2025 Face In The Crowd – Week 8

A FACE IN THE CROWD – WEEK 8

Jack Kerouac, king of the Beat Generation, famously said, “Everybody goes home in October.” It is interesting to note that the genius behind the seminal work of his generation, On the Road, was once a star halfback in his hometown of Lowell, Massachusetts and was recruited to Columbia to play football. Eventually, literary pursuits replaced his athletic dreams and the rest is history. But Kerouac’s notion of going home in October fits with this week’s theme – going to a place where one belongs.

Here in the Mobile FITC Command Center (aka mustard-green Econoline), Cousin Gino and I have been toasting a 4-1 week in our Fistfight picks. That result is certainly where we belong. The only loss for us last week occurred at Modular Field at Abington Heights High School (I kid because I love). The Comets, resilient under THE VISOR, Coach Joe Repshis, bounced back from two consecutive losses to drop the Jesuit Giants unceremoniously. Gino and I are still looking for the 5-0 week, the Holy Grail of prognostication. So we have decided to spend the weekend with Gino’s revered mother, Aunt Modesta. She even canceled her weekly John Cena Fan Club meeting just to cook us some Chicken Francaise. All is right with the world.

So, with full stomachs, we move on to the lessons we have learned in the hopes that we can understand the lunacy that is NEPA high school football in 2025.

LESSON #1

The Men of Troy, or Covington as the case may be, have firmly established themselves as the class of the LFC. More importantly, they have done it in a way that harkens back to the Big 11. The Trojans have four different ball carriers with more than 250 yards rushing. They have 29 touchdowns by land, an impressive statistic over the course of 7 football games. And, they have a highlight reel player in Cole West, still #1 on our list of Henzes Award candidates. Still, North Pocono has two marquis encounters still on the slate as we move through the campaign’s final 3 weeks. First, in Week 9, they host Delaware Valley. The Warriors, in the last five seasons, have gone 5-0 against NP by a combined score of 169-46. In the season’s final weekend, the Trojans travel to Dunmore to face the Jesuit Giants, another program that has beaten North Pocono in the last three seasons by a combined score of 102-13. Those are big numbers that, I’m sure, are firmly entrenched in the minds and hearts of Coach Dolhon’s talented group in Moscow. What better way to spit those numbers back in the faces of the doubters than to whip both squads on your way to an undefeated season and division title?

LESSON #2

We have reached that point in the season where we can begin to look ahead with some clarity at the district tournaments that are on the horizon. It appears that Class 2A and 3A will provide the most interesting matchups between teams that are similar, at least on the surface, in talent level. In 2A, Lakeland, Riverside, and Dunmore own the top three seeds. The Chiefs carry victories over the two rivals in their classification, winning close games over the Vikings and Bucks. In Week 1, Riverside won a white-knuckler in the #NINESQUARE MILES. Still, I know Gino and I would not be surprised if Dunmore was able to overturn those decisions and walk away with the district hardware. Nor would we be stunned if the Ol’ Ball Coach, Harry Armstrong, won his second consecutive crown in 2A. But right now, the Chiefs are the favorite, relying heavily on the running and passing of seasoned signal- caller, David Naniewicz. Class 3A is just as perplexing, with Berwick, Wyoming Area, and the Jesuit Giants in the mix. It is hard to say how the WVC schools will match up against a Prep team that has clearly played a more competitive schedule than their southern brethren. Still, as it stands, the JG’s will have to win two games on the road below the county line to win another gold medal.

LESSON #3

In the last three weeks, Pittston Area has handled Dallas, Crestwood, and Wilkes-Barre Area to put a stranglehold on Division I of the Wyoming Valley Conference. Holy Ciro Cinti, Batman! That means all the Red Dawn (better than Tomatoes?) needs to do is knock off Hazleton on Friday night to capture the league title. That would etch the name of Paul Russick indelibly into the Coach of the Year trophy in District 2. In his first year as mentor, all that the man has done is to take the program to heights not seen in recent memory. In addition, the Red Dawn is currently the top seed in the Class 5A tournament where schools like Abington Heights and Delaware Valley await. Don’t bet against the Red Dawn. Gino did and the Big Fella was forced to make sandwiches at Bruno’s Brats to pay the vig to his bookie (also Bruno, interestingly). Clear the Pittston Bypass for a championship parade on Friday night.

LESSON #4

Kudos to Coach Eric Richardson at Hanover Area. It is conceivable that the Hawkeyes could win their last three games and finish the season with a sparkling 6-4 record, a far cry from the lean years Hanover Area fans have suffered through recently. Hanover has an exciting quartet of skill players in Logan Richardson, Deacon Eisenbach, and the Brothers Downey (Davin and DeWayne). Perhaps the most intriguing part of the Hanover resurgence is the fact that none of the aforementioned Hawkeyes are seniors! Without question, Hawkeye fans are already peeking ahead to next year when each of those players is bigger and more experienced. The Wyoming Valley Conference has been put on notice that Hanover Area has returned to prominence.

LESSON #5

We’ve reached that place in our lengthy tome where we post our leading candidates for the Henzes Award, a mythical trophy awarded to a mythical player who leads the area in an attribute we call “electrifyingness”. At least Gino calls it that. I am attempting to hold out against the forces of idiocy and mental decay caused by long periods of exposure to Frankie Avalon records. Gino loves Frankie. Someone has to.

This week’s list:

COLE WEST NORTH POCONO
ISAAC RYON LACKAWANNA TRAIL
TY’MEERE WILKERSON BERWICK
LUCAS LOPRESTO PITTSTON AREA
BRAYDEN ROSE RIVERSIDE

Honorable Mention: Mike Iuzzolino – Delaware Valley, Jack Gravine – Wyoming Area, John Richards – Wyoming Valley West, Will McPartland – Scranton Prep, Gavin Anders – Abington Heights, David Naniewicz – Lakeland

As we move into this week’s Fistfights, I will confess that it was not easy to come up with five reasonably close contests. This may be the week of the curb-stomping, as the have’s beat up on the have-nots. Hopefully, this is the week when Gino and I touch immortality, going 5-0. The Paisan Predictor will, indeed, weigh in (literally – he’s pushing three bills right now) at Fistfight #3.

Here we go:

FISTFIGHT #5 RIVERSIDE (6-1) at CARBONDALE AREA (4-3)

The Vikings are a week away from the annual Tri-Boro tussle against the Blue Devils. As they look askance at their Blue and Gold neighbors, perhaps they will look past the Chargers. But remember that the Vikings need to stack wins in order to maintain their playoff position in the 3A standings. And the Ol’ Ball Coach, Harry Armstrong, loves to sharpen his teeth in games against “lesser” opponents. You can take that however you like. Methinks Riverside continues their skein of blowout wins on Friday and stays within striking distance of the Delaware Wing-T’s of Tunnel Hill. That battle takes place in Week 10. For now, stay out of Coach Armstrong’s way.

FISTFIGHT #4 OLD FORGE (1-6) at HOLY CROSS (3-4)

I told you that the pickin’s were slim this week. In years past, this game was the opposite of a fistfight. The Devils have owned this series for time immemorial. As we look at the records, it seems as though this is as good a time as any to throw caution to the wind and go heavy on the Crusaders. But the Devils got a win last week and Coach Schuback’s group did not fold up in the second half of their Week 6 brouhaha with Trail. This one will be played at venerable Monsignor Crotti Field on top of Drinker Street in Dunmore. There will be dust and grime and sweat and other unmentionables strewn across the terrain at Crotti. God help me, I just cannot go against the Devils in this one. Old habits die hard.

Ok, it’s time for the Big Kid to unleash his musings for this week. He’s off once again to Lake Wallenpaupack. The natives at the lake didn’t know quite what to make of Gino when last he ventured up Route 590. Word is that his picture is hanging in the ignominious “Do Not Serve” section of the dining room at Drafts Sports Bar. Beware.

FISTFIGHT #3 ABINGTON HEIGHTS (5-2) at WALLENPAUPACK (3-4)

Cousin Gino’s Pick of the Week is brought to you by Paulie’s Pasta Palace – “We Serve Pasta Like It’s the Last Supper – Every Night”

So it’s me, Gino, like my cuz says. We’re here at my Ma’s this week. Somethin’ my cuz said about homecoming. It’s nice to be home. The vehicle out back is not conducive to my relationships with the opponent sex. Here I got my own room with all my accoutrements, as they say. You know, posters of Sinatra, Dino, Stallone. All the Eye-talian greats. But Friday, I gotta go back up to the lake to see the Paupack kids again. Much as I like the scenery up there, I gotta take the Abington kids. They won a big game last week. Lotsa mojo. So I’ll take them. Meet me at Drafts after the game. My other cousins, Carmine and Angelo, are comin’ up. But pretend yas don’t know us, cuz yas don’t.

Carmine and Angelo are from the other side of the family. You know, the side with felony convictions. But Gino likes the Comets on the road. Duly noted.

FISTFIGHT #2 CRESTWOOD (4-3) at DALLAS (2-5)

I’m not even going to waste my time on analysis. I’m sure the Football Gods are hysterical every time I attempt to pick a game involving these two teams or any game involving Ciro Cinti. So I’m taking Dallas. I have no idea why. Their uniforms are a nice shade of blue. They match the vein in Rich Mannello’s head that protrudes every time he realizes his team is 2-5.

FISTFIGHT #1 VALLEY VIEW (4-3) at DELAWARE VALLEY (3-4)

Strange as this sounds, even though Delaware Valley is 3-4, they only have 1 loss in Division 1 of the LFC. If they can take care of business next weekend against North Pocono next weekend, and Prep defeats the Trojans in Week 10, the Warriors would be solo champs of the division. That’s how insane high school football has been in 2025. But there is the small matter of the visit from Valley View on Friday night. The Cougars got drilled by the Trojans last week, the latest step in Coach Greg Dolhon’s seemingly unstoppable march to the top rung of the ladder this season. Valley View has struggled mightily at times on offense. DV has been a juggernaut offensively, hanging a double nickel on Lutheran last week. It seems as though Coach Olsommer has his group spun around in the right direction. I’ll take DV by two scores.

So there you have another week of nonsense from two guys who can’t even make it past an 81-year old woman in orthopedic shoes. Modesta may not look quick, but she form-tackled Gino and broke the coffee table when the Big Kid was on his way to see his latest paramour. I’ll just settle in here next to the pictures of another famous Italian, Pope John XXIII. Apparently, Modesta had a crush on him. Weird, I know. On with the Power 5.

THE POWER 5 – our list of the five best football teams in all of District 2, heedless of record, classification, or NIL amount.