Hold Your Nerve
Upper Perk avoids collapse, outlasts Phoenixville
PHOENIXVILLE>> After a 2-2 start during the early non-league portion of the football schedule, Phoenixville began the Pioneer Athletic Conference portion of its slate with a 47-35 setback against Upper Perkiomen in Red Hill on Sept. 23.
The Indians moved out to a big early lead before the Phantoms made a strong comeback that fell short.
“We knew that Upper Perk had a really good offense with very good skill players,” said Phoenixville coach Evan Breisblatt. “We knew going into the game we would have to score a lot of points to be in the game. We thought 35 points would be enough, but unfortunately it wasn’t. We got down 35-14 and we could have packed it ink but we got three-four stops and got the game to 35-41. We had an opportunity to get the ball backbit we made an uncharacteristic mistake and had 12 guys on our punt return team. We went four games and three quarters with never making that mistake. That ultimately sealed the game.”
Phantom quarter back Todd Rossman had his career best with 15-for-22 for 277 yards and two touchdowns.
“I thought Troy had his best game of his career,” said Breisblatt. “He was able to zip the ball into our receivers’ hands, and they were able to use their athletic abilities to extend plays.”
Nasir Green had his career best 169 yards and also had two touchdowns.
“Nasir showed why he is one of the fastest players in
the PAC, taking two slant plays for big distance,” said Breisblatt.
Matt Garcia, with a defense keyed on stopping him with an eight-man box, continued his amazing season by running for 238 yards and three touchdowns to reach 845 yards rushing for the season.
“He is a beast; he should go down as one of the best backs in Phoenixville history,” said Breisblatt. “He has amazing strength and quickness, perfect for our one-back zone schemes.”
Receivers Matt Osisek-Byrne, Shyheim Abernathy and Durron Johnson all had multiple catches.
The offensive line has been doing a great job all season, according to Breisblatt, and those guys up front hoped to see Garcia reach the 1,000-yard plateau against Pope John Paul II on Sept. 30. Left tackle Jon Miller, a 6-2, 290-pound junior, is considered one of the top two-way linemen in the league. He is in his third season as a starter.
Others up front include Xander Crawford, Sean Sabo, Ricky Williams and Bryce Thompson, with Corey Washington also seeing a lot of time. Tight ends are Johnson and Matt Branch.
“Defensively, we need to step up this week as we did against Upper Moreland and Chichester,” said Breisblatt. “We are led by linebackers Garcia, (Kyle) Bennick, Durron Johnson and free safety Bobby Strunk. We need Matt Branch to put some pressure on the quarterback.
“We are looking forward to get back out on Friday night to play PJP. The kids enjoy the local rival, and we have had two very close games the past couple of years.”