High School Top 10: Taking Measures To Stop Hazing
PHILADELPHIA, PA (CBS) — The "Boys-will-be-boys" era is passé, according to many area high school football coaches. Looking the other way is, too, according to many in lieu of the hazing incidents that shut down the football seasons of North Jersey powerhouse Sayreville War Memorial High School and most recently Central Bucks West High School.
Coaches throughout the area were shocked to hear the news Thursday that the C.B. West program was shutting down with two games to play, and commended the actions taken by the Central Bucks School District and superintendent David Weitzel.
The coaches also agreed that senior leadership failed in both situations, but a new order is taking hold of today's high school football programs.
"First, hazing shouldn't be tolerated, though who's kidding whom here, we know it's certainly been going on since the first high school formed a football team," said one Inter-Ac coach. "What needs to be done is better policing from the coaching staff in the locker room, and better policing among the players themselves.
"We're talking about 15, 16, 17-year old boys here. They should know what bullying is today. They should know right from wrong. It's a shame, because some don't. It starts at home, and it certainly carries over to us, the coaches. Everyone has a responsibility in this. It's up to the coaches to put a stop to it."
One Central League coach said it may take new strictly enforced hazing policies that would mean a player is dismissed from the team if caught hazing. Another Del-Val League coach admitted he speaks to his players the first day of summer practice every year about it—but "Apparently, in a lot of cases, it goes through one ear and out the other. If it takes holding their hands, that's what it going to take then to stop it in the future."
Every school has a no tolerance policy, C.B. West was no different. Two Suburban One League coaches called C.B. West coach Brian Hensel a "good man" who doesn't deserve this. But as another coach said, "It happened on his watch, and consequently, he's probably going to be the fall guy."
Preventing future cases of hazing is going to involve more diligence of the coaching staffs, and more scrutiny when it comes to selecting team captains.
"Kids saw and knew what was going on, and I'd like to think in the future, after seeing the national embarrassment at Sayreville and C.B. West, sensible, intelligent kids will step in and stop it," a Ches-Mont League coach said. "Do you think with social media the way it is today, someone wouldn't record [a hazing incident] on a cell phone and put it out there? Everyone loses here. The team, the good kids, the ones who took a prank too far, the coaching staff, the school and the community that's backed them since they were playing pee-wee football. You'd like to think it won't happen again."
Now let's talk about football.
Recognizing Some Record-Setters
Archbishop Ryan tailback Samir Bullock became the school's all-time leading rusher with 3,510 yards in Ryan's 51-6 win over Cardinal O'Hara, snapping previous all-time career mark of 3,289 set by Joe Zeglinski, a 2005 Ryan graduate.
Archbishop Wood junior quarterback Anthony Russo established all-time school records for touchdown passes and yards—with 7 TDs and 369 yards passing, all in the first half of Wood's 56-7 win over Bonner-Prendergast—last week. Russo also tied a Philadelphia city record for TD passes in a game, according to the Philadelphia Daily News' Aaron Carter, sharing it with the Germantown Academy's Sean Grieve (2002) and Springside Chestnut Hill's Paul Dooley (2013). In two quarters, Russo threw for TD passes of 61, 53, 12, 70, 53, 42 and 9 yards. Prior to that, Russo had thrown 11 TDs in Wood's previous seven games.
Episcopal Academy junior tailback Dee Barlee rushed for 296 yards and five TDs in the Churchmen's 41-26 win over Penn Charter on Friday night. Barlee's 296 yards rushing is a new EA single-game record, breaking the previous mark of 266 yards by former Eagle and two-time Army-Navy MVP Kyle Eckel in 1998.
CBS Philly's Area Top 10 Power Ratings For Oct. 24, 2014
1. St. Joseph's Prep (Record: 4-3)
2. La Salle (Record: 6-2)
3. Archbishop Wood (Record: 7-1)
4. St. Joseph's (Hammonton, NJ) (Record: 6-0)
5. Shawnee (Record: 5-0)
6. Imhotep Charter (Record: 7-1)
7. Timber Creek (Record: 5-0)
8. Camden (Record: 6-0)
9. Coatesville (Record: 8-0)
10. Haverford School (Record: 6-1)
Under Consideration: Haddonfield (5-0), Hammonton (6-0), Lenape (5-0), Quakertown (8-0), Springfield (Delco) (8-0), Holy Cross (6-0), Bishop Eustace (5-0), Central Bucks South (7-1), West Chester Rustin (7-1), West Deptford (5-1).
Southeastern PA Top 10 Power Ratings For Oct. 24, 2014
1. St. Joseph's Prep (Record: 4-3)
2. La Salle (Record: 6-2)
3. Archbishop Wood (Record: 7-1)
4. Imhotep Charter (Record: 7-1)
5. Coatesville (Record: 8-0)
6. Haverford School (Record: 6-1)
7. North Penn (Record: 5-3)
8. Pennsbury (Record: 7-1)
9. Central Bucks South (Record: 7-1)
10. West Chester Rustin (Record: 7-1)
Under consideration: Springfield (Delco) (8-0), Quakertown (8-0), Ben Franklin (7-0), Simon Gratz (7-1), Great Valley (7-1), Perkiomen Valley (7-1), Upper Dublin (7-1), Council Rock North (6-2), West Chester Henderson (6-2).
Game of the Week
Council Bucks South (7-1, 5-0 Suburban One National) at Pennsbury (7-1, 4-1 Suburban One National), Friday, 7 PM
This is for supremacy atop the rugged Suburban One National. Pennsbury was pounded by North Penn for 223 yards rushing and a big play in dropping its first game this season, 24-21, last Friday. Central Bucks South won its sixth-straight game, outlasting Council Rock South, 28-21. The Titans have beaten North Penn (28-27) and Neshaminy (52-36), and came back to beat Pennridge, 28-21, behind a game-high 197 yards and 3 TDs from Notre Dame-bound Josh Adams.
A great game, but Pennsbury is bristling over last week's loss to North Penn and takes it out on Central Bucks South. The Falcons will find a way to curtail Adams, if that's possible, and may have a little too much firepower CB South.
Prediction: Pennsbury 28, CB South 24
2014 District 1 seedings
AAAA-Top 16 qualify
School W-L PTS AVG
1. Coatesville 8-0 1,090 136.25
2. Quakertown 8-0 1,050 131.25
T3. C. B. South 7-1 1,010 126.25
T3. WC Rustin 7-1 1,010 126.25
5. Pennsbury 7-1 1,000 125.00
6. Upper Dublin 7-1 980 122.50
T7. Council Rock North 6-2 970 121.25
T7. WC Henderson 6-2 970 121.25
9. Downingtown West 6-2 900 112.50
10. Perkiomen Valley 7-1 890 111.25
T11. Downingtown East 5-3 860 107.50
T11. North Penn 5-3 860 107.50
13. Conestoga 6-2 850 106.25
14. Pennridge 5-3 840 105.00
15. Garnet Valley 6-2 830 103.75
16. Haverford 6-2 820 102.50
AAA – Top 8 qualify
School W-L PTS AVG
1. Springfield (Delco) 8-0 1,200 150.00
2. Great Valley 7-1 1,010 126.25
3. Bishop Shanahan 5-3 910 113.75
T4. Academy Park 6-2 890 111.25
T4. Pottsgrove 6-2 890 111.25
6. Octorara 5-3 770 96.25
T7. Upper Moreland 5-3 740 92.50
T7. Glen Mills 4-4 740 92.50
T7. Marple Newtown 4-4 740 92.50
AA –Top 4 qualify
School W-L PTS AVG
1. Bristol 7-1 890 111.5
2. Springfield (Montco) 4-4 720 90.0
3. Valley Forge MA 4-3 570 81.4
4. New Hope 2-5 480 68.57
A –Top 4 qualify
School W-L PTS AVG
1. Calvary Christian 6-1 840 120.0
2. Delco Christian 5-2 750 107.4
3. Jenkintown 4-4 700 87.5
4. Kipp-DuBois 3-4 610 87.1
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