Southern Lehigh Visits Notre Dame Green Pond in Undefeated Top Ranked State Battle
Tagged under: District 11, Gameday Hub, News, pfn
john fox dan di edwardo | October 14, 2026
This Upcoming Friday Night at Notre Dame High School won’t just be any other game, it will be a chess match between two 7-0 state ranked teams featuring all the star power anyone can ask for. The defending District 11 4A champions, Southern Lehigh Spartans (now moved up to 5A) will take on the District 11 3A powerhouse Notre Dame Green Pond Crusaders. It will be a game that may set offensive records to the likes that haven’t been in a long time in Pennsylvania high school football.
The visiting Southern Lehigh Spartans are led by their senior QB Colton Sams, who recently climbed into the top 4 all time in District 11 passing yards of all time. This season Sams has 114 completions for 1,646 passing yards and 24 TDs with a long of 88. Sams can also use his legs in the rushing department, as he has 184 rushing yards, 3 TDs, and a long of 68. The offense also features the Spartans lead running back, Jack MoDavis, who leads the team in rushing with 570 yards and 7 TDs with a long of 76 yards, replacing longtime stalwart RB, Sean Steckert, who moved onto East Stroudsburg University. Southern Lehigh also has an explosive and deep WR core led by Otto Young, who has 532 yards and 8 TDs receiving with a long of 46. The Spartans WR2 is Jack Pavis, who has 331 yards and 6 TDs with a long of 88. The team’s WR3 is Jack Fistner, who has 216 yards and 4 TDs, with a long of 42. While the offense is the Spartan’s engine, the defense is led by star middle LB, Tanner Traub, who has 31 tackles, 2.5 sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss. The Spartans can compete with any team thrown their way and will be a tough matchup for the home team.
The Notre Dame Green Pond Crusaders will look to defend their home turf, as they have done all season, with their star junior QB, Tommy Murphy, leading the way. Murphy has 96 completions for 1,729 yards and 27 TDs to only 1 Int, with a long of 80. Like Sams for the Spartans, Murphy can also do damage on the ground, with 36 carries for 351 yards and 6 TDs with a long of 54. Assisting Murphy, is their ground and pound rushing attack, featuring lead RB Aaron Gordon, who has 369 yards on 30 carries and 8 TDs. Gordon also has fellow RB Jonathan Striba, with whom he splits carries. Striba has 145 yards on 22 carries and 3 TDs with a long of 42. Outside an explosive rushing attack for the Crusaders, their receiving attack is led by senior WR Drew Boyd, who has 25 receptions for 464 yards and 10 TDs and a long of 66. Their WR2 is Jonathan Striba, who has 16 receptions for 393 yards and 7 TDs with a long of 71. Their WR3 is Nyechay Lawless, who has 22 receptions for 338 yards and 4 TDs with a long of 56. Just like the Spartans, the Crusaders match them at every position offensively. Also like Tanner Traub of the Spartans, the Crusaders have their own defensive star leading charge with senior inside LB John Hull, who has 51 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, and 1 interception, that was a 56 yard pick 6. The Crusaders will give the Spartans all they can handle on both sides of the ball.
This game will come down to the team that makes the least amount of mistakes, since both teams are about as evenly matched as they come. It may come down to which defense or defensive star of Traub and Hull makes the most plays, because the game figures to be an offensive shootout in the high 30s or 40s with not a lot of defense. This game has a lot on the line for both teams and is a must see for everyone into PA high school football, so tune in to find out which powerhouse stays undefeated!
