Everywhere you looked Friday night, there was somebody doing something special in Eastern Pennsylvania Conference football.
At Northampton, visiting Easton got another record-tying performance from quarterback Cole Ordway, this time for rushing touchdowns in a game. That was just part of a 332-yard rushing night. In the same game, Northampton’s Gavin Taff became his school’s all-time passing leader.
At Nazareth, the Blue Eagles got 308 yards rushing and four TDs from Marquez Wimberly, including two late scores that gave the Blue Eagles a wild win over Liberty in a game that featured 94 points and 954 yards of offense. Liberty’s Zyaire Davis had six catches for 142 yards and two TDs and also returned a fumble 97 yards for a score, but it still wasn’t enough to get his team a win.
And then there was Parkland winning in a very different way. The Trojans allowed just 16 yards in total offense in a 49-0 win over Dieruff, and have yielded just 59 points in seven games.
How do all of these numbers affect the latest EPC power rankings? Take a look:
No. 18: East Stroudsburg North
Record: 0-7, 0-4 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 18th
Last game: Lost to Pleasant Valley 56-14
Next game: At Stroudsburg, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Timberwolves had a season-high point total against PV, but also gave up their highest point total. Wayne King completed four of eight passes for 102 yards and a touchdown. King also carried 12 times for 106 yards and a score and had nine tackles on defense. Kendrick Sympson had four catches for 102 yards and a score.
No. 17: Dieruff
Record: 1-6, 1-3 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 17th
Last game: Lost to Parkland 49-0
Next game: At Emmaus, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Huskies were shut out for the third time this season. They had 31 yards passing and negative-15 yards on the ground. Dieruff has lost 19 straight to Parkland. The Huskies’ last win over the Trojans was a 29-15 victory in 1994. Dieruff trails in the series, which began in 1976, 25-9-4 after going 5-0-3 in the first eight meetings.
No. 16: Allen
Record: 3-4, 0-4 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 16th
Last game: Lost to Allentown Central Catholic 33-6
Next game: Host Whitehall, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Canaries got a 78-yard touchdown run by Michael Taylor, and had several other drives against ACCHS, but couldn’t tack on more points. Allen was hurt by five turnovers, but was able to get a lot of pressure on ACCHS quarterback Patrick Cahill in a game that was expected to end via the mercy rule, but was much more competitive.
No. 15: East Stroudsburg South
Record: 1-6, 1-3 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 15th
Last game: Lost to Pocono Mountain East 30-7
Next game: Host Pocono Mountain West, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Cavaliers got 100 yards rushing on 21 carries from Gianni Gonnella and 70 yards on 12 carries from Ivan Laubach, but scored just seven points in the loss to East. Laubach, who has battled injury issues, threw just three times. Greyson Fuller completed 9 of 21 passes for 102 yards, but threw three interceptions. Ayden Walker had four catches for 34 yards.
No. 14: Pleasant Valley
Record: 3-4, 2-2 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 14th
Last game: Beat East Stroudsburg North 56-14
Next game: Host Pocono Mountain East, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Bears had eight possessions and scored touchdowns on all eight of them against North. Chris Ward had a 52-yard TD run and a 63-yard TD reception from Jaxson Haines. Niko Payan had a 32-yard run for a score. William Breuer had a TD reception while Marcelus Solt, Tyler Brown, Brad Serfass, and Jacob George all scored rushing TDs. This week’s Old Oaken Bucket rivalry game against Pocono Mountain East could be a District 11 5A semifinal preview.
No. 13: Pocono Mountain East
Record: 4-3, 1-3 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 13th
Last game: Beat East Stroudsburg South 30-7
Next game: At Pleasant Valley, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: Amari Green ran for 54 yards on 10 carries and had a 29-yard touchdown run in the win over South. Ceejay Serfass completed 9 of 19 passes for 63 yards. Justin Williams had three catches for 23 yards as East snapped a three-game losing streak and built some momentum entering a rivalry game against Pleasant Valley. No matter what happens the rest of the way, the program has had significant improvement after going just 1-10 last year.
No. 12: Pocono Mountain West
Record: 4-3, 1-3 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 11th
Last game: Lost to Stroudsburg 30-15
Next game: At East Stroudsburg South, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Panthers remain in position to secure a District 11 6A playoff berth but may have to win two of their last three to hold off Emmaus and nail down the final spot. West had 12 tackles for loss against Stroudsburg, including three by Anthony DePasqua and two each by Christian Stiehler, Ted Stiehler, Felix Ross, and Brandon Evans. Evans and Christian Stiehler each had 12 tackles.
No. 11: Stroudsburg
Record: 3-4, 2-2 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 12th
Last game: Beat Pocono Mountain West 30-15
Next game: Host East Stroudsburg North, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Mounties have shown an ability to bounce back after lopsided losses. They lost 48-10 to Emmaus but came back to beat Pocono Mountain East 40-34 the next week. They lost 62-0 to Easton, but roared back to beat Pocono Mountain West in their most recent game. They had 160 yards rushing against West, led by Keyen Johnson’s 145. Johnson had two TD runs. Keegan Munch had three catches for 30 yards and scored a touchdown.
No. 10: Emmaus
Record: 2-5, 1-3 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 10th
Last game: Lost to Whitehall 38-31
Next game: Host Dieruff, 7 p.m.
Comment: The Green Hornets fought hard against Whitehall but had a few calls that didn’t go their way. Jerek Cooper ran for 187 yards and a touchdown, and Jay Santos had 130 yards and two scores. Cooper threw for just 43 yards, but had a 19-yard TD pass to Mason Lenig. On defense, Asher Dougherty had nine tackles, including two sacks and six stops overall for losses.
No. 9: Allentown Central Catholic
Record: 4-3, 3-1 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 9th
Last game: Beat Allen 33-6
Next game: At Parkland, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Vikings have bounced back from a 28-24 loss to Bethlehem Catholic on Sept. 20 with a pair of wins, but were not particularly impressive against Allen. Five takeaways, including two interceptions by Grayson Schmell, which helped to bail out an inconsistent offense against the Canaries. First-year coach Jake Reichard said the team didn’t practice particularly well leading into the Allen game and will need a much better effort to have any shot at upsetting Parkland.
No. 8: Northampton
Record: 3-4, 1-3 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 7th
Last game: Lost to Easton 48-28
Next game: At Freedom, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Konkrete Kids had 238 yards rushing and 365 on offense overall against Easton, but couldn’t stop the Red Rovers in general and QB Cole Ordway in particular. Coach John Toman was pleased with his team’s effort against what he called the EPC’s best team. The return of Zeke Spencer from injury should bolster both the offensive and defensive backfields.
No. 7: Bethlehem Catholic
Record: 5-2, 2-2 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 6th
Last game: Lost to Freedom 28-0
Next game: At Nazareth, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Golden Hawks are definitely going to be in the District 11 4A playoffs, but may be seeing their opportunity for one of the top two seeds slipping away. Injuries to both Cayden and Carter Vassa have decimated the offense. Junior QB Axel Burkart threw for 102 yards and ran for 51 against Freedom, but the Golden Hawks weren’t able to finish drives in losing to the Patriots for the 10th straight time.
No. 6: Freedom
Record: 4-3, 3-1 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 8th
Last game: Beat Bethlehem Catholic 28-0
Next game: Host Northampton, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Patriots, as usual under Jason Roeder, have progressed throughout the course of the season. The tough early part of the schedule, with games against Downingtown West, Parkland, and Nazareth seemed to have benefited the team. Freedom misses running back Lashawn Johnson on offense, but they are getting contributions from Jahaire Hughes and Abraham Pla and are getting just enough big pass plays from quarterback Michael Stofanak.
No. 5: Whitehall
Record: 6-1, 4-0 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 5th
Last game: Beat Emmaus 38-31
Next game: At Allen, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Zephyrs have won five in a row and have all but locked up the top seed in District 11 5A. Despite the winning streak, they have a tendency to play thrillers and not put people away. Jeziah Gregory’s late TD staved off an upset bid by Emmaus last week. The Zephyrs had 354 yards in total offense including 259 in the air. Junior quarterback Tanner Dogmanits was 12-for-16 for 196 yards. His brother, Talon, threw a 63-yard completion in addition to making seven catches for 134 yards.
No. 4: Liberty
Record: 5-2, 3-1 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 3rd
Last game: Lost to Nazareth 52-42
Next game: At Easton, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Hurricanes had a five-game winning streak snapped in the high-scoring thriller at Nazareth. QB Antonio Fontanez threw for 316 yards and three TDs and Gabe Green ran for 100 yards and two TDs, and Zyaire Davis had a career night but it wasn’t enough because the Nazareth offense couldn’t be stopped.
No. 3: Nazareth
Record: 6-1, 3-1 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 4th
Last game: Beat Liberty 52-42
Next game: Host Bethlehem Catholic, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: Wimberly had arguably the best game of his career, and sophomore Cooper Madson is settling in at quarterback. He had 168 yards passing and two TDs, while Luke DiPietro had six receptions for 83 yards and a TD. The Blue Eagles will want to put on a good show Friday when former Penn State star and current Eagles receiver Jahan Dotson returns to his alma mater to have his jersey retired.
No. 2: Easton
Record: 7-0, 4-0 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 2nd
Last game: Beat Northampton 48-28
Next game: Host Liberty, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Red Rovers are on their way to a special season thanks in large part to quarterback Cole Ordway, who threw for five touchdowns against Stroudsburg and didn’t have a carry before turning around and running for 332 yards and tied a school record with six TDs against Northampton. He went over 1,000 yards rushing on the season and is likely to become one of the area’s few quarterbacks to run for 1,000 yards and pass for another 1,000.
No. 1: Parkland
Record: 7-0, 4-0 EPC
Last week’s rankings: 1st
Last game: Beat Dieruff 49-0
Next game: Host Allentown Central Catholic, 7 p.m. Friday
Comment: The Trojans may not have eye-popping offensive numbers, but they did get 117 yards rushing and four TDs from TJ Lawrence against Dieruff. This team’s trademark is its defense. Parkland has had back-to-back shutouts and has allowed just 19 points in its last four games. Only Northampton has scored more than 13 points against them. Tougher tests await as rivals ACCHS, Whitehall and Emmaus close out the regular season schedule.
