Phantoms Certainly in PAC-10 Title Hunt

By Dave Devlin

For the second straight week, Spring-Ford put on quite a display of offensive firepower with a 45-14 dismantling of Boyertown on Friday evening.

And for the second straight week, it looks as if the Rams (4-0 PAC-10, 5-1 overall) are in the driver’s seat to claim the 2011 Pioneer Athletic Conference title. 

Or are they?

It’s been a wacky year in PAC-10 football. And all that is known at the moment is that there are five weeks of league action left.

Yes, 463 yards of total offense looked as impressive as it sounds. Sophomore Jarred Jones ran for 182 yards and three touchdowns on just 16 carries. Quarterback Hank Coyne helped direct a passing attack that put up 174 yards and wide receivers Darryl Branch and Andrew Scanlan look to be as talented a receiving duo as there ever has been in the league.

But there are five more weeks remaining in league play.

The year started off with Boyertown (0-4, 2-4) being thought of as the team to beat. Pottsgrove (4-1, 4-2) then stepped up with a couple of big performances before falling to Spring-Ford two weeks ago.

In between that action, Pottstown, Phoenixville, Perkiomen Valley and Methacton have all shown the capabilities to earn victory on any given Friday night.    

The Rams next play Methacton on Saturday afternoon (1 p.m., 1370 AM). It’s a dreaded Saturday afternoon game for a team accustomed to playing under the bright lights of Friday night. 

The Warriors (2-2, 3-3) just dropped a heartbreaker at Pottsgrove (4-1, 5-2) Friday evening. And you can expect head coach Paul Lepre’s troops are already dreaming of pulling off a shocker.

After that game there are four more weeks of league play for Spring-Ford. That stretch includes road trips to Pottstown (Oct. 28) and Phoenixville (Nov. 24) and a home date with bitter rival Perkiomen Valley (Nov. 4).      

So, is Spring-Ford the clear favorite to win the 2011 league title?  

Oh, did I mention there are five more weeks of league play left?

THINGS I NOTICED IN WEEK 6 – Phoenixville remains in the title hunt after a very physical 14-9 victory over Perkiomen Valley this past Thursday evening.

Coming off a heartbreaking loss to Pottstown in which they fell one yard short of victory, the Phantoms bounced back on a short week of practice and regained their confidence quickly. 

Last year, Phoenixville suffered through a rash of injuries that derailed their season quickly. This year, the Phantoms are healthy and leaving everything on the field week in and week out. 

* Don’t look now, but another PAC-10 team might have something to say about how the league championship plays out.                      

Pope John Paul II pulled off an upset of Pottstown Saturday afternoon.

The Golden Panthers (2-2, 3-3) have now won two league games in a row and are .500 for the year.

Leading the charge is quarterback Dave Cotellese, who is now over the 1,000-yard mark in passing for the second straight year. The lefty signal caller threw for 160 yards and three scores in his team’s 31-16 victory over the Trojans.

Cotellese and the Panthers have Perkiomen Valley this Friday evening in the WPAZ Game of the Week (7 p.m., 1370 AM) and Phoenixville on Oct. 21. A victory in either game would be a major boost for the second-year program looking to establish and identity in the league.

PAC-10 STEPS UP TO BATTLE BREAST CANCER – Thursday night, Phoenixville donned pink jerseys for the first of five October PAC-10 games which will help bring awareness and raise funds for the fight against breast cancer.

Upper Perkiomen pulled on the pink tops on Friday evening.

There are three more games to be played in pink.

Methacton will wear the jerseys this Saturday against Spring-Ford, Pottsgrove will do the same against Pottstown on Oct. 21 and Perkiomen Valley will complete the series on Oct. 28 against Pottsgrove. 

Each of the host stadiums will have information booths as well as opportunities for donations to be made to the organization the host teams selected for their efforts in the fight against this dreadful disease.           

This series was the brainchild of Phoenixville head coach Bill Furlong, who has stated he wants to see the league effort grow each year. 

Bravo Coach Furlong!       

Dave Devlin is the news/sports and information director at WPAZ 1370 AM. He can be reached at ddevlin@wpazradio.com.