The Archbishop Wood Vikings are spending the week trying to move past last Friday night’s 62-0 loss to powerful St. Joseph’s Prep.
“We’ll break down the film, find the positives and build on them and find the negatives and correct them,” said coach Dave Armstrong.
Friday’s outcome was never in doubt. Prep (4-1 overall, 1-0 Philadelphia Catholic League Red Division), ranked eighth in the USA Today Super 25, scored on a pass, a punt return and a blocked punt less than eight minutes into the game.
The Hawks were up 41-0 at halftime, and the second half featured a running clock and plenty of backups on both teams. The deep Hawks managed to score three more times.
Prep has won seven state championships in the highest classification since 2013 and is favored to win an eighth title this season. The senior class includes players committed to schools such as Cincinnati, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Kentucky. The junior class includes four players with offers from every top college program in the country.
“They’re up there in the rankings, but we’re not going to shy away from competition,” said senior lineman Mike Szwak. “We gave 110 percent.”
The Wood fans – including a student section White Out and members of the Class of 1973 celebrating their 50-year reunion – had some things to cheer about, starting with senior Mavis Brookreson’s nice rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner.
The big, fast Prep defense didn’t give the Wood offense much room to operate, but quarterback Karon Shedrick and running backs Yasin Lowry and Nakai Robinson fought for tough yardage.
“A 1-yard run can be a good run, depending on what’s presented to you,” Armstrong said.
Wood, which opened with a victory over Archbishop Ryan, fell to 1-4 (0-1 PCL Red).
“Our record doesn’t show our story,” said senior Joey Scarpello, a wide receiver, cornerback and captain.
Scarpello is looking forward to returning to William Tennent on Friday, when the Vikings face Roman Catholic, a team ranked fourth in the PIAA Class 5A, according to PennLive.
“We’re going to watch film, learn, prepare for the second half of the season and come back stronger,” he said. “We’re going to give 100 percent and get better results. I know we’ll get wins.”
The Wood vs. Roman game will be a preview of a later playoff game, as they are the only two Class 5A teams in the Catholic League. The winner will likely get mighty Imhotep Charter.
The Prep result notwithstanding, the Vikings have been competitive in their other losses.
“Our offense has gotten better since the first game against Ryan, and our defense is playing pretty well,” Szwak said.
The Vikings dominated the Catholic League and states in the 2010s, winning PIAA championships in 2011, ’13, ’14, ’16, ’17 and ’19 with star-studded rosters. Wood, though, hasn’t had a winning season since that exciting victory over Cheltenham in the 2019 state final.
Friday’s game against Roman will be a measuring stick.
“Win or lose, I want individual improvement and overall improvement,” Armstrong said. “You can get better and still not win. But you don’t want that. You want to improve and win.”
Armstrong said Wood has a young squad, which bodes well for the future but can result in growing pains. This season, the coach has seen his players display character, integrity, discipline and effort. The offensive and defensive lines have played pretty well, in Armstrong’s view.
“It all starts with them,” he said.
Szwak plays in the trenches, and he believes his linemates and the rest of the Vikings will be ready for both Roman games sandwiched around matchups with La Salle and Father Judge.
“You always want to finish with wins,” he said. “We’ll correct the mistakes and control that line.”
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