Suburban One National Conference
Neshaminy has its hands full with Pennsbury, Abington and Council Rock North

By Gorden Blain
Defending Suburban One National champion and PIAA District 1 AAAA runnerup Neshaminy has returning Suburban One National all-stars and other outstanding players in all of the key positions on offense and defense so head coach Mark Schmidt knows exactly how to spin that.

“Pennsbury’s the team,” says Schmidt. “They’ve got some trigger guys.”

The Falcons have firepower, no doubt. So does Abington and Council Rock North as well. And, of course, so does Neshaminy. Actually, the four top teams’ array of top players are very similar. All four have returning QBs, RBs and WRs who built impressive stat sheets in 2008.

Ironically, the trademark style of the National Conference in the past has been physical, smash-mouth and run-oriented with big linemen and powerful backs. But this season, all of the top teams are working to develop linemen.

The National Conference is always full of strong, talented teams and it’s no different this season. The Redskins just seem to have a slight edge over the three other teams that also have what it takes to win a conference and district championship and command a spot among the state rankings.

“To win our conference, you have to beat Neshaminy and Pennsbury,” says Abington coach Tim Sorber, who has steered the Galloping Ghosts back into a winning team. “But I think we’re in it.”

Skill players aside, Neshaminy’s most dominant player is first team Suburban One National All-star LB Corey Majors (6-1,230, Jr.), already a blue-chip recruit.

“He’s physically terrific,” says Schmidt. “He played like a man last year.”

The Redskins passing and rushing game remains in capable hands. Third team Suburban One National all-stars RB Bryan Dean (5-8, 180, Sr.), who rushed for 1,137 yards and scored 15 TDs last season, WR Ricky Brebner (6-1, 175, Sr.), who had 423 yards on 38 receptions, and OLs Nick Didanto (5-11, 250, Jr.) and Issac Bailey (6-1, 245, Sr.) return. DE Kevin McGee (6-0, 215), OL-DL John Rizzo (6-2,270, Sr.) and WR-FS Dwight Williams (6-2, 185, Jr.) also return.

“Dean is pretty slick,” says Schmidt. “McGee is strong and fast. I’m a little worried about the depth. But we have a nice group of sophomores who will contribute.”

And Schmidt has two QBs with whom to work.

Honorable mention Suburban One National All-star QB Brian Titus (6-1, 180, Sr.), who passed for 1,014 yards and 10 TDs last season, is getting a challenge from Charley Marterella (6-2, 175, Jr.). Titus suffered an ankle injury in the off-season and Marterella has picked up his game.

“For once I have two quarterbacks who I look up to,” says Schmidt. “I’ve always had those little, scrappy guys. We may have to change our philosophy a little bit.”

What won’t change for yet another season is Neshaminy’s status as one of the perennial powers in Pennsylvania high school football.

The rest of the National Conference…
Pennsbury has an array of playmakers who are difficult to keep in check on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Second team Suburban One National All-stars RB Dante Devine (6-0, 175, Sr.), who rushed for 743 yards and scored 11 TDs last season, DL Josh Mitchell (6-1, 295, Sr.) and DB Eric Williams (6-3, 180, Sr.), who is also a dangerous wide receiver, third team Suburban One National All-star QB Brandon Pepper (6-0, 180, Jr.), who had 562 yards passing and 855 yards rushing, and honorable mention Suburban One National All-star DB Mike Ciotti (5-9, 160, Sr.), who also is expected to contribute as a RB, return for the Falcons. Head coach Galen Snyder expects Devine to have a breakout season and OL J. J. Denman (6-5, 285, Soph.), who emerged as a freshman last season, to be a force. Williams, a speedy sprinter on the Pennsbury track team, has attracted scholarship offers from Syracuse, Vanderbilt, Pitt, Temple and array of Mid-American conference teams. Mitchell is a highly-rated heavyweight wrestler. Pepper is quick and elusive, equally dangerous running or throwing the ball. The Falcons challenge is to develop the OL and DL, where only one starter returns, from underclassmen who played on an undefeated junior varsity team last season.

Abington head coach Tim Sorber says it’s the position he wants to be in with three productive playmakers leading the way for the Galloping Ghosts like first team Suburban One National All-stars QB Sam Kind (6-0, 175, Sr.), who passed for 2,461 yards and 29 TDs, RB Julien Ireland (5-10, 180, Jr.), who rushed for 1,305 yards and scored 13 TDs, and second team all-star WR Anthony Hensley (5-10, 165, Sr.), who had 48 receptions for 1,123 yards and 12 TDs. Hensley emerged as a big play player and Kind showed he was athletic and made good decisions as a passer. Sorber says opponents changed their normal defensive schemes to respond to Abington’s formidable dual-run-pass threat last season. The other seven additional returning starters includes third team Suburban One National All-stars PK Ian MacMillan (6-1, 180, Jr.) and DB Kevin Deal (5-9, 160, Sr.), honorable mention all-star OL Nick Disandro (6-4, 260, Sr.), an Atlantic 10 and Ivy leagues’ prospect, DB Alex Eaton (6-1, 180, Sr.), FS Kevin Regan (5-10, 190, Sr.), LB Tyler Kennedy (6-0, 210, Sr.), LB Dave Hindin (6-0, 190, Sr.) and TE Giuliano Presta (6-4, 235, Sr.), who had 29 receptions for 384 yards and 1 TD. Sorber expects Exeter transfer Rich Johnson (5-10, 170, Jr.) at FS and WR and Brandon Peoples (5-7, 150, Soph.) at WR and DB to emerge as impact players this season. The Ghosts, whose 10-win season in 2008 was the first in more than a decade, face the same challenge as last season to develop four OL and four DL.

Council Rock North jumps into the conference championship and District 1 AAAA playoff mix with its collection of returning skill players. First team Suburban One National All-star WR Tyler Bostain (6-4, 210, Sr.), who caught 40 passes for 649 yards and 4 TDs last season, first team National All-star LB and third team RB Lee Marvel (5-10, 180, Sr.), a threat as a RB and receiver who rushed for 446 yards and 6 TDs, second team National All-star QB and third team DB Tyler Hamilton (6-0, 175, Sr.) who passed for 1,680 yards and 12 TDs and had 391 yards rushing and scored 5 TDs give the Indians plenty of offensive firepower. A three-year starter a playmaker on both sides of the ball, Hamilton has scholarship offers from Akron, Kent State and Old Dominion. OL-DL Anthony Verrecchia (6-2, 225, Sr.), who was honorable mention National all-star last season, and OT Brendan Kozub (6-2, 225, Sr.) return and C Ryan Campbell (6-1, 230, Sr.) is in the mix but Indians head coach Tom Coates says there’s a need to find more linemen. Coates expects RB Brandon Cottom (6-2, 225, Jr.), one of the fastest players on the team who missed the 2008 season with an injury, to emerge as an impact player. RB-LBs Jon Smith (5-9, 175, Jr.) and Joe Coates (5-9, 190, Jr.), the coach’s son, are expected to make an impact on both sides of the ball. Coates says the Indians will concentrate on improving their defense, which came up short last season. It starts with Hamilton, Marvel and Verrecchia. S-WR Jack Worthington (6-0, 175, Sr.), LB Keith Terry (5-10, 210, Jr.), DE Kevin Krimm (6-1, 205, Sr.) return and Coates expects contributions on defense from DB Adam Yboora (5-9, 180, Sr.), the fastest player on the team, DB Matt Hathaway (6-0, 170, Sr.) and DE John Raymond (6-5 230 Jr.). Jamie Callendar (6-1, 195, Sr.), a starter at LB last season who earned honorable mention all-star recognition and nationally-ranked wrestler, won’t return this season to concentrate on wrestling.

With a strong nucleus of talent and team chemistry, Council Rock South head coach Vince Bedesem expects the Golden Hawks to extend their string of winning seasons to three and be a serious challenger in the National Conference. Second team Suburban One National All-stars C-DT Derek Schatz (6-3, 260, Sr.), who has drawn recruiting interest from Syracuse, Villanova and Connecticut, and DB Keith Hickey (5-7, 160, Sr.), a three-year starter who hits like a linebacker, returns. Also returning are DB-WR Terence McGovern (6-3, 205, Sr.), who is also an option at QB, QB Billy Fleming (6-0, 175, Jr.), who became a starter midway through the 2008 season and who is a dual threat as a runner and passer in the Hawks’ option attack, FB-DE Braxton Ambrose (6-1, 225, Sr.), who is hearing from Temple and New Hampshire recruiters, OG-LB Mickey LaPorta (5-10, 210, Sr.), RB-LB Mark Damirgian (6-1, 205, Jr.), a three-year starter, LB Hunter Shull (5-9, 185, Jr.), WR-DB Kyle Ruffing (6-1, 190, Sr.) and LB-TE-WR Andrew Haviland (6-2, 210, Sr.).

First team Suburban One National All-star LB and honorable mention OL John Marcelline (5-10, 215, Sr.), second team all-star DB Tim Farlow (5-9, 180, Sr.), third team all-star DL Brandon Cattelli (6-2, 215, Sr.), OT-LB Eric Massington (6-3, 235, Sr.), WR-DB Lewis Vincent (6-1, 180,Sr.), a three-year starter, and DB Christian Fernandez (5-8, 175, Jr.) return for Bensalem. With this strong group of returning starters, head coach Dan McShane isn’t ready to predict a dramatic turnaround this season for the Owls, who have had losing records the past six seasons. But this season, the Owls, who often match their opponents’ speed but are overmatched on the line of scrimmage, for once have more depth on both sides of the line of scrimmage and have a stiff defense stocked with playmakers. McShane expects OL-DL Terren Aldredge (6-6, 330, Sr.), a transfer from New York, and DL Terique DuBois (6-4, 275, Jr.) to emerge on the line of scrimmage. A hybrid runner and passer, Farlow is the new starting QB but McShane is searching for RBs and playmakers on offense to emerge.

With a 1-20 record the past two seasons, William Tennent’s struggles in their final season in the Continental conference in 2007 continued in their first season in the National. Returning starters for William Tennent are QB-DB Pat Traczykiewicz (6-2, 200, Sr.), who passed for 606 yards and 6 TDs last season, punter and placekicker Sean Baner (6-0, 180, Sr.), who was a second team Suburban One National All-star last season and who has a partial scholarship offer from Villanova, OG-DT Nick Fili (6-2, 245, Sr.) and LB-RB Tyler Hamlet (6-1, 225, Sr.), who both were third team all-stars in 2008, C-NG Nick Check (5-11 225 Jr.), OG Garrett Pettyjohn (5-11, 275, Jr.), OT Micah Harris (5-8, 225, Sr.), TE-DE Hunter Wuenshe (6-2, 195, Jr.), WR-DB Sergio Jamison (6-1, 175, Sr.), WR-DB Dillon Malitsky (5-8, 165, Sr.) and DB-RB Matt Pirolli (5-11, 185, Sr.). Panthers head coach Biz Keeny is looking for starting RBs to emerge among Hamlet, Pirolli and Troy Hern (6-1, 205, Jr.). Keeny, who expects Tennent to be much improved this season, says the Panthers still lack depth but their starters in most skill positions and on the line of scrimmage have experience.

Veteran high school and college football coach John Iannucci replaces Van Smith as head coach at Harry S. Truman. Iannucci takes over a team that has four wins in the past three seasons but says the Tigers have a strong nucleus of seniors and returning starters. Returning for Truman are TE-DT Tom Breeme (6-3, 240, Sr.), who was a third team Suburban One National All-star last season and is on college football recruiters’ radar, C-DE Todd Hayes (6-0, 230, Sr.), a three-year starter, LB-OT Jim Wolfe (6-1, 200, Sr.), QB Drew Peterson (6-3, 180, Sr.), who moves to QB from WR where he started last season, FB-LB Donald Crawley (5-11, 210, Sr.), who started at DE last season, RB-DB Travis Thomas (6-1, 180, Sr.), who moves from WR, OT-NG Matt Schaub (6-1, 240, Sr.), OG-DL Mike Connelly (6-2, 270, Sr.), WR Will Jackson (6-1, 170, Sr.), LB Anthony Dale (6-0, 185, Sr.), OG-DE Quinton Bryant (6-1, 220, Jr.) and DB-RB Lionel Chapman (5-11, 180, Jr.).