In an historic gridiron contest that featured the Neshaminy Redskins versus the Souderton Indians for the first time ever, the red and white clad clubs gave the crowd all they could ask for. And with both teams showcasing a boatload of new players, fans and announcers alike had their work cut out for them as they struggled to follow the action while becoming familiar with this year’s starters. But whether the names were new or old, this game would go right to the final gun before the end result was sure.

Still, the first quarter was just as might be expected for a kickoff classic as the two SOL conference members spent the initial 12 minutes banging around without denting the end zone (although the Creek Kids did take a shot at the uprights on a 38-yard field goal that sadly missed the mark). The second quarter, however, took on a little different pace as the Indians gained the upper hand. Chipping away at the Redskins, Souderton put itself in good field position which they took advantage of on Derek Brown’s 43-yard sprint to the end zone. Then after the kickoff exchange, a ‘Skins fumble on the ensuing offensive series gave the Indians control on the visitors 5-yard line. And just like that it was 14-0 for the home team. With the action hot and heavy at that point, not long after a picked pass by the Moleskinners was followed by a short drive and Quilan Arnold’s 7-yard sprint for 6. With the PAT good the first half ended 14-7 Indians.

With the Redskins receiving the second half kickoff, followed by a short 3 play drive highlighted by Brian Titus’ 42-yard pass to Rick Brebner for a TD, the score closed to 14-13. With the PAT just missing, the future was told at that moment as Brebner’s 6-pointer was it for the night – plain and simple. And although there were some “moments” that followed almost to the final gun, the reality was the crew from Lower Bucks couldn’t punch one in despite a number of solid opportunities. So this one goes in the books as a win for the Indians and a loss for the ‘Skins.

Notwithstanding the “L”, and as a noted grid historian once said: “If you have to lose one, make it the first one.” Plus considering that the ‘Skins rolled out almost an entirely new team and that a couple of dropped passes, squibbed kicks and “opening night mistakes” played a big part in the final score, writing an obituary is far from necessary. In closing, there’s plenty of football left to be played in 2008 including next week in Horsham as our boys travel to take on the Hatters.

Tonight's game captains were Paul Carrezola, Jay Colbert, Dan Shirey & Quilan Arnold.

See you at the game.

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Redskins fall flat

By KEVIN COONEY
Bucks County Courier Times

SOUDERTON — Derek Brown looked around with a sense of wonder. After all, he's been here as the program rose from afterthought to the threshold of contention.

But now, the junior running back/safety for Souderton was able to soak in the moment and understand what it meant in the bigger picture.

"We haven't gotten any respect over the years," Brown said. "We had done a lot of good things, but we didn't get any respect. You have to go out and earn it by beating the top teams and we hadn't beaten a team from the [Suburban One League] National Conference yet. So we knew that we had to do it in order to take that next step."

After years of knocking on the door, Souderton kicked the sucker in Friday night against the perennial kings of the National mountain.

The Indians made two touchdowns in the first half hold up, edging the Redskins by a 14-13 margin Friday night in the kickoff of the 2008 high school football season.

"It's just an awesome feeling," said Brown, who scored both Indians touchdowns. "We played against the best and we found the way to get the job done."

The question that had to be asked on Friday: Was this the best victory in the Ed Gallagher era?

"Absolutely," said Gallagher, who is entering his fifth year at Souderton. "This was a huge win and I'm happy with the way it happened for our kids and our coaches."

For Neshaminy, the shock of the moment wasn't that it lost to Souderton. It's the way that it happened. The Redskins were flat offensively, unable to use a size advantage along the line to open up some big holes.

"I was surprised by the way that we couldn't line up at times," Neshaminy coach Mark Schmidt said. "Souderton came out and played a great football game and we knew they would. But we had opportunities to take advantage of some things offensively and we just didn't get it done. And when you play against a good football team, you can't do that."

Schmidt's frustration was visible. When asked if he worried about a carryover affect next week against Hatboro-Horsham, Schmidt made a promise.

"It will be fixed next week," Schmidt said. "Trust me."

But when the Indians had chances, they took complete advantage of them. With the game scoreless midway through the second, Brown broke down the right sideline and was gone for a 43-yard score and a 7-09 lead.

After the next Neshaminy possession ended with a fumble that was recovered by the Indians on the Redskins' 5, Brown pounded the ball in three times for a score to make it 14-0 lead.

From there, Souderton was able to negate the Redskins' size advantage by blitzing and stunting on defense.

"I thought that they did some good things against us," Gallagher said. "But we managed to hold our own against them."

Neshaminy bounced back late in the first half on Quilan Arnold's 7-yard touchdown run. That was followed on the first possession of the second half by a 45-yard touchdown pass from Brian Titus to Rick Brebner. (Seth Jeffries' extra point sailed wide.)
Kevin Cooney can be reached at kcooney@phillyBurbs.com.
August 30, 2008 6:56 AM

http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/108-08302008-1583608.html