McCord’s eye-popping 1st half stats...

[scs13]

From the Inquirer:

“McCord completed 13-of-21 passes for 321 yards and five touchdowns.”

From PAPrep:

“He completed 14-of-23 passes for 361 yards and five touchdowns.“

From Ted Silary (historical stats going into the game last night):

SJP
MOST PASSING YARDS (SINGLE GAME)
Frank Costa 370 1989 O'Hara
Kyle McCord 369 2018 OL Good Counsel (MD)
Kyle McCord 301 2018 Pine-Richland
Frank Costa 298 1988 Lower Merion

Regardless of which stat-line from last night’s game is correct, those are eye-popping numbers for only having played one half of football. In games where the Prep has reached a running-clock situation by half-time, Roken has typically let the offensive starters play one more series in the 2nd half before yielding to the back-ups. Kudos to him and this young man for keeping their focus on the team and not worrying about individual records when he likely could have eclipsed the mark with one more drive. McCord’s 369 yards passing from his sophomore season against OLGC came in a competitive game in which they needed every one of those yards. Given the relative difference between SJP and many of the CL teams, I think it’s going to be a difficult record to break outside of the early season non-league games or competitive playoff games.

He’s a special talent and right-up there with Devlin, Powlus, Gordon, Nosovitch, Henne, Collins, Kendra, Costa, and Gannon (among others) to come out of the Eastern part of the state.

 

[jhoops18]

Wh

From the Inquirer:

“McCord completed 13-of-21 passes for 321 yards and five touchdowns.”

From PAPrep:

“He completed 14-of-23 passes for 361 yards and five touchdowns.“

From Ted Silary (historical stats going into the game last night):

SJP
MOST PASSING YARDS (SINGLE GAME)
Frank Costa 370 1989 O'Hara
Kyle McCord 369 2018 OL Good Counsel (MD)
Kyle McCord 301 2018 Pine-Richland
Frank Costa 298 1988 Lower Merion

Regardless of which stat-line from last night’s game is correct, those are eye-popping numbers for only having played one half of football. In games where the Prep has reached a running-clock situation by half-time, Roken has typically let the offensive starters play one more series in the 2nd half before yielding to the back-ups. Kudos to him and this young man for keeping their focus on the team and not worrying about individual records when he likely could have eclipsed the mark with one more drive. McCord’s 369 yards passing from his sophomore season against OLGC came in a competitive game in which they needed every one of those yards. Given the relative difference between SJP and many of the CL teams, I think it’s going to be a difficult record to break outside of the early season non-league games or competitive playoff games.

He’s a special talent and right-up there with Devlin, Powlus, Gordon, Nosovitch, Henne, Collins, Kendra, Costa, and Gannon (among others) to come out of the Eastern part of the state.

Where does he live?

 

[roxychknpoxy]

Wh


Where does he live?

Bait ... SJP been drawing from that town for decades ... simple matter of radius ...move on

 

[tulla]

Bait ... SJP been drawing from that town for decades ... simple matter of radius ...move on

Never liked people pretending not to know the answer to questions they are posing.

 

[ChesmontLeague1]

Bait ... SJP been drawing from that town for decades ... simple matter of radius ...move on

Agreed Roxy.. bait. I’m enjoying the good football this time of year and seeing the surprise team Haverford make its way through. What. I’m not looking forward to is all the bellyaching from people in D1 or D3 when The Prep whoops Haverford, Garnett Valley, DWest or whoever’s ass in a few weeks!

 

[Gang $$ Green]

Can Kyle McCord do me one solid and throw for over 370 one time so I can finally put the 370 from Frank Costa in 1989 in the rear view. That’s been a record for a long time. About 220 of that was on curl to Laumakis. Was on wrong end of that one and still not over it 30 years later.

 

[jhoops18]

Never liked people pretending not to know the answer to questions they are posing.

Well, where does he live? I have no idea.

 

[jhoops18]

Well, where does he live? I have no idea.

Ok, did some research, now I know why you're so sensitive where he's from.

 

[tulla]

Ok, did some research, now I know why you're so sensitive where he's from.

So just out of curiosity you ask where McCord lives, a question you answered yourself "with a little research"? My, you're a clever fellow.

I lived in Jersey when I went to the Prep and played football there fifty years ago. There were several others on the team who also lived in Jersey (Magee from Cinniminson, the Hutchinsons from Haddonfield, the Karlowitizes from down the White Horse Pike, etc.) Much more recently the Quinns, the Edgers, the Johnsons, Hobson, Reid, and Zaccheus all came from Jersey, many from the same area as McCord. Nobody at the Prep tries to hide this. In fact, it's a source of pride that kids from all over the Delaware Valley travel to and from the Prep every day because that's where they want to go to high school.

 

[green_beans]

Ok, did some research, now I know why you're so sensitive where he's from.

I would like to answer your question with a question.. if prep was 0-10 would you care where anyone lived?

 

[solfootballfan]

Good points, that’s about how relevant they were 30 years ago.

 

[coverandmove1]

I'll throw out another eastern qb Reece Udinski, sr yr 4,100 yards , 41 td...didn't play much in second half of many games at NP and currently tearing it up at VMI.

 

[ZeffyPennPal]

Ok, did some research, now I know why you're so sensitive where he's from.

It actually takes many of the Philly and Philly suburb kids significantly longer to commute to the Prep than the NJ students due to traffic- especially those from Delco, Montgomery and Bucks County. It's often much easier to get to the Prep from NJ as it's a straight shot across the bridge to Broad Street. The kids on the PA side need to use 76, or 95 or back roads to get the to avoid traffic.

Regional schools have traditionally pulled from the REGION. For example, how many PA kids go to Archmere Academy or Salesianum in DE? Should they not go because they live 5 miles away in another state?


@ Distance to the Prep
New Jersey:
Cherry Hill, NJ: 9.7 mi
Haddonfield, NJ: 11 mi
Haddon Heights, NJ: 11.4 mi
Marlton, NJ: 15 mi

Neighborhoods inside the City of Philadelphia:
Somerton 15 mi
Bustleton, 13 mi
Torresdale 13 mi
Roxborough 9 mi
Chestnut Hill, 11 mi

Burbs
Ridley, PA: 16 mi
Havertown, PA: 10 mi
Conshohocken, PA: 12 mi
Lafayette Hill, PA: 12
Jenkintown, PA 10 mi

 

[DCSOL]

You really wasted your time with that???

 

[ChesmontLeague1]

Prep gets kids from West Chester and I knew a friends son from Downingtown who commuted (lax)

 

[DCSOL]

Kidd Jackson was from Easton, CJ Duell from Toms River, big net.....Where was Kolby Burrell from? I had hear pretty far north, honestly don't know and not doing any research.


I think it is great a program can be so attractive, doesn't make it fair competing against a community team with borders.

 

[roxychknpoxy]

Kidd Jackson was from Easton, CJ Duell from Toms River, big net.....Where was Kolby Burrell from? I had hear pretty far north, honestly don't know and not doing any research.


I think it is great a program can be so attractive, doesn't make it fair competing against a community team with borders.

The initial two players you referenced left SJP. I’m aware of students who have commuted from the Lehigh valley and ocean city over the years. Those students happen to be legacy sons. I see no reason whatsoever to commute longer than an hour especially with the homework involved. I understand the frustration on a competitive level which is compounded by a sport which is under siege.

 

[tulla]

Kidd Jackson was from Easton, CJ Duell from Toms River, big net.....Where was Kolby Burrell from? I had hear pretty far north, honestly don't know and not doing any research.


I think it is great a program can be so attractive, doesn't make it fair competing against a community team with borders.

Hard to believe Jackson lived in Easton when attending the Prep. He left in sophomore year. Duell left after sophomore year. Two different cases with different reasons for leaving--but those are by far the longest distances I've heard of for football players to commute. We had students (not athletes) commuting from Reading and Trenton when I went there.

No argument from me that being able to draw players from the whole area is an advantage for SJP. There are some real challenges that come with that advantage, though, and there are some advantages large public schools have over the Prep. Overall, is it an uneven playing field? I'd say yes but not as uneven as some think it is. What I really don't like is when people--not DCSOL--suggest the Prep tries to hide the fact that its players live where they live, including some in Jersey, or that this is something recent.

 

[pclfan1]

Oh my gawd can we stop it with the Prep kids in NJ stuff. My time frame is the 70s and 80s and they had a bunch of NJ kids playing football. Everyone who ventures out of their town or picks up a newspaper knows that. Back in the day the Archdiocesan schools used to line up waiting to kick their backsides and no one cared. And no one should care. When D12 joined the PIAA this was not a secret and no one cared. I liken this to the guys in Downingtown who worry about who played youth football where and why they are at Cville vs. West vs. East. Get over it. is competing against the prep hard? Yeah it is. The biggest reason is that they are damn fast and McCord spreads the field unlike a lot of qbs we have seen. In my opinion he has hit another level and is living up to the Ohio State commitment. I do think the last game LS had a really brutal game plan. Offensively they used no time, and they threw down the field right into Preps speed strength, and asked their qb to make the same throws McCord makes which so far he hadn't been asked to do. And defensively not sure what the plan was but they didn't pressure the wide outs at all and didn't bring any pressure. You got beat long anyway, I'd have made them work for it and make plays, not sit back and let them run by you. And to be clear the best game plan would have had it 21 maybe 28 to 7 at half. But you could have avoided the mercy rule. Not sure they can get there but I think Coatesville would give them a game. They attack the edges with speed and their qb creates space with his legs.

 

[ZeffyPennPal]

You really wasted your time with that???

I know...I get mad too when people use facts in a discussion. Plus, I had all these paper maps, rulers and a compass that I hadn't used in a while. LOL!

 

[tulla]

Oh my gawd can we stop it with the Prep kids in NJ stuff. My time frame is the 70s and 80s and they had a bunch of NJ kids playing football. Everyone who ventures out of their town or picks up a newspaper knows that. Back in the day the Archdiocesan schools used to line up waiting to kick their backsides and no one cared. And no one should care. When D12 joined the PIAA this was not a secret and no one cared. I liken this to the guys in Downingtown who worry about who played youth football where and why they are at Cville vs. West vs. East. Get over it. is competing against the prep hard? Yeah it is. The biggest reason is that they are damn fast and McCord spreads the field unlike a lot of qbs we have seen. In my opinion he has hit another level and is living up to the Ohio State commitment. I do think the last game LS had a really brutal game plan. Offensively they used no time, and they threw down the field right into Preps speed strength, and asked their qb to make the same throws McCord makes which so far he hadn't been asked to do. And defensively not sure what the plan was but they didn't pressure the wide outs at all and didn't bring any pressure. You got beat long anyway, I'd have made them work for it and make plays, not sit back and let them run by you. And to be clear the best game plan would have had it 21 maybe 28 to 7 at half. But you could have avoided the mercy rule. Not sure they can get there but I think Coatesville would give them a game. They attack the edges with speed and their qb creates space with his legs.

I was surprised by how disorganized LaSalle was--not something we've seen in previous years. Any explanations?

Still a ways to go before a possible Coatesville-SJP game? Will the semi-final game be in Altoona again?

 

[new2pa]

SJP is on the same side of the bracket as the WPIAL / State College/DV winners. Last year was in SC. This year probably closer to Philly.

 

[pclfan1]

yeah, forgot D1 winner on different side now. Can anyone out west slow them down?

 

[new2pa]

yeah, forgot D1 winner on different side now. Can anyone out west slow them down?

I don't think so.

P-R is in a better position to score this year as they can throw the ball better. Their defense has been excellent. If they can stop the run like last year, and not get beat / penalized so much in the pass game, they could keep it to a 4 score game.

PCC would present a more formidable challenge to SJP up front, but I don't think SJP OL is exactly lacking. I would have a hard time seeing them stopping them in the pass game. I think it would be also a 4 score game.

so no.

 

[Salvucci]

Funny, one poster Jhoops, makes a "clever" NJ comment and everyone freaks out? 7 defending comments, rushing to justify NJ players. Relax, anyone that knows SEPA football, knows this to be the case for the last 100 years.

 

[tulla]

Funny, one poster Jhoops, makes a "clever" NJ comment and everyone freaks out? 7 defending comments, rushing to justify NJ players. Relax, anyone that knows SEPA football, knows this to be the case for the last 100 years.

I might have over-reacted to the not-so-clever post, but it reminded me of all the outlandish comments over the last few years about SJP's multi-state roster. If my memory is right, the P-R coach even said the Prep had players from four states.

 

[pclfan1]

And will continue and no one cares.

 

[jhoops18]

I might have over-reacted to the not-so-clever post, but it reminded me of all the outlandish comments over the last few years about SJP's multi-state roster. If my memory is right, the P-R coach even said the Prep had players from four states.

Tulla,

I have no issue with Prep getting students from Jersey, they can get students from whereever they want. My issue is the blatant recruiting.

Here's some more research...

In the '70's, 80's and 90's, Prep's record was 157 - 171, the very definition of mediocrity. In the 2000's to present, they are 207 - 44.
So there is a clear demarcation in the year 2000 that Prep decided they were going to target/recruit/induce football players to come to the school. In 2000, it was their perogative and they had every right to do so.

But when they joined the PIAA in 2009 were/are rules in place that prohibit targeting/recruiting/inducing athletes.
So Prep has decided that a. they are above the rules or b. following the rules pertains to everyone else, we only follow the rules when they are convenient to us.

You can spin/downplay/rationalize what Prep does all you want to make you feel good but it is what it is.

At 98% of the schools that follow the rules, if the team needs a QB the next year, the coach says "Jimmy the sophomore is small but I think he has potential, let's coach him up". At Prep, they say "let's go out and Target/recruit/induce the best QB we can find in the 50 - 60 - ?? mile radius.
Need a middle linebacker? "Let's target/recruit/induce Trotter Jr. to come play for us.
You don't see the hypocrisy and unfair advantage that presents?

You're a good guy but please spare us with what a 'burden' it is to go to the Prep, that kind of feels like the same elitest "we're the Prep, we don't have to follow the rules" mantra.
I view the Prep and the state titles they've "won" like most of us view Barry Bonds home run record. We all know what he did so the record is viewed as tainted.

Just my opinion, that's for the discussion.

 

[pclfan1]

Your argument is with the PIAA powers that be. Not those of us interested in the game and growth of the game. Let it go dude.

 

[DCSOL]

So far beyond recruiting for Prep, they attract and sit or send away more players than you know that would start at most other schools. They follow the rules set by the PIAA who invited them to join.

Others, LS included, with very similar costs, and model can do the same. Heck LS facilities are 10 fold what prep has....

The irony of your statement about following the rules of recruiting, is that the public schools actually are not following the rules when a player may not adhere to PIAA residence policy.

 

[tulla]

Tulla,

I have no issue with Prep getting students from Jersey, they can get students from whereever they want. My issue is the blatant recruiting.

Here's some more research...

In the '70's, 80's and 90's, Prep's record was 157 - 171, the very definition of mediocrity. In the 2000's to present, they are 207 - 44.
So there is a clear demarcation in the year 2000 that Prep decided they were going to target/recruit/induce football players to come to the school. In 2000, it was their perogative and they had every right to do so.

But when they joined the PIAA in 2009 were/are rules in place that prohibit targeting/recruiting/inducing athletes.
So Prep has decided that a. they are above the rules or b. following the rules pertains to everyone else, we only follow the rules when they are convenient to us.

You can spin/downplay/rationalize what Prep does all you want to make you feel good but it is what it is.

At 98% of the schools that follow the rules, if the team needs a QB the next year, the coach says "Jimmy the sophomore is small but I think he has potential, let's coach him up". At Prep, they say "let's go out and Target/recruit/induce the best QB we can find in the 50 - 60 - ?? mile radius.
Need a middle linebacker? "Let's target/recruit/induce Trotter Jr. to come play for us.
You don't see the hypocrisy and unfair advantage that presents?

You're a good guy but please spare us with what a 'burden' it is to go to the Prep, that kind of feels like the same elitest "we're the Prep, we don't have to follow the rules" mantra.
I view the Prep and the state titles they've "won" like most of us view Barry Bonds home run record. We all know what he did so the record is viewed as tainted.

Just my opinion, that's for the discussion.

I think the history is somewhat more complicated. The turn-around started when Brooks took over as coach in the mid-90's. He built the program less by recruiting than by doing most of the things good coaches do: hiring good assistants, working hard, having high standards, etc. As the team improved, more kids who wanted to play for a good team and parents began to consider the Prep more seriously. And, yes, Brooks also did more recruiting, something that meshed with the school's more general push to more actively recruit students since the days when lots of families with 2-6 boys sent all their sons to the Prep were clearly ending. A successful football program became one means of raising the profile of the school in a positive way.

Crucially, the days when the Prep--like LaSalle and Malvern--pretty much took only boys from Catholic families were also ending--and this has been true not only for athletes. Combine this with the increasing commitment of the Prep to further diversifying its student body--and not only that portion of the student body that plays high-profile sports--and the pool of potential Prep students, including athletes, obviously widens. (My class at the Prep had two Black students, but already when I was there we had programs e.g. Saturday tutoring programs) to prepare more Black kids to attend.

As far as money goes, I'm pretty sure I'm still on firm ground in saying that the families of most starters on the football team pay tuition and other fees to the Prep--and many pay the full load. Many families get financial assistance (reduced tuition), based largely on family income. Is there a specific fund to support the football program? Yes--and I contribute to it and to the general fund. Is that fair? I suppose it depends on your perspective. Students at public schools, as long as they live in the school district, pay no tuition at all. Do public schools ever recruit football players? I hear conflicting accounts.

I never used the term "burden" in relation to the Prep. But it does make academic demands that not all schools make, and pretty much every year some students, including some very promising athletes leave as a result, usually during or right after freshman year. It's also a fact that the trip home from practice every day is a whole lot longer for nearly every Prep football player than it is for anyone who plays for his local public school. Maybe there's actually an implicit benefit--an advantage even--in having to make that extra commitment. But I confess to envying kids who could walk home from practice.

As for the PIAA, they should enforce the their rules as fairly as they can. I've never heard anyone at the Prep say they think they're above the rules.

 

[new2pa]

Tulla, et.al.,
I love reading these discussions about private schools. My views have done almost a 180 in the years since I've been in PA. At first, I was more or less against the private school model, mainly because of my knowledge of PCC here in the 'burgh and seeing what went on. (Note that Pittsburgh is not like the PCL and there are no competing school to draw potential students and athletes.) That view probably reached its peak in 2014, where P-R had what I thought was a once in a lifetime team and lost to the Prep who had "kids from everywhere." That year, if SJP wasn't around P-R would have been the state champs.

Since then though, my view has moderated and I think that its only because I view the SJP football program is the reason P-R has become good. Every coach and parent, and many of the kids I've talked with always brings up doing what it takes to beat SJP. At first I thought that was just bigger, faster, stronger type stuff, but its clear to me its more than that. Its how they build and run the program, the coaching staff, what they do schematically on the field, and the situation as a whole. It looks like having an SJP raised the bar for P-R. Now, a lot of that has to do with Coach K recognizing that and being willing to do what it takes. But in '17, when P-R had some studs and went toe to toe and came out on top, I think it legitimized P-R as one of the top football schools in the state. And certainly a team that everybody thought would be competitive every year. Without SJP, not sure that would have happened.

So, ya, I don't think the playing field is quite level. But I also don't think P-R would be nearly as good without SJP. P-R is still the little brother on the west side of the state, but it showed a lot of people out here that the program is heading in the right direction. I would dare say at this point, playing SJP is something that alot of people in P-R assume will happen every year.

Probably would be happier in the years you don't have McCord, Harrison, Trotter or Swift/VA Kid/Michigan kid, but IMO P-R owes a lot to the rivalry.