SCA Slams Sock
Tagged under: District 4, Gameday Hub, News
Dave Fegley | August 30, 2025
Tigers Lance Lancers
Southern Columbia obviously didn’t like the fact that Loyalsock won three years ago in the regular season against the Tigers.
That year ended with the sixth of a record seven straight PIAA Class 2A championships for Jim Roth’s program.
After falling to Wyomissing in the season opener for a second year in a row, Southern rebounded with a shutout Mercy Rule win against the Lancers.
In the 2024 meeting, Roth and defensive coordinator Andy Mills became the first two coaches in Pennsylvania to accumulate 500 wins.
Last night won’t go down in history as that historical win will live on forever, but the Tigers played nearly flawless in all three facets.
The Tigers only needed 299 yards of offense to score six touchdowns on their way to a 41-0 win which brings their last three wins over the Lycoming County squad to a combined 124-7 scoring advantage.
It wasn’t as if the offense wasn’t that effective, it was more about the way the defense played, and the special teams set up field position in the Tiger rout.
In the opener, Wyomissing gashed the Tigers in the run game. This week was a complete turnaround.
“The key was making sure we would do a good job against Loyalsock’s passing. There in the first half in the first series they were driving the ball, and we always stress to our front and linebackers that getting pressure is critical and we were able to get pressure on them. Their quarterback threw the ball away and we had some sacks,” Southern’s architect Jim Roth said about his DC’s defense.
Southern had five different players reach the end zone, sophomore Grady Garcia did so twice, as the Tigers needed less than 300 yards of offense to establish a Mercy Rule win.
“The offensive line did really good. There were a lot of holes open, and the tight ends did their job blocking as well. The lead blockers did the job out of the backfield, and we just had a great performance overall as a team,” said Garcia.
Chase Williams looked like the perfect candidate of protect and attack heading into Labor Day Weekend with his execution on defense and special teams.
“During the preseason we put an emphasis on getting more pressure on the quarterbacks that we face. I didn’t feel I played very good last week, so I wanted to do my best to make up for it. I played with a chip on my shoulder this week,” said Williams who had multiple sacks in the victory.
Even though SCA dominated, there was only one turnover in the game. Tiger senior Caius Morrow was the recipient of it as he intercepted a Danny Dowell pass in one of the few times he could get the ball off without scrambling for his life.
“I just tried making a play and it worked out,” Morrow said.
In a game that the Tigers were trying to get back on the winning path after last week’s loss, the coaching staff was trying to mold combinations that work on either side of the ball. Morrow took advantage of his opportunity.
“I jammed the guy off the line. I didn’t think the ball was coming my way, but I saw it and was able to intercept it,” Morrow said. “It is really important to stay ready this year because we have a lot of guys in positions to play. Last week, I got pulled for making a mistake and in this game, I went in for a teammate that made a mistake. We all want to do the best for the team when we are in.”
Southern was able to establish the run in the win.
“Executing assignments appeared to be much better in this game. We will go back and look at the tape to make sure everybody did their job. The bottom line is this. You need to see players respond after a loss. I saw guys play with an edge tonight and hopefully we can get more momentum now after this win,” said Roth.
The Tigers host Milton on Friday as they look to get more momentum.
“”One thing different about this team compared to the past number of years where we had studs, we need these players to realize that they will be called upon and they are expected to make plays,” Roth said.
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