By Brian Carroll
“It’s supposed to be hard. If it wasn’t hard, everybody would do it. It’s the hard that makes it great.”
— Tom Hanks, as Jimmy Dugan in A League of Their Own
When the District 1-5A football playoff brackets were made official two Sundays ago, the Strath Haven Panthers and Garnet Valley Jaguars both had to be shaking their collective heads. Both suffered Week 10 defeats that cost them a shot for the top seed in the playoffs that not only would have guaranteed multiple home games throughout, but may have also avoided multiple Central League rematches with a realigned bracket. But in a very talented and tested 5A bracket in 2024, any of the eight teams remaining can make a strong case for a run to the district final and beyond. Thus, while some might call it bad luck that two teams who have won or shared 11 of the last 17 Central League championships are meeting in the second round, the hard truth this season is that every game this weekend will be difficult and the reward that much sweeter for the victor of this “Clash of the Titans” in the quarterfinals this Friday night.
After dropping their final two regular season games, the Jaguars rebounded in a big way last Friday with an opening round thrashing of Kennett, 43-7. Garnet Valley went back to their roots, with a run-heavy attack using six different ball-carriers through the first three quarters that wore down a smaller Kennett defense. #21 Luke Vaughn, #1 Luke O’Donoghue, #44 Paxton Hunt, #15 Anthony Gifford and #20 Nolan Carroll all found the end zone on the ground, while O’Donoghue connected with Caden Koehler three times on the evening, one being a 47-yard touchdown strike. Carroll (forced fumble and recovery) and Koehler (interception) also forced Kennett turnovers on the defensive side of the ball while #11 Mike Medici had a strong debut in the secondary, and #61 Massimo Iavarone and #66 Aiden Bendo were disruptive on the defensive line.
Speaking of rebounds, Strath Haven bounced back from their Week 10 loss to Springfield with a 42-0 shutout of Penncrest in their Media Bowl rematch. While the Panthers managed a season-low 133 rushing yards, big plays from other directions helped dictate the pace of the game. Defensively, Penncrest was held to just 2.5 yards per play, and a big hit by Nick Farabaugh (12 tackles) on Penncrest’s quarterback led to a 29-yard fumble return for a score from #81 Jahi Curtis put the Lions in a two-score deficit. The Panthers landed another big blow in the final minute of the first half, as Caden Shuster delivered a 72-yard scoring pass to #5 James Fisher. Strath Haven turned the tables again to start the second half, as Penncrest’s surprise onside kick was alertly snared by #80 John Reilly and returned 47 yards for another touchdown, and Fisher ripped off another 39-yard jaunt to trigger the running clock midway through the third quarter.
For this week’s rematch, expect both teams to make some adjustments since their Week 5 contest, a convincing 35-14 victory for the Panthers that saw James Fisher pile up 234 all-purpose yards and all five Panther touchdowns. Jaguar Head Coach Eric Van Wyk and his staff may rethink the defensive scheme to protect the edges, which should be helped by the return of Luke Vaughn, who missed the first contest. At the same time, Strath Haven has been bolstered in the last couple weeks by #34 Vince Hales’ return to health and strengthened the Panthers’ front which allowed 23 Garnet Valley first downs and over 28 minutes of ball control back in October. Head Coach Kevin Clancy, fresh off his 300th career win at Strath Haven (367th overall) and his staff will look to keep the offense humming (zero punts last week), but also slow the Jaguars’ Paxton Hunt, who caught two touchdowns as a tight end in the first meeting but now doubles as a running back. Hunt, Vaughn, O’Donoghue, and #3 Gavin Rossello give GV solid depth in the backfield. And with Carroll as an all-purpose threat and Caden Koehler now carrying new school records for receiving (45 catches/880yds/10tds), the Panthers stingy defense will be tested again this week.
Expect a packed house at George L. King Field this week for yet another Central League rematch, with both senior-laden teams hoping to extend their high school careers at least another week. For those not able to attend in person, check out www.havenfootball.net beginning at 6:45pm for an extended pregame and a 7pm kickoff for two of Delaware County’s premier football programs of the last four decades. Go Panthers!
