Great Eastern Football Association Season began last weekend. Hightlights, Pics and video from Tomahawks 41-0 win over Skyhawks

Tagged under: 8-Man League, News, Semi-Pro

Billy Splain | March 26, 2023

So this weekend we tried out a little something different. The GEFA (Great Eastern Football Association) is an 8 man semi-pro league here in PA that currently has 14 teams scattered throughout central and eastern PA. From Somerset to Scranton, Berwick to Reading, Phillipsburg to Harrisburg. See the current teams HERE It’s a league that’s been around for quite some time now, but only recently has it begun to “step up it’s game”. (more on that in a bit). So, I came across a post on social media about a game in my area being played between the Mifflin County Tomahawks and the Skyhawks of Dickson City (near Scranton) at nearby Kish Park Field. A few conversations with league president James Simerson to find out more about the league, and off I was to Kish Park the next morning to witness some semi-pro ball.

Check out the Gallery by Doug Lane and videos below

DISCLAIMER: This was NOT the best day to assess the league. Our Brian Ptashinski went to a game near Hazleton and bailed very early due to the conditions. Wet, downpour, snow, wind. All that had moved through my area earlier leaving Kish Park Field a swamp (all it needed were some hog troughs or frogs to make it look natural). But this is football right? That’s right, they call it football weather. I’d like to know who coined that expression, had to be some eskimo.

Yes, water seeped up through with every step. Everywhere. Cold water.

I didn’t know what to expect this day so when I pulled up I sought out Tomahawk head coach Brian Rogers, who also happens to be the team owner. “This isn’t the best of days but we’ll have fun” he started off with. When asked about the logistics of a league like this he said “we have players from Maryland, Philly, local and Harrisburg. With technology its a little different. All their position coaches meet with them on zoom so they’re pretty much ready to go. Our first practice was Friday night. Most of those from out of the area came here on Friday.” Brian also says the teams are basically privately funded, which means the owners have to find sponsors to cover expenses like uniforms, referees and such.

Where do they get the players? These are all former high school and college players who just love the game and enjoy playing. It’s definitely what I’d call a “Man’s league”, or as veteran HS/College and today’s head referee Ray Klinger called it: “Midget football for 30 year olds”. It’s a world of mouth, who knows about this, some coaching searches game. And it’s real. Think adult softball league, only it’s real football. I can say this, I didn’t leave Kish Park disappointed.

The game itself wasn’t competitive mainly because the Skyhawks are somewhat new and the Tomahawks are a veteran team. The Tomahawks took a 42-0 win home. And yes, I knew players on each team from covering them in high school. That was interesting for sure. One was an assistant coach in high school from the Scranton area. But on to the game. First, the field. It’s a 50 yard long field, 35 wide, so midfield is the 25. There are no goal posts. A conversion from the three is 1 point, the five is 2 points.

The Tomahawks Timmy Beck took the opening kickoff to the house giving the home team a 6-0 advantage from the start. A quick turnaround on defense gave the Tomahawks the ball back and it was Kyle Kahley who took a quick toss, mowed over a linebacker and made a “graceful” cut to reach the endzone.

Freight train Kyle Kahley takes the quick toss from Lashawn Brown and plows to the endzone pic.twitter.com/RazMrZKY12

— Pennsylvania Football News (@PaFootballNews) March 26, 2023

Defense and turnovers also led to the lopsided score. The Skyhawks got their longest drive of the day on a 11 play drive, but the Tomahawk D got a goal line stand to keep the goose egg on the opponents side of the scoreboard.

You can barely see the goal line in front of the players hand holding the ball on the fourth down play.

Following a long drive that was capped by a short td by Dodson, Lou Banks snagged on of his three of the Tomahawk five interceptions on the day, his first leading to this beautiful toe touch reception at the back of the endzone by Beck making it a 28-0 second quarter lead.

On the next Skyhawk play, Banks got his second pick and the rout was on. Electric City had one more chance to score from the one, late, but the Tomahawks were having nothing of the sort. “We are a younger team, probably one of the youngest in the league. We’ll get better, I promise you that” said Skyhawk head coach Lati Woodruff.

So, my thoughts after my first GEFA game? Go see one for yourself. It’s hard hitting football with some good athletes. I’ll be heading to Philipsburg next weekend to watch the Vikings take on the Cyclones from Lancaster.
HIGHLIGHTS

Tim Beck