Moravian College football coach Jeff Pukszyn could spend extensive time recruiting in Western Pennsylvania. He doesn’t feel the need.
He has the green light to go after more players from Ohio or New Jersey. It’s not something he deems necessary.
Pukszyn, a Lehigh Valley native, is surrounded by assistant coaches who have ties to the area. Each one has a stronghold on who the region’s top players are and which ones would fit into Pukszyn’s system.
The result has been local, local and more local Greyhounds playing for Pukszyn, a Central Catholic graduate. The Greyhounds boast 10 starters who graduated from Lehigh Valley high schools, including three from Parkland and two from Liberty.
“I think you have to really take care of your own backyard first,” Pukszyn said. “We have a lot of ties and that helps when we are recruiting in the area. It’s worked out well in the past three or four years.”
Running back Chris Negron (Freedom) leads the Centennial Conference in rushing yards (944) and rushing touchdowns (12). Tailback Eli Redmond (Parkland) has been a solid complement in the backfield.
Wide receiver Jalen Snyder-Scipio (Central Catholic) is climbing up the school’s receiving yardage and touchdowns lists. Jimmy McCarthy (Liberty) has done a little bit of everything. After playing offense in his first two years, he’s starting at cornerback and as the punter. Fellow cornerback Noah Miller (Notre Dame-GP) is one of the team’s better tacklers.
Safety Anthony Orlando (Liberty) is a co-captain and linemen Ryan Pysher (Bangor) and John Snyder (Palmerton) are tough, physical players.
Freshman linebacker Steve Ewald (Parkland) and freshman safety Nick Zambelli (Parkland) are starters on defense. Ewald is second on the team in tackles.
“He came with a really high football IQ, and he’s a gym rat,” Pukszyn said of Ewald. “He picked up things pretty quick. He’s a really physical football player too. As an 18-year-old, he could handle preseason physically and mentally, and that has really shown in these seven weeks. He does a phenomenal job with the little things.
“He comes from very good high school program. We know the kind of program Jim Morgans runs [at Parkland].”
The resumes of Moravian’s assistant coaches are littered with Lehigh Valley connections. Many of them were either players themselves at local schools or coached at one during their careers.
Offensive coordinator Tim McGorry was an assistant at Salisbury and Central Catholic. Running backs coach Bob McClarin has coached throughout the Lehigh Valley, including having spent the 2001-2012 seasons as Liberty’s offensive coordinator. Tight ends coach Garrett Bisbing is a 2009 Central Catholic graduate. Inside linebackers coach Don Clemons is a Northampton alum. Assistant coach Bryan Kish graduated from Dieruff before coaching at Parkland and Central Catholic. Cornerbacks coach Harold Fairclough won a state championship as a player and head coach at Central Catholic. Defensive line coach Jim Newhard served as an assistant at several Lehigh Valley high schools, including Parkland, Allen, Central Catholic and Salisbury.
“Having that many connections on the staff can really help us jump-start the Lehigh Valley recruiting process,” Pukszyn said.
Mexico-bound: Former Central Catholic standout Teddy Airoldi, a senior defensive back at Dickinson College, will be playing for Team Stars and Stripes in the Division III Bowl of Stars in December in Monterrey, Mexico.
The Bethlehem resident, a political science major, has 60 tackles, three fumble recoveries and one interception as a captain this season for the Red Devils.
Crazy stats: Muhlenberg sophomore tailback Max Cepeda had 10 yards on seven carries in four quarters Saturday at Juniata. In two overtimes, he ran for 50 yards and two scores, including the game-winner, to give the Mules the win. It was the first double-overtime game in program history.
Nick Palladino had his seventh career 300-yard passing day with 378 yards and four touchdowns, including a nine-yarder to Liberty grad Mike Harris to tie the game late in regulation.
Palladino leads the Centennial Conference with 1,771 passing yards. He is second to Johns Hopkins’ Jon Germano in TD passes (19) and completion percentage (69.1 percent). He is 159 yards shy of Muhlenberg’s career passing yardage record.
Nick Lamb caught 14 passes against Juniata, one shy of the program record. His 212 receiving yards were the first of at least 200 yards in 15 years. He is second in the conference with 622 receiving yards and third with 44 catches.
Luke Wiley’s two interceptions against Juniata gives him four for the year, second-most in the conference.
Award winners: Moravian senior kicker Jerome Wachter was named the Centennial Conference Special Teams athlete of the week for his performance in the Greyhounds’ 34-19 victory over Franklin & Marshall College on Saturday. He had a pair of field goals and four extra-points for 10 points, which are tied for the ninth most in a single game in school history.
Wachter connected on a career-long of 35 yards in the first quarter, then hit a 31-yarder with just less than three minutes left in the game. His 28 PATs are three shy of Chad Kurtz’s record of 31 in 1993.
Kutztown’s Chad Barton was named PSAC East offensive player of the week after his second five-touchdown game of his career. The senior quarterback finished with 321 passing yards on 26-of-36 passing in Kutztown’s victory over ESU. His 50 career TD passes trail Kyle Spotts by one for third all-time in program history.
Barton moved into fifth place in school history in career pass attempts (692) and remains fifth in yardage (5,147) and completions (408). He also ran for a 32-yard touchdown against the Warriors.
Dickinson at Muhlenberg, 1
SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE
Kutztown at Lock Haven, 1 p.m.
Bloomsburg at East Stroudsburg, 1
Gettysburg at Moravian, 1
