District 12 Playoff Preview Philadelphia Public League

Tagged under: District 12, Gameday Hub

Anthony Franklin | October 26, 2022

It’s that time of the year where the pretenders are exposed, and the contenders rise up as its now officially playoff time. In the Public League there are 4 classifications with playoffs to determine each classification’s Public League Champion who will meet the Catholic League’s representative in the District 12 City Championship game with the winner advancing through the state PIAA playoffs. The league awards playoff spots based upon the division teams play in as well as their overall record.

6A Playoff Preview

Thursday 10/27 @3pm

#8 Academy at Palumbo @ #1 Northeast: Palumbo comes into the playoffs as the #8 seed with a 5-3 record. Their wins were over Dobbins (22-0), Fels (34-8), Mastbaum (22-6) and Edison (24-0). Their losses were by wide margins as well (Overbrook 30-8, Kensington 42-0 and HS of the Future (30-0), They’ll need to run the ball effectively and win the TOP against a dangerous Vikings team. On the other side NE is the defending Public League 6 A Champs. Led by HC Eric Clark and finished 6-2 in the regular season with wins over (Springside Chestnut Hill, Gratz, Frankford, Winslow (NJ), Bartram & Cheltenham. Their two losses were to Imhotep (28-0) and Wood (14-6). The Vikings have the depth, size and better competition played on their side. Barring them overlooking Palumbo they should win large. Key players for the Vikings in this game would be how well their QB’s can throw the ball. The further they get into the 6A bracket the more they’ll need to be able to move the ball in the air. Their bread and butter has been a strong and deep backfield with Andre Staley, James Bermudez and Kahmir Prescott. They do have size and athleticism at the WR position should they decide to put the ball in the air.

Prediction: Northeast 38 Academy at Palumbo 0

Friday 10/28 @3pm

#5 Kensington (6-3) @ #4 Central (2-6): Talk about a tale of two seasons. In the opening game the Central Lancers lost 80-0 to Chester, were the butt of many jokes online and in media publications. They would redeem themselves beating Vaux 42-0 the following week. They’d get one more win on the season upsetting MLK 29-18. Despite Central having the worser record they got the higher seed and home game due to being in the 2nd tier division while Kensington benefited from playing in the 3rd tier division and winning their division. Kensington won big games against George Washington (30-22), Academy at Palumbo (42-0) and South Philly (50-6) while suffering their lone division lost to Belmont (40-22). They’re well prepared for this game though with tough non league games against Strath Haven (50-6 loss) and Collingwood NJ (21-6 loss). Look for Central to try and run the ball early and often. The Tigers offense is their big weapon they score in bunches and defensively like to crowd the LOS.

Prediction: Kensington 40 Central 12

Friday 10/29 @3pm: Simon Gratz Supersite

#7 South Philadelphia (3-3) v #2 Olney (5-3): The Southern Rams are led by all-purpose athlete Razan Parker who leads the team with 19 total TDs and 1393 total yards from scrimmage. Frankly the Rams go as Razan goes. He’s the key component to their success. They have solid wins over Fels (44-0) & Overbrook (40-20) while having been soundly defeated by Kensington (50-6) & George Washington (51-26). Olney on the other hand had pretty good success within their top division knocking off Bartram, Gratz and Frankford. Their game with Northeast was cancelled so they had one less division game than originally scheduled. Out of conference they gained solid wins over Father Judge 12-9 and Chichester (20-7). The Trojans have the better schedule and should be able to limit the damage Razan does to give them the upper hand.

Prediction: Olney 34 South Philly 18

Friday 10/29 @3pm @Abraham Lincoln

#6 George Washington (7-2) @ #3 Abraham Lincoln (6-3): The game of the week in this classification for sure will be a dog fight. Two old rivals who both have revived their programs and look to dethrone the current champ. First, they must battle for the right to advance to the semi-finals. Washington finished second in the 3rd tier division losing to division champion Belmont (16-6) and Kensington (30-22). They did manage to win an impressive non-league game over Frankford (14-12). The Eagles have scored a whopping 300 points in 9 games (33 points per game). Lincoln started the season off with 2 out of conference losses (Cedar Crest 12-21) and Central Catholic (22-35) before catching fire within conference play and outscoring their opponents 237-47. Both coaching staffs are top notch in the league and this will be a dog fight. The biggest key for Washington will be defensively forcing turnovers. Lincoln’s offense is high tempo and equally good with passing and running. The difference in this game will come down to the skill position players making the big play.

Prediction: Lincoln 32 Washington 24

5A Playoff Preview

Thursday 10/27 3pm @ Simon Gratz Supersite

#7 Ben Franklin (0-7) @ #2 Simon Gratz (4-4): The Electrons low on numbers sat out the first two weeks of the season before finally getting into competition. Unfortunately they’ve struggled mightily offensively as they’ve yet to register a single point and been shut out 8 consecutive games. This week will be a monstrous task as they’re taking on a hungry Bulldog team who will be home and have survived defeats at juggernauts Northeast and Germantown Academy. This matchup will be one that will probably utilize the mercy rule and unfortunately Franklin will be idle for almost a month before their season concludes with the annual Thanksgiving game against Dobbins.

Prediction: Simon Gratz 44 Franklin 0

Friday 10/28 3pm @ Germantown Supersite

#8 Dobbins Randolph (5-2) @ #1 Imhotep (4-2): The Mustangs of Dobbins after sitting out the 2021 season return to league action and earned a playoff berth. They won over Vaux, Fels, Edison & Roxborough by a combined score of 120-24. Their two losses however were by large margins as they were shut out 22-0 by Palumbo & HS of the Future 36-0. Imhotep is the reigning 5A Public League and are strong favorites to once again repeat as league champions. They ran through their divisional games posting shutouts in the 3 league contests they were able to play while scoring a whopping 120 points. The Panthers have found ground with their passing attack lately this season which bodes well for their chances of advancing back to the state finals when teams load the box and dare them to throw.

Prediction Tep 48 Dobbins 0

Friday 10/28/ 3pm @Frankford Stadium

#6 Martin Luther King (2-7) @ #3 Frankford (1-8): These two teams met last season in the 5A semifinals where Frankford outlasted a scrappy, youthful MLK team to advance to the 5A Pub finals. The Cougars won 2 games this year against Belmont (30-14) & Ben Franklin (38-0). Their losses within division play (Boys Latin 12-14), Mastery (12-21) and West Philly (18-20) were competitive. The big losses were against Lincoln (38-6), Springside Chestnut Hill (48-16) and Wilson (37-0). Frankford has 1 win under their belt (Ben Franklin 22-0) while losing via shutout in 3 games Ryan 34-0, Imhotep 57-0, & Northeast 23-0. Due to their records a year ago both teams flipped divisions & neither found the success many thought they’d find in their new homes. Frankford still hasn’t found their grove offensively averaging less than 10 points per game while giving up 27 points per game. King on has had a little more success offensively averaging 14 points per game while giving up roughly 23 points per game. Look for a lower scoring game and both teams at time to be physical knowing there won’t be many scoring opportunities.

Prediction: MLK 13 Frankford 8

Saturday 10/29 @1pm @ Germantown Supersite

#5 West Philadelphia (5-3) @ Mastery Charter North (7-2): This is a rematch from a few weeks ago as the Speedboys took a 14-6 lead into the 4th quarter before collapsing and falling 22-14. Both teams are pretty evenly matched and should provide an entertaining game. Mastery has the stingier defense and more explosive offense however the Speedboys are riding high off of their double OT win over MLK last Friday. The key will come down to who limits their turnovers and capitalizes on redzone opportunities.

Prediction West Philadelphia 18 Mastery 16

4A Playoff Preview

Friday 10/28 @3PM @South Philadelphia Supersite

#3 Overbrook (4-4) @ #2 Boys Latin Charter (3-6): The Overbrook Panthers started the season off red hot outscoring their first 3 opponents Vaux, Palumbo & Kipp DuBois by a combined 102-8. However, in week 4 they were upset at Roxborough and that started a 4-game stretch where they’d be outscored 139-42. Last week they got back into the win column with a hard fought 8-0 win over Ben Franklin. Boys Latin started the season with 2 tough non-league games against Marple Newton & Lansdale Catholic taking their lumps in defeat 42-6 and 48-18. They dropped their opening league games to West Philly (28-16) and Lincoln (47-14) before gaining some traction routing Franklin (47-0) and defeating MLK in a highly competitive game (14-12). They also routed Central (34-7) before losing last week to Mastery (35-12). BL relies heavily on Semaj Carmichael offensively as he averages around 80 yards per game to ignite the offense. Junior WR Jayden Baker leads the team with 4 receiving TDs. For Overbrook So. athlete Jineer Fogan and Mekhi Gordon lead them offensively and will need to carry the load for the Panthers to advance to the 4A finals.

Prediction Boys Latin 21 Overbrook 16

Saturday 10/29 @1pm @John Bartram

#4 School of the Future (6-3) @ #1 John Bartram: The Firebirds have done what most coaches expect win the games you’re favored to win and just compete in the non-league games and the games we are the underdogs. They were able to get a few big school transfers (Rayshawn Scott from NE is the big fish) who have big game experience which helped them in their conference games where they pretty much ran through the competition. They outscored Mastbaum, Dobbins, Palumbo and Edison by a combined 144-14. They didn’t fare as well in non-league games where they lost to West Philly (32-6) and West Catholic (45-6).  For the Braves they are the defending Public League 4A champs and have to feel mighty confident heading into the post season to hopefully claim the 4A District 12 title. While being young and inexperienced they took some lumps early on losing games they probably shouldn’t have. They fell in week 1 to JP McCaskey then were shutout against Chester before finally earning a win at Capital Prep (NY). Their last non-league game was competitive before falling to Pope John Paul II (39-21). They play in the top Pub division and lost to Olney (14-8) and Northeast (21-6) while winning over Frankford (22-12) and Simon Gratz (20-18). One Bartram player during their playoff run to pay attention to is Junior Athlete Jabri Hargrove who is a jack of all trades and dangerous with the ball in his hands.

Prediction Bartram 30 Future 6

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