Are you ready for some football?
Welcome to the official blog on high school football for the 2013 season.
During the off-season let’s talk about players, recruiting news, teams and everything about high school football.
During the season each week let’s talk about match-ups and how teams did. Let us know what player(s) stood out each week.
2,248 Responses
Yo Jim B. 0-4 You playing the Lottery or you drinking??? “Jim B.” LOL
@ tsaf77
If coaching doesn’t matter…….
Please explain the shellacking of IMHOTEP?
Most D1 athletes on a team and a 41-0 loss,
in a STATE Championship game?
Times yours!
@tsat,
I’m just gonna be hypothetical here. I don’t have a problem with a kid going into 9th grade in any public school, they offer different stuff and some folks like chocolate and others strawberry. Let’s say a kid goes to Catholic school for 9th grade. Dad/Mom loses job or whatever it may be. Kid can’t afford Catholic school anymore. I don’t have a problem with the kid picking any public school, just like going into public for the first time. If a kid leaves a public to attend another public he must attend the closest public to his home, or he sits 1 year. Same with Catholic. You have a choice when you enter High School, if you made the wrong choice, you attend your neighborhood school or sit a year. Example; I live around the corner from Washington HS, in the far Northeast. I attend Simon Gratz, 10 miles away, because I am interested in their automotive program. I am also 6’8″ and can drain 3’s from half court. Basketball team sucks my first year, so all of the sudden I’m not interested in automotive anymore. I want to transfer to Prep Charter because they have something I’d like to study. It’s about education, so they say sure you can go to Prep charter, no sports for 1 year. Never mind, I didn’t like that class anyway. I think I’ll just go to Washington.
Kids are not allowed to transfer, in D12, for athletic reasons. I know everybody has an excuse that has nothing to do with athletics, but you can’t justify adding time to your commute for educational purposes. Think about it for a second. Most schools start around 8:00am. A lot of these kids are commuting over an hour each way. Wake up at 6:30, school till 3:00, practice till 6:30, home around 8:00. By the time that kid showers, eats dinner, winds down, and prepares to start getting ready for tomorrow, it’s 10:00. Any medical study will tell you students can’t function at their peak with less than 8 hours sleep. When does the student do homework, projects, and study for tests?
@ Jive
You know significantly more than I do about the the issues with open enrollment. I understand the school choice concept however when it is actually for better education it is a little more acceptable. I understand the PCL and everyone sees how powerful it is now. I don’t think it is far fetched to have the PCL all play in AAAA. I mean the majority of them play each other anyways. I am curious to hear your sugestion to D12 though. I know people don’t agree with me on making them al play at AAAA but what other equal factor can there be.
IC can play at the AAAA level, they beat LaSalle. The problem is that everyone wants to dominate and if they know they are not going to or will have a hard time doing so, then they try for the easiest route possible. Noone ever seems to care about the AAA and AAAA schools that are getting crushed year in and year out. Is it coaching, lack of community involvement, or no players?
@ Greg Little
Give Mike Carey a team without athletes and you will see 83 points laid on his team. No disrespect but coaching does not play the game. Sure great coaches will get the most out of their players but you can’t make chicken salad out of … Well you know.
17th & G
Assuming education was actually in the Constitution is another debate. If it weren’t for people like FDR, we wouldn’t even have public education. It would only be for the priveleged. I like phillyboy’s idea on giving everyone the same per pupil rate. It makes sense. Actually though, districts are funded by local taxes first. Higher income schools take less state and federal funds. Lower socioeconomic schools get more state and federal funding. Well until NCLB of course. Now we went from the PSSA’s to the Keystones with common Core derivatives. Check to see your school choice charters. They are mostly failing except for a few. Someone in PA Gov is making off with our tax dollars and they aren’t the unions. Ask your wonderful governor.
Fact is many public schools take tuition students so just because it is not done because people dont want to pay both tuition & RE tax (like Catholic parents) does not mean it can’t be done.
@ 17th & G
Yes, I fully understood that you mentioned “all boys” and my comment reflected that. I get what you’re saying but to use the “all boys” excuse to refute why football players are going there to play football is a stretch, you think?
Dude, if the government went totally laissez-faire in regards to a voucher program it would be chaotic. It would be very difficult to implement in practice. It would be a free-for-all and disorganized. How about a different approach: have the state dole out the same amount of money per student. That way, it wouldnt’ matter if you lived in Lower Merion or Chester; every student would have an equal footing. Currently, it’s primarily based on property taxes so the rich districts got it made. Sure, if a person is rich — wonderful, rock on, life is good. But if you’re not, too bad, eh?
@tsaf,
I think only 2 or 3 was being generous. 2 or 3 impact players maybe. All you have to do is look at how many kids change schools each year for basketball, it’s absurd! I’m not against open enrollment, however, I’m pretty down on the advantages being taken because of it. Here’s something to look at though. If there were no open enrollment in D12, Father Judge might win the state championship every year. Then guess which team would be getting complained about? Kids leave the NE in droves to go to Prep, LaSalle, Roman, Wood and Ryan. Ryan is in the NE, but there are quite a few kids that would be at Judge, if not for open enrollment. I have a few ideas to combat the problem, but as long as Robert Coleman is running D12, nothing is going to change. Like most things, they’ll wait until it’s so over the top bad, and then they’ll talk about looking at it.
Imhotep loss shows that a group of all star “individuals” will never beat a “team” that is focused on achieving as a whole. Can we put this whole Imhotep thing to rest now that they have to move up to 3A against Wood, Ryan, etc.. The days of beating school of the future are done. Try putting up 83 on Mike Carey.
Phillyboy “All boy” Catholic High School!
“All Boy”
“All Boy”
I am sorry did I say “All Boy”?
Please don’t twist my words to support your agenda. “All Boy” schools are a clear choice by families that are looking for an “ALL BOY” education! My parents sent me to an “ALL BOY” school because I was unable to focus on my studies when Carolyn #$^&elli was wearing a her uniform next to me. They figured it out pretty early on that I had Attention Female Distraction Disorder. (AFDD)
Is there any other facet of society where you are restricted of your freedoms like the public school system?
Why doesn’t the state collect all school taxes and directly distribute the money to the student. (voucher) Then allow the students to choose the school district to attend.
Isn’t the current practice a violation of the freedoms bestowed upon a citizen by the constitution. I think it is a bit oppressive!
Oh, no I forgot it is acceptable because it is a UNION thing and that always over-rides our rights.
So in a nut shell we have Freedom of Choice if we can afford to pay property taxes and tuition.
As crazy as it sounds Philly (D12) gets it! Why shouldn’t a student from one town be allowed to go to the neighboring town if they offer better education or sports or both! That system would allow freedom of education. The better schools would compete for students through their documented successes.
It’s a bad system when the rights of the consumer are not protected by the government.
@ Colin
The point I am making is that we base our classes too much on school enrollment and on no other factors at all. Historical competitiveness should play a role as should the potential area to where schools can draw their kids from. Open enrollment can potentially change a team to a state power in one season. Our rotations are 2 seasons.
I have been told on here that 2 to 3 kids on average change schools every year sports related in D12. Well that’s a big deal because that doesn’t normally happen anywhere else. I saw it in track and field with schools like Carver EnS and Sweonson. They should be in the large school division because they can potentially draw whoever they want.
Then the ignorant comments show up. “Coach your kids up” and “get them to be competitive.” Sure, I can just snap my fingers and get 4 DBs to run 4.5’s and have large athletic linemen with a dual threat QB that is a 2 star recruit. I would have to wish for that because I can’t go out and recruit it in my district. That is why people value the coaches like Curry and Henzes in D2. They build strong teams without the ability to get whoever they want. Sure they have good kids that will be going D2 or D3 to play football. Give those coaches Bishop Wood or SJP and they probably still win the state.
Everyone thinks coaching is the main factor and without the kids, it doesn’t matter how good your coach is.
I say let D12 play in AAAA. The open enrollment factor gives them too large of an advantage and you will see teams take advantage of it in the near future. It doesn’t matter that your school enrollment at a D12 school is AA because if the majority of your boys have been hand picked from the 1.5 million population then your not really an AA school. To the schools that can’t compete at the AAAA level from D12 I say recruit better because you can. Others districts can’t. That is an overwhelming advantage that is just not being taken advantage of by most. Wait till it does though.
@ 17th & G
You said St. Augustine is the closest Jersey Catholic HS to the Prep. It doesn’t matter if it’s all boys or not. You got Camden Catholic, Gloucester Catholic, and St. Joe’s of Hammonton just to name a few off the top of my head that are closer to Philadelphia than St. Augustine.
The issue with Catholic schools is not if they do not win it all, but the teams they beat and send home unfairly. You know the ones who come from the same neighborhoods and school district only to get knocked out by a recruiting school. Opps, silly me, they encourage young Catholic student athletes to attend the school.
D6,
Are you saying that in D10 a student can enroll at any public school they wish? When I refer to open enrollment im not talking about Catholic schools. Im talking about the Public schools in Philly(D12). The Catholic League is not part of the Phila. school district. The Students that attend those schools are not students of the Phila. School District. Ive just heard so much about Imhotep on this board and about how they have an advantage because of open enrollment. But all anyone needs to do is just check out the history of the Phila. Public League in the PIAA playoffs in any other sport outside of basketball and track and they will see that there really isn’t an advantage.
I was at the Imhotep game and South Fayette wanted it more. They were quicker off the ball, controlled the line play and dominated the game. Yes after the 2nd TD was scored, players started hanging their heads. It was their worse game ever! Congrats to South Fayette on the win.
@ Colin,
The issue which most of the state sees with allowing open enrollment is that it is exclusive to D12, D10, and D8 that I am aware of. The rest of the districts can only pull kids from within their boundaries. That is where you get the fans from those regions complaining.
The other issue as well is with the Catholic schools. I know that in D3 which some of our regional schools compete, there is a move to form a new league which is basically the “get away from McDevitt league”. The talk around that district is that it is hard to compete with schools which can draw basically anyone who can make all of the requirements to enroll. Basically it was a NJ/Philly all-star team vs a pitt all star team, same with the other big class game, erie/ny vs philly. THese are just comments i have heard the past couple days made.
I dunno a good solution to the issue, both sides will always argue and the side who gets beat will argue louder that year. I’m not advocating one way or another, just giving some perspective from a region in which open enrollment and private schools arent predominate.
Tsaff,
The open enrollment is “problem” that will never be fixed. That’s the way it rolls in D12. PIAA new the deal when the signed. A catholic school is what it is. They will draw from where ever it is they draw from regardless of what district that Catholic school resides in. I know Philly has many kids and things are done differently there than just about every other district in the state with the possible exception of D8(Pittsburgh). I can see where some People would have distain for Catholic schools. But I don’t get it when it comes to D12 public schools. Imhotep has been the only Public League school to make any kind of dent in the state playoffs. With the same open enrollment policy teams like Bok, Frankford and George Washington were getting clubbed in the state playoffs since they entered. I think the closest any other Public League team came to a victory was GW taking Easton right to the end they first year they entered the PIAA with a tam that had kids from all over the city. And they still didn’t win. Most years you will never see a Pub team in the states anyways because they have to play the Catholic league before anyone else does and will lose more often that not….I just don’t get what the issue is. Please tell me what I am missing in this open enrollment argument.
Gotta admit I had never seen PCC before yesterday but the pre-game hype made them sound like the biggest, fastest, most unbeatable HS team on the planet.
I know that PCC did not have its best game but even from the beginning they did not look at all physically imposing to me. Personally, I thought McDevitt was bigger and stronger and certainly Wood was. The all world running back Lista-Brinza with 1700 yds had nice feet but backs like that are all over the place around here and the kid looked like he was hurt after every play. Prep was much more physical on both sides of the line of scrimmage and had more overall breakaway speed. Gabe Infante referenced the quality of teams that SJP played this year as the best preparation for a game like this and it showed. Ultimately the strength of an area will be measured by who wins a state title. Clearly, however, when it comes to the depth of quality teams on the AAA and AAAA levels, Southeastern PA, specifically Dist 1 and Dist 12 are where the highest concentration of top teams in the state are.
Great season to all involved and those who watched it unfold. A lot of surprises to add to these games. Congrats to the winners and runners up.
Sounds like some big movements for next season. This is the new rotation and there is already a lot of speculation. The numbers are out there and there will be movement between the classes of notable state finalists from over the years.
Just echoing some statements. Yes, I am shocked IC lost in the fashion they did. I am not convinced though that they are not capable of beating S Fayette. From the 2 other game I saw them play, this game did not look like the same team. They are high school kids. It happens.
Prep had a great gameplan against PCC who has an excellent RB however never got momentum going. Prep was very physical compared to PCC and that proved to be the difference. Wood wasn’t as big of a shock over McD. I always thought they were top of heap in AAA. Old Forge and NC was probably the best game of the weekend. Those teams could play 10 times and split. That is how even A was this season.
As far as the talk being put to rest over “open enrollment” I think it will continue. Just because IC lost does not take away from the kids and the talent they have acquired. They had one bad game. This does not take away the idea that if 20 of these kids wanted to for next season, they could go attend another D12 school. That virtually doesn’t have the opportunity of happening anywhere else. So it is still a problem as is the playoff brackets with teams getting byes.
I know you all say that you can’t move them all to AAAA but what is the difference. Columbia Mon Vo Tech is an AAA school that gets crushed by A schools. There are currently AAAA schools that get beat up by A and AA schools that didnt even make the playoffs. I have hear so many people make the statement that the coaching and community needs to get these teams to compete. You have 11,100 people per square mile which by numbers 1000 are probably kids. I know this sounds ignorant but get them to your schools and get them to compete. Not only would that be the most dominating area in sports but it would be a more educated populous.
@d6football
Yes! Approximately 17 blocks from NJ! (17th STREET)
They always had and always will have STUDENTS from NJ. Try these terms, “Philadelphia Metropolitan Area”, Private School and tuition.
The closest all boy Catholic High School for Western NJ is St. Augustine Prep in Mayslanding 60 miles away. SJP and Roman are 10 miles and 15 minutes away. You do the math!
Get used to it! It’s not going away and get better because complaining doesn’t work. Congratulations Prep and Wood!
Hey great season, great kids, awesome year.. I hope this brings an end to all the doubters who said public schools can’t compete with Catholic or Charters.. Let the kids play..
So St. Joe’s has kids from both NJ and PA on their team?
Bye Bye Imhotep & Jive Turkey :)remember, this is all about the education and where they go from here. Not an Imhotep supporter one bit.
@RRMark,
Never, ever thought you were a hater! You simply questioned flaws in the system. I was one of the people that defended till the end. I still think it gets a bit overzealous at times, but I am starting to understand where folks from outside of D12 viewpoints come from. It may or may not get worse than you guys see it, but here it is.
Rumor is that the coach to be at Del-Val charter is going to be the father of 2 Imhotep players. I’ve heard that 10-15 players will be leaving Imhotep to attend Del-Val. It’s just a rumor, for now, be it has garnered a lot of steam. I’ve asked quite a few people, and have not gotten a denial. Doesn’t mean it will, or will not happen. However, if this turns out to be the case, I may end up being the biggest opponent of open enrollment in the state. Open enrollment is something I have defended for years, in Philly we’re used to a couple kids moving to this school or that. I hate that a lot of schools get a new starting 5 every year in basketball, but I’m not a big basketball guy. If this takes place, and Del-Val rolls out 10 new studs? This could get ugly. Jive Disclaimer: This is only a rumor right now! I tend to think, where there’s smoke there’s fire. But until anything is official, this is just a rumor.
Congrats to North Catholic, South Fayette, Archbishop Wood, and St Joe’s Prep on your championships. It is something them boys will remember for the rest of their lives!
Well the D12 team that was supposed to win bought into it and had there arses handed to them so congratulations to the underdog South Fayette who played awesome. And to the two D12 (PCL)teams that were supposed to lose congratulations in winning the AAA & AAAA state championship. This is only the 4th or 5th year that D12 has competed so it is too early to tell but it seems like D7 WPIAL dominating every year is a thing of the past. The Philadelphia Catholic League is so tough Archbishop Ryan beat both the Prep & Archbishop Wood and were not good enough to make the playoffs. Everybody whines about the PCL but their counterparts in the west have been dominating for years…