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Hittin’ The Road With Travelin’ Matt (Playoffs Week 2)

Tagged under: District 11, District 3, District 4, News, pfn, Playoffs

| November 13, 2023

Each week Travelin’ Matt traverses Pennsylvania attending the hottest high school football games and best match ups in the Commonwealth.  Follow his exploits each week as he documents his journey from Week Zero to the Pennsylvania State Football Finals!

Friday, November 10

2A #5 Southern Columbia (10-1) vs. 2A #6 Mt. Carmel (9-2)

Saturday, November 11

3A #3 Wyomissing (9-1) vs. 3A Schuylkill Valley (9-2)

2A #10 Schuylkill Haven (9-2) vs. 2A HM Williams Valley (9-2)

ROUNDTRIP – 205 MILES

Friday, November 10

This weekend of football for me was refreshingly close to home!

Having traveled thousands of miles to high school football games already since late-August some more local matchups was a much-needed “break” logging just 200+ miles to witness three contests this week.

Friday night I found myself at arguably the most anticipated game in the state where 13-time PA State Champion Southern Columbia battled 5-time PA State Champion Mount Carmel in a rematch from the regular season when the Red Tornadoes topped the Tigers 42-30.

This year’s 2A District 4 playoff game between the two Coal Region giants could easily been dubbed “The Rematch of the Rematch” as Mt. Carmel also defeated Southern Columbia in the regular season last year before dropping their playoff decision to the eventual 2A State Champs.

Being local to the Southern Columbia area there was seemingly nowhere in town you could visit on Friday without having a conversation (or overhearing one) about the big game taking place that night.

At the local Turkey Hill two children were arguing about which Southern Columbia player was going to score the most touchdowns that evening.  Understand, both kids were around 10 years old and in their lifetime they have been privy to seven Tiger State Titles…let that sink in for a moment.  Since they were both four years old (likely the age when they recall their first childhood memories) Southern Columbia has won the PA State Championship every season.

At the local golf course, after I squeezed in an early 18 holes, I struck up a conversation with a lifelong resident of the area.  I mentioned, in passing, that if Mount Carmel won the game it might add more to the rivalry than just another Tiger playoff victory against their neighbors.  The man gave me a full history of when Mt. Carmel agreed to add Southern Columbia to their schedule a few decades ago and how the Red Tornadoes boasted at the time what a mistake it would be for the Tigers because they were so far behind their neighbor’s football program.  The man told me, quite passionately, that one day the current Southern Columbia run would come to an end…but it better not be that night to their rivals just 10 miles to the East of Elysburg.

Another chat with a older local gentleman took me through a 30 minute dissertation on Mt. Carmel’s six Eastern Conference Championships in the 1950’s to 1970s and even their 1927 PIAA 7-6 win vs. Bellefonte High that took place at Penn State.  I listened intently as the man schooled me about Mount Carmel football before the modern State Finals began at Altoona in 1988.

Here’s a photo of the jacket of a Mt. Carmel fan I took last year…never forget 1927!

Yes, folks, there was a Big Game to be played that night at Tiger Stadium and the entire region had an opinion on who was going to win and why they were certain they were correct in their prognostication.  This is the beauty and passion of PA High School Football in the Coal Region and in similar pockets across the state the same conversations take place every week in businesses, schools and on the streets before other Big Games!

For those who have not had an opportunity to visit the home of the 13-time PA State Champion Southern Columbia Tigers here’s a few photos to check out…

You might find it interesting that Tiger Stadium is located smack dab in the middle of a cornfield in the farmlands of Columbia County, PA.  Other than a scoreboard noting the school’s impressive athletic accomplishments (including a run of recent Girls’ soccer and Boys’ Track & Field state titles) the dominance of their football team can’t be found anywhere else in the area unlike many towns across the Commonwealth where a “State Football Champion” sign greets you upon entry.

As for “The Rematch of the Rematch” it was decided shortly after it began.  A jam-packed Tiger stadium saw Southern Columbia take their opening drive quickly downfield for an early 7-0 lead that swelled to 36-0 by halftime.  The highly-anticipated contest sadly became a rout ending in a 43-0 Tiger win in their quest to win seven consecutive PA State Titles.

Check out a few highlights from the game in front of an electric crowd…

For the full Southern Columbia vs. Mt. Carmel game story click below…

Southern Stomps Mount Carmel

 

 

Saturday, November 11

For my money, nothing beats a Saturday afternoon high school football game at Bob Wolfrum Stadium at Wyomissing High School.  The echoes of nostalgic college band football music fills the neighborhood as you approach the gates and once inside you are transported back decades in time thanks to an old-timey leather helmets and stuffed footballs atmosphere.  Residents of the four-square mile borough saunter into the neighborhood stadium and most striking to me is the superb level of school Alumni attendance and participation in every contest at Wyomissing I’ve attended.  There is a palpable sense of community and school football history in every corner of the stadium.

While I can’t recall one game I’ve witnessed in their home stadium that was less than a several touchdown victory for the Spartans the action on the field is merely a trivial detail to my visits in comparison to the overall experience.  Plainly stated, a Wyomissing home game is the brushing back of the cobwebs of time to a more simple and satisfying era.

On the field, Wyomissing accentuates their throwback stadium experience by running the legendary Wing-T offense born in the 1950’s.  Add to the mix the Spartans old-school winged helmets and plain blue and white uniforms and you have the recipe for an old-timey football game at Wolfrum Stadium.

The 3A #3 state-ranked Spartans were playing host to District 3 foe Schuylkill Valley on this day and just as my previous visits Wyomissing easily dispatched of their opponents in a 48-0 thumping in their semi-final District playoff contest.

Check out some photos from my visit to Wolfrum Stadium at Wyomissing…

For the full game story of Wyomissing vs. Schuylkill Valley click the link below…

Wyomissing Dominant Performance has the Spartans Advancing to District 3 3A Title Game.

The second half of my Saturday double-header took place at North Schuylkill High School for a neutral site District 11 Championship contest pitting 2A state-ranked #10 Schuylkill Haven vs. Williams Valley.  Schuylkill Haven bested Williams Valley 24-21 in the regular season and this game piqued my interest as a potential classic rematch.

Much like my experience watching Palmerton signal-caller Matt Machalik dominate a game two weeks ago I was treated again to individual greatness on a high school football field as Williams Valley quarterback Alex Achenbach delivered a masterful performance to carry his Vikings squad to a District Championship.

Achenbach was simply unstoppable in Williams Valley’s title clash accounting for all seven Viking touchdowns with each being more spectacular than the last.  Often completely surrounded by defenders Achenbach deftly eluded his pursuers either dashing downfield for a score on the ground or throwing touchdown darts to his receivers.  In a game that featured seven lead changes and two ties Achenbach ripped off touchdown jaunts of 12, 23, 3 and 40 yards while also dancing in the backfield before launching touchdown passes of 41, 45 and 30 yards to lead his team to victory.

Check out a couple remarkable highlights of Achenbach’s seven touchdown night (#5 in white)…

Follow along next week as Travelin’ Matt takes you on another PA High School Football journey.

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
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