2026 Cement Bowl: Northampton and Whitehall renew Rivalry in 94th All Time Matchup

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john fox dan di edwardo | September 9, 2026

Dating back to 1925, the Northampton Konkrete Kids and Whitehall Zephyrs have competed against each other in a longstanding rivalry. Since 1983, the games have been annually and are now known as the Cement Bowl. The game symbolizes the industrial and rich heritage of the Lehigh Valley cement companies shared by Northampton and Whitehall along the Lehigh River. Northampton narrowly leads the all time series 44-43-6 after Whitehall claimed a thrilling 56-49 victory last year in Northampton. This year’s game will have extra emotion to it because it takes place on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The game will be played at Zephyr Stadium in Whitehall and have plenty of other storylines surrounding both teams.

The home team Whitehall Zephyrs are in their historic 100th season and are led by their senior QB Tanner Dogmanits and head coach Andy Marino, who has been at the helm since 2023. Dogmanits threw for 2,293 yards and 24 TDs last year and was statistically the 2nd best QB in the EPC to now graduated Liberty QB, Antonio Fontanez. Tanner also had a strong supporting cast, headlined by his older brother Talon Dogmanits, who had 57 receptions for 1,101 yards and 14 TDs in his senior year. Returning senior tailback Jeziah Gregory ran for 1,049 yards and 20 TDs and continues to be a key factor on offense. Whitehall will look to right the ship after falling 49-13 in their home opener to Nazareth and improve to 2-1 on the season.

The away team Northampton Konkrete Kids will look to go 3-0 on the season after routing Martin Luther King on the road 35-6 in week 1 and narrowly escaping Delaware Valley at home 28-24 in week 2 after a late game sealing INT. They are lead by their new junior QB, Zion McKinney, who is replacing longtime starter Gavin Taff and coached by John Toman, who has been at the helm since 2021. Returning junior running back Chase Kessler is building upon a strong sophomore campaign that included 188 rushes for 1,482 yards and 15 TDs. Although Northampton features many new faces on offense, they have shown resilience when they’ve been punched in the mouth, and did so after falling behind 14-0 in their last game.

I expect a close and hard fought game between both teams, as has been the case in this rivalry throughout the years. Whitehall is trying to prove that lopsided home loss to Nazareth was a fluke and that they can repeat as District 11 5A Champions. Northampton is trying to prove that their undefeated start is for real and have extra motivation to recapture the Cement Bowl Trophy that Whitehall took back last year. Whitehall may have the home field advantage, but that hasn’t mattered the past 3 years, with the away team claiming the trophy each time. I think Northampton’s resilience goes on display again, as they improve to 3-0 on the year and make it 4 straight years the away team claims the trophy and pull away late in a 35-31 hard fought victory.