scoring late in the first quarter with a 38-yard drive that James Barnes capped with a 1-yard plunge.
South took the lead for good early in the second quarter, capitalizing on a fumbled punt on the Warriors' 34 when Bryan later scored from 5 yards out on a quarterback sneak.
"You can't win if you keep giving them the football," Anders said.
South broke the game open in the third quarter, putting together touchdown drives of 45 and 61 yards on its first two possessions to take a 25-6 lead. Both touchdowns were 2-yard runs by Daniels, who added 46 yards rushing on top of his defensive heroics.
"We concentrated a lot on offense this week," said Kellick. "We've been playing good defense all year. I was real pleased to come back like this after a really tough loss Monday."
Boonsboro (0-4, 0-1) made the game interesting when Shoemaker threw touchdown passes of 8 yards to Jeremiah Mills and 11 yards to Doug Zimmerman in the last three minutes. The Warriors recovered one onside kick between touchdowns, but South sealed the win by recovering an onside kick with just over a minute remaining.
"The end of the game was about the only positive for us in the second half," said Anders.
Terrail Blair had 72 yards rushing and Bryan added 57 yards on the ground to lead the South offense.
Shoemaker finished with 85 yards passing, completing eight of 17 attempts.
Walkersville 20, Tuscarora 18
FREDERICK, Md. - Mark Ferro rushed for three touchdowns - on runs of 47, 6 and 40 yards - as Walkersville (2-2, 1-0) held off Tuscarora (1-3, 0-1) in the MVAL Piedmont Conference opener for each team.
Trailing 20-12 in the final minute of the game, Titans quarterback Chris Castro connected with Spencer Barrick for a 60-yard TD completion to make it 20-18. But Tuscarora's attempt at the two-point conversion to tie it failed.
Eric Means rushed for 168 yards and two touchdowns for Tuscarora.
Smithsburg 31, Catoctin 6
THURMONT -- There was no question Catoctin football coach Doug Williams knew why his team lost to Smithsburg on Saturday, 31-6. And he wasn't afraid to share the reason for the loss.
"Our offense ... we can't score when we're in the red zone (inside the 20-yard line)," Williams said. "We get down inside the red zone, don't score and then they take the ball up the field and score. The points they got on the scoreboard were because of our offense."
Williams pointed to two situations, one in each half, where not scoring from inside the Smithsburg 20 came back to haunt Catoctin (1-3). Following a 1-yard touchdown plunge from Joe Rakoski with 7 minutes, 19 seconds left in the first half -- which put the Cougars within a point of the Leopards, 7-6 -- Catoctin recovered a muffed kickoff return by Smithsburg, leaving them in good field position inside the Leopards' 45.
Catoctin drove inside the Smithsburg 20, but the drive stalled when Smithsburg's defense pushed the Cougars back to the 30, and they gave up the ball on downs. Six plays later, Smithsburg's Matt Feiser popped through the Catoctin defensive line and raced 42 yards for a touchdown, capping a six-play, 70-yard drive with 2:04 left in the first half. Justin Neives' extra point kick gave the Leopards (4-0) a 14-6 lead at the half.
The second-half situation, which upset Williams even more, was on the opening kickoff. Catoctin took the kick and went to the Smithsburg 20 again on 12 plays, running more than six minutes off the clock.
But the Leopards defense held again. Smithsburg got the ball back at the 20 and three plays later, Feiser was on the run, this time for a 71-yard TD scamper. With Neives adding the extra-point kick, the Leopards led 21-6.
"Both of those touchdowns set the tone of the game for each half," Williams said. "That's where the turning point of the game was. What boggles my mind is our practices have been good. But then we get under the lights the night of a game and can't get hyped up. I don't understand it."
Catoctin's inability to score in crucial situations overshadowed the rushing performance of Mike Lovejoy, who carried 14 times for 134 yards. "He did all right, but we couldn't capitalize on what he was doing," Williams said.
Also earning praise from Williams was freshman quarterback D.J. Doyle. Doyle, brought up from the freshmen team, directed Catoctin's offense, but absorbed three sacks from a charging Smithsburg defense.
"Remember when you were a freshman? You can imagine what it's like for him, starting a varsity game," Williams said. "That's an awful lot of pressure. But he did a good job."
NOTES -- Feiser led Smithsburg on the ground with 111 yards on seven carries. Quarterback Josh Daniels completed all eight of his passes for 92 yards. Troy Bradner had a touchdown for Smithsburg, and Neives kicked a 22-yard field goal in the fourth quarter. Smithsburg outgained Catoctin on the ground, 289-210.
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WEEK #3
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Week #3 (September 16-18)
Frankfort-WV 35, Williamsport 0
Hancock 36, Clear Spring 0
Frederick 35, North Hagerstown 7
Middletown 23, Brunswick 0
Francis Scott Key 41, Westminster 13
Linganore 53, South Carroll 7
Smithsburg 34, Tuscarora 25
Thomas Johnson 21, Gaithersburg 20
Winters Mill 37, North Carroll 31 (2 OT)
Century 6, Liberty 0 (3 OT)
Archbishop Spalding 10, South Hagerstown 0
Urbana 34, Archbishop Curley 16
Hedgesville-WV 26, Boonsboro 14
Walkersville 28, Catoctin 0
Week #3 Articles
Urbana 34, Archbishop Curley 15
By Bryan Burns, Frederick News Post Sports Correspondent
URBANA, MD---Just as the Archbishop Curley Friars appeared to be wrestling momentum away from Urbana on Monday, Josh Smith provided the Hawks with a reversal.
With Urbana (3-0) holding onto a slim six-point lead, Smith fielded a kickoff from his own five yard line and, following a wave of blockers, cut right up the sideline, carrying several would-be tacklers to the Archbishop Curley 34-yard line. Eight plays and, more importantly, nearly five minutes later, Hawks' quarterback Mike Murray, who started his first game for Urbana, rolled right and hit Mike Hall in the end zone from seven yards out to all-but clinch a 34-15 win for the Hawks.
"They were starting to get momentum, we got the return and then everything just changed," Smith said. "That return was working the whole game. We didn't change anything, and it worked everytime."
"(The return) was big because it put us in a position where all we have to do is hold onto the ball a little bit and use some time on the clock," Urbana head coach Dave Carruthers said. "If we don't score, we can put them in a hole with not much time on the clock."
Moments before, the Friars (3-1) had cut the Hawks' lead to six points on an 11-play drive that chewed up nearly half of the fourth quarter clock. Curley running back Glenn Williams, a Duke verbal commitment, took an option pitch 12 yards on a pivotal 4th-and-3 early in the drive and capped it with a four-yard jaunt off left tackle. Williams ran in the two-point conversion.
Urbana, leading 14-7 at halftime, recovered a fumble by the Friars' Derrick Young at the Curley 45 on the first play of the second half, but it was unable to capitalize on the great field position. However, Hawks punter Jimmy Roche pinned the Friars deep in their own territory when his punt was downed at the 1-yard line.
"The kid who kicked that is a sophomore, and he put them on the one yard line," Carruthers said. "I said, 'We got them on the one yard line, we have to keep them there.'"
The Hawks followed their coach's orders by not allowing the Friars a single yard on three straight runs up the middle. Curley punted to the 23-yard line, and, one play later, Murray hit Ricky Berard 28 yards in the corner of the end zone for the second of his three touchdown passes.
"That's the whole thing about the game is that it's a field position game. As long as we could keep them moving back, I felt we'd be in good shape," Carruthers said.
It appeared the game would be a shootout as both teams combined to score on the first three drives of the game. Urbana took the opening kickoff and drove 52 yards for the first score on a 32-yard pass from Murray to Roche.
Curley answered right back as running back Raymond Ridgeway ran virtually untouched 44 yards for the Friars opening touchdown. Sean Alder gave Urbana the lead for good on the Hawks next drive, running 22 yards off tackle.
Alder finished as Urbana's leading rusher with 102 yards and the one touchdown.
Murray, starting in place of the injured Justin Short, finished 8-for-13 for 133 yards and three touchdowns in his starting debut.
"I felt calm about Mike (starting) the whole time," Carruthers said. "If he had been at most any other high school, he would be starting. It's too bad what happened to Justin, but we were very fortunate to have a kid of Mike's caliber backing him up."
"I was pretty comfortable before the game," Murray said. "I got a lot of snaps with the first string before Justin got hurt, and I know we have a good team."
Urbana's Chris Moxley intercepted a pass at the Friars' 44-yard line and returned it for a touchdown to cap the scoring.
Walkersville 28, Catoctin 0
By Brandon Oland, Frederick News-Post Staff
THURMONT, MD---On Walkersville's first three plays, Brandon Geppert caught an 8-yard pass, had a 3-yard rush and threw a 9-yard completion.
Because of a few injuries to key players, Geppert is forced to be versatile.
Regardless of where he lined up, he, and the rest of the Lions, did just fine.
Geppert and Mark Ferro both rushed for two touchdowns to lead the Lions to a 28-0 thumping of Catoctin on Monday night in a game rescheduled because of Friday's severe weather.
"Playing on Monday throws you out of your routine," Walkersville coach Hal Grau said. "You never know how the kids are going to react."
They reacted quite well.
The Lions (1-2), still without starting quarterback Dave Berry (broken finger), are finally getting used to life without him now that several players have switched positions.
Former running back Shaun Coon and Geppert, who was dinged up himself and missed the first two games of the season, split time at quarterback.
They looked pretty comfortable -- especially during the Lions' first drive: a 13 play, 63-yard beauty capped by a seven yard touchdown run by Geppert.
The key play of the drive came on a fourth-and-six from the Catoctin 29-yard line. Coon passed to a wide open Geppert for a 19-yard gain.
"We came out looking pretty sharp," Grau said. "That was a nice first drive. It set the tone."
The drive was slow, steady and deliberate, much like the rest of a game. Walkersville only uncorked two huge gains. Ferro had touchdown runs of 35 and 78 yards.
He had an excellent cutback on the 35-yarder and simply outran everyone on the second.
Grau couldn't ask for much more from Ferro, who had a fantastic game. In addition to racking up 119 yards on nine carries, and being one of Walkersville's leading tacklers, Ferro had an interception, a sack and a huge special teams play late in the first half.
He decked Catoctin returner Brad Brown, burying the Cougars at their own six-yard line.
Talk about versatile.
"We're trying to keep our heads up," Ferro said. "And we're trying to do everything that is asked of us."
If everyone were healthy, Geppert would be playing wide receiver. Without Berry, Geppert lined up at quarterback, running back and receiver.
Plus, he played middle linebacker.
All told, Geppert had nine carries for 46 yards, was 1-for-5 for nine yards, caught two passes for 17 yards and had an fourth quarter interception.
Not a bad season debut. But Geppert certainly wouldn't mind getting Berry back. The Lions are still unsure when Berry will return.
"Getting Dave back will be a boost," Geppert said. "Plus, it will get us all back to our original positions."
Catoctin (1-2) was outnumbered and undersized against Walkersville. The Cougars have just 22 players, some of whom were injured.
Truth be told, the school's pep band has about as many members as the football team. To make matters worse, the Cougars have just three players over 200 pounds.
Walkersville has 13 over 200 pounds.
Nonetheless, the Cougars had a spirited defensive performance, which kept the game close.
Dave Nesbitt had a strong defensive performance. Catoctin's Mike Lovejoy tipped a first quarter pass that was nearly intercepted and Tony Hall had an interception.
Nesbitt also made a terrific juggling catch in the third quarter, but it came with a price. He was hit hard on the play and was forced to leave the game with a shoulder injury.
Winters Mill 37, North Carroll 31
by Carroll County Times
Winters Mill junior Ryne Bridges said he felt like his team was going to win Saturday "no matter what."
And there was a lot of "no matter what" to deal with.
The Falcons blew an 18-point lead, committed a big penalty in the fourth quarter, turned the ball over three times, and survived two potential game-winning kicks to beat North Carroll 37-31 for their first-ever win over a county rival.
"Wow," said senior Joe Taylor, who rushed for 202 yards and two touchdowns. "They came clawing back. I knew it was going to be exciting. Wow. What a game."
As well as Taylor and Bridges (three touchdowns passes) played, the game came down to the big, strong hands of Ron Anderson, Eric Kelmartin and Juan Feliciano.
Anderson blocked an extra point late in the fourth quarter, Kelmartin blocked a field goal in the first overtime, and Feliciano grabbed and held onto a fumbled football in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown.
Winters Mill coach Ken Johnson called the win "gigantic" for his second-year program.
"They've been working so hard [but] the only thing that really breeds that belief in yourself, as a team, is winning," he said.
A Bridges interception ended NC's possession in the second overtime, and Jordan Wike gained nine yards on the next play for Winters Mill. However, the ball popped loose as Wike was tackled at the 1. It rolled into the end zone, where Feliciano fell on it to secure the win.
"I just jumped all over it," said the senior lineman. "They tried to take it from me in the pile, but I held on."
The Falcons, who went 1-9 in their inaugural varsity season last year and led in each of their first two games this year before losing, improved to 1-2 overall, and 1-1 in the county. Barely.
"We've been playing good all year, but we haven't finished," Feliciano said. "We almost let it get away from us again, but we came back strong as a team."
North Carroll fell to 1-2, 1-2 despite three touchdown runs and 217 passing yards from senior quarterback Dave Dix.
"We fought back," Dix said. "We're not going to hang our heads."
Winters Mill seemed to have the game wrapped up long before overtime.
The Falcons used three quick-strike scoring drives to take an 18-13 lead at the end of the first half and then endured a 19-hour halftime caused by lightning Friday.
Taylor ran 72 yards for a touchdown Saturday on the Falcons' first play from scrimmage. Then, after forcing a punt, Winters Mill drove 56 yards with Bridges hitting Wike for a 23-yard score to give the Falcons a seemingly safe 31-13 lead.
But North Carroll rallied furiously. Dix completed three straight passes, hitting Jeff Baumiller for a 37-yard touchdown to pull the Panthers within 31-19.
The next time North Carroll got the ball, a Winters Mill interception was nullified by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.
Given a second chance, Dix stayed hot, completing three passes - including a 43-yard screen pass to Tom Mitchell - and then running 10 yards for a touchdown.
A miscommunication then hurt the Falcons. On fourth-and-three from their own 47 midway through the fourth quarter, Winters Mill tried a fake punt. Johnson wasn't expecting this - he said an assistant misunderstood a call - but North Carroll apparently was, stopping the play for a loss.
Dix then drove the Panthers 44 yards, finishing with a 1-yard sneak that tied the game.
That's when Anderson's block on the point after forced overtime. It was North Carroll's fourth straight failed conversion.
Winters Mill missed wide right on a field goal attempt to start overtime (which consists of each team having four downs from their opponents' 10). Then, when North Carroll went nowhere on three plays, the Panthers tried a 25-yard field goal.
This time Kelmartin got penetration. His block kept the Falcons alive.
Bridges' interception started the second overtime.
"They kept getting slants across the middle and I just read the quarterback's eyes," said Bridges.
That set up Wike's run and Feliciano's alert play. And after six unsuccessful attempts, the Falcons finally had beaten a county rival.
Francis Scott Key 41, Westminster 13
By Josh Land, Carroll Times Staff Writer
UNIONTOWN, MD---The Francis Scott Key football team utilized a perfect game plan to brave the blustery conditions at its home field Saturday afternoon.
Run the ball. Play good, aggressive defense. And run the ball some more.
Layton Hersh rushed for 152 yards and a touchdown, and Matt Angell ran for 148 yards and two scores, to lead the Eagles to a 41-13 win over Westminster in a makeup of Friday's postponed game.
Hersh credited the FSK offensive line for opening up the rushing game.
"You couldn't ask for a better day," Hersh said. "That's the kind of team we are, a smash-mouth team. We dare people to stop us. We think our beef up front is unmatchable against any team in the league."
Angell was impressed with the line's play.
"Just lanes everywhere," he said of a line that averages 244 pounds.
FSK (2-1, 2-1 in the county) jumped out to a 20-0 lead on the strength of its rushing, but came dangerously close to forking over the lead.
Kevin Clancy led the Owls (1-2, 1-1) to 13 second-quarter points to draw Westminster to within a touchdown after the first half.
Clancy went 10-for-19 for 124 yards and completed touchdown passes to Jay Leonard and Ryan Finch in the opening half, but the Eagles clamped down in the third quarter.
The junior quarterback completed just four of 18 passes for 29 yards and an interception the rest of the way, as the Eagles scored 21 unanswered points to seal the victory.
"We got back to a ballgame by halftime, which was OK," Owls coach Brad Wilson said "Then they come out, they hit the quarterback. They made the ball bounce their way today. They just outplayed us."
Eagles defensive lineman Andy Prince put the game out of reach when he scored FSK's second defensive touchdown of the day.
As he was getting hit, Clancy fumbled the ball directly into Prince's arms. The 234-pound lineman rumbled 38 yards for the score and a 28-13 lead that appeared to deflate the Owls' attack.
"We need special teams touchdowns, we need defensive touchdowns," Eagles coach John Baugher said. "That's what we need to win."
The Eagles' rushing was unstoppable and their run defense was unpenetrable, as they outrushed the Owls 393 to minus-8. Westminster may have outpassed FSK 153 to none, but the Eagles effectively executed their gameplan.
"Anytime we come up against a team that throws the ball as much as they do and as well as they do," Baugher said, "our goal is to control the clock as much as humanly possible by keeping possession of the ball."
And they maintained possession well. FSK converted 15 first downs and ran the ball 54 times to complement just six passing attempts.
Wilson was in awe of FSK's complete team effort.
"I think they physically handled us today. They just totally outplayed us from start to finish," he said. "We've just got to get after it. We've got a long way to go yet. We'll just evaluate film, evaluate some personnel, and we'll just get after it."
Frederick 35, North Hagerstown 7
by RYAN ALLEN/Staff Writer, Herald-Mail
Frederick scored touchdowns on its first three possessions to take an early two-touchdown lead over visiting North Hagerstown and never let the Hubs get any closer as the Cadets cruised to a 35-7 victory Saturday night in a battle of undefeated teams.
"They dominated the game from start to finish," said North coach Danny Cunningham.
The Cadets (3-0) took the ball 65 yards on seven plays on their first possession, culminating in a 4-yard touchdown run by Gerald Price.
The Hubs (2-1) - who had their 12-game regular-season winning streak snapped - countered on the ensuing possession, scoring on a 29-yard pass play from Robby Thompson to Darail Porter to take a 7-6 lead.
North had the Cadets backed up on their next drive - facing a second-and-25 on their own 17-yard line - but Bruce Dorsey busted up the middle for an 80-yard run. Two plays later, Dorsey plunged into the end zone from a yard out to give Frederick the lead for good.
The Cadets defense forced a three-and-out on the next possession and then blocked the punt to take over on the Hubs 33. Price scored his second touchdown two plays later, going 17 yards up the middle to give Frederick a two touchdown cushion.
Frederick held North to just 35 yards rushing on 31 attempts.
North had chances to get back in the game in the third quarter, recovering two Frederick fumbles, including one deep in Cadets territory, but the Frederick defense never allowed the Hubs to capitalize.
The Hubs were stopped twice on fourth down in the quarter, once on the Cadets 32and later on their 15.
Frederick extended its lead to 28-7 late in the third when Billy Gross streaked down the left sideline uncovered on a 36-yard pass from Cory Rhodes.
The Cadets put the game out of reach early in the fourth quarter when Rhodes hit Brian Lanning for a 48-yard touchdown. Rhodes completed 10 of 12 passes for 186 yards.
Dorsey ran for 147 yards on 15 carries to pace the Cadets' rushing attack.
"These first seven games for us are brutal," said Frederick coach Vince Ahearn. "We feel pretty good about how we're doing but we're not playing that well. We're still making too many mistakes. Our run defense is really good right now though."
Thompson passed for 150 yards and Bernard Artillus had six receptions for 52 yards for the Hubs.
Smithsburg 34, Tuscarora 25
by JACK HILL III/Staff Correspondent, Herald-Mail
SMITHSBURG, MD---After watching their 27-7 lead shrink to a 27-25 edge, the Smithsburg Leopards knew that they had to do something to keep Tuscarora from getting a comeback win.
No. 4 Smithsburg marched the ball down the field and iced the game with 1 minute, 24 seconds remaining on a 1-yard quarterback sneak by Josh Daniels to give the Leopards a 34-25 win over the Titans on Saturday.
"It was exciting," Smithsburg coach Buddy Orndorff said. "Tuscarora is really a nice football team. They did some things offensively that we had trouble with."
"The bottom line is that we did not give up," Orndorff added. "When we kicked that final extra point in the final two minutes of the game to put us up by nine points, that put them in a position where they had to score twice."
Justin Thompson intercepted a pass for Smithsburg at the 50-yard line and returned it five yards with 44 seconds to go in the game to seal the victory.
Thompson also contributed on offense with 105 rushing yards on 16 carries and touchdown runs of 4 and 61 yards.
Matt Feiser had 21 carries for 164 yards, including an 86-yard touchdown run, while Matt Thompson had two interceptions - one he returned for a touchdown - and a fumble recovery for the Leopards (3-0).
"They're a good team," Tuscarora coach Shawn Carey said. "I think that Smithsburg was more physical than what I thought they would be. They absolutely controlled the line of scrimmage and that is one big reason why they won."
Junior quarterback Chris Castro finished with 180 passing yards - all of them to junior wide receiver Mitchell Weedon - for Tuscarora (1-2). Castro and Weedon connected on touchdown passes of 45 and 79 yards.
Eric Means added a 31-yard touchdown run and Cruz Mannherz had a 27-yard touchdown run for Tuscarora.
Middletown 23, Brunswick 0
By Brandon Oland, Frederick News-Post Staff
BRUNSWICK, MD---In his 32 years as head coach, Middletown coach Tim Ambrose has never found a running back quite like Juris Eyler.
After all, there aren't many really fast Russians with fragile collarbones residing in Middletown.
In his first varsity start, Eyler rushed 23 times for 160 yards and scored three touchdowns to lead Middletown to a 23-0 win over Brunswick on Saturday.
Not bad for a guy who has broken his collarbone three times, most recently in a seven-on-seven touch football scrimmage in the summer.
"I was afraid his parents wouldn't let him play," Ambrose said. "That didn't happen, though."
Good thing for Ambrose.
Eyler is no bruiser. But filling in for an injured Wes Leatherman, Eyler did what he does best:
Run quickly.
He scored on a 28-yard scamper in the first, a 61-yard screen play and a 56-yard run in the third, when he outran nearly the entire Brunswick (1-2) defense down the sideline.
"(Eyler) is the fastest guy on our team," Ambrose said. "If everyone was healthy and we all ran 40s, he would win every time by the distance between you and me." That's a full six inches.
Ambrose said Eyler, who is a sprinter in the spring, moved from Russia when he was young. He was primarily a linebacker on junior varsity, but he had pretty precise directions from the coaching staff.
He was told to run off tackle and get out in the open field.
When he did, he was tough to stop.
"We might have ourselves a nice little 1-2 punch here when Wes Leatherman gets back," senior lineman Mike Holda said.
Perhaps Eyler's easiest run of the night was his longest. On a screen play, Eyler simply snagged a short pass and scurried down the sideline. In front of him, Holda and fellow senior linemen Andrew Presnell and Hunter Robertshaw were knocking smaller Railroader defenders out of the way.
"Oh, the screen is a fun play," said Presnell, who also had a sack to end the first half.
Added Holda: "Pulling is always fun. You get a running start, the guy never sees you and then you just light him up. It's the best."
Interceptions are fun, too.
Holda, playing middle linebacker, picked off an Aaron Main pass, and zeroed in on the end zone as he rumbled down the sideline. Last year, Holda had an interception against Smithsburg and thought he had a touchdown before being dragged down at the 3-yard line.
He wouldn't make it this time, either. After throwing the interception, Main hustled after Holda and crushed him at the Railroader 34-yard line.
"Yeah, it would have been nice to score," Holda said. "The quarterback gave me a nice pop. That's always fun, too."
Fun for Holda, maybe. While Holda ran off the field celebrating his interception, Main stumbled to the Railroader bench with an apparent shoulder stinger after trying to tackle the 235-pound Holda.
Main, who is 195 pounds, missed a few plays of the next Brunswick series before re-entering the game.
It was a night full of huge hits for the Railroaders, but not much else.
Leave it to a Railroader lacrosse standout to unleash the finest smack of the evening.
Early in the second quarter, R.J. Backover nailed a Middletown punt returner and yelled all the way back to the sideline.
The shot briefly fired up the home Railroader crowd.
But Eric Zwilsky, who rushed for a school record 310 yards in a win over Walkersville last week, had just 35 yards on 15 carries and the offense never got on track.
Zwilsky was no secret weapon. Several players, including Presnell, watched the Brunswick-Walkersville game on local cable television.
"I didn't personally watch it, but a lot of guys did," Eyler said. "We were very prepared for him. We were told that he likes to cut back when he runs."
Brunswick coach Kevin Lynott knew what he was up against. Before arriving with the Railroaders two years ago, Lynott was an assistant coach at Middletown (1-2), which he called "the best 0-2 team in the state."
NOTES: Middletown quarterback Frank Starnes was 8-of-16 for 181 yards. ... The Knights outgained Brunswick, 417-147. ... Alex Papanicolas had 49 yards for the Railroaders. ... Alex Crane had three catches for 54 yards for the Knights.
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WEEK #2
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Week #2 (September 10)
Urbana 35, Middletown 0
North Hagerstown 38, Hedgesville-WV 8
Frederick 28, Aberdeen 13
Martinsburg-WV 42, Westminster 17
Tuscarora 28, Boonsboro 20
Hancock 13, Williamsport 7
Smithsburg 22, Winters Mill 7
Liberty 21, Francis Scott Key 14
North Carroll 26, South Carroll 20
Damascus 29, Linganore 22
Century 21, South Hagerstown 8
Stone Bridge-VA 47, Thomas Johnson 0
Brunswick 28, Walkersville 14
Westmar 40, Clear Spring 14
Joppatowne 34, Catoctin 0
Week #2 Articles
Urbana 35, Middletown 0
by Joshua Smith, Frederick News Post
MIDDLETOWN, MD--- Winners adjust.
Yes, it's coach-speak. It's clichZ. And it spills out of Dave Carruthers' mouth so often that his Urbana players know it's coming before he actually speaks.
But, with high school athletes, simple is effective.
Urbana did gobs of adjusting during its 35-0 pasting of Middletown on Friday night before a near-capacity crowd.
The Hawks adjusted to the pregame suspension of three players, including two starters. They adjusted to a glut of penalties, specifically by their off-balance offense. And they adjusted to the third-quarter loss of starting quarterback Justin Short, who was having a career night before badly injuring his right (throwing) arm after taking a hit at the end of a long scramble.
He left in an ambulance.
"Our coach always says, 'Winners adjust,'" Hawks lineman Chris Reeves said. "We're a team. Whatever happens, we just keep on going."
Senior receiver Ricky Berard, whose body and technique is reminiscent of graduated star Eric Lenz, caught six passes for 105 yards. Junior running back Sean Alder, a transfer from Good Counsel, rushed for 130 yards and three touchdowns.
"Great teams overcome obstacles," the 6-foot-3 Berard said. "I think we just came out here and did it tonight."
In the process, Urbana gave Carruthers his 200th career win, and recorded its third shutout in three games against the Knights.
No matter how one-sided the result, the Hawks (2-0) were often erratic. They needed the first half to settle on offense, and finished with 14 penalties for 100-plus yards. Carruthers even made a crack about his team's hankie troubles.
"When we went out to shake hands (after the game), I told the kids, 'Now you can use your hands for something other than holding,'" he said.
On a serious note, the loss of Short -- who went 10 of 15 for 152 yards with two scores, one passing, one rushing -- was tough to take. It was tough to stomach, too.
He was hurt when the Hawks were ironing out their passing game. Short completed four passes during the series before being flushed from the pocket and running for the left sideline on a third-and-15 play. As he charged out of bounds inside the Middletown 10, he collided with a defender and landed with a thud on the ground.
Short grabbed his arm and cursed. The reaction of lineman Wes White was telling: After catching a glimpse of the quarterback's arm, he quickly spun away and put his hands on his head.
"He's willing to sacrifice his body for every yard," Berard said of Short. "His type of character is going to be hard to replace."
It helps to have players like Berard and Alder. Berard, for instance, flashed solid route-running and hands, much like Lenz. (In a post-game interview, teammate Mike Russo walked by and said, "Great job Lenz, I mean, Berard.")
Alder, meanwhile, took a draw handoff and romped 41 yards for a score on the first play after backup Mike Murray -- who received ample reps with the first-team this preseason -- replaced Short.
"We purposely moved to Urbana so I could play football," Alder said.
The Hawks are appreciative: "I don't know where he was before (Good Counsel)," Carruthers said, "and I don't really care. He's been a big surprise."
Urbana's defense was also impressive. Middletown (0-2) had just 55 total yards, and three times the Hawks intercepted Knights quarterback Frank Starnes, who made his first start of the season after an injury.
"Four times we had the ball for one down," said Middletown coach Tim Ambrose, referring to his team's four turnovers. "Against Urbana, you can't do that. ... We've faced two really good teams (including loss to Frederick last week) and taken our lumps."
NOTES -- Urbana's Brent Hawkins, Chris Moxley and Ryan Rea had picks, while Taylor Byrne had a fumble recovery. ... Urbana's Jimmy Roche had a 38-yard TD catch. ... The Knights' Steve Papuchis had an interception.
Brunswick 28, Walkersville 14
by Frederick News Post
WALKERSVILLE -- Give Brunswick running back Eric Zwilsky an inch and he just might take a mile.
Well, not exactly that much, but midway through the fourth quarter of Friday's game against Walkersville, Zwilsky clinched a 28-14 win for the Railroaders and etched his name into the school record book.
The 'Roaders were facing a fourth-and-inches from the Walkersville 35 and clinging to a seven-point lead. Both teams lined up heavy on the line preparing for a short yardage play, but Zwilsky had other ideas.
He snuck through the line somehow and rambled the rest of the way untouched to not only put the game away, but also to enter his name in the school's record book as the all-time single-game rushing leader. Zwilsky, a junior, ended the night with 310 yards, topping the previous mark of 287, and helped Brunswick to its first win of the season while the Lions fell to 0-2.
"That's exclusively the type of offense we ran last year," said Brunswick coach Kevin Lynott on his team's formation on the fourth-and-inches play. "We have a lot of experience with short yardage and it's something we felt could be a great play."
"The line blocked for me there like they'd been blocking for me all night," said the 5-foot-9, 185-pound Zwilsky. "The line opened up a hole and I just ran right through it."
But it wasn't just the line that led to his big night, as the modest Zwilsky would have one beliieve. He also used a combination of power and agility to rack up all those yards on 31 carries.
He had 10 carries of 10 or more yards, including a 65-yard scamper in the third quarter, and also muscled his way to a few yards on several occasions when it looked as if he would be stopped near the line of scrimmage.
"I love (this feeling)," said Zwilsky of breaking the record. "I love having the ball in my hands. When I was a freshman, I had a six-touchdown game, but this is definitely my best game on varsity ... Yeah, it's probably my best game ever."
To add to his phonemenal rushing total, Zwilsky also caught a pair of passes for 54 yards.
His night overshadowed a solid all-around performance from the Railroaders. Quarterback Aaron Main found six different receivers and was 8-for-16 for 140 yards. On defense, cornerback Bryan Hsu tipped away four passes and had an interception.
Brunswick took a 7-0 lead on its first drive of the game when it went 86 yards and finished with Main's 13-yard touchdown pass to Zach Potter.
With 2:26 to go in the first half, the 'Roaders went ahead 14-0 on Zwilsky's one-yard run and a kick by Andrew White. This drive began when Hsu intercepted a ball and was continued on a 4th-and-5 play that saw Main find Chris Papanicolas with an 18-yard pass.
Walkersville closed the half with a nice drive to give it some hope as halftime approached.
The Lions, who gained just 81 offensive yards in the first half, picked up 66 of those--and all four of their first downs--on its closing drive. Mark Ferro gained 43 yards on the ground and quarterback Shaun Coon ran a one-yard keeper to cut Walkersville's deficit to 14-7 at the break.
The second half began ominously for the 'Roaders with a four-and-out, but on their second possession, Main hit Blake Bielamowicz for 31 yards to set up a first-and-goal and Bielamowicz finished it with a one-yard run three plays later.
The Lions pulled back within a touchdown late in the third when Ferro scored on a four-yard run.
"It's a good thing we had 37 players on the roster," said Walkersville coach Hal Grau. "Because we used everybody. That's the toughest thing, to make adjustments on the fly, but we hope as the season goes on we'll learn from it."
Ferro led the Lions with 92 rushing yards.
Liberty 21, Francis Scott Key 14
by Carroll County Times
ELDERSBURG, MD---Quarterbacks are evaluated not on what they do in the first half, but on how they perform with the game on the line.
Give Matt Anuszewski high marks.
The Liberty senior completed five straight passes to lead a game-winning, 80-yard drive capped by Peyton Zeher's plunge with 42 seconds remaining to give the Lions a 21-14 win over Francis Scott Key on Friday night.
"He was incredible under pressure," said Liberty tight end Dustin Walters, who had eight receptions for 153 yards and a touchdown. "You can't replace a quarterback like that. He stands in, waits for lanes to open up - he makes my job a whole lot easier."
Walters caught two passes during the decisive final drive, but the biggest play was a hitch-and-go from Anuszewski to a wide-open Zeher that covered 40 yards.
It's a play that wasn't even in Liberty's arsenal until moments before, when assistant coach Erik Barnes drew it up.
"It's very rare that an offensive coordinator can go out and improvise like that," said Liberty coach Marty Brennan.
The Lions, who rallied from a halftime deficit to beat Winters Mill in their opener, improved to 2-0 for the first time since 2000.
"I've talked to the kids two weeks in a row about character and being determined even when things don't go our way," the third-year coach said. "This is a very big win for this football program."
Layton Hersh had more than 100 yards rushing and receiving for the Eagles (0-1), who were hurt by three turnovers, three missed field goals and a missed extra point.
"Obviously we made a lot of mistakes and hopefully we can correct those, but this was a heck of a high school football game," FSK coach John Baugher said. "We knew it was going to be a fourth-quarter ballgame."
That was fine with Liberty.
"Fourth quarter, that's where things usually break down for them," Zeher said, "but that's where our strongpoint has been."
The game was scoreless for most of the first half. It was delayed for 25 minutes when FSK's Shawn Reiter was knocked momentarily unconscious on a play and was taken to the hospital for precautionary tests. Immediately thereafter, Liberty drove 52 yards for the first score, with Anuszewski hitting Walters for 32 and 16 yards to set up Zeher's first touchdown.
But FSK went 65 yards on eight plays, highlighted by Hersh stealing the ball away from defensive back Anuszewski for a 19-yard reception. Matt Angell scored on a 2-yard run and Key trailed 7-6 at halftime.
The Lions drove 80 yards the first time they touched the ball in the second half, with Anuszewski hitting Walters for a 45-yard gain and then a 5-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-6.
Things got a bit sloppy thereafter. Liberty intercepted FSK twice, but the Lions fumbled away their chance to put the game away. The Eagles eventually tied it after an Angell halfback option pass to Hersh for a 64-yard score and Hersh's subsequent two-point run.
The Lions fumbled again on their very next play and FSK drove inside the Liberty 20. But the drive stalled and a 37-yard field goal attempt was wide left. Anuszewski and the Lions took over at their own 20 with 2:43 remaining.
First, he hit Dan Hallis on the far sideline for 13 yards. Then he went to Zeher for 2. Consecutive passes to Walters netted 21 yards and set up the hitch-and-go to Zeher. FSK bit, letting the senior back get behind the defense and Anuszewski hit him for a 40-yard gain to the Eagles' 4. The quarterback finished 16-for-27 for 240 yards.
Zeher ran it in two plays later behind Liberty's outsized offensive line, which had protected Anuszewski well all night.
"They outweighed us by a heck of a lot and our boys stepped up and did what they had to do," Zeher said.
As did the Lions' quarterback and his receivers with the game on the line.
"It came down to who wanted it more," Walters said. "We could smell the end zone, we wanted it so bad."
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WEEK #1
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Week #1 (September 3-4)
Frederick 34, Middletown 6
North Hagerstown 45, Beall 9
South Hagerstown 15, Walkersville 0
Bonita Vista-CA 27, Linganore 21
Northern Garrett 50, Clear Spring 14
Smithsburg 39, Berkeley Springs 6
St. Johns's-PH 40, Boonsboro 26
Poolesville 27, Brunswick 11
Aberdeen 20, Thomas Johnson 6
Catoctin 8, Century 6
Westminster 42, South Carroll 7
Liberty 42, Winters Mill 20
Francis Scott Key 18, North Carroll 0
Urbana 70, Tuscarora 0
Allegany 63, Williamsport 0
Week #1 Articles
Bonita Vista 27, Linganore 21
from Frederick News Post
Frederick, MD---With his team celebrating around him, Bonita Vista coach Carl Parrick didn't forget to praise his host this week, mentioning how hospitable Linganore had been.
As far as being guests, on the other hand, the Barons sure could have been nicer on Friday night.
Bonita Vista -- a well-traveled team from the suburbs of San Diego -- flew almost 3,000 miles, did some touring, then committed the rude act of beating defending state-champion Linganore, 27-21, before a packed house in a season opener that gained attention for it's unlikely combatants.
"It's fun to come and win," said Parrick, a 33-year coach who has made it a habit of taking his team on long road trips, including one to Cuba last fall. "I'm an old guy. I don't know how many games like this I can take. It's a feather in my cap."
Trailing for most of the night, the Barons used their pro style offense to produce an 11-play, 63-yard scoring drive, that ended on a 10-yard touchdown run by Star Fuimaono -- who had been instrumental in wearing down the Lancers' defense -- with 1 minute, 52 seconds left in the contest.
After Linganore's final drive came up short at the Bonita Vista 23-yard line as time expired, the Barons' sideline went wild, and their miniature cheering section -- loaded with air horns and whistles -- left the bleachers to join the fun.
Meanwhile, Linganore (0-1), which dropped its first season opener since a 1994 loss to Allegany, gathered quietly in its postgame huddle.
"We just weren't clicking," Linganore's standout fullback Matt Castor said. "It's definitely hard to swallow because there was so much publicity."
The Lancers played well in spurts. Castor punished Bonita Vista for 186 yards on 26 carries, including a 70-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. And quarterback Mike Herrod looked solid, throwing for 68 yards and rushing for 78.
But the Lancers were hindered by mistakes -- a commonplace problem during Week 1. Penalties, missed assignments and a special teams gaffe contributed to their demise.
"When we were up by a little, our guys were trying to make big plays," Linganore coach Rick Conner said. "We got out of our schemes, and it bit us."
The Barons (1-0), whose balanced offense gathered 343 total yards (158 rushing; 185 passing), scored 14 unanswered points in the second half for the win. Quarterback Jeff Downing (14 of 22, 185 yards, two TDs) was smooth; lanky receivers Pierce Hunter and Anthony Howard were potent; and Fuimaono (20 carries, 114 yards) was damaging.
To start the third quarter, however, it looked like the Lancers had taken momentum when Castor strutted down the right sideline on his long TD, which came on a third-and-25 play. Brad Zimmerman's kick gave Linganore a 21-13 lead with 8:43 left in the period.
But two possessions later, the Barons got the ball on the Lancers 27 after blocking a punt by Jon Sweadner with 4:52 remaining. A Downing-to-Hunter 5-yard TD pass made it 21-19.
Then, after Linganore ended consecutive possessions with a turnover on downs in Barons territory and a punt, the California team began the decisive march.
It included a fourth-and-1 conversion at the Linganore 11 by Downing -- who moved the chains with a sneak after Parrick decided against a field goal attempt -- and 37 yards by Fuimaono. His touchdown was the difference in the game.
The Lancers drove 45 yards in 1:51 to set up the game's final play -- a hook-and-lateral attempt that ended with Linganore's Danny Warren getting tackled 10 yards short of the end zone.
"It's sad that we didn't win, but it's over with now," Linganore lineman Josh Bedregal said. "We've got to get over it. We've got Damascus next week."
NOTES -- Herrod lofted a 44-yard scoring pass to Warren in the first quarter, and scored on a 1-yard run in the second. ... Sweadner ran for 84 yards on 12 attempts. ... The Barons' Howard had four catches for 97 yards, including a 69-yard TD.
Westminster 42, South Carroll 7
by Bob Blubaugh, Carroll County Times
Westminster, MD---Westminster and South Carroll have been playing each other in football every year since 1968, with nearly half the games being decided by a touchdown or less.
The series had never seen a game as lopsided as Westminster's 42-7 win Friday night. But, then, it's a safe bet the series had never seen an offense quite like the one new coach Brad Wilson debuted.
Quarterback Kevin Clancy threw 36 times in the first half alone, finishing 26-for-39 for 285 yards and four touchdowns in Wilson's wide-open, short passing offense.
"I do like this offense a lot. We get to spread it out and throw the ball," said Clancy, who completed his first five passes in leading the Owls to a touchdown on their first drive of the season. "Once we did that we had them on their toes."
Matt Bergbauer spent the first two weeks of practice competing with Clancy for the quarterback job and Wilson lauded Bergbauer's "sacrifice" for moving to receiver.
But was it really a sacrifice? Playing receiver looks like a lot of fun in this offense. Four wideouts caught at least four passes for 40 yards.
Bergbauer led the way with eight receptions for 115 yards and two touchdowns.
"We figured it would be best for the team for me to move to slot [receiver]," Bergbauer said. "Everything worked perfect tonight. We've got to look past this, though, even though it was a great first game."
Wilson was understandably pleased with his first game.
"If you had to write a perfect way to start, this was it," Wilson said. "We have some great kids. It's good to see kids who work hard get rewarded. They were focused.
"Kevin and those guys, I call the plays, but they know the offense. Hats off to them."
The most lopsided previous win the history of the series was Westminster's 31-0 victory in 1989 as 17 games had been decided by eight points or fewer. The Owls had lost three straight and seven of eight to the Cavaliers.
But when Clancy hit on seven of nine passes and capped the Owls' 84-yard opening drive with a 1-yard keeper, it was apparent this was a different Owls' team than those of recent vintage. Clancy averaged just 17 passes per game last year, when traditionally run-oriented Westminster went 3-7.
The Owls upped their lead to 14-0 when Clancy hit Bergbauer on a short pass over the middle that Bergbauer turned into a 40-yard touchdown.
Jay Leonard, who grabbed seven passes for 87 yards, caught a 16-yarder for a score just one minute into the second quarter and a 9-yarder to Bergbauer closed the first-half scoring.
When Clancy tossed another TD to Leonard three minutes into the second half to make it 35-0, the "mercy" rule went into effect. That meant the clock ran non-stop the rest of the way and only 25 more plays were run. Ryan Finch, who gained 88 yards on 10 carries, finished the scoring with a 1-yard run late in the third quarter.
Westminster's Josh Parks, Richie Astlin, Andy Rill and Andrew Pearce all had interceptions for the Owls.
It wasn't the kind of debut first-year South Carroll coach Butch Schaffer had in mind. Schaffer took over a team that went 11-2 and reached the state semifinals last year. But the Cavaliers lost 26 seniors, including eight Times all-countians.
"We're very young and we've got to get better," said Schaffer, who praised Westminster's offense. "They executed very well. They're going to have a lot of success."
South Carroll's lone highlights came in the final minutes, when Terrence Gray's 61-yard run led to Ryan Fowler's 2-yard touchdown that ended the shutout.
Wilson, hired away from Glen Burnie in July after Scott Tobias stepped down, was impressed by the huge, supportive crowd for his opening game.
"What an atmosphere," Wilson said. "This is what high school football is supposed to be like."
North Hagerstown 45, Beall 9
by Tim Koeble, Herald-Mail
There were moments of silence through the first 11 minutes of North Hagerstown's season opener against Beall at School Stadium on Friday night.
The Hubs had netted 37 yards on 14 plays, were guilty of four penalties and botched a snap on a punt that led to a Beall safety.
Faced with a third-and-16 on their own 25 with 26 seconds left in the opening period, Hubs quarterback Robby Thompson rolled to his left and connected with Bernard Artillus about 10 yards into zone coverage. The fleet-footed senior went the remaining distance that helped shake the jitters and lead North on to a 45-9 victory over Beall in the first meeting between the schools.
"We had jitters at first ... out of synch," Thompson said after his 8-for-17 passing performance that produced three TDs and 208 yards.
"The penalties aren't our style and there were a few things Beall did that we didn't expect," said coach Dan Cunningham. "We were a little confused with some of our blocking assignments but we got refocused and opened up the passing game."
After an interception by Beall halted one drive, the Hubs exploded for three scores in the final 5:45 of the second period after a Beall field goal attempt from 32 yards by Robert Fuller sailed to the left.
Thompson rang up his second scoring strike as he hit Darail Porter from 53 yards on another pass-run mixture. Thompson was hurried on the effort and Porter managed to outrun two defenders.
After Beall muffed North's deep kickoff, the Hubs made the Mountaineers pay for the mistake when Leon Finley scored the first of his two rushing TDS, hitting paydirt from five yards out.
Porter had a 17-yard punt return that set up North's next score, a 14-yard pass from Thompson to Quielan Gantt with nine seconds left in the half. The TD capped a 40-yard drive.
"(Beall) was cheating on defense with their outside backers and safeties so we were able to adjust with outside passes," Thompson said.
Beall's first possession of the second half couldn't have made them feel any better.
North's Dink Snowden rushed through the line to block a Fuller punt and Artillus was on the spot to pick up the football and dash 10 yards for a score.
Another North defensive stand and a 31-yard punt return by Porter gave the Hubs possession at the Beall 29, and three plays later Finley darted into the end zone from nine yards for a 42-2 lead at the 8:29 mark of the third.
"I just want to be able to contribute .. I've got to help fill spots from last year," said Finley after his 56-yard performance.
Brent Toms, who had seven extra points, booted a 41-yard field goal with 6:48 left in the third, set up by a 54-yard run from Matt Ridenour.
"Two of the TD passes were checked off at the line," Cunningham said. "Robby has the option of making changes, and I'm impressed with the job he did on audibles."
In winning their second straight season opener, the Hubs limited Beall to 118 total yards, many coming late in the game. Overall, North had 331 total yards.
"Overall, the defense had a great opening game," Cunningham said. "Special teams took advantage of some situations."
Northern Garrett 50, Clear Spring 14
by DAN KAUFFMAN, Herald-Mail
ACCIDENT, Md. - While the scoreboard told one side of the story of Clear Spring's first varsity football game in 87 years, the smiles of well-deserved satisfaction on the faces of the Blazers told another, more important one Friday night.
Though the outcome was never in doubt - Northern Garrett rushed for 375 yards and six touchdowns to build a 44-0 halftime lead on the way to a 50-14 win - how Clear Spring would respond to the adversity was in doubt.
Determined to make something good happen, the Blazers forced two turnovers and outscored the Huskies 14-8 in the second half and walked off the field with their heads held high.
"We just wanted to come out that half and do something," Clear Spring defensive back Dan Jarvis said. "The overall team did real good in the second half."
"We've been telling them about having fun, and that's the main thing," Clear Spring coach John Wilson said. "They have a three-day weekend to rest, and hopefully they come back saying they had fun and they want to improve."
Northern Garrett senior Michael Wolfe - who rushed for 1,602 yards last year - had 161 yards and three touchdowns on nine carries, while Tyler Warn had 100 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries and added a 78-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on the game's final play for the Huskies.
Clear Spring had a few memorable moments in its return to high school football.
· On the Blazers' first possession, sophomore Derrick Dyer fielded the kickoff, took a couple steps to his right and found a seam for a 44-yard return into Huskies' territory.
"When I saw the hole open up, I though it would go the whole way. It closed up pretty quick," Dyer said.
· After a tough first half in which he went 0-for-6 with two interceptions, Blazers quarterback Tyler Braithwaite found Donnie Lapole in the end zone for Clear Spring's first pass completion and touchdown, a 16-yard strike with 4:04 left in the third quarter.
Lapole leaped above two defenders to make a juggling grab.
"I looked and didn't see much at first, then saw him alone and let it fly," Braithwaite said. "He got to it and made it happen."
"I see Tyler rolling out and 100 guys are on his back," Lapole said. "I saw the ball was up in the air and I went up and got it. I bobbled it, but it came down in my hands."
· Ryan Byers, who was moved to outside linebacker from his inside spot on last year's JV team, put a solid lick on Huskies running back Mitch Fost, forcing a fumble which Jarvis recovered in the fourth quarter. The fumble led to a six-play, 68-yard drive - highlighted by a 33-yard pass from Braithwaite to Lapole and finished by Braithwaite 1-yard run.
"I was playing a position I never even played before, but Coach told me to go play some football," Byers said. "I was fired up and wanted to hit somebody."
"I was surprised we did as well as we did," Dyer said. "A lot of these kids never played football before so it turned out pretty well."
St.Johns-PH 40, Boonsboro 26
by MARK KELLER, Herald-Mail
BOONSBORO - Known primarily for its offensive fireworks, the St. John's at Prospect Hall football team used a defensive stand to stave off a third-quarter Boonsboro rally as the No. 7 Vikings beat the Warriors 40-26 in the season opener for both teams.
As for the fireworks, there were still plenty of those. St. John's quarterback Keith Ricca connected on 21 of 34 passes for 446 yards and five touchdowns - four of those to Max Morris.
Morris also returned a kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown.
"We knew they had the potential to get a big play at any time," Boonsboro coach Clayton Anders said. "I think our game plan was sound, but we needed to get some pressure on (Ricca) and we couldn't effectively do that."
Boonsboro made some noise of its own offensively, racking up 335 total yards, including 298 on the ground.
The teams combined for 833 yards of offense - a total that doesn't include Morris' kickoff return or an 88-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Boonsboro's Blaec Ramos.
The Warriors trailed 26-12 at halftime, but shifted the momentum on the third play of the third quarter when Adam Rippeon picked off a Ricca pass and returned it to the 10-yard line.
Three plays later, quarterback Zach Shoemaker scored on a sneak to cut the Vikings' lead to 26-18.
St. John's nearly struck back on the next play from scrimmage as Ricca hit Randal Smedley across the middle, and Smedley ran for an apparent 61-yard score. But a clipping penalty and an unsportsmanlike conduct call erased the touchdown and moved the Vikings back deeper into Boonsboro territory.
After forcing St. John's to punt, the Warriors used seven different ball carriers to move from their own 14 to the Vikings' 3, catching a break when Zach Exline's fumble at the 10 bounced seven yards forward before rolling out of bounds.
The St. John's defense tightened, however. After the Warriors were called for holding on first down, the Vikings put pressure on Shoemaker, getting a sack and forcing a bad snap to move Boonsboro out of scoring range.
"They played pretty well defensively, I thought," Anders said. "We knew we could do some things offensively because of what we saw on film, but they played much better defense."
Five plays after taking over on downs, Ricca found Morris in the corner of the end zone for their fourth scoring connection of the night. Morris finished with 10 catches for 251 yards.
Jeremiah Mills led Boonsboro with 121 yards rushing. Rippeon added 66 yards and James Barnes had 43 yards and a touchdown.
Smithsburg 39, Berkeley Springs 6
by BOB PARASILITI, Herald-Mail
BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. - The Smithsburg football team figured out the best way to cut off circulation to the Berkeley Springs offense.
The Leopards tightened the Indians' Belt.
Smithsburg's defense restricted the movement of Tony Belt, Berkeley Springs' multifaceted quarterback, while the Leopards caught the Indians with their pants down with 437 yards of offense Friday in a 39-6 rout in the season opener for each team.
Smithsburg (1-0) held Belt to minus-46 yards rushing and to only 5 of 21 passing for 84 yards. Belt was minus-31 rushing and 1-for-11 passing in the first half as the Leopards ran off to a 26-0 lead.
"We had to control the football," Smithsburg coach Buddy Orndorff said. "The longer we kept the ball out of (Belt's) hands, the happier I became. We presented that as a challenge to our linemen and our backs."
Smithsburg's offense met the challenge and buried it.
Tailback Justin Thompson ran 23 times for 199 yards and two touchdowns while Matt Feiser added 83 yards and two more scores. Smithsburg converted third downs at will, beating the Indians to the perimeter for big plays.
"If you would have told me the score was going to be this lopsided, I would have lost a lot of money," Orndorff said. "We tried to keep (Belt) in the pocket and keep the heat on him. We ran some late blitzes because we didn't want to let him get any early reads. He checks off well."
Berkeley Springs turned to its running game to try an loosen up the hold on Belt. It was good for yardage, but didn't accomplish the goal.
Freshman Cody Hess and Randy Waugh broke for a few big yardage plays, but Belt couldn't sustain the drives. Feiser set the tone for the game by sacking Belt on Berkeley Springs' first play.
"That's just their defense," Berkeley Springs coach Angelo Luvara said. "They didn't do anything on offense or defense we hadn't seen. We dropped too many passes. They didn't beat us as much as we beat ourselves."
Smithsburg jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter as quarterback Josh Daniels hit receiver Dustin Mitchell on a 40-yard scoring play to cap the opening drive. Thompson capped the Leopards' second possession - a two-play, 72-yard drive - with a 72-yard run around end.
Josh Talbert scored on the first play of the second quarter with a 20-yard run and Feiser got his first score on a 33-yard run for the 26-0 halftime lead.
"Once they scored twice, the kids got in the mode where they had to do everything perfectly," Luvara said.
Belt scored from the 2 in the third quarter to get Berkeley Springs on the scoreboard to cut the deficit to 26-6 after three quarters.
Smithsburg closed the scoring on Thompson's 37-yard and Feiser's 13-yard runs.
"Our defense played its heart out," Orndorff said. "We showed some diversity with our defensive package. We presented Mr. Belt some different schemes and I don't think he expected us to be so fast."
South Hagerstown 15, Walkersville 0
WALKERSVILLE, Md. - South Hagerstown held No. 4 Walkersville to minus-13 yards of net offense and did not allow a first down as the Rebels blanked the Lions 15-0 Friday in the season opener for both teams.
South (1-0) set the tone early, driving 69 yards on its first possession, capped by a 24-yard touchdown by first-year quarterback Mark Bryan.
Bryan later connected with Ronnie Jackson for a 32-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter. Jackson caught all four pass attempts by Bryan for 73 yards.
Jimbo Harmon and Terrell Blair each rushed for 50 yards in the win.
Frederick 34, Middletown 6
FREDERICK, Md. - Cory Rhodes and Bruce Dorsey put on offensive shows as Frederick beat Middletown in the season opener for each team.
Rhodes was 9 of 14 passing for 280 yards, including touchdown passes of 82 and 30 yards to Brian Lanning. Rhodes also rushed for 123 yards.
Dorsey rushed for 152 yards on 18 carries, including TD runs of 2, 20 and 30 yards.
Frederick, which led 14-6 at halftime, had 583 yards of total offense.
Catoctin 8, Century 6
SYKESVILLE, Md. - Wyatt Basley scored the game-tying five-yard touchdown run and added the game-winning two-point conversion run in the third quarter and Catoctin edged Century.
Basley finished with 75 of the Catoctin's 210 rushing yards. Mike Lovejoy added 113 yards on 15 carries for the Cougars (1-0).
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2004 MVAL Football Preview
ANTIETAM CONFERENCE
2004 Pre Season All-MVAL Antietam Conference
QB-Robbie Thompson-Sr.-North Hagerstown
FB-Matt Fieser-Sr.-Smithsburg
RB-Brandon White-Sr.-Smithsburg
RB-Neil Forsythe-Sr.-Williamsport
RB-Joe Rakoski-Sr.-Catoctin
OL-Mitch Wolters-Sr.-North Hagerstown
OL-Mike Rinebolt-Sr.-Smithsburg
OL-Josh Stanton-Jr.-Smithsburg
OL-Justin Calendrelle-Sr.-North Hagerstown
OL-Rob Shawley-Jr.-Williamsport
OL-James Whitt-Sr.-Smithsburg
TE-Josh Lewis-Sr.-Boonsboro
Recv-Quielan Gantt-Sr.-North Hagerstown
Recv-Zach Sweeney-Sr.-Catoctin
DL-Jon Breehl-Sr.-North Hagerstown
DL-Alex Papanicolas-Sr.-Brunswick
DL-Jimbo Harman-Sr.-South Hagerstown
DL-Mitch Wolters-Sr.-North Hagerstown
DL-Leon Finley-Sr.-North Hagerstown
DL-A.J. Schell-Sr.-Boonsboro
LB-Matt Fieser-Sr.-Smithsburg
LB-Dean Staley-Sr.-North Hagerstown
LB-Neil Forsythe-Sr.-Williamsport
LB-Eric Zwilsky-Jr.-Brunswick
LB-Josh Talbert-Jr.-Smithsburg
DB-Bernard Artillus-Sr.-North Hagerstown
DB-Quielan Gantt-Sr.-North Hagerstown
DB-Scott Mumma-Sr.-Williamsport
DB-Brad Brown-Sr.-Catoctin
K-Brent Toms-Sr.-North Hagerstown
P-Brian Keeney-Sr.-Brunswick
Other Players to Watch: QB-Zach Shoemaker-Jr.-Boonsboro, FB-James Barnes-Sr.-Boonsboro, RB-Doug Zimmerman-Sr.-Boonsboro, RB-Jeremiah Mills-Jr.-Boonsboro, QB-Aaron Main-Jr.-Brunswick, K-Andrew White-Sr.-Brunswick, TE-Zach Potter-Sr.-Brunswick, DB-Brian Keeney-Sr.-Brunswick, RB-Wyatt Basley-Jr.-Catoctin, QB-Kenny Gatzendaner-Jr.-Catoctin, TE/LB-David Nesbitt-Sr.-Catoctin, WR-Derek Dyer-So.-Clear Spring, QB-Tyler Braithwaite-Jr.-Clear Spring, OL/DL-Dink Snowden-Jr.-North Hagerstown, TB-Lamar Harris-Jr.-North Hagerstown, TE/DL-Eppy Johns-Sr.-North Hagerstown, SS-Matt Hudson-Sr.-Smithsburg, RB-Justin Thompson-Jr.-Smithsburg, RB-Theo Washington-Sr.-South Hagerstown, WR-Ronnie Jackson-Sr.-South Hagerstown, TE/DE-Travis Gatreal-Jr.-South Hagerstown, TB/LB-A.J. Bandeff-Sr.-South Hagerstown, FB-Tony Johnson-Sr.-Williamsport
Conference Game of the Year: North Hagerstown at Smithsburg, Friday, October 29, 7PM
1. North Hagerstown
What a difference a year makes. One year ago the Hubs were coming off a 2-8 season, had several question marks entering the 2003 season, and were being picked to finish in the bottom half of the new Antietam Conference. Now after an unbelievable 11-1 season that included a perfect conference and regular season, the Hubs are poised to repeat not only in the conference, but are also looking to a return to the playoffs.
Unfortunately history is against the Hubs on two counts: 1. in 1991 after reaching the playoffs the year before, the Hubs returned loads of talent including current Head Coach Danny Cunningham at QB and looked to return to the playoffs for a second straight season. North fell to 6-4 and was out of the mix by mid-season. 2. South Hagerstown made it to their first-ever playoff appearance in 2002 and were sitting in the exact position the Hubs are this season---returning lots of talent and being picked to repeat by everyone---only to fall on their face with a 3-7 record. The Hubs will enter this season with caution and know they will have a target on their back for the first time in years.
Offensively, North has several holes to plug. Gone is the Hubs three-headed monster at running back that combined for a North Hagerstown record 3260 yards on the ground. Hubs Head Coach Danny Cunningham will have to use summer camp to find his running back or maybe running backs. Leon Finley, Lamar Harris and maybe Matt Ridenour should compete for the carries. The Hubs do return QB Robbie Thompson, who split time as signal-caller last season, and is very capable. Thompson set the school record by tossing four TD passes in a single game last season verses Smithsburg. North also returns the most dangerous long threat in the conference, 6-foot-4 wideout Quielan Gantt. The offensive line returns guard Mitch Wolters, tackle Justin Calendrelle, along with junior man-child Dink Snowden, who could also see some time in the backfield.
North has secret weapon on special teams---senior kicker Brent Toms. With the offense being so explosive last season, Toms was primarily used in extra point attempts, but is very capable of hitting field goals from over 40-yards out.
The defense is where the Hubs are still a cut above the rest in the conference. North returns six starters and has plenty more athletes ready to step in for departed starters. Derrick Keith and John Kline were the heart & soul of a fierce 2003 defense, but the Hubs return two of their top three leading tacklers from last year in LB Dean Staley and NG Jon Breehl. Staley actually broke the single-season tackle record in 2003 with 124 and Breehl recorded 6.5 sacks for the season. Super quick Leon Finley returns at DE and Wolters and Snowden will join Breehl on the D-line. Bernard Artillus is back at corner, while Gantt will join him in the Hubs defensive backfield.
Don’t look for the Hubs to be perfect in the regular season for the second straight year, but don’t bet they were a one-hit wonder either. Tough road games await the Hubs as North will travel to Hedgesville, Frederick, Catoctin and Smithsburg. The Smithsburg game could determine the Antietam Conference title. If North can pull out early wins in West Virginia and Frederick County---look out, the Hubs could go on another roll---much like 2003.
2. Smithsburg
In 2003 the Smithsburg Leopards broke an eight year hiatus from the Maryland football playoffs, an unusually long wait for a program rich in football history. The Leopards managed to gain a 1A West playoff spot with a 6-4 regular season record. They met Class 1A runner-up Beall in the regional semifinals, where they fell 27-7. The Leopards have all the ingredients for another Class 1A playoff run in 2004. Head Coach Buddy Orndorff will enter his eighth full season as Leopards coach and knows he is loaded with quality returning starters for this season.
All-conference first team running back Brandon White will return at tailback, while bruising fullback Matt Fieser will also be back. This duo combined to rush for 1600 yards and 13 touchdowns in the ’03 regular season and is ready for bigger things this season. Look for talented junior Justin Thompson to also be in the mix at tailback. The Leopards will have solid players on the offensive line to block for a star-studded backfield. Antietam Conference first-team tackle Mike Rinebolt returns along with James Whitt and junior Josh Stanton to anchor a very solid o-line. This should give White, Thompson, and Fieser plenty of holes to run through. The question mark on offensive will be the quarterback position. Coach Orndorff will likely take the summer to decide, but with the running backs and offensive line the Leopards has, he could play quarterback.
Fieser, the Washington County Co-Defensive Player, will lead the Smithsburg defense at linebacker. Smithsburg should clearly have the best linebacking tandem in the conference, with Fieser and junior Josh Talbert. The Leopards will have to plug a few holes on the d-line and in the secondary, but have a solid group of returners and jayvees to help.
The schedule looks pretty favorable at this point. The Leopards open with out-of-conference road games at Berkeley Spring (WV) and Winters Mill, then plays their home opener with first-year varsity program Tuscarora. The October 29 home game against North Hagerstown could likely be for the conference crown. If all goes well and the Leopards claim victory in the North game, Smithsburg could contend for the 1A West top spot in the playoffs, but that won’t come easy.
3. Brunswick
The Railroaders will enter the second season under Head Coach Kevin Lynott. In Lynott’s first season, the 2003 Brunswick squad was 4-6, while playing a murderous schedule that included six playoff teams. Brunswick will look to build on the 2003 campaign and finish in the top half of the MVAL-Antietam Conference and possibly make a run at the 1A playoffs.
The ‘Roaders are a team built on punishing defense. The defense is lead by senior and first team All-MVAL Antietam Conference defensive end Alex Papanicolas. Papanicolas is joined by junior honorable mention all-conference linebacker Eric Zwilsky. Seniors Keith Ridlen and Brian Wright return to anchor the defensive line, while Brian Keeney heads up the defensive backs. Seniors Cory Hargett and Cory Bland also return with starting experience.
Offensively, Ridlen and senior Neil Metzgar return to lead the offensive line of the ‘Roaders smash-mouth offense. Senior Travis Riley also brings starting experience to the offensive line. Zwilsky and Papanicolas return in the backfield, while senior Zach Potter will return at tight end. Seniors Brain Hsu, Joey McHugh, and Blake Bielamowicz also will contribute varsity experience to the offense. Keeney and 6-2 junior Aaron Main will battle for the starting QB job.
The tenacious Railroader special teams return three vital starters. Second team Antietam Conference junior kicker Andrew White, honorable mention conference punter Brian Keeney, and long-snapper Alex Papanicolas will lead the specials teams.
The schedule will be a tough grind, but slightly easier than last season with the replacement of playoff contender, Oakland Mills, with first year Clear Spring. The ‘Roaders will open with Poolesville at home, then travel to Walkersville for a week two matchup. Brunswick will then return home to face Middletown, a team they beat last season for the first time since 1980, and only the second time in the 29-year history of the series.
The Antietam Conference schedule includes tough league foes North Hagerstown and Smithsburg, both coming off playoff appearances. The Railroaders look forward to bringing back an excellent core of starters while infusing new talent from last year’s JV squad. So if the ‘Roaders finished solid last year with that tough schedule and a first year coach, look for Brunswick to improve and be a top tier team in the Antietam Conference this season.
4. Boonsboro
They’re back! Sure everybody has an off season, and Boonsboro sure had off season last year. The Warriors were 1-9 overall, 1-5 in the conference, averaged only 7.2 points per game, while giving up over 25 points a game. But that was last year. In 2004, look for Boonsboro to get back to being a contender in the 1A West playoff hunt. Experienced Head Coach Clayton Anders will work his magic again and have the Warriors in the thick of the conference race along with the 1A playoff race. Anders knew last season he had his work cut out for him, but looked to the future and played several juniors and sophomores while taking his lumps. That will prove valuable this season as most return looking for a little revenge on everyone that whipped up on them last season.
Junior QB Zach Shoemaker will be back at quarterback this season. Shoemaker became the full-time signal-caller last season and did an admiral job by throwing for 350 yards and having a completion percentage above 50% in six conference games.
Shoemaker will have his top two pass catchers back to throw to--- Tight End Josh Lewis and HB Doug Zimmerman. Leading scorer for the Warriors in conference games, fullback James Barnes, is also back along with WB Jeremiah Mills. The offensive line will have some size and now experience to go along with several weapons at offensive skill positions.
Senior James Barnes, one of the Warriors leading tacklers last season, returns to a defense that allowed over 25 points five times. If Anders can improve the defensive effort this season, Boonsboro could be in for a very good season.
The Warriors will open the season with Frederick County private school St. John’s-Prospect Hall, who has the top QB in Maryland---Keith Ricca. Dates with first year Tuscarora and Hedgesville from West Virginia also await for Boonsboro. A 2-1 record could give the Warriors the confidence they need entering the conference season to be a major threat.
5. Catoctin
Catoctin returned to the playoffs in 2003 for the first time since 1986. The Cougars defeated Hancock in the first round of the playoffs 42-0 and advanced to the 1A West title game, where they fell to 1A runner-up Beall. The Cougars lost nearly their entire offense from their ‘03 playoff team and will have to find immediate replacements. So can Catoctin still finish with a winning record and in the upper half of the conference? The answer is yes, because Cougar Head Coach Doug Williams has one of the most deceptive offensives in the state---the double wing. This scrum-like offense has worked remarkably well for undermanned Catoctin and usually gives all opponents plenty of fits.
The Cougars do return two key players on offense from the 2003 playoff squad. Most notably, leading rusher RB Joe Rakoski is back. Rakoski gained a team regular season high 783 yards on the ground, while scoring eight touchdowns for Catoctin. Junior Wyatt Basley will also receive plenty of carries in Catoctin’s ground-oriented attack. Also back is RB Zach Sweeney who led the Cougars in receiving last year with 199 yards in six conference games and WR Brad Brown. As for the quarterback position, look for junior Kenny Getzendaner to get the nod, replacing three-year starter Jason Johnson. The offensive line still has some questions, but look for Mark Krystonvic and Jeremy Serio to lead the mix.
Defensively the Cougars could struggle with the loss of numerous starters, but senior leader Rakoski should also lead the defense at linebacker. D-Back Brad Brown along with sophomore Brian Woodward will have to pick up the big absence since Johnson graduated.
The early out-of-conference schedule could be very challenging. Century, Joppatowne, and Walkersville are the first three games for Catoctin, with only Walkersville being in Thurmont. If the Cougars could manage a winning record through the early season out-of-conference stretch, they could make some noise in the Antietam Conference with a young group.
6. South Hagerstown
2003 was a year to forget in the south end of Hagerstown. The Rebels were coming off an eight win season, while making the Maryland State playoffs for the very first time in school history. They returned possibly South Hagerstown’s greatest all-around athlete in David Miner and had other solid players in place to make another run at the post season. It wasn’t to be in 2003, as the Rebs had to painfully watch cross-town rival North Hagerstown go undefeated in the regular season and take it on the chin in a 41-0 rout to the Hubs. This season, South will look to regroup with some youth. Rebels Head Coach Greg Kellick will look to his junior class to regenerate the winning ways at South and improve on a disappointing 3-7 record.
No more familiar names like David Miner, Antwan Jones, Charlie Johnson, Tyler Jones, James Price, or Josh Bussard. Some new names will pop up this season for the Rebels as they will move a solid jayvee squad to varsity. Some names that will likely appear on offense will be seniors A.J. Bandeff (RB), Ronnie Jackson (SE), Jimbo Harman (OL), Theo Washington (FB), and Travis Gatrell (TE), while junior Coty Grove (RB), and Mark Bryan (QB) should also see time. The only defensive standout returning is Harman, who made second team all-conference last season. The defense will also be young and inexperienced, so Kellick will have his work cut out to mold a group together---but don’t think he can’t do it.
South’s will open their 2004 schedule on the road with a very tough out-of-conference game at Walkersville, then come home to play an improved Century Knight team. The Rebs then travel to Anne Arundel County to play MIAA private school Archbishop Spalding, who is coming off a (8-2) season. South Hagerstown will play their season finale on the “road” at their home stadium verses cross-town rival North Hagerstown on November 5. The Rebs will look for payback from last season, as the Hubs recorded the most lopsided victory in the series.
There are definitely plenty of question marks on offense and defense for South, but with a school that has so many athletes, never underestimate the Rebels.
7. Williamsport
There is definitely optimism is Wildcat-land this season. A 1-9 year last season is in the past for the Cats as they are ready to pile up some wins in 2004. Williamsport will return the league’s top ground-gainer from last season and a quarterback that already has two years of varsity experience under his belt. Second year head coach Adrian Custer knows this year's team will be much different then last year's team. He is hopeful that the numbers on the varsity squad will increase and that the newcomers will produce on the field.
The Cats have had a great turnout in the off-season in the weight room. Custer said, “The player's that we are counting on to play the greatest of minutes have really committed themselves to
getting and staying in shape. I am extremely excited for this year's
team and I believe we will be able to compete in all of our games.”
Neil Forsythe will return as one of the Antietam Conference’s top running backs. Forsythe gained 1395 rushing yards, while scoring ten touchdowns during the 2003 regular season and will look to improve on those numbers this season. QB Ben Vatavuk returns as the Cats signal-caller, he is a two-year varsity starter and passed for 449 yards last year. Wideout Scott Mumma will likely be Vatavuk’s main target. Tony Johnson will play fullback, while junior Rob Shawley will anchor the offensive line.
On defense, seniors Forsythe (LB), Vatavuk (DB), Mumma (DB), Johnson (LB), and Frank Larrazoboa (DE), while juniors Ryan Lee (LB), Rob Shawley (DL) will lead a rejuvenated defense that allowed 40.3 points a game in 2003 conference games. If the defense can cut that number in half this season, the offense may be able to light the scoreboard up enough to be in most games.
If most of the Cats players can stay healthy and continue to give the effort they have in the off-season, Custer says this team could go down as one of the best in Williamsport’s history.
8. Clear Spring
The Clear Spring Blazers will field their first varsity team since the World War II era in 2004 and the Clear Spring community is buzzing with excitement. The Blazers were 1-8-1 at the junior varsity level in 2003 and look forward to their first varsity competition this season. Clear Spring head man John Wilson will enter his fifth season as a varsity head coach. Wilson had a 16-36 record while at Cumberland’s Bishop Walsh and is excited about the opportunity to build a new program.
Sophomore wideout Derrick Dyer is the Blazers top athlete and should be the go-to-guy. 6-2 junior Tyler Braithwaite will be the signal caller in the Blazers I-offense, but may be slowed due to off-season wrist surgery. Seniors R.J. Snyder (OL/DL), Devin Wiles (OL/DL), Bobby Miller (OL/DL), Justin Hays (RB/DB), Ryan Kelly (WR/DB), Bryce Sigler (TE/DL), Joel Fitz (OL/DL), and Cory Bush (OL/DL) will provide leadership that will hopefully translate into victories. Other players looking to contribute will be receivers Donnie Lapole (Jr), Chris Penwell (Jr) and Cody Brown (Jr). The backfield will include Ryan Byers (Jr), Matt Cool (Jr), and Corey Clopein (Jr).
On defense look for DE Craig Clopper (So), DL Brian Worthington (Jr), DL J.R. Shields (Jr); and Defensive Back Dan Jarvis (So) see plenty of playing time along with several other players that may be forced to play both ways. Wilson will use a 5-3 base defense.
Years of hard work by a group of dedicated community members will finally pay of on September 3rd, when the Blazers travel to Accident, Maryland for there opener against Northern Garrett. Then the town of Clear Spring will have their home opener on September 10th against Westmar from Allegany County.
Strengths for the 2004 team include senior leadership and athleticism in the younger players. Team speed has improved since the inaugural 2003 campaign with Coach Wilson’s lifting and conditioning workouts. The major weakness that Coach Wilson and the coaching staff have identified is improving the team mentality and forging a winning attitude into a team that is starting new traditions within the Clear Spring community. A multiple win campaign would be a great way to finish the 2004 re-inaugural season.
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CHESAPEAKE CONFERENCE
2004 Pre Season All-MVAL Chesapeake Conference
QB-Cory Rhodes-Sr.-Frederick
QB-Matt Anuszewski-Sr.-Liberty
FB-Bruce Dorsey-Sr.-Frederick
RB-Matt Castor-Sr.-Linganore
RB-Lamont Stewert-Sr.-Thomas Johnson
RB-Tommy Prazenica-Sr.-Frederick
OL-Corey Nicholson-Sr.-Linganore
OL-Chris Reeves-Sr.-Urbana
OL-Mike Russo-Sr.-Urbana
OL-Mickey Davis-Sr.-Frederick
OL-Brian Crumbie-Sr.-North Carroll
OL-Ben Pierson-Sr.-Thomas Johnson
TE-Dustin Walters-Sr.-Liberty
Recv-Jeff Baughmiller-Sr.-North Carroll
Recv-Brian Lanning-Sr.-Frederick
DL-John Ferrante-Sr.-Urbana
DL-Ben Pierson-Sr.-Thomas Johnson
DL-Zach Ritz-Sr.-North Carroll
DL-Corey Nicholson-Sr.-Linganore
LB-Tom Mitchell-Sr.-North Carroll
LB-Steve Anderson-Jr.-Urbana
LB-Matt Bergbauer-Sr.-Westminster
LB-Matt Castor-Sr.-Linganore
LB-Jason Butts-Sr.-Urbana
DB-Isaiah Brightful-Sr.-Linganore
DB-Gerald Price-Jr.-Frederick
DB-Matt Aunszewski-Sr.-Liberty
DB- Jeff Baughermiller-Sr.-North Carroll
K-Andrew Goodwin-Sr.-Frederick
P- Matt Aunszewski-Sr.-Liberty
Other Players to Watch: DB-Quenton Beard-Sr.-Frederick, TE/DL-Peter Malamet-Sr.-Frederick, OL-Geoff Fry-Jr.-Frederick, LB-Tommy Gillmore-Jr.-Frederick, RB-Peyton Zeher-Sr.-Liberty, WR-Mark Fong-Sr.-Liberty, RB/SS-Mike Herrod-Jr.-Linganore, RB/LB-Joey Grubby-Sr.-Linganore, OL/DL-John Misulia-Sr.-Linganore, TE/DE-Nick Lasko-Jr.-Linganore, Nick Lawrence-Jr.-Linganore, QB-Chris Rich-Jr.-Linganore, OL/DL-Jeff Utz-Sr.-North Carroll, QB/S-Dave Dix-Sr.-North Carroll, QB-Ben Hose-Sr.-Thomas Johnson, Jermaine Duvall-Jr.-Thomas Johnson, RB/LB-Robert Humphries-Jr.-Thomas Johnson, OL/DL-Tredale Kennedy-Jr.-Thomas Johnson, QB-Justin Short-Sr.-Urbana, OL-Wes White-Sr.-Urbana, RB-Jason Butts-Sr.-Urbana, TE/DE-Bob Roche-Sr.-Urbana, DB-Chris Moxley-Sr.-Urbana, WR/DB-Brent Hawkins-Sr.-Urbana, OL/DE-Scott Fulton-Sr.-Westminster, DB-Kevin Taylor-Sr.-Westminster, TE/LB-Dan Stone-Jr.-Westminster.
Conference Game of the Year: Linganore at Urbana; Saturday, November 6, 2PM
1. Linganore
The defending 3A State Champions with back-to-back appearances in the state championship game are looking to keep their roll going in 2004. It will be a bit tougher, but Head Coach Rick Conner doesn’t plan to change his expectations on another run to a title. The Lancers lost three all-state players and plenty of senior contributors from last season’s championship squad, so don’t count on Linganore being nearly as tough this season---wrong answer. Conner isn’t hoping, but expecting the Lancers to reload and again be one of the top teams in not only the MVAL-Chesapeake, but in Maryland’s Class 3A.
On offense, the Lancers will stick with a multiple set offense, with some I. Senior Isaiah Brightful and junior Chris Rich will compete for the quarterback job during summer camp. Rich is more of a passing QB and if he wins the position, Brightful should move to wide receiver where he could give the Lancers more of a passing attack. One of Maryland’s top running backs, Matt Castor, returns to the backfield for Linganore. Castor will be the workhorse for the Lancer offense and will look to improve on last years 1200-yard season. The senior back will have one of the states top linemen to run behind in 6-foor-3, 255 pound senior Corey Nicholson. A great summer in camps turned heads and has made Nicholson a top prospect for college recruiters.
The defense, which gave up under 10 points a game last season--- including a 28-0 shutout over Lackey in the 3A state championship game---should again be solid. Josh Grubby (LB), Danny Knight (DB), Danny Warren (DB), Castor (LB), Nicholson (DL), and Brightful (DB) will lead the Lancer 3-4 defense.
Linganore will open their schedule with an unbelievable chance to play a school from California. Bonita Vista from the suburbs of San Diego will travel cross-county to play the Lancers in a September 3 match-up. In week two Linganore travels to defending 4A state champ Damascus, who the Lancers defeated last season, 23-14. The next tough match-up on the Linganore schedule may be at Frederick. The Cadets return a bunch of starters and could be a factor in the conference. The Lancers travel to Urbana for their season finale and they owe the Hawks from last season. Urbana gave Linganore their only loss last year and actually won the Chesapeake Conference. The Lancers returned the favor when it really counted---in the playoffs---defeating the Hawks, 14-7. This season’s match-up should again decide the conference and juggle the 3A playoff race.
2. Urbana
The Hawks defeated Linganore 23-7 last season and won the 2003 Chesapeake Conference Title, but that meant little after Urbana lost to the second place Lancers in the 3A West Regional Finals, 14-7. The Hawks know they will have another battle with the Lancers this season for the league title, along with another Frederick County foe---Frederick. Urbana returns a strong offensive line and should have another solid defense, but the Hawks lack skill position players. Head Coach Dave Carruthers feels confident the players he has will step in and do a good job at the skill positions to lead Urbana to another stellar season.
Senior linemen Mike Russo (6-0, 250) and Chris Reeves (6-1, 240) will be the offensive leaders. John Ferrante (6-6, 325) and Wes White (6-3, 240) also return to give the Hawks very strong offensive line. The quarterback position will be between senior Justin Short (6-1, 165) and junior Mike Murray (5-9, 165), while seniors Jason Butts and Steven Anderson will lead an unproven backfield that will have to step in and contribute. Mike Cario, Ricky Beard, and sophomore Jimmy Roch will all play receiver for the Hawks pro-set offense, while Bob Roche will be the tight end.
The 2004 Hawk defense looks solid. Anderson and Butts will anchor the linebacking unit, while Kyle Sulima, Paton Levine, Reeves, White, and Roche will lead Urbana’s five-man front. Chris Moxley, Brent Hawkins, Derrick Randolph, Rico Johnson, and Ryan Rea lead the secondary. Sophomore Jimmy Roche will be the Urbana punter and junior Matt Urie will do the place kicking
Urbana goes on the road for their first two games this season, match-ups at first-year Tuscarora and a trip to Middletown, who they thumped 36-0 last season. MIAA power Archbishop Curley travels to Ijamsville for a noon kickoff on September 18. An improved Thomas Johnson team will start the league schedule, while an October 15 date in Frederick could be interesting match-up and could be huge in the standings. The Hawks already have November 6 circled on their calendar---Linganore. The regular season finale will likely decide everything from bragging rights, to conference crown, to the 3A west playoffs race.
Urbana is ready and believes they can repeat in the conference and move deep into the 3A playoffs. A strong summer showing in the MDVarsity.com passing jamboree by defeating 3A power Gwynn Park is prove these Hawks are ready to fly---again.
3. Frederick
The Cadets are the wild card team in Chesapeake Conference. Frederick returns 18 starters and is looking to have their best season in over twenty years. In 2003, the Cadets finished 6-4, while playing the toughest schedule of any 3A school. This season the Cadets know if they want to play an eleventh game, they will have to improve on last season’s mark and possibly defeat either Linganore or Urbana---which is definitely not out of the question with both coming to Frederick.
Back on offense is athletic senior quarterback Cory Rhodes (6-0, 155), who will lead the Frederick spread-gun attack. The Cadets three-year signal-caller has shined at some summer camps and should have a big year with all the weapons Frederick has returning. Also back is monster fullback Bruce Dorsey (6-1, 220), who is being recruited by Division I-A colleges. Dorsey may get more carries this season after last season discovered ground attack (while Rhodes was injured). Senior Tommy Prazenica will join Dorsey in the backfield. Brian Lanning (6-0, 160) is the Cadets top receiver, while Cory Briggs, Billy Gross, and Ryan Sheahin will also be pass catching threats. Senior Mickey Davis (6-6, 310) and junior Geoff Fry (6-4, 250) will lead the offensive line.
The defense which gave up more than 25 points four times last season has to improve for the Cadets to compete with top teams on their schedule. Head Coach Vince Ahearn will bring back the 3-3 stack defense for a second year. Dorsey, Tommy Gillmore, and Cory Briggs will do the linebacking, while Davis, Mike Murphy, T.J. Taylor, and Peter Malamet will all see time on the defensive line. Lanning, Sheahin, Rhodes, and all-league performer Gerald Price return in the secondary.
The schedule is tough again this season, but the Cadets are ready this year. Out-of-conference and playoff contenders Middletown, Aberdeen (defending 2A state champ), North Hagerstown, and Walkersville will not be easy, but if Frederick can go 3-1 in this non-league stretch, the Cadets could be in great position for a playoff berth. Frederick will also try to solve Linganore and Urbana this season. Both come to Frederick and a victory in one of these games would likely assure the Cadets a playoff spot---as long as Frederick plays solid outside the conference---which they can do.
4. Liberty
Head Coach Marty Brennan will coach one more season (Brennan is the athletic director and a county rule prohibits AD’s from being coaches) and will try to make 2004 better than the previous two years. The Lions won once in 2002 and three games last year and Brennan is looking to crack the .500 mark this season.
Senior Matt Anuszewski (6-1, 180) is back for his third season as Lions quarterback. Anuszewski has passed for over 1000 yards in both his seasons as Liberty signal-caller and now isn’t worried about personal stats---but victories. The Lions three-year starter will look to 6-foot-2 senior tight end Dustin Walters as his main target, while WR Mark Fong will lead the wideouts. Senior Peyton Zeher and juniors Kyle Hagy and Justin Ford will see time in the Lion backfield. Tim Gonski, Danny Gonski, and Crit Jennings will be the leaders on the offensive line.
Linebackers Walters and Tim Gonski will lead the Lions 4-3 defense, while Jennings will lead the d-line. Liberty must improve the defense from last season as the Lions gave up over 30 points five times and finished with a 28.5 points allowed average.
All Liberty’s out-of-conference games are winnable---however the FSK game will be the toughest---but the Lions will play the Eagles at home. The Chesapeake slate is again grueling, but expect the Lions to improve on last season’s one win. If Liberty could go .500 in the 4A-3A dominated conference and run the table in the non-conference schedule, it would not be out of the question for the Lions to compete for a playoff spot in the 2A West region.
5. Thomas Johnson
2003 is a year the Patriots will want to forget forever. 0-9, 31 total points scored, and 286 points allowed about sums things up for 2003. This season the Pats goal is to reach the .500 mark, which could happen. Head Coach Ben Wright knows he has some talent on the way, with a JV team that went 9-1 last year. Those juniors, plus the seniors that are hungry for a varsity win, will look to pull TJ from the depths of the Chesapeake.
Thomas Johnson will keep the wing-T offense this season and looks to running back Lamont Stewart to be the Pats main yard-gainer. Junior Jermaine Duvall will also see plenty of carries for TJ. Brad Betson, who started four games last season as a sophomore, is the likely starting QB, however senior Ben Hose is also in the running. Senior Ben Pierson (6-2, 235) is TJ’s top college prospect and will lead the offensive line with 6-foot-3, 210 pound junior Tredale Kennedy.
The Patriots 5-2 defense is led by Pierson on the defensive line. Kennedy and Justin Smithhisler will also see time on the d-line. Stewart, Robert Humphries, Drew Chapman, and Albert Leach will all contribute at linebacker, while Duvall will likely lead the secondary.
Defending 2A state champ Aberdeen is the Pats opener in Frederick. TJ will then travel to Virginia to meet Stone Bridge, who pummeled the Pats 46-6 last season. Gaithersburg and Middletown are the other non-conference games on the schedule. The Chesapeake is again the toughest conference in the MVAL and has few weak spots, so the Pats will have to step up this season if they want to gain ground in the conference.
6. Westminster
Brad Wilson stepped into a tough situation in Westminster. Six-year head coach Scott Tobias bolted just weeks before the Owls first practice to take a coaching position in Pennsylvania, while leaving the Owls program hanging. Wilson comes to Westminster from Glen Burnie and has some talent to work with as the junior class has only one loss (Urbana) over the past two years at the lower levels.
Linebacker Matt Bergbauer is the Owls top player and is drawing some interest from I-AA colleges. Some of the Owls other top players include WR Jay Leonard (5-10, 175), OL/DL Yasin Salam (6-0, 235), DB Kevin Taylor (5-8, 140), and TE/LB Dan Stone (6-1, 230).
The Owls have out-of-conference games with depleted South Carroll, always strong Francis Scott Key, first-year Tuscarora, and one of West Virginia’s best teams---Martinsburg. Wilson is hoping the Owls can win a few games in the tough Chesapeake Conference and finish above the break-even mark for the season.
7. North Carroll
The North Carroll Panthers are looking like the Washington Redskins of the MVAL---five head coaches in five seasons. This year former Panther Rob Johnson takes over and plans to stay awhile to give the program some stability. Johnson will try to instill a winning attitude to a program that has lacked any kind of winning for years. North Carroll does return seven offensive and eight defensive starters to give Johnson something to work with.
Dave Dix will return as Panther the quarterback, unless he bolts for a private school, which was rumored in the off-season. Tight end Zach Ritz and wideout Jeff Baumiller are quality receivers and will be the Panthers main targets. Brian Crumbie and Jeff Utz will be the leaders on the o-line.
The defense gave up an MVAL all-time single-game record 76 points to Urbana last season and allowed more than 50 points three times---Johnson knows that cannot continue if the Panthers are to be competitive. North Carroll will use a 5-2 defense this season.
The season opener at Francis Scott Key will be tough, but the next three games against South Carroll, Winters Mill, and Century are all winnable. If the Panthers could go 3-1 in their first four games---that could give North Carroll the confidence they have lacked and help them inside the league.
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PIEDMONT CONFERENCE
2004 Pre Season All-MVAL Piedmont Conference
QB-Dave Berry-Sr.-Walkersville
FB-Scott Putman-Sr.-Middletown
RB-Joe Taylor-Sr.-Winters Mill
RB-Layton Hersh-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
RB-Zach Baker-Sr.-South Carroll
RB-Wes Leatherman-Sr.-Middletown
OL-Mike Holda-Sr.-Middletown
OL-Dan Dayhoff-Sr.-Walkersville
OL-Alex Edgley-Sr.-Walkersville
OL-Danny Bridges-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
OL-Rob Holste-Sr.-Walkersville
OL-Matt Smith-Sr.-Winters Mill
OL-Ralph Stambaugh-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
TE-Bryan DeCarlo-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
Recv-Brandon Geppert-Sr.-Walkersville
Recv-Mark Ferro-Sr.-Walkersville
DL-Danny Bridges-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
DL-Andrew Presnell-Sr.-Middletown
DL-Miquel Ongay-Sr.-Middletown
DL-Ralph Stambaugh-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
DL-Regis Gambel-Sr.- Middletown
DL-Ron Anderson-Sr.-Winters Mill
LB-Mike Holda-Sr.-Middletown
LB-Zach Baker-Sr.-South Carroll
LB-Bryan DeCarlo-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
LB-Brandon Geppert-Sr.-Walkersville
LB-Dave Peters-Sr.-Winters Mill
DB-Layton Hersh-Sr.-Francis Scott Key
DB-Mark Ferro-Sr.-Walkersville
DB-Robbie Krug-Jr.-Century
DB-Jordan Wike-Jr.-Winters Mill
K-Mike Niffenegger-Sr.-South Carroll
P-Josh Roskovensky-Sr.-Century
Other Players to Watch: RB-Steve Scott-Jr.-Century, RB-Robbie Krug-Jr.-Century, RB-Josh Kusnik-Jr.-Century, RB/LB-Ryan Blanchette-Sr.-Francis Scott Key, QB-Matt Angell-Sr.-Francis Scott Key, OL/DL-Hunter Robertshaw-Sr.-Middletown, QB-Frank Starnes-Jr.-Middletown, WR/DB-J.T. Tompkins-Sr.-South Carroll, WR-Steve Fye-Sr.-South Carroll, Chris Castro-Jr.-Tuscarora, OL/DL-Danny Edwards-Jr.-Tuscarora, LB-Mike Clementson-Jr.-Tuscarora, RB/DB-Shaun Coon-Sr.-Walkersville, FB/LB-Ryan Joyce-So.-Walkersville, OL/LB-Juan Feliciano-Sr.-Winters Mill, QB-Ryne Bridges-Jr.-Winters Mill.
Game of the Year: Middletown at Walkersville, November 5, 7PM.
1. Walkersville
The Lions will enter another season with plenty of optimism, but the question is will they be able to produce on-field results? Walkersville lost three of their last four games last season, including a regular season and a playoff game to South Carroll. The most devastating loss may have been the 35-28 defeat at hated rival Middletown, a team the Lions just can’t figure out. This season the Lions return a solid core with the best quarterback and offensive line in the conference, so can Walkersville finally out-do their arch-nemesis?
One thing the Walkersville Lions know how to do is play offense, as the Lions averaged over 30 points per game and 360 yards of total offense in 2003. This season Walkersville returns eight starters from that explosive 2003 offense and should be another force in the league when they have the ball. Back is QB Dave Berry, who passed for over 1000 yards and had 15 touchdowns last season. Berry enters the 2004 campaign with the best offensive line and receivers in the conference, so he should have a monster season and lead the Lions to plenty of victories. Brandon Geppert will be Berry’s top target in a solid group of receivers that also includes Mark Ferro and Shaynon Thompson. This is clearly the best group of receivers in the conference and should give Berry and the Lions an awesome aerial attack. The offensive line is another strong point for the Lions as they return Alex Edgley, Rob Holste, Dan Dayhoff, Matt Stouter, and James Ramsburg. This o-line will give Berry time to pass and make holes for an inexperienced backfield. Shaun Coon and sophomore Ryan Joyce will take over in the backfield and lead a potentially solid ground attack for Walkersville.
Last year in three Walkersville losses late in the season, they allowed over 35 or more points---a trend that has to change if DaVille plans to win the conference or go deep into the playoffs. Geppert and Joyce will anchor the linebacking for the Lions. The 6-2 Geppert made second team all conference and Joyce actually started two games at linebacker as a freshman last season and will only improve. The defensive line will have some new faces and will be a key if the Lions want to sure up the overall defense. Ferro, Berry, and Coons will lead a solid secondary. As if Berry doesn’t do enough already, he is also one of the best punters around and will lead the Lions special teams.
The schedule includes out-of-conference games with South Hagerstown, Brunswick, Frederick, and Catoctin. Frederick will be the toughest in the non-conference games, but the fact it’s a home game will help. Francis Scott Key and Middletown is the only tough league games the Lions have. FSK is a road game and may be a challenge, but the season finale with Middletown should be for the conference crown. Walkersville must figure out a way to defeat the Knights so they can win the conference and move into the playoffs with momentum---a task they should finally be able to do this season.
2. Middletown
The Knights are coming off a un-Middletown like 5-5 season in 2003, but did win four their last five games to extend their record of non-losing seasons to 30. Middletown and MVAL legend Head Coach Tim Ambrose will look to build off the way they finished last year---on a roll. Ambrose expects the Knights to be in the thick of the 2A West playoff hunt this season and with a win at rival Walkersville---could be conference champs to boot. A tough schedule awaits, but Ambrose & Co. are ready to rebound from a unusual off-year.
The offense will be led by junior QB Frank Starnes, who already has a year of varsity experience under his belt as the Knights field general. The ground game, a trademark for most great Middletown teams, will be led by fullback Scott Putman and 6-1 tailback Wes Leatherman. The line will include Miquel Ongay, Mike Holda, Hunter Robertshaw, and UConn recruit Andrew Presnell. Steve Papuchis will anchor the Knight receivers.
Defensively, the Knights must improve. Middletown allowed 225 points last season, for a 22.5 per game average---a number never seen before for a Middletown football team. Look for that to change. Linebacker Mike Holda will lead an improved hard hitting defense that should get back to the way thing used to be in Knight Country. Defensive lineman Andrew Presnell has vastly improved in the off season---enough to receive a scholarship from UConn, while Miquel Ongay and Regis Gamble will also lead the five man Middletown front. Leatherman will lead the secondary at safety.
Middletown will have to travel to Frederick for a very tough season opener, and then come back home to face perennial power Urbana, who defeated the Knights 36-0 last season. Middletown will then go back on the road to face an improved Brunswick team, who the Knights lost to last season in overtime, and Francis Scott Key, a top tier Piedmont team. A 2-2 or better stretch would be great as the following five games should be a bit easier. The season finale at Walkersville should definitely decide the conference title and maybe a playoff trip for the Knights.
3. Francis Scott Key
The Francis Scott Key Eagles are in a great situation for the 2004 football season. Everybody is picking either Walkersville or Middletown to win the Piedmont Conference. FSK is being picked by most to finish around third---but the Eagles are very capable of snatching the crown away from both teams---just like their mascot would to a prey. Head Coach John Baugher knows the Eagles will have to deal with replacing all-everything Josh Rutter, which won’t be easy, but FSK is strong up front on both sides of the ball and does return RB/DB Layton Hersh.
Hersh will carry the load offensively in Francis Scott Key’s wing-T attack, while junior Matt Angell and sophomore Brandon Eckard will battle for the QB job. The O-line---FSK strongest unit---will be led by 6-5, 280 pound Daniel Bridges and 6-2, 270 pound Ralph Stambaugh, both are getting looks from I-A colleges. Josh Tyler and Andy Prince will also see time on the line. Bryan DeCarlo will play tight end, while juniors Ben Brewer and John Forester will lead the FSK receiving unit.
Defensively, the line is also the strength. Bridges and Stambaugh are also the studs on the defensive side of the ball, while DeCarlo, Ryan Blanchette, and Brett Wiley leads the linebackers. Hersh will be the heart of the secondary for the Eagles.
With the looks of FSK’s out-of-conference schedule, the Eagles could potentially enter their home date with Middletown undefeated. A win over the Knights, could lead to the Eagles playing Walkersville at 6-0 and for the Piedmont title. The October 29 game at Urbana is clearly the toughest game on the slate for Key, but if everything falls the right way, that could be the only blemish on their regular season schedule. If things don’t fall the right way, the season could end the way the past couple has---just missing the post season.
4. Winters Mill
Head Coach Ken “Speedy” Johnson knows his 2004 Falcons could learn how to fly---at least a little bit. The Falcons plan to open up the offense this season as Johnson plans to pass the ball over 20 times a game and run 70 percent of the offense from the shotgun.
Junior three-sport star Ryne Bridges will lead the offense at quarterback. Bridges saw plenty of action last season as a sophomore and will be asked to showcase his arm much more this season with a new offense. Coach Johnson is expecting big things from Bridges this year, which may result in plenty of offense for the Falcons. Senior Joe Taylor will return as the Winters Mill feature running back this season. Jimmy Cotterman should be the go-to receiver and could have a big year with the new offense. All-conference second team selection Matt Smith returns at center and will lead the offensive line, while Ron Anderson, Juan Feliciano, Zach Rambo, and Matt Simmons will also see time on the line.
The defense should be better this season with the return of several all-conference players. Anderson leads the defensive line, while Craig Wooten and Dave Peters return as linebackers. Jordan Wike will lead the secondary, with Adam Puleo, Bridges, and Taylor also contributing.
The Falcons could use a quick start to build confidence and set the tone for the season. The season opener with Liberty is winnable, while the Smithsburg game is a bit tougher, but a win is not out of the question if things go well. The next three games with North Carroll, South Carroll, and Century are also contests Winters Mill should challenge for a victory. The schedule really gets tough in four of the final five games. Walkersville, Linganore, Middletown, and Francis Scott Key are all games the Falcons can only hope to compete in---but a quick start could give the ‘Mill confidence to pull an upset. A 5-5 season and a fourth place conference finish is a real possibility and would be another step in the Winters Mill building process.
5. South Carroll
2003. A year the Cavalier faithful won’t soon forget---11-2 overall, Piedmont Conference champions, and 2A West regional champs. A muddy 6-0 loss to eventual state champion Aberdeen stopped the South Carroll roll. Unfortunately last years success will be short lived. The Cavs lost nearly every starter to graduation and their longtime coach, Gene Brown. Former McDaniel College assistant coach Butch Schaffer takes over and has a major rebuilding job to do.
No more all-everything QB T.J. Swanson this season, so Zach Baker will step in as South Carroll’s top player. Baker will play running back and may be a pass catching threat too, with a pro-style offense Schaffer plans to use. Questions remain for the quarterback position, but the receivers appear to be J.T. Tompkins, Steve Fye, and Tom Wheeler. Dwayne Poole will lead the offensive line. One of the few returners that saw plenty of action last year was kicker Mike Niffenegger. This season with an offense that may sputter at times, Niffenegger may be called on to put some points on the board. The defense is also inexperienced and may struggle. Look for the Cavs to use a 4-3 base defense.
The Cavs first two matchups with Westminster and North Carroll are games South Carroll could win. Linganore, Francis Scott Key Middletown, and Walkersville are all very tough games on the Cavalier schedule. If South Carroll could put together a .500 season, it would be an outstanding feat after what it lost.
6. Tuscarora
The Titans will make their varsity debut in 2004 and Head Coach Shawn Carey is excited about his young team, however will throw his Titans right into the lions den with their first-ever varsity game---vs. Urbana. Carey, a former Middletown assistant, would love to build a Knight-like tradition at Tuscarora. Carey said about his team, "We have a great bunch of kids who are working hard in the weight room and the way we deal with adversity this season will determine the outcome of the season".
Junior quarterback Chris Castro is solid. Although never playing a varsity down, Castro looks to be one of the best signal callers in the Piedmont Conference and will lead a power offense that may pass with some frequency. Kenny White and Eric Means should carry the load in the backfield, while Spencer Barrick leads the receiving unit. 6-foot-1, 225 pound guard Danny Edwards could be the program’s top player and is joined by tackle Jeff Haga and center Mike Clementson on the offensive line.
Tuscarora will run a 5-2 base defense this season. Edwards, Sean Matulevic, and Patrick Greene will anchor the D-line, while Clementson will lead the linebackers. James Hatton will head the secondary at free safety.
The schedule holds several tough games while playing in the Piedmont Conference. Urbana, Boonsboro, Smithsburg, and Westminster await in the out-of-conference schedule. The Titans goal is to win more than five games, which will be a very tough task, but Carey thinks it can be done.
7. Century
The Knights have had to deal with adversity before ever suiting up this summer. Injuries and grade problems have cost Century several players and have Head Coach Matt Flanagan looking for plan B for a young program that was on the upswing in the MVAL.
Juniors Robbie Krug, Josh Kusnick, and Steve Stone look to be the Knights top offensive backs this season in a wing offense. The quarterback position is up in the air and will likely be determined in summer camp, while seniors Justin Mudgett (5-6, 220) and Matt Rowe (5-11, 300) will play the offensive line. Century will play a 4-4 defense that looks to improve on a 30.6 avg points allowed per game last season. Senior Josh Roskovensky is the best punter in the Piedmont Conference.
Catoctin, South Hagerstown, Liberty, and North Carroll are the non-conference opponents on the Knights schedule this season and breaking even in those games would be huge heading into the strong Piedmont Conference schedule. Despite all the setbacks, Flanagan is optimistic and believes his team will be more competitive this season.
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Urbana loses four players
By Joshua R. Smith, Frederick News-Post Staff
Urbana's fantastic football season has taken another hit.
Four players have been removed from the Hawks football team for undisclosed disciplinary reasons, Urbana coach Dave Carruthers confirmed on Tuesday.
Carruthers said all four of the players were starters for the Hawks, who lead the MVAL Chesapeake Division with a 7-0 record and are tied for first with Northwest in the Class 3A West Region playoff point standings.
The suspensions came on Monday, bringing to seven the number of athletes kicked off the squad this season.
Three players were removed from the team before the Hawks beat Middletown on Sept 10. At least two of those athletes were starters for Urbana, which also lost starting quarterback Justin Short to injury in the victory over the Knights.
"Our guys will adjust to the situation, and we're not going to let it get in our way," said Carruthers, who has won four of his six state titles at Urbana.
Neither Carruthers nor Urbana Athletic Director Jeannie Prevosto would identify the players or reveal the reason for the latest disciplinary action.
"We've been told to refer calls to the supervisor of athletics," Prevosto said.
This is the first bout of trouble to strike Urbana's football program, which featured a state-record four consecutive state titles from 1998-2001 and 50 straight wins.
"It's probably the most difficult thing that a school and community can go through," Prevosto said. "It's tragic."
The Hawks -- who have made the playoffs in five of their seven years as a varsity program -- are coming off a big road win over fellow-playoff contender Frederick.
Urbana travels to Westminster on Friday for an MVAL Chesapeake contest. The Owls are 3-4.
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A Titan-ic step up for Tuscarora
By Joshua R. Smith, Frederick News-Post Staff
Frederick, MD---Near the end of the first-ever varsity football practice at Tuscarora High School on Saturday, Titans coach Shawn Carey had his quarterbacks throwing to receivers against a few defenders.
It was simple stuff, nothing that would have impressed Brian Billick. But Carey, a stocky man with a booming voice, was pleased.
He was content with the turnout (38 kids practiced with varsity during the three-a-day session). He was satisfied with his the team's attitude. Most of all, though, he was happy just to see his players line up and execute a play on Day One.
"It might not be perfect, but it's really nice to be able to do that," said Carey, a former offensive assistant at Middletown. "Last year, it took a couple of days to get to that point."
The Titans' one-year preparation is over. They went 6-3 last fall as a junior varsity squad. Now, Carey and his second-year team are preparing to attack a difficult varsity schedule -- loaded with larger schools -- with no seniors (only freshmen, sophomores and juniors attend Tuscarora this year).
On Saturday, some of the Tuscarora players seemed indifferent when considering the move up to varsity. To them, it was the inevitable next step. Last year was perhaps the hardest part -- learning to play together and understanding Carey's system.
"We have something to build on from last year," said Mike Clementson, a junior linebacker/center.
"It's amazing how much they picked up last year," Carey said.
With that bit of experience, the Titans are allowing themselves to think big -- or perhaps bigger than most other first-year varsity teams.
As a Class 1A school, such a mindset is permissible. Even though it's a long way off, a few wins versus 2A or 3A competition could put the Titans in favorable postseason position.
"Five games," said junior quarterback Chris Castro, referring to the number of contests the Titans might need to earn a playoff spot.
"I think we're capable of doing it," Clementson said. "I think we'll be able to compete."
They'll find out immediately. Tuscarora's season begins with a home date on Sept. 4 against perennial 3A power Urbana. How's that for getting your varsity feet wet?
"That was pretty well known all through the winter and summer, and I think that was a good motivator as far as their dedication in the weight room," Carey said of the stiff opening-week opponent. "I think they realize it's an uphill battle, but at the same time ... they need to believe. That's what it boils down to."
The Titans will play all of their home games this season on Saturdays. The Tuscarora stadium is without lights, although the booster program is working to raise money. At least one person was seen on Saturday shuffling through the small crowd of parents and spectators, selling raffle tickets.
Carey said the lights will cost around $150,000. The school must raise a third of that before it can borrow the rest from the county commissioners, he said.
"Every kid wants to play under the lights," Carey said. "The booster club is really pushing to have the lights by the time (this year's juniors) are seniors."
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Middletown Senior Lineman Presnell picks UConn
By Joshua R. Smith, Frederick News-Post Staff
Middletown, MD---Andrew Presnell made sure he prefaced his comment with a softener. He thought his answer might sound arrogant.
So, in explaining how in the world he rose from a mediocre, inexperienced junior defensive lineman to a Division I prospect in just half a year, here's how he started:
"I don't want this to sound cocky, but I think I'm a really hard worker," said Presnell, a 6-foot-4, 275-pound rising senior at Middletown.
"Like I said, I didn't have the greatest season last year. A lot of people hadn't heard about me, and I came out and got two (Division I-A) offers in the spring. ... I just busted it in the weight room and gained 25 pounds."
Another thing he gained was a full athletic scholarship to the University of Connecticut. Last weekend, Presnell verbally committed to play for the Huskies in 2005, picking UConn over Marshall University, which also offered him a scholarship.
Presnell became the first of what is expected to be another handful of Division I-A recruits from Frederick County this year, following last season's impressive crop of four.
"For me, this is the first kid ever that has been offered as a junior, even (Evan) Routzahn," said Middletown's 30-year coach Tim Ambrose, referring to an offensive lineman he sent to Virginia on a full ride in the late-1990s. "Barring injury, (Presnell) can only get better."
In choosing a college, Presnell solved the hardest decision of his high school career. He got it out of the way early, so he can focus on other aspects of summertime teen-dom, like hanging out with friends -- which he was on his way to do after a quick interview on Friday night.
He's only 16.
Oh, and he has only played football for three years.
"I'm kind of speechless," said Presnell, who has several family members in Connecticut. "For me to make it to Division I, I'm very lucky and very honored."
Rewind five years or so. Presnell was one of those big kids -- not overweight, but too big to play youth football with his age-group. He didn't strap on a helmet and pads until he entered Middletown High in 2001.
"I'm basically still learning," he said.
And if not for a shortage on the line, Presnell might be hurling passes instead of breaking them up.
"The freshman coach wanted me to play quarterback because I was lean then -- 6-foot-4, 200 pounds," Presnell said. "Then, we didn't have enough linemen and he threw me in. It took off from there."
Presnell's ascent didn't really occur until after his junior campaign. He was 15 for part of last season, and he moved from offense to defense midway through.
"My season was average at best," said Presnell, a Frederick News-Post Honorable Mention pick last fall.
However, after the Knights' unusual 5-5 finish, Presnell began a torrid offseason workout regimen. In the spring, he went to camps at Penn State, Marshall, Connecticut and Maryland.
Later, he returned to UConn for a lineman challenge. He won the MVP award -- and the Huskies' attention. The scholarship offer came shortly thereafter.
Now, Presnell is headed to Connecticut, where he'll join another team with a coach named Ambrose. Tim Ambrose's son, Rob, tutors the Huskies quarterbacks.
Under head coach Randy Edsall, Connecticut went 9-3 last season as an independent. The Huskies, whose most recognizable player is running back and Patuxent High product Terry Caulley, join the Big East this fall -- just their third season in Division I-A.
At UConn, Presnell hopes to man the defensive line, where his father played at Southern Connecticut. Whatever his position, Tim Ambrose believes Presnell has the upside to be a quality college player.
"He's going to go to 300 (pounds) without much of a problem at all," Ambrose said. "He squats 500 pounds and his strength levels are through the roof. He's just a late bloomer."
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13 MVAL players make Super 22 team
Baltimore, MD---The MVAL had 13 players named to the 2004 Baltimore Touchdown Club's Super 22 all-star team. The BTC will hold an awards dinner on April 27 in Glen Burnie.
The offensive honorees include Walkersville quarterback Dave Berry, Frederick fullback Bruce Dorsey, and North Carroll wide receiver Jeff Baumiller. The offensive linemen include Linganore's Corey Nicholson, Urbana's Mike Russo and Chris Reeves, Walkersville's Rob Holste, Francis Scott Key's Danny Bridges, and North Hagerstown's Mitch Wolters.
The MVAL defensive honorees were all linebackers. Mike Holda (Middletown), Matt Castor (Linganore), and Zach Baker (South Carroll) were honored. The MVAL's lone special teams representative was North Hagerstown kicker Brent Toms.
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Westminster names Wilson Head Coach
Patrick Stoetzer, Carroll County Times
Westminster, MD---When Scott Tobias stepped down last month as Westminster High's varsity football coach, school officials quickly went into search mode. The job responsibilities usually require year-round diligence, and the Owls were missing their coach less than two months before the start of fall practice.
Brad Wilson, the coach at Glen Burnie High for the last six years, changes that. Wilson replaces Tobias and takes over the Owls' program just in time to prepare for the upcoming season.
Wilson said he can't wait until Aug. 14, the first day of football practice, so he can officially begin the countdown for the season.
"I want to be up there in that stadium on Friday nights. To me there's nothing better than Friday night football," he said. "I want those fans on Friday to have an awesome time. I want that buzz for people to say, 'Hey, where are you going Friday night? We're going to the game.' "
Wilson knows the area - he worked for several years with the Art Monk Football Camp in Westminster - and said he's impressed with the prep football tradition and the fan base. Now that he's making the transition from Anne Arundel to Carroll County, Wilson said he's eager to talk football with his assistants and players.
"I want to get in there, get things started and get moving along," said Wilson, a Meade High graduate and former Anne Arundel Community College standout wide receiver who spent time coaching at Meade and North County before getting the head varsity gig at Glen Burnie. "It's important as a staff that we get to sit around and get on the same page."
Tobias stepped down to be closer to his Pennsylvania home and possibly land a teaching position at Penns Valley High, his alma mater.
Wilson helped the Gophers rebound from a 1-9 record two years ago, going 4-6 last fall and sending Brandon Albert, a 6-foot-7, 330-pound offensive lineman, to the University of Virginia.
Wilson, 43, inherits an Owls team that finished 3-7 last year, the only losing season in Tobias' six seasons. Westminster athletic director Terry Molloy said adding Wilson to the staff will benefit the program.
"He seems like a highly organized, energetic young man," Molloy said. "He's very excited to be here, not that Scott wasn't. Scott will be tough to replace. But we think it's going be a good fit."
Wilson becomes the third new varsity football coach in Carroll County since the end of the 2003 season. Rob Johnson is North Carroll's fifth coach in five years, replacing Scott Currey after one season. Butch Schaffer takes over at South Carroll for Gene Brown, who resigned after 12 seasons.
Tobias' departure left Molloy little time to hire a new coach and get that person acclimated to new surroundings. The Owls lost 17 seniors to graduation (including four first-team all-countians) but could return 19 juniors from last year's roster.
At least the Owls have a coach who's already eyeing the near football future.
"Football is tough enough to organize in a year, let alone one month," Molloy said. "But I think everything is going to work out."
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South Carroll's T.J. Swanson looks to walk on at Mississippi State
By Patrick Stoetzer, Times Staff Writer
T.J. Swanson had plans for a college football career at Division I-AA or D-III schools, places where he could bet on seeing ample playing time.
Swanson is instead set to leave next week for Mississippi State University and hopes to play for the Bulldogs as a walk-on this fall in the Southeastern Conference, arguably the top football league in the nation.
"I wanted to shoot for the highest goal possible," Swanson said, "just to see how I could do with those Division I guys, the ones you see on television.
"I think it's exciting. I'm looking at as a chance to start my college career."
The Times' Player of the Year led South Carroll to county, conference and regional championships last fall, passing for 2,454 yards and 28 touchdowns as the Cavaliers made a state semifinal appearance. Now the 6-foot-2, 205-pound quarterback will focus on making Mississippi State's roster and playing in the SEC.
Swanson said he's leaving early to attend some summer classes before football practice starts in August. Then it's time to focus on becoming one of a handful of quarterbacks listed on the Bulldogs' current roster.
New coach Sylvester Croom takes over a team that went 2-10 last season under now retired coach Jackie Sherrill. Croom expects to return three quarterbacks vying for the starting job, according to The Clarion-Ledger. Kyle York appears to be the top choice, but the junior sustained an injury in the spring. Two sophomores, Omarr Conner and Aries Nelson, are also competing.
Mississippi State plays in the SEC's Western Division with stalwart opponents like Auburn and Louisiana State, last year's co-national champions.
Swanson had other colleges in mind after his prep football season ended, with Division I-AA schools Wagner and William & Mary as well as Division III McDaniel College as possible choices. He sent out videotapes to as many programs as possible, hoping to get contacts and visitation opportunities.
Mississippi State offered the chance to try to walk on and Swanson went for it.
"It feels great. I've really been going after this for a while," he said. "They told me everybody gets equal opportunity down there, so that's good for me."
Said former SC coach Gene Brown: "If he can make it there, that would be great. It's a great program. I'm glad he's going to do that. He's got the potential to play anywhere."
Swanson is headed some 900 miles away from home to attend college, but he won't leave behind the memories of his senior season at South Carroll. Swanson said he still talks with teammates and friends about the successful fall, about team records broken and championships won.
"My mom made a scrapbook for me with all the stories from the newspaper," he said. "I was just looking at it the other day and thinking about everything. It was pretty cool."
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