HS Football: Allen, defense lifts Pottsville past Jim Thorpe
Pottsville quarterback Andrew Allen signals to his teammates during a Schuylkill-Colonial Red Division football game at Jim Thorpe Area Stadium (Photo by Eli Doyle).
JIM THORPE — Pottsville leaned on ball control, field position and a stingy defense Friday evening.
Led by junior quarterback Andrew Allen, the Crimson Tide were able to grind out a 16-7 victory over Jim Thorpe in a Schuylkill-Colonial Red Division game at Jim Thorpe Area Stadium.
“On our last possession particularly, he made some really good decisions,” Pottsville coach Mike Brennan said about Allen. “He had that big kick at the end, we made the conscience effort to get him off the field defensively this week and when Shay (Strencosky) had some cramping, he went back in and played defense as well.
“We have total confidence in Andrew. Our entire program does. There was no panic tonight. We had five possessions and scored on three of the five. Great job by Mark (Rosenberger) and his program — we were taxed tonight.”
The Crimson Tide (1-1) only had five possessions all game but made the most of them, scoring on three. Allen played a central role, throwing for a touchdown, kicking a clutch 31-yard field goal in the fourth quarter and punting to flip the field late in the third with a booming kick that buried the Olympians (1-1) deep in their own end.
Pottsville struck first when JuJu Bainbridge muscled in from 3 yards out in the opening quarter. Allen later connected with Strencosky for a 16-yard touchdown pass in the second and Allen added the extra point to send the Tide into halftime with a 13-0 lead.
Jim Thorpe stayed alive in the second half by attacking Pottsville’s edges. The Olympians found some success with jet sweeps and screens, softening the Tide defense outside the tackles. That push finally paid off in the fourth quarter when Bobby Levins capped a drive with a 1-yard scoring run, and Blaze Flyzik’s PAT cut the lead to 13-7.
Allen answered on the next possession, calmly drilling a 31-yard field goal with 4:31 left to restore a two-score margin. He was calm, cool and collected throughout the drive, zig-zagging and reversing a broken play for positive yards to set up the field goal.
Pottsville’s defense handled the rest.
Strencosky sealed the win with an interception in the closing minutes, complementing his earlier touchdown catch. Defensive end Max Clews spent the night disrupting plays in the backfield, and Brody Herndon delivered a key pass breakup on Jim Thorpe’s final drive to shut the door.
“We knew they had a lot of kids,” Brennan said. “(Josh) Louk and (Cole) Lazorick you are super concerned about. But a half-a-dozen guys made plays in that game last week. And they’re stretching the field like they did horizontally, and setting up Lazorick north and south, at the end of the day we can’t abort the mission and go run to the outside, and totally flip your back half. The kid has thrown for 4,000 yards and has the ability to run.”
Pottsville’s ability to control the clock and capitalize on limited opportunities proved the difference. The Crimson Tide overcame a physical second-half push from the Olympians by leaning on special teams, a disciplined offense and a defense that tightened when it mattered most.
