We’ll be live streaming the first Malvern Prep home game tonight. Kick off is 7 p.m.
Oh, and it’s the biggest game of the season for everyone’s favorite team to doubt, unbeaten and barely unscored upon Episcopal Academy
I’ll be blabbering on the air with play-by-play guy and ESPN Radio’s Mike Mreczko.
Tonight
Episcopal Academy (7-0) at Malvern Prep (5-2)
Outside of handing Interboro its only loss of the season, Episcopal has not faced many “quality” opponents, a subjective term to describe teams that are widely considered legitimate foes or good measuring sticks, such PIAA district playoff contenders or league rivals that boast winning records.
Bursting with All-Delco-caliber talent on both sides of the ball, Episcopal has simply played the hand it has been dealt, pummeling the opposition by a total score of 274-14. Last week, the Churchmen defeated Springside ChestnutHill, 21-0. Cody Russell and Anthony Feliziani led a balanced rushing attack, though Russell, a key cog on defense at linebacker, could miss the rest of the year due to injury.
Malvern is EA’s toughest challenge to date. The preseason favorite to capture the league championship, the Friars feature of strong rushing game and tremendous size and strength in the trenches. Their quarterback, Billy “Moose” Fords, stands at 6-3, 225 pounds.
Actually, EA beat Chestnut Hill 21-0 last week. PC the week before. EA ran the most basic plays against CHA and threw the ball 3, 4 times tops to not show Malvern anything. CHA never made it past the 50 yard line on what has been a very stingy EA defense.
I’ll be at the game and will give my feedback after. I consider this a toss-up game. Malvern has home field advantage and better big game experience, but this is a very unique EA team with amazing chemistry and no real weaknesses. This is the game to see if EA has either been a bit over-rated given an easy schedule, or if they are the real deal. Honestly, we won’t find out until the game is over. EA has already won more games in the I-A and overall than the last two years combined, so this has already been a great year for EA regardless.
Both teams know the winner will take the league title barring a big upset after this game, so the stakes are huge. No playoffs in the I-A. This is essentially a winner take all playoff game. I expect a fierce battle and a great game.
Keeping my fingers crossed. I’m proud of this EA team regardless of the outcome.
I don’t think regardless of the outcome that EA has been a bit overated. Everyone is saying that Malvern is down this year which in my opinion is not true. They lost a 1 point game to Roman and lost to Lasalle and beat a very good Coatsville team. It should be a good game between two of the better teams in the area. GO EA!
Note I said “a bit” over-rated – not a singular over-rated. It is hard to say how good this EA team really is (just very good or one of better ones in SE PA) given the schedule – until now. If EA wins they are certainly not a bit over-rated, If they lose a close one they are not a bit over-rated. I hedged in case MP wins going away, which I really doubt will happen.
I’m just looking to be objective. I also prefer to under-promise and overachieve. For the naysayers, an EA win will be hard to refute, but I don’t count my eggs before they are hatched.
I hope this team proves me wrong and I should have been saying they would win going away all along. They are a special team and if they focus, follow their game plan and avoid penalties/turnovers they will be fine.
If players/coaches are reading, please prove me wrong in stating it is hard to say how good this team is up until now – and I’m talking undefeated good.
It’s one game at a time, and this is the defining game of the season. Play hard, play smart and play to win. Keep the focus and the pressure on the entire game. Don’t let up for one second. Be relentless and focus on each and every play as if it is the last one of the game.
Fixed. I copied the wrong draft to the blog. Thanks.
THEY ARE NOT OVER RATED !
I never said they were over-rated. Now we can certainly put to rest any thought that they are. I just needed to see them play some top notch competition in a very important game.
This is hands down the best team in Delco and a SE PA top 10 in my view. I’ll elaborate this weekend when I have time.
did ea win
Yes 26-7
They dominated a very good Malvern team on both sides of the ball.
I’ll give my feedback on the game and how I feel EA stacks up when I have time this weekend.
Andy. Not directed at you we are on the same side. Just a lot of negative remarks all season and they put that to rest tonight
hands down the best team in delco andy , … woooooah big guy slow waaaay down on that koolaid !! maybe the best of the private schools and se pa top ten in what category.? is that private school top 10 ? out of curiosity where ARE they ranked in the state ? you got your win , beat a decent team and remain undefeated congrats thats awesome but best in delco, thats a stretch. cant wait to hear this elaboration on how beating 1 good team does all that for u overnite. dude, bottom line ,that schedule still is what it is and always will be! great job on the big win though .. congrats churchmen, rock steady
Inquirer SE PA Top 10. I sat next to a guy who posts on PaPreps and he agreed and just posted that over there. This guy watches a ton of high school football games. Feels they would handle Ridley and probably beat Wood and give LaSalle a run for their money. This guy had never seen an Inter-Ac game, but he knows local high school football and was that impressed.
I’m out celebrating but will have more later.
Oh, and the Inky won’t rank them that high, but this guy and I are in agreement they should be there. I didn’t need him to tell me that after watching this game.
The Inky had their guy there tonight.
Anyway, I’ll say this: EA is beyond impressive at this point.
It’s been a while since Delco has had a complete package like this (2009 Ridley, maybe).
I’ll take EA’s skill players and LBs any day over LS.
Yeah, Chris Melchiorre and Rick O’Brien were live blogging for the Inky from the game – though Declo Times had ‘em beat with live streaming!
Some quotes (most was play-by-play):
Rick O’Brien: “I can’t believe I underrated Strouss and the Churchmen”
Rick O’Brien: “He could be first team all southeastern PA”
Chris Melchiorre: “Haven’t seen an EA team like this since the Chris Flynn era”
Chris Flynn was the star sophomore running back on the undefeated 1981 EA team when I was a junior.
0Greenken. Malvern beat coatsville who killed unionville I believe 41-0. GV beat unionville by 1. Springfield just lost to strath haven who gave up 68pts earlier this season. Maybe the current #1 teams schedule isn’t as tough as you want to believe. I personally believe Ridley is a very good team but their schedule isn’t murderes row as you would like everyone to believe. EA is as good as anyone in delco
three kids youre right its not murders row but HONESTLY who played a tougher schedule this year and every year ..ea or ridley? really- sit down with the schedules and give AN HONEST FOOTBALL OPINION love to hear it
Ken, have you seen Episcopal yet?
I’m pretty confident EA could handle most District One 4A teams.
just some clips not a full game but it doesnt matter ive never said they werent good ,just not the same league ,for alot of different reasons schedule included come on man look who they play! give one of these other teams ridley downingtown etc… that schedule and let them play it and see what happens youd get the same result big wins high scores been around delco football for 30+ years and have seen it all now, a few years ago when there was hype concerning wood v ridley at least wood was beating real legit teams all year and the hype was in fact real im so sorry but with that schedule its just hard for us old heads to take them that serious as i said they are playing good ball at their level and we will leave it at that just my opinion.. keep up the great work
Stats:
In the first half alone EA QB Strouss completed 11 of 16 passes for 226 yards with two touchdowns while rushing for 41 yards – in just the first half.
Strouss alone had more total yards in the first half than MP had for the entire game.
Strouss threw 28 times with 2 TD’s, no Int’s and was not sacked once. MP’s QB Moose Ford threw 18 times and was sacked 6 times by EA with no TD’s and one interception.
EA had no turnovers and only 2 penalties for 17 yards in their typical disciplined game. Strouss has yet to throw and Int all season.
D-back/wide receiver Ian Strain had 9 catches for 157 yards. There is a reason EA hardly threw the ball in its 1st two I-A games even though they have an excellent throwing offense out of the spread. Didn’t want to show MP anything, and the MP secondary was lost when EA went no huddle with 4 receivers.
Episcopal Academy 26, Malvern Prep 7
Episcopal Academy 7 13 0 6 – 26
Malvern Prep 7 0 0 0 – 7
Scoring
E-Strouss 5 run (Hager kick)
M-Ford 1 run (Dollfus kick)
E-Strain 33 pass from Strouss (Hager kick)
E-Gayhardt 36 pass from Strouss (kick failed)
E-Strain 4 run (pass failed)
Team Totals
EA MP
First downs 18 13
Yards rushing 130 101
Yards passing 252 97
Total yards 382 198
Passing 14-28-2-0 10-18-0-1
Fumbles-lost 0-0 2-1
Punts-avg 2-33.5 5-31.0
Penalties-yds 2-17 6-28
Individual Statistics
Rushing: EA: Strouss 20-85, TD; Fellazini 11-36; Smith 3-5; Strain 3-4, TD. MP: Gallen 8-59; Bohs 7-45; Purnell 6-9; Ford 10 (-26), TD.
Passing: EA: Strouss 13-24-0 251 yards, 2TD; Whayland 1-4-0 1 yards. MP: Ford: 10-18-1 97 yards.
Receiving: EA: Strain 9-157, TD; Gayhardt 1-36, TD; Hager 3-47; Perretti 1-12. MP: Carlini 6-60; Ammermann 1-16; Gallen 1-22; Bohs 1 (-9).
Sacks: EA: Butts 2, Mclauhglin, McAvoy, Addona, Ibarguen. MP: None.
Interceptions: EA: Strain. MP: None.
Let me start off by saying that I am neither a Ridley nor Episcopal fan, so I am actually unbiased unlike greenken and Andy. But I have seen both teams play, and there is no doubt in my mind that Ridley would beat EA if the teams played. Yes Episcopal is having a good year and they are fun to watch, but its ridiculous to mention them in the same sentence as SJP-LaSalle-DTE. All 3 of these teams would beat EA by 2 scores. Ridley has been struggling offensively, but EA hasn’t seen a defense anywhere near as tough as Ridley’s. You can say all you want about how the teams faired against common opponents/similar teams/etc but if you actually put these two teams on the same field, Ridley comes out on top. Unfortunately they won’t play so the argument will continue.
At least Ridley will get a chance to prove themselves against actual competition in the District 1 playoffs, while EA will just continue to roll over sub-par teams.
If you consider malvern prep and interboro sub par teams you have a point. I guess springfield and GV are super teams in your unbiases opinion
I have posted before Ridley is a very good team and don’t want to take anything away form them. They have shown resilience in winning close games. I will try and be objective (and your posted as unbiased as it says nothing about the actual trams and their players).
EA has dominated its two best opponents in Interboro and Malvern on both sides of the ball.
Ridley needed a slew of GV turnovers to come back from down 17-7 in the third, but I gave them credit for doing that and winning back then. However, they did not dominate GV like EA has its tough opponents.
Ridley only beat Springfield 7-3 and Springfield just lost to Strath Haven which gave up 68 points to a 2A team.
Who has done best in their tough games?
Ridley has a great D. Especially their front 7.
However, EA runs the spread close to perfection and a well run spread really neutralizes a strong front 7 and Ridley has been susceptible to the pass.
We will have to agree to disagree. I have seen both teams play. I laid off saying EA was better than Ridley until last night.
The difference is EA QB Strouss. A great QB is a difference maker, and that is the difference between EA and Ridley. If EA was not strong at QB it might be a different story.
Dougherty is the best LB in Delco next to Galambos at HS, but I feel EA has a better LB core. Strain is every bit as good as Crowley on both sides of the ball but bigger. EA’s other receivers go 6’3 and 6’5 and are very athletic so EA has Ridley in receiving as well as QB. Not sure about Ridley’s TE, but EA has an excellent one at 6’4 215.
EA is stronger in the defensive backfield. I give Ridley an edge in the trenches, but the spread really neutralizes that and EA’s D-line is great a freeing their linebackers.
Ridley is a very good team, but EA has the players and that special chemistry. They don’t turn the ball over or get many penalties.
You are right, it’s all opinion since they don’t play. I have offered mine by breaking the teams down. If others want to disagree on my breakdown, let’s have a discussion.
Forgot RB. Ridley is stronger at RB like EA is stronger at QB.
I stand by Strouss being the difference maker and expect him to be Delco player of the year.
I agree after watching both EA and Ridley games, this would be one great game and I couldn’t pick the winner. I’m an unbiased Delco football fan but feel Ridley’s offense and pass defense are under estimated. I would give the offensive advantage to EA however Ridley’s offensive issues are not due to talent. Ridley is loaded with talent and their receivers get almost everything thrown to them. The problem is offensive coaching and play calling. I would like to see the stats on passing against Ridley because I have not seen a whole lot of success passing against them. The Crowley kid is a flat out beast. He is all over the field and not much gets past him. All said… I wish both these great teams continued success this year.
if qb is a factor thats a shame as ridley runs their qb situation different then most teams and normally only have 1yr sr qbs so they ,in my opinion never get to fully gel and sometimes it hurts but thats the way its been for years with maybe 2 exceptions (decker- the current coach),( matty blundin -who played pro) and thats what we live with, as you cant argue with the record theyve obtained doin it that way ,it just doesnt lie…. all they do is win baby
being left out of the discussion is the sheer talent pool some but not all IA teams draw from (All Boys Malvern, Haverford aside). Wonder how awesome these schools would fair with the same talent pool? you’re right, not possible to compare. Congrats to both teams and good luck in pursuing a good education to all!
i couldnt agree more …wood ,lasalle. ridley like i said waaay too much koolaid -good but but not in the same breath
The Springfield game was definitely Ridley’s worst offensive showing of the year, I’ll give you that. If they played the way they did that day, EA would beat them by 2 scores. To respond to threekids first, no I do not think Springfield is a “super team”. In fact, I think they are just a slightly above average squad. They’ve squeaked by a lot of bad Central League teams like Harriton and Upper Darby. They got lucky with scheduling because they avoided Haverford and Conestoga this year or else they would have 2 more losses. They only have one good win (against GV who I do think is a good football team so I give them credit for that game). So yes, that makes Ridley only beating them 7-3 look that much less impressive, but it was a rivalry game and we all know crazy things can happen in those games. And while the offense was bad, they still completely dominated on the defensive side of the football.
I agree with you that EA has a much better QB, and the WR’s probably have a slight edge over Ridley’s as well. But EA’s offensive isn’t going up against Ridley’s offense, they have to go up there against the top defense in DELCO. And its been said a million times, offense wins games but defense wins championships. In a big game I’d take a good defense over a good offense.
I don’t know if you’ve seen Haverford High play, but they have a pretty scary spread offense pretty similar to EA’s except they run a lot more. They have a great QB Durkin who can beat you through the air and on the ground. Their RB Leyden is one of the best backs in the area, great combination of speed and toughness. And they have some pretty skilled WR’s in Syndor and Thorton. Just like EA, they’ve been scoring at will on their opponents, averaging about 40 points a game. They’re a nightmare because they can both pass and run so well. But against Ridley, they were shut down. Ridley won 23-14 and the last touchdown Haverford scored was really meaningless since it was towards the end when Ridley was sitting back in a prevent defense and the game was already decided. I would expect a very similar outcome if Ridley played EA because that’s what Ridley does: make good offenses look bad.
And the 2A team that Strath Haven gave up 68 points to happens to be undefeated and ranked #3 in the state for 2A. Haven is playing much better lately and would not give up that many points if they played them right now, but its not like they played some no-name small school…
I would have to agree with your assesment of both teams. Episcopal’s offense is similar to Haverford’s and there is no denying Ridleys defense is very strong. I noticed that you didn’t mention Episcopal’s defense though? I am curious why you see an Episcopal Ridley match up having a similar out come to Ridley’s game against Haverford considering Episcopal’s defense has let up a combined 7 points against their two toughest opponents this year (Interboro and Malvern).
The HHS comparison is an interesting one, but they don’t have the D EA has.
Makes me want catch HHS/GV this weekend, but it probably conflicts with EA/GA but I will have to look it up. That should be a great game.
Ridley’s D may be better than EA’s, but not by much. IMO (which others can certainly disagree with) I see them both having similar quality D’s. I don’t see EA’s linebackers (as a group – Dougherty is the best LB on either team) being any worse than Ridley. I personally give them a slight edge. I give EA’s D-backs a slight edge. I give Ridley’s D-line the edge.
If you look at the two sides of the ball, one reason I believe EA is a better team is their offense is much better than Ridley and their D is one of the few in Delco you can put up there with Ridley.
Again, this is all opinion and my view based on seeing both play. I’m not saying EA would put up 40 on Ridley, but I also see Ridley having a lot of trouble putting points up on EA. I don’t see the HHS D being close to EA. They gave up 28, 26, 31, 23, 35 to Stoga, SH, Harriton, Octara and Penncrest respectively – not exactly world beaters and Ridley only managed to score 23 on HHS. EA has given up 21 all season and 7 to their two top opponents.
The reason HHS/EA is not a great team comparison is HHS does not play as well on both sides of the ball as EA.
I just give EA better balance in having a very good D and O while Ridley has struggled on offense.
I saw GV move the ball pretty well against Ridley with the QB running the option and throwing effective screens and swing passes to wide receivers while missing some open receives over the middle with high passes in putting 17 points up after 3 quarters before they started fumbling and muffing punts – and too Ridley’s credit they went for the jugular and took advantage of it – which is the sign of winner and both these teams are winners. However, EA is a very disciplined team that rarely turns the ball over and hardly gets any penalties so I don’t see them giving Ridley that benefit. Malvern is physical and EA did not put the ball on the ground once and no Int’s in 28 passes. Anybody know how many turnovers HHS had against Ridley?
Knowing the EA offense well, I just see the EA offense moving the ball against Ridley based on what I saw in the Ridley/GV game, but then that is just one game. Since GV could put up 17 on Ridley in 3 quarters before they started dropping the ball, I see EA putting up 21 or 24. I also don’t see Ridley putting up more than 14 on EA’s D.
Again, just my opinion. Others can certainly disagree.
HHS threw 4 interceptions and lost two fumbles to Ridley in their Sept. 7 game where Ridley won 23-15.
I expect HHS would have put more points on the board without 6 turnovers.
While I am sure some of the credit goes to Ridley’s D for forcing some turnovers, EA’s offense simply does not turn the ball over. No fumbles or Int’s against their two toughest opponents and hardly any all season.
Let me clarify, I wasn’t trying to say Haverford is as good of a team as EA is, because you are right EA’s defense is much better than Haverford’s (even though some of the stats for the HHS D are misleading because many of their games they were up big and had the JV in at the end). I was just comparing their offenses, where I do think Haverford is right with EA on this side of the ball. I have seen Haverford twice this year (the Ridley game and the SH game), and it looked like I was watching 2 different teams. Against Strath Haven they did whatever they wanted, but against Ridley they had a hard time getting anything going.
I think it can be frustrating for teams like Haverford and EA to go up against a defense like Ridley. When you’re so used to moving the ball at will, its easy for high school kids to get discouraged when Ridley takes away the things your offense does so well. Ridley is great at forcing turnovers, as I know you saw in the Garnet Valley game. Very similar against Haverford. I think Durkin has only thrown 6 picks all year, and FOUR of them were in the Ridley game. They also fumbled once or twice if I remember correctly. But again, Haverford has not turned the ball over much in any of their other games, but going up against Ridley is a different story. Its so tough to run the ball against Ridley’s front 7 that they basically turn you into a one-dimensional team. And when they know you have to throw the ball, they can get after the QB and force tough throws. There’s just a certain intangible about Ridley that you can’t really explain but they just always find a way to win. The kids are the toughest around and if they were matched up against EA I can assure you they’d rise to the challenge.
It would be a great game and but I think Ridley wins 20-14 or so. So basically our opinions are pretty similar since you’re predicting a 21-14 EA win, I just think EA will have one less score and Ridley will have one more, possibly a score off a turnover like they did in the Haverford and Garnet Valley games. I know its been said a million times but EA just hasn’t played a defense even close to Ridley’s level. Its a shame they play in the Inter-Ac because I would like to see how they fair against the top teams in the PCL and District 1.
You make good points.
Both teams have intangibles. I have posted before about how Ridley’s senior leadership is a huge plus. They refuse to lose.
EA has similar intangibles. I have posted the comparison to the lacrosse team and how they turned around from an average team to a national top 10 with amazing team chemistry and senior leadership with the same players as the year before.
This EA football team has that senior leadership and some of those lax players and amazing chemistry. I feel the same thing with the football team.
If they played, I don’t see EA getting rattled by Ridley’s D, though. Both teams are very mentally tough.
I also don’t think Ridley has faced a D like EA, though I don’t think they would be rattled by it either.
Still, their offense is a concern in my opinion. They got 4 Int’s and two fumbles against HHS and only put up 23. Only 7 against Springfield. I don’t see Ridley putting up 20 on EA like you suggested, but I respect you opinion. Well thought out and objective and can respect your argument.
We will never know and I agree it would be great to see EA in the post season, but since the I-A and PIAA could not make it work and dropped it for lax, I doubt it will ever happen in football.
Andy,
It amazes me that people are still underestimating Episcopal. I’ve come away more impressed with EA than I have Ridley. I agree that, in most respects, EA and Ridley match up pretty well. EA, though, has the decided edge at QB.
Different brands of football, but both are deserving of recognition as the No. 1 team in the county.
Matt Smith,
I’m not underestimating EA. I think they are a very sound football team on both sides of the ball and they would be a tough game for whoever they played. I think they’re a top 10 team in SEPA and a top 2 team in DELCO. I just don’t think they’re in that “top tier” with SJP, DTE, and LaSalle, but I think they’d be competitive against that next tier of teams (Ridley, Wood, Pennridge, CB South, North Penn, Pennsbury, etc). I just think if they played Ridley and I had to put my money on one team, I’d pick Ridley. Could EA beat Ridley? Sure. But would they if they actually played? I don’t think so.
I don’t think anybody is saying EA is top 5 SE PA. They are top 10 in my view – though the Inky won’t rank them that high.
Very even with Ridley with posters disagreeing which of those two is better with good arguments both ways.
i agree football fan ..but apparently ea is the only team capable of running spread offense and when did ridleys pass defense get soft who threw on them ?
youre the man footballfan
I agree greenken I thought Ridley’s pass defense was pretty good. Their defense as a whole doesn’t really have too many weaknesses!
HHS had SIX turnovers in their game against Ridley, and Ridley ONLY won by 8 points? I think it says that the Offense had a tough night not the defense. The defense held them from scoring off those 6 turnovers. Most people comment on EA and Ridley, although EA wont have playoffs , I think HHS will be the big surprise this post season.
I’m looking forward to both 3A and 4A in D1 in the post season. I think there is a lot of balance and will be some great games.
I agree after watching both EA and Ridley games, this would be one great game and I couldn’t pick the winner. I’m an unbiased Delco football fan but feel Ridley’s offense and pass defense are under estimated. I would give the offensive advantage to EA however Ridley’s offensive issues are not due to talent. Ridley is loaded with talent and their receivers get almost everything thrown to them. The problem is offensive coaching and play calling. I would like to see the stats on passing against Ridley because I have not seen a whole lot of success passing against them. The Crowley kid is a flat out beast. He is all over the field and not much gets past him. All said… I wish both these great teams continued success this year.
Coaching is critical and with Ridley supporters questioning the play calling/game plans here and on other forums I hope they figure it out for the playoffs. The offense has talent. Just don’t seem in sync.
Crowely is great, but don’t underestimate Strain for EA at receiver/D-back. Just as fast and instinctive as Crowley but bigger – and both are lax players too. Strain has a full scholarship to Lehigh for lacrosse. You don’t get a full ride to a top 10 national lax program at middie unless you have blazing speed. Strain just had 9 receptions for 157 yards and a an interception against a very good Malvern team.
To bad the two teams don’t play. Just watching those two go head-to-head on both sides of the ball would be worth the admission.
Agree with you on figuring out the offense going into the playoffs. I never underestimated Strain…I think he’s a great player and really enjoy watching him play. I was stating that people say that Ridley pass D if suspect and I havent seen a whole lot of success passing against them. I do think Crowley/Strain are two very comparable talents. Sounds like you’re taking a shot at the Crowley kid though. He plays a whole lot bigger than his size and gets half the targets than most other players (due to Ridleys offense) but makes the most of his opportunities. Don’t know where lax came into this but I do hear they are both really good lax players and that Crowley is getting a lot of college attention also. Look forward to following both these great athletes at the next level along with the other great athletes from DELCO. Once again wish both these two great teams success going forward, will be rooting them both on.
Hey Andy,
I have to get into the lax a little more, always been a baseball, football, basketball guy but lax is getting pretty big. I’m more familiar with the Interboro, Ridley, Haven and Sun Valley kids being from this area but love watching and following the kids from Delco area excel. I just found out that Mike Crowley and Ian Strain are friends and team mates on the headstrong lax teams. Watching these two would definitely be worth the price of admission.