When traveling through the first four weeks of the season, coming out the other side with an accumulated 0-4 record is obviously not the most desired of routes in which to travel. “Yeah, thanks for the riveting analysis there, Captain Obvious.” Fair enough. But hang with me a sec. I want to try and show as to why perhaps not everything is as it seems, especially when it comes to the pair of teams that met up with one another on Friday night at Shirk Stadium on the campus of Albright University.
First, the bad news.
Yes, it is true that both Penn Manor and Reading High came careening into Week 5 matchup against each other with the pair sporting 0-4 records to their name respectively. Yes, it is also accurate to acknowledge that both squads had been outscored by a combined total of 245 points when compared against their first eight opponents of this year in sum.
Suffice to say, it’d be nothing if not easy to get emersed amongst all the doom and gloom in terms of the immediacy of the matter. But allow me to offer a different perspective here. One with brighter tomorrows.
For those in Comets’ country, 2025 is the dawn of a new era for Penn Manor football. For this season marks the first of the Jordan Clark tenure, a young and talented head man for whom most around the local landscape will know for his days of late while spent on Mark Evans’ staff at Manheim Township. And if you what the Streaks have been up to over the last decade, you know there aren’t many better coaching trees in which to fall out of before getting the keys to your own program. Beyond that, Penn Manor is integrating a new wide-open, exciting style of an offense system in 2025, a stark contrast to more the ground-and-pound model that the Comets were accustomed to running of late.
When it comes to the Red Knights, they too have plenty to look forward to – not just for the remainder of this year – but well into the future just the same.
If there’s anyone who knows what it looks like when Reading High is rolling on the gridiron on a routine basis during the months of autumn, there aren’t many who would know better than their current man at the helm, Troy Godinet. He himself, a 2004 grad from the “Castle on the Hill,” Godinet was there on the inside wearing the uniform when he and former fellas the likes of James Bryant had the Red Knights competing at the absolute highest of levels in terms of the District 3 realm. Since then, yes, the W’s have been in short supply, but take a quick glance down the Red Knights’ 2025 roster, and you start to see as to why the future is not only bright beyond this season, the fourth year of Godinet’s tenure, but the future is now for the football team that represents the largest public high school in the state of Pennsylvania given so much talented youth littered throughout.
And hey, the best news of all as it relates to the here and now for both the Comets and Red Knights? The fact that Friday night’s affair was a fantastic shot for either of these two clubs to get up off the mat and spend the weekend with a much more savory taste in their mouths as opposed to the bitter one left lingering on their shared palates ever since the evening of August 22nd.
And thanks to a strong second half performance, it would be Penn Manor feasting on victory while understandably asking for seconds.
Yet while the Comets really made their most hay inside the second dozen minutes found after the halftime intermission, the visitors from Millersville weren’t exactly without their fair share of highlights found throughout the first and second quarters either.
In fact, on the very first play from scrimmage no less, Penn Manor made an emphatic opening statement to begin the evening as an errant Reading High throw was picked off by Comets’ sophomore defensive back, Elijah Valentin, most certainly providing a pep in the step for the white and gold right out of the chute.
However, early mojo or not, Penn Manor’s first excursion into the endzone would have to wait just a little while longer. Thanks in no small part that is in showing what it means to play perfect complementary football.
To begin their second offensive series of the night, the Red Knights found themselves setting up shop at their own 4-yard line.
Why pinned down with their backs against the goal line you may wonder? Because Penn Manor starting quarterback, Connor Smeigh, who also moonlights as the Comets’ punter, executed a fantastic punt which truly flipped field position in Penn Manor’s favor right then and there as the junior Comet did his part in pinning the hosts deep inside their own territory.
Then, on the very first play following Smeigh’s exploits on special teams, it was the defense’s turn to offer up a tangible result of their own as a fumbled quarterback/center exchange led the way for Penn Manor junior linebacker, Tristian Ronan, falling on the football with the Comets then needing to travel all of two yards to break the scoring seal.
Lastly, with the final facet working in harmony as well, a one-play offensive drive was concluded once powerful junior tailback, Randy Guthrie, sprung into the endzone for the 2-yard touchdown run to make it an 8-0 Comets’ cushion preceding a successful 2-point conversion run courtesy of another talent in the Comets’ backfield, Jalen Dupree, as the junior running back scooted in himself to punctuate the guests’ opening first punch with 4:46 left remaining in the opening frame.
But to their credit, Penn Manor continued to remain in a rather greedy mood once the second quarter got underway as well.
Granted, while Reading High’s initial offensive series of the second quarter which got underway with 11:57 left in the half was aided along the way courtesy of Penn Manor penalties – a key facemask call chief among them on a 3rd & 6 play which prolonged the Red Knights’ ownership with the football – this Reading threat would also conclude with another Comets’ theft.
The one doing the stealing this time around? Rashaun Doyle, having the honors as the Penn Manor junior defensive back climbed the ladder and came down with the interception to thwart any additional Red Knights’ juju here on this march.
Remember Randy Guthrie? Reading High’s defense will probably have nightmares when it comes to the Comets’ ball carrier into the nights to come as Guthrie’s second TD jaunt of the evening, this of the 70-yard variety, just as quickly upped the lead out to a 15-0 difference in favor of the road team once senior placekicker, Hayden Brown, knocked home the PAT try with 8:02 left to be played in the opening half.
That said, while it certainly wasn’t spiraling out of control in the sense where Reading High was put inside of some insurmountable type of hole, the fact of the matter was that the hosts needed something positive to go right in order to keep the Comets at bay.
And do that they would.
Again, while aided by the generosity of the Penn Manor defense in the form of a defensive pass interference call whistled against the Comets which moved the ball down to the PM 33-yard line, the Red Knights needed to travel just a wee bit further before arguably the play of the evening was about to ensue.
With their offense still relatively stymied up until that point considering that this was their first excursion past the midfield stripe, it was paramount that the Red Knights make the most of this golden opportunity. Fortunately for them, Joseph Munoz was up for the challenge as his sensational 13-yard touchdown reception on the corner fade thrown to him by quarterback Jason Plylaharn– won with Munoz prevailing in the tug of war battle against his defensive counterpart while locked up in air-tight, one-on-one coverage – trimmed that Penn Manor lead back down to size, 15-8, in the aftermath of a 2-point conversion run by one of those aforementioned talented underclassmen, Tyrice Bradley, as the Reading High freshman running back capped off the Red Knights’ impressive rebuttal.
A one-score game heading into the half? Obviously not the most comfortable of feelings coming out to begin the second half one would imagine.
For that reason, once the star of Penn Manor’s show, yes, Mr. Guthrie, rumbled his way for a 90-yard touchdown gallop off a wonderfully designed screen, it would’ve been easy to believe that might have felt like the proverbial dagger being inserted right then and there, especially with time running thin on a possible Reading High response prior to the second quarter horn.
However, good fortune in the form of yellow laundry left laying on the field continued to aid in the Red Knights’ overall cause as off-setting penalties — a holding call whistled against the Comets being the most damaging of the bunch — brought the proceedings literally all the way back to the other side of the field.
And while there were a few somewhat interesting fireworks over the course of the final few minutes and change of the second quarter – a nearly successful pick 6 courtesy of Reading High senior defensive back, Idris Weaver, most of all – the teams were able to retire to their respective dressing rooms with the margin of separation left standing at one possession with Penn Manor possessing the 15-8 lead at the break.
Coming out of the locker room, while the Red Knights were applauded and cheered on by those who had just gotten done receiving their formal recognition in getting inducted into the Reading High Athletic Hall of Fame during the halftime festivities, it would be up to the Red Knights’ defense most of all to turn those well wishes into tangible results considering Penn Manor would start with the ball on offense to begin the third frame.
Unfortunately for those with a rooting interest in the home team, the second half that was about to commence was bathed in a swath of blue and gold – Penn Manor’s school colors.
In fact, it took the Comets all of two plays to cross the midfield stripe in the aftermath of a nice 28-yard kickoff return which preceded a 14-yard quarterback keeper by way of the second head in what was a two-headed monster found at quarterback for the Penn Manor troops on this night, Collin Robinson, moving the attack down to the Reading 46-yard line. From there, following a nice pitch and catch out wide which resulted in an 18-yard reception rattled off by Jalen Dupree on a 3rd & 5 play, Penn Manor was on the precipice of the redzone with the ball now sitting at the Red Knights’ 25-yard line.
But Penn Manor wouldn’t need to officially enter into that area designated from the 20-yard line inward to the chalk line as a 25-yard touchdown reception thrown to the other side of the field, this time with Tristian Ronan finding himself on the literal receiving end, gave the Comets that two-possession lead they initially thought they had obtained earlier in the waning stages of the second quarter as the Comets’ lead now stood at a 22-8 count following Hayden Brown’s second successful PAT booted through with three minutes exactly having evaporated off the third quarter clock.
Yet Penn Manor was only just now beginning to roll downhill.
After holding Reading to three plays and punt on the Red Knights’ initial offensive series to begin the third quarter – a staunch defensive stand that highlighted by a Jovani Martinez sack on 3rd & 13 – Penn Manor just kept operating in first gear.
This time, the Comets needn’t require any more than one play when asked of their offensive ensemble in tallying another score as a 57-yard dot thrown from Smeigh to Robinson, Robinson this time lining up out wide at receiver, made it a 20-point bulge in Penn Manor’s favor, 28-8, as the ensuing two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful with 6:13 left to play in the third.
And 20-points would remain the margin of separation heading into the final quarter in the aftermath of the Comets scoring touchdowns on two of their three third quarter drives up until that point. But there was more where that came from in the final dozen minutes too.
In fact, even while Penn Manor did not score on their ensuing two drives following the Smeigh to Robinson 57-yard hook up, the Comets nonetheless negated any serious Reading High threat by ending the Red Knights’ drives in takeaways, first in the form of Brady Evans falling on a fumble, only to be followed up by Tristian Ronan doing the same the next time out. By this point, already with a nose for taking the pill away from their opposition, it seemed only natural to suggest that the next step would be for Penn Manor to then score points off of said turnovers.
Insert Christian Herman into the mix.
Making it a full triumvirate in terms of three successive Red Knights’ drives that concluded with three straight Penn Manor takeaways, the final one would be the most fruitful of the bunch as Penn Manor’s junior linebacker proceeded to step in front a Reading pass along the Comets’ sideline before then strolling 45 yards to the house for the 45-yard interception return for a touchdown as Herman’s pick 6 now made it a 34-8 PM lead after the PAT attempt fell short with all of 4:44 left to play.
But there was still time for more.
Sure enough, you could then make it four straight Reading High offensive drives that ended in a turnover right then and there as Penn Manor senior defensive tackle, Jamayden Rosario, earned himself a fumble recovery for his night’s work which then set the stage for another Guthrie touchdown jog — this house call coming from 45 yards out rattled off by the junior back– ballooning the Comets’ advantage out to a 41-8 difference with 2:18 left following another Hayden Brown PAT.
All told, the game would later conclude with what would be five consecutive Reading High offensive drives that ended in turnover fashion – the last coming via a fumble recovery with Comets’ freshman defensive lineman, Lucas Hess, receiving the credit — putting the final nail in what would be a feel-good 41-8 Penn Manor victory on Friday night at Albright against Reading.
Yet this wasn’t just any win. This one was big to add in the Comets’ column for a host of different reasons. Most importantly, it was the first and much-deserved win that Penn Manor could finally lay claim to thus far in the 2025 campaign. Secondly, it also marked the first of what those in charge at the school hope are many more to come — especially with a first-year head coach having the keys to the overall operation — as Jordan Clark was able to snag his first win while in charge of the Comets’ program.
“I’m definitely not going to make any excuses, but we knew what the first four weeks were,” a victorious Clark said while cradling the game ball awarded to him in the postgame fracas by those whom he oversees who deemed him worthy of taking home such spoils for the occasion. “We played three teams that were in the playoffs last year, played a really angry, good Solanco team (following a Week 1 overtime defeat to Lampeter-Strasburg), so we knew we had to weather the storm.”
“I do think we competed in all four of those games,” Clark was quick to add. “We had some growing pains, but the kids are learning a whole new offensive system, a whole new defensive system. It takes time. That’s why it was so good to see it all come together here tonight in the second half especially.”
And to the Comets’ collective credit, even with the injection of new blood in the form of a new coaching staff while still getting off to a 0-4 start, you’d be hard pressed to believe that the Penn Manor operation was in their feelings or anything of the sort based upon their performance put forth on Friday night.
“The one thing I asked for when I took over this position is that we’re going to work hard and we’re going to play hard,” said Clark. “Honest to goodness, the first four weeks of the year, we worked and played our tails off… The buy-in is still there, the senior leadership has been great. I was a little nervous this week heading in because I didn’t see the same type of intensity leading up as I had the previous four weeks to where I was worried that maybe we were starting to make that negative turn, but (his players) came out, balled out, and they got the job done.”
Now, the quest becomes having one win fall into two, two into three, three into four, and so on and so forth. But don’t find fault with the Comets’ players if they were understandably overjoyed while carrying on after having finished a game with more points than the opposition for the first time on Friday night as they were jubilant running into the locker room after greeting their well-wishing friends and family over in the stands before heading in. The guy in charge knows that at least for now, his troops have rightly earned the chance to revel in victory.
“I’m gonna let ‘em celebrate this one because they’ve earned it,” Clark said with a smile while witnessing everyone else’s on the field around him. “But yeah, we know the challenge that we face next week (Hempfield). It’s a rivalry game. It’s a homecoming game for us. I think today though was a big step in the right direction for us to go on for the rest of the year.”
Maybe not just for the rest of 2025, but perhaps in the years to come too as this young program from top-to-bottom continues to mold into form.