Hornets reclaim memorial trophy with win over Panthers.

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By the way the Wellsboro football players scrambled to get a hand on the football, you would have thought it was their first time to set eyes on it. So, why did a swarm of Hornets lunge over their teammates in an attempt to reach the football they had encircled? To be honest, it was the first time in three years they had seen this particular football, the one that sets atop the Morton Jones Memorial Trophy.

The last time many members of the Wellsboro football team, seven to be exact, caught a glimpse of the trophy was following the opening game of their freshman year. That was also the last year Russ Manney led the Hornets.

This year, the year of Manney's return, the trophy also returns to Wellsboro, the 37-19 winners of the annual football game Friday night, November 2, in Blossburg. The game came down to the line. The team whose line was the most successful at firing off the ball would the winner of the game.

Wellsboro (5-5) was stronger according to both coaches. "It came down to their offensive line handling our defensive line and Harsch being a tough runner. He was difficult to bring down," North Penn skipper Tom Dickinson said. They controlled the ball. Wellsboro had been able to do that against other teams and they did it to us in the first half When you can't stop them, it's hard to get the ball and move it."

Manney, who has been a strong advocate for the strength training program, was pleased with the line. "We knew going into the game that physically we were a little bit stronger," Manney said. "We were more worried about stopping them because of the nature of their offense. They did exactly what we thought they'd do."

"The only stats that matter are the ones on the scoreboard," Manney said. "In the last two games, I've noticed the players have a fire in their eyes to win a game. Not only did they win, but they dominated. We have to emphasize and build on that aspect."

For the first time in the history of the memorial game, both teams ran the Wing-T offense. Although the stats were nearly equal for both teams, Manney said he was only concerned with one stat. Derek Harsch led the Hornets while adding more yardage to his record-breaking year. It had only taken the senior four games to break 1,000 yards rushing on the season. He then followed by breaking the all-time Wellsboro high school rushing record midway through the season.

He added 262 yards to his record-setting tally Friday night and also became the first Wellsboro back to break the 2,000 yard mark. His high school record stands at 2053 yards on 292 carries and 20 touchdowns. He has a 7.3 yards per carry average.

"They (North Penn) found out what it was like to tackle Derek Harsch," Manney said.

Tim Roupp made yet another monumental milestone in Panther history by becoming the first North Penn running back to rush for 1,000 yards two consecutive seasons with his 256 yard rushing night. Both previous Panther two-time 1,000 yard backs were students at Mansfield.

Roupp laced together two big touchdown runs on his way to eclipse the plateau, a 65 yard scamper in the second quarter and 95 yard Panther crowd pleaser in the fourth quarter. But Roupp pounded his way five and 10 yards at a time during the third quarter series in which he broke the 1,000 yard mark.

"We didn't talk about it (1,000 yards rushing) much and didn't stress it with the team," Dickinson said. "But once he broke for his first touchdown, we got interested and he ran very hard. He made some people miss and continued to run hard."

Harsch was responsible for stopping the Panthers on their initial drive when he pounded Roupp for a loss on third-and-three to force the punt. He then followed by leading the Hornets from their own 28-yard line to the Panther's four-yard line to set up the first score of the night.

Wellsboro signal caller Will Osgood tucked in the ball on the keeper and slipped into the end zone to put the Hornets in the lead. Wellsboro's first attempt for the extra point was blocked. They received a second shot courtesy of a roughing-the-kicker call against the Panthers. Wellsboro opted for the two-point conversion on their second attempt. Matt Priset scooted into the end zone to complete the conversion. Wellsboro held a 8-0 lead with three minutes remaining in the first frame.

"North Penn came up and moved the ball on their first series. We stopped them but at that point thought we may have trouble against their run," Manney said.

The Panthers ensuing drive was short lived. On the second play of the series, Osgood sat back in his defensive back coverage as Brant rolled out for the pass and fired. Osgood then cut in, picked off the pass at the 42-yard line and zipped into the end zone. Only 15 seconds after their first touchdown of the game, Wellsboro scored again to increase their lead to 16-0 after Brad Smith added the two-point conversion.

Harsch led the way again for the Hornets after holding North Penn and forcing the punt. This time, he capped off the drive with his only touchdown of the night after he took the hand off and raced across the goal line with 8:48 remaining in the first half.

Wellsboro garnered the ball back on another key defensive play when they recovered a Panther fumble. Wellsboro capitalized on the turnover by punching the ball into the end zone two minutes after their last score. Harsch carried the ball into the end zone on his 31-yard touchdown run then added the two-point conversion.

The Panthers scratched their way back in to the game when Roupp emerged from the line and broke free on a 56 yard touchdown run with four minutes remaining in the half. Scott Wheeler booted the extra point to narrow Wellsboro's lead, 30-7.

Again, Wellsboro came back behind Harsch, who led the way. The Hornets completed the drive with another touchdown. This time, with 20 seconds remaining in the first half, Osgood fired a 11 yard touchdown pass to an un-manned Nate Compton. Pat Coolidge followed with the extra point that gave Wellsboro a 37-7 halftime lead. North Penn made their best defensive stand in the second half holding the Hornets scoreless while adding two touchdowns of their own.

The first came when Dean Slaymaker took the handoff and punched the ball into the end zone with 1:25 remaining in the third quarter. Roupp added his 95 yard touchdown scamper with just over a minute remaining in the game. Both extra point attempts failed.

Wellsboro was hoping the win would not only give them their first winning season in three years but a berth in the Eastern Conference playoff. They missed that by only a couple of points.

"If we knew then what we do now it could have been a better year, but we'll build on that. We were good enough to win seven games. If we would not have taken the forfeit, we could have been six and four. But that's the way it works. If we could have beaten Canton we could have been in," Manney said. "We said this is what can happen when you work hard. We had nine seniors but we need twenty to have a good program. These guys set the foundation."

Dickinson was proud of the season turned in by the Panther squad led by dedicated seniors. "The seniors had good careers and played hard all year long. They had fun, they enjoyed playing and that's all you can ask of players that have 21 games in their career," Dickinson said. "I think having fun is a big key. If don't enjoy they game, you're not going to produce and stick it out. We've put in a lot of hard work trying to develop that throughout our football program. A 4-6 record is not anything to be ashamed of."