Owen J. Roberts fights past Pottsgrove, 14-7, earns 2-0 start

by rob senior

POTTSGROVE >> This preseason, Owen J. Roberts football players spent a great deal of time focusing on taking the next step as a team.

For several years, the Wildcats have been playoff participants, but the program is still in search of a breakthrough victory – whether against Liberty Division rivals or in the District 1-6A postseason.

So while Friday night’s 14-7 win at Pottsgrove was a testament to the team’s perseverance and ability to win when playing less than their best game, to the ‘Cats and their offensive leader, the game was all the more reason to get back to work.

“It’s good to come out, get a win, keep fighting – but I don’t think we’re close to our midseason form,” said quarterback Derek Hinrichs, who accounted for both OJR scores (one passing, one rushing).

“We have a lot of things to clean up. Mainly, we had way too many penalties.”

Indeed the Wildcats were whistled 11 times for 75 yards – many of those fouls of the pre-snap variety that made their drives against a stingy Pottsgrove defense all the more challenging.

Fortunately, OJR has a stout group of its own on defense. The Wildcats held Pottsgrove without an offensive score, limiting the hosts to 148 yards of total offense.

A tightly-contested, smashmouth game of throwback PAC football deserved a fitting decisive play, and it got one when Hinrichs took the second of consecutive quarterback sneaks over from the one-yard line with 10:33 to play, giving OJR the seven-point lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

Hinrichs, a senior, carried 24 times for 106 yards and a score, while mixing in seven completions for another 111 yards in his second start.

“I think we’re coming together, but we’re capable of more,” he said. “We need to continue to improve.”

The QB sneak culminated a 12-play, 38-yard journey that ate up the last several minutes of the third quarter and the start of the fourth.

The Wildcats’ ability to control the ball was paramount to preserving the win. Pottsgrove ran only 13 plays after halftime, limited to a turnover on downs and a punt.

The Wildcats sealed the victory with 2:19 remaining when running back/punter Logan Brower dropped back to kick on a 4th and 3 from their own 41, but instead charged ahead with the snap for a 10-yard gain that sealed the win for OJR (2-0).

Anthony Mayes (13 rushes, 80 yards) was the bright spot on the Falcons’ offense.

“Anthony’s a kid I’m extremely proud of,” said Pottsgrove coach Bill Hawthorne. “Tonight, he gave us a running attack that we can build off of – we need to capitalize on his abilities and start to do what we do best.

“I saw growth from last week, and with the kind of kids we have, I know we’re going to be fine this season.”

The first half was a singular tale of missed opportunities with one explosive play per side.

After the Falcons punted on their first possession, OJR’s second play from scrimmage was the familiar connection of quarterback Hinrichs and wide receiver Mekhi Graham.

Graham took a short toss, weaved through traffic to the left and down the sideline past an elated OJR sideline and student section, exploding into the end zone with a 63-yard score, his third of his freshman season.

The next three OJR possessions ended in punts, with Pottsgrove unable to take advantage due to a bend-but-don’t-break Wildcats defense led by linebacker Lorenzo Satiro.

Satiro sacked Pottsgrove’s Gabe Rinda to create a third-and-long before a turnover on downs. Early in the second period, Pottsgrove’s Anthony Mayes charged from his fullback position for consecutive first-down runs before a Rinda pass had the Falcons poised to move inside the OJR 15.

But on the tackle, Satiro stripped the Pottsgrove ball carrier and fell on the recovery, preserving the 7-0 OJR lead… but only momentarily.

That’s because another OJR punt found hard-charging Pottsgrove returner Bryce Caffrey, who fielded a perfect hop and accelerated down his own sideline for a 67-yard punt return TD that looked suspiciously like Graham’s earlier score and knotted the game at 7.

Both sides exchanged turnovers before the half, Mikhi Dargan intercepting Hinrichs for Pottsgrove before OJR recovered another fumble in the red zone just before the break.

OJR’s Satiro finished the evening with two sacks and the fumble recovery, continuing his strong start to 2023 that included nine tackles in last week’s win over Conestoga.

“There’s a little nervousness before the first game,” he said. “This week, I felt like I stepped up my game a little more, showed what I can do.

“It’s tough against an offense like [Pottsgrove], because if we blitz there’s a chance they could go right over the middle. But we trust that the defensive backs have their assignments.”

OJR’s 2-0 start came in back-to-back road contests, and the Wildcats open the home portion of their season next Friday night against Avon Grove of the Ches-Mont League.

Pottsgrove (0-2) looks to move into the win column next Friday when they host Norristown back at Pennypacker Field.

For the Falcons, quarterback Rinda completed five of eight passes for 58 yards – the highlight a 20-yard connection with tight end Riley Delp – while Caffrey added 29 rushing yards and a 41-yard average on two punts to his electrifying punt return.

“We have to clean up the things we’re doing to hurt ourselves,” said Hawthorne. “Penalties, bad snaps… we need to work on it. But we’re going to be OK.”

Owen J. Roberts 14, Pottsgrove 7

Owen J. Roberts — 7 0 0 7 — 14

Pottsgrove — 0 7 0 0 — 7

SCORING PLAYS

OJR — Graham 63 pass from Hinrichs (Touhey kick)
PG — Caffrey 67 punt return (C. Williams kick)
OJR — Hinrichs 1 run (Touhey kick)

TEAM STATISTICS

OJR PG
First Downs 14 8

Rushing Yards 158 90

Passing Yards 111 58

Total Yards 269 148

Passes C-A-I 7-16-0 5-8-1

Fumbles-Lost 4-2 3-0