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Springfield-MontCo Upends Upper Moreland’s Undefeated Season, 41-17

Tagged under: District 1, Gameday Hub, News, pfn

| September 28, 2024


Willow Grove- Conference play for the American Conference out of the Suburban One League saw the Springfield (MontCo) Spartans upend the Upper Moreland Golden Bears (UM) 41-17 on a wet and dreary night.  The Spartan rushing attack was dominant all evening. Senior running back CJ Johnson and senior quarterback Jack McGuckin combined for 369 rushing yards. By my account, Johnson, on only 17 carries, rushed for 273 yards and three scores. That’s an average of over 16 yards per carry (ypc).  McGuckin carried the ball 22 times for 83 yards and a score. He also chipped in 107 yards passing and two touchdowns. Head coach Chris Shelly said after the game, “Well, there was a lot of talk online heading into this game and a bunch of nonsense, and we took that personally.”  For perspective, the Spartans are the smallest school in the conference (4A) while they compete with all 5A and 6A schools.  Shelly continued, “Our kids felt disrespected. I don’t know where that comes from, but we’re always the little engine that could.” After last night’s performance, the American conference is on notice, and I’m not sure there will be any disrespect the rest of the way, as previously unbeaten UM found out the hard way.

The Spartans were fired up and came out swinging. On the opening kickoff, they converted an onside kick and took over from their 47-yard line. Three plays later, CJ Johnson broke free from multiple defenders and raced 29 yards to the house.

After the PAT was converted, the Spartans took the early 7-0 lead. Three minutes later, with 7:20 to go in the quarter, UM’s junior K/P Luke Sword connected from 21 yards out to cut the Spartan lead to four. The Bears were able to quail the offense when senior linebacker Frankie McDermott sacked McGuckin to force the Spartans to punt. Moments later, senior quarterback Alex Foley hit junior tight end Larry Hughes in stride for an 80-yard touchdown. The Sword PAT connected, and the Bears took the 10-7 lead with 3:50 left in the first.


The Spartans opened up the second quarter with a healthy dose of rushes before UM’s McDermott sacked McGuckin for the second time on third and long, moving them down to the Upper Moreland 32-yard line. On fourth and nineteen, the Spartans opted to go for it, and McGuckin escaped the defense and chucked it up to a well-covered Bobby Hartman. The senior wide receiver hauled in the pass, and after the PAT was converted, the Spartans took the 14-10 lead with 7:45 to play in the half.

After forcing the Bears to punt, Springfield hit the defense with consecutive passes that resulted in another Bobby Hartman touchdown.  This time, McGuckin hit him on a slant over the middle for a 13-yard score. After converting the PAT, the lead expanded to eleven at 21-10 with 3:47 left in the half. A minute later, after connecting for a huge 39-yard gain to Larry Hughes to set up the Bears in Spartan territory, the Bears Aidan Tuffy took the handoff over the goal line and brought the Bears within 4 at 21-17 heading into the half.

Only minutes into the third quarter, CJ Johnson took the handoff 13 yards for his second touchdown of the night. The PAT was blocked, and the Spartan lead expanded to 27-17.  Upper Moreland’s next possession ended in an interception at the hands of opposing quarterback Jack McGuckin who is also a safety for the defense. UM’s defense stopped the Spartans from scoring again and forced a punt, however on the Spartans’ final possession of the third quarter, CJ Johnson took the handoff and raced untouched 78 yards to the house. The PAT was converted, and the lead stood 34-17 heading into the final quarter of play.


Upper Moreland had no answer for the stout defense and couldn’t manage any significant momentum. Springfield would eat up most of the clock and jockey Upper Moreland for field position. On Springfield’s final drive, they powered through multiple first-downs and would cap off the scoring and the evening with a Jack McGuckin 1-yard sneak to end all hope of a comeback. The final after the converted PAT was 41-17.  “I owe everything tonight to the offensive line, really; they opened up holes all day,” gleamed an exhausted CJ Johnson after a career night.

CJ Johnson & Jack McGuckin Pose after their 41-17 victory

Offensive line who paved the way for over 400 yards of total offense

Stadium Stick? IYKYK

What’s next: Springfield (5-1, 1-0) will travel to Hatboro-Horsham (2-4, 0-1) and Upper Moreland (5-1, 0-1) will host William Tennent (3-3, 1-0).

The POTF Award is made possible by my 2024 Sponsors

-Congratulations to my Player of the Game, CJ Johnson, for his epic night on the ground. He rushed for 273 yards on only 17 carries & 3 touchdowns. He also hauled in one pass for 12 yards.

Jack McGuckin was my runner-up with 96 yards rushing, 107 yards passing & 3 total touchdowns (2 passing- 1 rushing).

-My final player to be recognized is Bobby Hartman who hauled in 5 balls for 81 yards & 2 scores.

This week’s Student Spotlight features two cheerleaders from Springfield

Kennedy has been cheering for four years. Her favorite subject in school is history. She plans on attending college and also cheering while earning her degree. A fun fact about Kennedy is that she is a twin!

Maeve has also been cheering for four years. She loves psychology and is planning on going to college in the south. A fun fact about Maeve is that she is the Editor-In-Chief of her school’s yearbook.

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
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