PIAA Class 5A Semi Final Preview: A Look at Strath Haven

Tagged under: District 1, District 12, News, Playoffs

Brendan Ricciardi | November 30, 2023

Strath Haven (13-1) @ Imhotep Charter (13-0) @ Coatesville HS – 7:00 pm

How they got here (Click to see 5A Bracket):

2023 Schedule

For the second time in three years, the Strath Haven Panthers are playing in the state semifinals. For the second time in three years, they will be playing Imhotep Institute Charter in this round. Let’s take a quick look at how they got to this point.

After a midseason loss at home to Marple Newtown, Strath Haven has ripped off six straight wins to make it to the state semifinals. They started out their playoff run with a dominant 42-6 win over Great Valley to get this thing going. They followed that up with a much tougher win against Upper Dublin, narrowly getting by with a 26-21 victory. In the District Semifinals, Strath Haven hung on to a 14-12 win after a Springfield kick came up just short as time expired, sending them to the district title once again. In an absolutely packed house, Strath Haven went on the road to take down Chester 28-20 to win their 13th District 1 title under Head Coach Kevin Clancy and advance to the state semifinals for the second time in three years. In 2021, they lost 36-0 to this same Imhotep team.

Keys on offense:

It’s easier said than done against a defense that has allowed just 96 points in 13 games (7.4 points a game), but Strath Haven needs to be able to run the ball effectively and control the clock. They are not going to win a shootout with this high powered Imhotep offense, that’s not the way that this team was built. They have a “three-headed monster” at running back with James Fisher, Marco Kaufman, and Shane Green that allows Coach Clancy to keep his backs fresh and effective. Fisher, still just a junior, has led the way so far with 154 carries for 1,334 yards and 18 TD’s on the year. Green has ran 197 times for 1,334 yards and 12 TD’s, while Kaufman has added 119 rushes for 638 and 9 TD’s. Last week showed a new dynamic for the Panthers offense as Jake Kitchin ran for three of his six TD’s on the year in that game alone. The Eagles aren’t the only local team running the “Brotherly Shove” goal line QB sneak right now. Kitchin has thrown the ball just 63 times this year, but he has solid numbers with 786 yards and an 8 TD/2 INT ratio. It is pretty rare to see Kitchin target anyone besides a running back, but TE Sean Henry caught a TD last week against Chester. The Panthers will have success in this game if they are able to continually run the ball and set up the play action game for some big plays.

Keys on defense:

In terms of pure numbers, it’s staggering how dominant two Strath Haven players have been on this defense. The defense as a whole has obviously been fantastic all year with just 191 points allowed in 14 games (13.6 a game). With that being said, Marco Kaufman and Sean Henry have over 50 more tackles than Shane Green, who is third on the list. Kaufman has 152, and Henry has 127. Fourth leading tackler Cole Miller was injured in the district championship against Chester, and it will be interesting to see if he is able to get back on the field because he is a big part of this defense. The Panthers defense has 12 interceptions in 14 games, with Jack Shuster having three to lead the way. AJ Glavicic had two in the same game against Springfield in the district semifinals, while Sean Henry and Ben Milligan also have two. Strath Haven has also forced 11 fumbles, with James Fisher recovering three of them. While Strath Haven is very strong against the run, they showed some ability to be beat by the pass with Chester QB Jalen Harris throwing for a 75 yard TD on the first play and nearly 200 yards on the day. That could be something that would hurt them with Division I recruit QB Mikal Davis (Army) lining up on the other side. In order for Strath Haven to win on defense, they may have to cheat a bit to help their secondary and hope their run defense is strong enough to get by. That is a tall task with Georgia recruit Jabree Wallace-Coleman running the football for Imhotep.

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