Pen Argyl. Bulldog Community Stadium. Slatington, PA. 1pm kick-off. All of those remained the same from last week to this week.
Unfortunately for the Green Knights, the game was totally different.
On a brisk and misty Saturday afternoon in Slatington, Imhotep Charter (14-0) defeated Pen Argyl (11-3) by a score of 54-7 to advance in the state playoffs and end the Green Knights’ season.
Imhotep dominated in every aspect of this contest, but they really won with their running game as they amassed over 250 rushing yards collectively. Their attack was led by senior David Williams, who rushed for 198 yards himself.
They didn’t just run the ball however as sophomore quarterback Andre Dreuitt threw the deep ball a few times. His very first completed pass was a 58 yard bomb to senior Brandon Smith.
Throughout the game, especially in the first quarter, the Panthers of Imhotep were hurt by penalties. Having 12 total penalties tallying 70 yards barred them from scoring even more early on. Despite that high amount, head coach Albie Crosby, isn’t too worried about it, “I have to take it. As coaches this is what we talk about. I have to take the bad with the good.”
Sophomore Nasir Bonner echoed the talk about the Panthers hurting themselves in games, “We are our worst enemy. We have a motto that we can only hurt ourselves.”
After punting on their first drive, the Panthers scored a touchdown on their next three possessions. Coupling that with their stellar defense gave them a 21-0 lead with 9:45 left in the first half.
On Pen Argyl’s next drive, the Green Knights pieced together their only scoring drive of the afternoon. Going 60 yards in two minutes and 21 seconds capping it off with a 26 yard touchdown pass from junior Nick Oyer to senior Scott Beltz. The scoreboard now read 21-7.
Right before the half the Panthers pick off an Oyer pass attempt and set up shop on the Green Knights’ 43 yard line. The clock told Dreuitt and company that they had only 1:25 to score before halftime. Determined the Panthers, behind the legs of Williams, drove the ball to the 7 yard line and capped off the drive with a seven yard rush by no one other than, Williams.
As both teams hurried in to the much warmer locker rooms, the score was 26 to 7 favoring Imhotep Charter. Williams already rushed for 160 yards in the game at that point which was more than Pen Argyl ran for in the entire game as a team.
To begin the second half, the Green Knights received the ball and saw their drive stall as they fumbled and had it recovered by Imhotep. The Panthers immediately capitalized on the blunder as they only needed one play, a 37 yard scamper by Williams to score a touchdown and make it 33-7.
After the game, Crosby talked about how his team has the advantage in the 3rd quarter, “One of the big things we have is numbers. We only have one kid [playing both offense and defense]. We have been fortunate this year that the 3rd quarter is the time that we get up on people.”
During the entire second half the Green Knights compiled decent drives that went somewhere. The issue was that somewhere wasn’t the end zone. Pen Argyl’s closest chance to score again for the rest of the game was midway through the fourth when they had the ball all the way down on Imhotep’s 1 yard line. Imhotep called a timeout, regrouped the defensive troops and stuffed the Green Knights who tried to punch it in on the ground every down, but found themselves going backwards with the Panthers eventually taking over on downs.
With the victory in sight, Imhotep drained the already speedy game clock due to the mercy rule all the way down until it was fourth down and they punted. With a booming punt high in the gray sky descending downward, the Panthers hustled down the field to find that it was muffed by Pen Argyl. Senior Kadmiel Kelome picked it up and ran it in for the eighth and final touchdown for Imhotep on the afternoon.
Pen Argyl received the ball and just watched the final seconds of their 2012 season whisk away. With it coming to a close Pen Argyl head coach, Paul Reduzzi, told me how his team battled this year, “The things that happened coming out of loses was a lot of unity…they are a big surprise. We thought we would compete. I told Tom [Housenick] after a scrimmage that I thought we would be pretty good. I didn’t know pretty good was going to be 11 wins.”
Imhotep Charter advances to the PIAA AA Eastern Final against Wyomissing. That game will be Saturday, December 8 at Ben Johnston Stadium in Philadelphia. That game is slated for a 1pm kickoff.
Scoring
1st Quarter
IC- 3:51 Dreuitt 58 yd pass to Smith. PAT by Moore good. 7-0
IC- 0:39 Williams 12yd rush. PAT by Moore good. 14-0
2nd Quarter
IC- 9:58 Williams 79yd rush. PAT no good. 20-0
PA- 7:18 Oyer 26yd pass to Beltz. PAT good. 20-7
IC- :4.6 Williams 7yd rush. Conversion no good. 26-7
3rd Quarter
IC- 10:24 Williams 37yd rush. PAT by Moore good. 33-7
IC- 7:49 Dreuitt 15yd pass to Young. PAT by Moore good. 40-7
IC- 2:15 Bonner 2yd rush. PAT by Moore good. 47-7
4th Quarter
IC- 1:05 Fumble return 35 yd Kelome. PAT good. 54-7
PA 0 7 0 0 -7
IC 14 12 21 7 -54
36 Responses
@ musa smith not at all my man im a fan of imhotep have none most of imhotep coaching staff for years not hateing at all i sent my best friend son there last year, but ask imhotep who gave them there tuffest game this year or anybody that was at that playoff game then get back to me finale score dose not tell the story of the game never said anything bad about Tep or any school for that matter was reffering to there talent level and the fact that all schools recruite some just have more to sale a kid on i hope tep wins it all with blow out wins!
I agree with Tyler. It is real simple. The two biggest cities are, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.
Now the two Districts that are dominating are District 7 & 12.
Due the math people. They have more kids to draw from. It’s that simple.
If you really think it is a issue contact the PIAA.
I found this site this year. I am from California. I got to say this is the best site I have ever seen in High School Football. Great job to the guys who run the site.
Guys, most of you all have valid points. Being at the game and seeing Imhotep face off against Pen Argyl, I could clearly see a big advantage for the Panthers. They were bigger, stronger, faster and overall better. Truthfully, I don’t think any team that could have been in Pen Argyl’s slot would have beaten Imhotep or could have kept it any closer. Catty, Wyoming Area, and Lakeland all have big flaws that Imhotep easily would have exposed. Whether they recruit or not and if it should be allowed is a touchy subject, but I don’t think it is creating a monopoly for the charter/catholic schools. If you look at playoff history, a high amount of public schools are always in contention. For example, Aliquippa, Northern Lehigh in the AA. Berwick in the AAA. Parkland and Delaware Valley in the AAAA. Catholic and Charter schools may have an advantage in a matchup against the public schools, especially the smaller schools, but I don’t believe it is is ruining the playoff bracket.
tsaf77, I would send my kids to a better school too, but, it makes for an unfair advantage agaisnt public schools. Imhoteps line averages 6’2 277. Tell me how many A-AAAA have a line that big? I am sure the rest of the team is stacked too. This imbalance is totally unfair.
Rolli, Charter schools syphon off public funds and als have a sizeable amount of funding from the private sector. Do your homework. The unfairness of whether it is an A/AA/AAA/AAA team does not matter. Put yourself in the shoes of say Pen Argyl. These kids have probably been together since say middle school, get to the semi’s i think and get a team Imhotep which is a recruiting machine, not the typical public HS who plays with the kids in the district.
Jive turkey, you also are why the system sucks. Fairness first. These are HS kids. based on your flawed thinking, these schools and everyone but you have the courage to admit they recruit, thank you for that! These schools should go to Nj and play BC, St. Joe.s Bosco too. Now you have Apples to Apples. BTW, I wouldn’t send my kids to any Philly School if their life depended on it. No one likes Philly, except the drones sucked up into it’s old corrupt ways.
Well, I’ve seen catholic’s schools recruit as well as
public schools. To end the argument about recruiting just put in a district line or boundary in the city for which school a student can go to. But that still
have loop holes. The south, mid-west and west does it. Which helps keep schools from recruiting. Now i must say if imhotep lost 54-7 then the conversation would be the inner-city have no right to enter the state play offs
@CT Coach are you the coach from Comm Tech.u sound mad brother.yea the first game with Comm tech was 28-0 the playoff game Imhotep played against Comm tech was a blowout.All high school teams recruit and I’m pretty sure you know this already u sound like the rest of these grumbling coaches in the city you just hating plain and simple
Jim, completely understand your perspective. In the eyes of a parent though, if your kid has a gift and can get better exposure on a better team which also has good academics (better than Philly Public) like the PCL schools, would you send your kid to inner city public, or a PCL?
Jive, that is the most sense I have heard throughout this entire argument. Just accept it and move on!
Rollie just because Charters are financed with public money does not mean they are considered “Public Schools.” When they are actually held to the same accountability as public schools then you can talk.
CT Coach you make perfect sense with this issue. Imhotep is a very talented team with 1 way starters.
In reference to La Salle, they are a great team however I heard some brag about their enrollment being that of an AA/AAA school. That clearly shows recruiting is plausible. You would have to be a oblivious, naive, or just an idiot to think these teams with such small enrollments would have that many D1 caliber athletes going to one small school. It is comical and just plain ignorant to say otherwise.
Look at Northern Jersey, Don Bosco, Bergan Catholic etc. They recruit and play in a different class. They would embarrass our Private Shools in this state by 8 TDs by the 3rd quarter. But in NJ, everyone knows they recruit and thus, they play in a different playoff.
This is why teams that do not have a definitive border should have to be AAAA in classification.
@CT Coach Imhotep tradition is found in their coach from West that won a state championship
@Jim, Imhotep won by 47, Wyomissing by 52, Richland by 26, and Aliquippa by 36, all lopsided. Doesn’t bother me in the least. You know for sure that the best 4 teams are now in the semi-finals. I am guessing that you are not a Philly guy. Public schools, just like charters and Catholics, have their pick of kids throughout the city. Washington has been the dominant public school over the past decade or so, most of them kids live nowhere near Washington. Listen to this from a parent that has been through the process, THEY ALL RECRUIT. Not just LaSalle, Imhotep, and Wood, all of them do. Coaches get paid at the high school level. It may not be a ton of money, but it is a pay check none the less. If you do not win, then say goodbye the that extra income. Like any level, if you are not trying to get the best kids for your program, then you are not doing your job. CT Coach talks about going to middle school games all of the time, and knows where the stand out players are going to high school. Why? Because he has nothing better to do with his time? No, it is because he is looking for kids that he might sway to go to Comm Tech. They all do it, get over it and enjoy the next couple weeks.
Witch comes first chicken or the egg tradition or heavy recruiting imhotep is blowing out all these AA power house teams but little Comm tech a1 A team held them to there lowest points all year 28 and gave them the scare of there life in the playoffs so trust me when i say who ever can sale the parents and the kids on the school will always have the upper hand…. perfect example Simon Gratz high school in the 90s was king in basketball what happend , great tradition great coach, Mr El. Left recruiting stoped program fell off teams that constantly win constanly recruite @ worriorpoet
@Warriorpoet can you please tell me what tradition imhotep has far as football imhotep is not running anything special …they just have supreme talent LaSalle has traditon and deffinitly Roman dont get me wrong im rooting for imhotep but come on wit the better coaching if i had 7 D 1 players on my team like a Wood my team would still be playing too or 14 coachs like imhotep or recruited as well as they did i would have whent farther in states bottom line you cant win with out the hourses
@ jim i see what your saying and i agree it is unfair across the board and a loop hole in PIAA question is what do you do about it…
Jim-
11 of the final 16 teams in PA are public schools. In Class A and AA all the teams left are public schools. (charter schools are publicly financed…in fact you can find Imhotep on the Philly public school website). 3 of the 4 AAAA teams are public schools. Only class AAA is dominated by Catholic schools as all 4 are Catholic schools.
Facts point to public schools as having the advantage. Every one can have their own opinion. But there’s only 1 set of facts.
LaSalle, Imhotep and Roman get the better kids because they want to play on teams with winning traditions. The teams with winning traditions tend to have better coaches, its not complicated CT Coach.
rollie, let’s have an honest and open discourse on the subject. Tell me how it is fair that school “A” picks from the kids in the district and Catholic/Charter School “B” and “C”, pick from student athletes who leave their districts (let’s pretend they are there for the education first) to play a sport in a program that has a reasonably excellent shot of being a perenial playoff team.
warriorpoet, act is not old, just hits the nerve Catholic School supporters won’t accept. There is a natural affinity for an athlete who’s parents have the money to send them to those schools knowing top academic and D1 schools will be making many visits to the AD’s office. You guys re like drug addicts in denial.The point that will never change is that there will be great public schools that have to pick the kids in their ditricts playing agaisnt Catholic schools and the Imhoteps(really fraudulent program)and the kids get one maybe two shots of going deep and hit that wall.
Cathlic and private schools dont have better coach’s they get the best talent i just came from a middle school playoff game and all the game breaking kids are going to laSalle or Imhotep ,Roman if yo get the better kids you going to win more games not because your a better coach public league teams get the left over kids not to say there are not bad coachs in the pub there are some bad coachs in cathlic and private talented players hide that
@jim
Your act is getting old, same old response every time about recruiting, which you have no idea what you are talking about. Catholic league teams do not stack the players go there because their parents make the difficult decision and the financial sacrifices necessary so that they can get great education and superior athletics. Most schools like North Penn and others are 2-3 times the size of the cath league teams and that is the greatest advantage of all. Cath league teams have better coaches and their programs have flown past your beloved public schools. deal with it and keep the same yada yada crap to yourself.
@jim
Your act is getting old, same old response every time about recruiting, which you have no idea what you are talking about. Catholic league teams do not stack the players go there because their parents make the difficult decision and the financial sacrifices necessary so that they can get great education and superior athletics. Most schools like North Penn and others are 2-3 times the size of the cath league teams and that is the greatest advantage of all. Cath league teams have better coaches and their programs have flown past your beloved public schools. deal with it and keep the same yada yada crap to yourself.
@ jim so what is your issue …….LaSalle ,Wood,Sjp, Roman ,West Catholic all recruite whats your point
I see…a new angle to whine about an arse kicking from catholic schools.
54-7 in a semi? doesn’t that bother people that it was so lopsided?
Sorry Imhotep is recruiting kids and Charter schools are supposed to be about getting out of bad city schools and the education. $100 says they will be gone in a year or two. Let’s be real and not sugar coat this school. Please no dumb replies about racism… it’s about fairness, because stacking teams happens in teh Catholic Schools too