Four Downs: Four big takeaways from Week 4 in Berks football
Four takeaways from Week 4 of the high school football season:
1. Is anyone going to give Gov. Mifflin a game?
A real buzz went up at midweek when some quick schedule-fixing created a match-up of state-ranked Harrisburg and Gov. Mifflin.
Anticipation built in the 48 hours leading to kickoff, then . . . the Mustangs dominated every facet of the game and won going away, 49-13.
Granted, the Cougars were without their starting quarterback, but they couldn’t stop Nick Singleton, even when they loaded the box with 10 players.
That’s four straight mercy-rule victories for Mifflin, each against a quality program, each against a team headed for the playoffs.
York High, Wilson, Cocalico and Harrisburg are a combined 10-2 outside their losses to Mifflin.
Right now you can safely say the Mustangs are among the best five teams in the state, regardless of classification.
They may not see another competitive game until after Thanksgiving.
2. Spartans haven’t missed a beat
A lot of high school football games get out of hand in the second half, and some people stop paying attention.
If you watched closely last season during Wyomissing’s run to the state title game you would have noticed there wasn’t a huge drop off in talent once the second-team guys came in. They kept running for long touchdowns, too.
Bob Wolfrum had guys in place to replace all those All-State picks who graduated and they’re showing it now.
The Spartans are 4-0 and haven’t missed a beat, even with all new skills position players, linebackers and defensive linemen.
Along with Steel-High in Class 1A and Gov. Mifflin in 5A, they’re head-and-shoulder favorites to win a district title.
One of their top linemen, Pacen Zeigler, hasn’t even played yet; he’s been out since preseason with a foot injury but could be back soon.
3. Bye week for the defense
Defensive Coordinators don’t sleep well the week of the Conrad Weiser-Fleetwood game.
The surest bet in town is that when the Scouts and Tigers get together the scoreboard will get a workout.
Things were no different Friday in Robesonia when the teams combined for 47 first downs, 13 touchdowns and nearly 1,100 total yards in Weiser’s deadline-busting 52-38 victory.
Quarterbacks Logan Klitsch of Conrad Weiser and Tanner Maddocks of Fleetwood each threw for career highs.
The Scouts have dominated the series, leading 12-1. They have averaged 45.6 points over that span.
The Tigers have had trouble keeping up with that; still, they have averaged over 23 points in the last 10 meetings.
3. Blazers on the rebound
Losing your best player on the second series of the season can be devastating for a football team, and it was for Daniel Boone, which saw quarterback/safety Carter Speyerer knocked out for the season on Aug. 27.
The Blazers had to go with a guy who had never taken a varsity snap to replace him, and it took time to adjust, but they’ve done it, with wins over Garden Spot and Conestoga Valley the past two weeks.
Blazers coach Rob Flowers had faith that his strong senior base could come together and be competitive, and they’ve shown that.
The schedule ahead is tough, with Berks Catholic, Gov. Mifflin and Exeter over the final five weeks, but a postseason berth is still in play.
