PA HS Football Rivalries Part 2

We return with the second part in the Pigpen with one of the top experts on Pennsylvania High School Football to talk about some of the top rivalries in the state. The teams of the Shamokin Indians, Bellwood-Antis Blue Devils, Tyrone Golden Eagles, Mount Carmel Red Tornadoes, Penn Charter Quakers, Germantown Academy Patriots, Harrisburg Cougars and Bishop McDevitt Crusaders are discussed in this episode.

The Pennsylvania Football History expert from PAFBHISTORY.com is the man with the plan when it comes to collecting data about high school football history in the Commonwealth of PA. He has tapped into Dr. Roger Saylor, the legendary gridiron historian from Penn State, combed through Newspapers.com for tidbits and continues to gather photos, stats, and stories from experts around the country on PA High School Pigskin. The Historian's social media presence is strong especially in the Twitter-sphere, @pa_fb_history. He placed a recent question on Twitter about what people believe the biggest Pennsylvania High School rivalries are. The response was overwhelming and we were lucky to get a chance to sit down with him to go over some of the most talked-about answers to his posted question. They are in no particular ranked order and just a random sampling of some of the more popular ones. This is such good stuff that we are going to break our conversation into multiple parts so that the rivalries don't get lost in the shuffle, and the appreciation of each and the value they bring to all of football can be appreciated.

The second portion of our discussion took us to four other scholastic arch-rival games in PA.

Shamokin versus Mount Carmel

The Shamokin Indians have fielded great teams for years, as this program has been rock solid. Playing at Kemp Memorial Stadium in Coal Township the Indians are a tough game on anyone's schedule.

The Mount Carmel Red Tornadoes hailing from Mount Carmel, PA are a traditional powerhouse themselves. The Tornadoes defend the turf of the Silver Bowl Stadium and give all opponents a ride for their money.

When these two face each other annually the towns are empty as folks from far and near know these battles are epic and filled with super athletes.

Bellwood-Antis versus Tyrone

These two smaller schools should not be overlooked when it comes to playing ball on a Friday night in the fall!

The Bellwood-Antis Blue Devils are the smaller of the two but they always pack some punch. The legendary Coach Hayes has recently retired but the Devils still hold a 3-game streak against their arch rival with Head Coach Nick Lovrich continuing the winning tradition.

The Tyrone Golden Eagles for years have been the team to beat in the PIAA District 6. They too have a long-time sideline boss in Head Coach John Franco, who really knows how to orchestrate a winning environment. Heck up to a few short years ago, Tyrone was the only team from the District that had won a State Title!

These two squads face-off traditionally early in the season and it sets the tone for great football in the area.

Germantown Academy versus Penn Charter

This match-up is one that has the football world paying attention! Each school is wrapped in tradition and gridiron pride, and their size puts them on the level of populations with Universities!

The Penn Charter Quakers have a winning tradition that compares with anyone. The William Penn Charter School has been a mainstay in the Philadelphia area since 1689! Though the football program isn't that old it still has been a force for over a century.

The Germantown Academy Patriots are a force to be reckoned with every year too. The school was founded in 1759 in Fort Washington, PA so their traditions run as deep as the ocean.

Bishop McDevitt versus Harrisburg

Our rivalry discussion in Part 2 wraps up with two teams from the Keystone Capital.

The Harrisburg Cougars football program may not be as old as some of the others, but man can they win some ball games. Coach Calvin Everett always has his Cougars squad ready for all opponents.

The Bishop McDevitt Crusaders team coached by long tenured Jeff Weachter has had a plethora of athletes play in Division 1 FBS football and even in the NFL. They are a matchup nightmare for all opponents as well.

The banner photo is of 1972 - William Allen - Parkland High School Football Program - Allentown PA. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

A Very Special thanks to information obtained from the following brilliant internet sites: Newspapers.com, PAFBHISTORY.com and Penn State Digital archives.