Maryland high school football notebook (9/7/2023)
For the second straight year, the opening week of the Baltimore City high school football season was overshadowed by gunfire.
Last Friday evening’s matchup between two-time defending Class 2A/1A state champ Dunbar and Loyola Blakefield of the Maryland Interscholastic Association was stopped late in the first half after shots rang out near Sugar Cain Field in East Baltimore.
A 12-year boy was injured in the shooting which took place across the street from Dunbar’s home field. Baltimore City Police said the 12-year old was taken to a hospital with injuries believed to be non-life-threatening.
Baltimore City police said the assailant, who was chased by a private security guard, got away.
In a video clip of the game streamed by the NFHS Network and posted on social media, a stream of automatic gunfire can be heard. Players and spectators are seen running toward the southwest end of the stadium amid screams coming from the stands.
Dunbar's Antonio Lane (8) slips out of the tackle attempt by a Loyola Blakefield defender during the first half of the non-league football contest in Baltimore. The game was stopped late in the first half after gun shots were fired outside of Sugar Cain Field. (Aug. 31, 2023)
Photo by Jimmy Fields
The commotion followed seconds after Loyola threw an incomplete pass in the waning moments of the first half. The Dons led 21-0 with 24.9 seconds remaining.
“It’s really sad because what we were trying to do here is establish a private vs. public matchup and let our kids know that being in Baltimore City is OK and this is just a sour way — this will be their memory of this,” Loyola coach Anthony Zeyhoue said to the Baltimore Sun. “It won’t be, ‘Hey, we got to play a tough city team, a reigning state champion.’ This is all they’re going to remember.”
On Sept. 2, 2022, Jeremiah Brogden, a junior on Mervo’s varsity football team, was gunned down outside of the school as students were dismissed for the day. The Mustangs were scheduled to play Edmondson that evening.
The game wasn’t played.
St. Frances football is in unchartered waters
Last year the St. Frances football team traveled more than 17,000 miles to compete against a national schedule and strive for a national championship. The Panthers acquitted themselves quite well on that journey, dropping only their season finale to rival IMG Academy (Florida).
In 2023, the Panthers are again crisscrossing the continental U.S. and playing perhaps an even more daunting schedule. Unlike last year, however, the victories are not yet coming. Following last weekend’s 13-7 setback to East St. Louis in Missouri, St. Frances sits at 0-3.
Two of those losses were to teams ranked in the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national high school football rankings and things only get more difficult from here.
This week the Panthers, who opened the year as SBLive/SI's No. 4 rated team but have now fallen out of the national rankings, will fly to Southern California this week to face St. John Bosco, the nation’s No. 2 team. That is followed by a trip to Salt Lake City to challenge Utah power West High School and, the following week, St. Frances finally plays its first home game of the year when Mater Dei (California), the nation’s top-ranked team, travels to Baltimore to face the Panthers at Johns Hopkins Homewood Field.
Archbishop Spalding survives a huge challenge from Concordia Prep
One week after a signature win against Don Bosco Prep (New Jersey) vaulted Archbishop Spalding as potential player on the national stage, the Cavaliers got a big scare from Concordia Prep, another program seeking to rise to prominence.
Only a 30-yard field goal by Spalding’s Cooper Welsh averted an upset for the Cavaliers and lifted them to a 32-31 win.
Concordia, a relative newcomer to football prominence won the MIAA B Conference title in 2021 and is considered one of the favorites to win the league this year. A move to the A Conference may also be in the Saints future after their near miss against the defending A Conference Cavaliers.
Maryland's top high school football games to watch in Week 2
Archbishop Spalding (2-0) vs. Imhotep Charter (PA) at Benjamin Johnson Field/Germantown Supersite, Philadelphia: The reigning MIAA A Conference champ Cavaliers, who survived an upset bid from Concordia Prep last weekend, travel to Philly for a major test against last season’s PIAA 5A state finalist Panthers (2-0).
Broadneck (0-1) at Arundel (1-0): This early season match could go a long way in deciding the Anne Arundel County championship as the squads collide for the first time since 2019.
Damascus (1-0) at Northwest (1-0): The reigning Class 3A state Hornets matchup with 4A contender Jaguars in a Montgomery County tilt and another Top 25 showdown.
Loyola Blakefield (0-0) at Georgetown Prep (1-0): A pair of state Top 25 squads clash as Little Hoyas seek second straight victory over a MIAA A program (defeated St. Vincent Pallotti last weekend). Loyola gets a chance to re-start its season after having its season opener with Dunbar halted just prior to halftime, with the Dons leading 21-0, because of gunfire just outside of the stadium.
St. Frances (0-3) at St. John Bosco (California) (2-0): After road losses to squads from Florida (Madonna-Chaminade), Georgia (Buford) and Illinois (East St. Louis), the winless Panthers head to California for a matchup with SBLive/Sports Illustrated’s No. 2 Braves (2-0).
Good Counsel takes over top ranking in Maryland High School Football Media State Poll
Not only did St. Frances drop from this week's national rankings, the Panthers lost their hold on the top ranking in the state of Maryland for the first time in five years.
Media members who vote in the Maryland High School Football Media State Poll have elected Good Counsel as the state's new No. 1 team.
The Falcons (1-1), who are a listed as an Honorable Mention choice in SBLive's national poll, received five first place votes and accumulated 292 points to move up from No. 2 last week. DeMatha, Good Counsel's rival in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) is now the No. 2 team after the Stags had four first place votes and garnered to 289 points. St. Frances still received three first place votes but dropped back to No. 3 with 283 points from the voters.
Archbishop Spalding and Quince Orchard round out the top five.
Here is this week's complete Maryland High School Football Media State Poll:
Rank, School, Record, Points, LW
1. Good Counsel (5), 1-1, 292, 2
2. DeMatha (4), 2-0, 289, 3
3. St. Frances Academy (3), 0-3, 283, 1
4. Archbishop Spalding, 2-0, 263, 4
5. Quince Orchard, 1-0, 253, 5
6. Rock Creek Christian, 1-1, 237, 6
7. Flowers, 1-0, 231, 7
8. Wise, 0-1, 213, 8
9. Oakdale, 1-0, 199, 11
10. Calvert Hall, 1-1, 173, 9
11. Milford Mill Academy, 0-1, 168, 10
12. Loyola Blakefield, 0-0, 163, 14
13. Concordia Prep, 1-1, 162, 17
14. Georgetown Prep, 1-0, 153, 13
15. Damascus, 1-0, 128, 16
16. North Point, 1-0, 112, 18
17. Dunbar, 0-0, 110, 12
18. Mount St. Joseph, 1-1, 85, 20
19. Bishop McNamara, 2-0, 80, NR
20. McDonogh, 2-0, 63, NR
21. Broadneck, 0-1, 57, 15
22. Fort Hill, 1-0, 52, 22
23. Frederick, 1-0, 45, 21
24. Northern-Calvert, 1-0, 32, 24
25. Northwest, 1-0, 15, 25
Others Receiving Votes: Arundel (1-0, 11 points), Bullis School (1-0, 7), St. Mary's-AA (0-1, 7), Old Mill (1-0, 5), Patuxent (1-0, 5), Linganore (1-0, 3), Douglass-PG (1-0, 2), Calvert (1-0, 1), Montgomery Blair (1-0, 1).
