Records Fall In Delco Christian's 50-21 Victory

NEWTOWN SQUARE–Matt Hirshman could tell just in the post-game handshakes last year that something was missing. Opposing teams would line up and grip up , which is what struck the Knights’ senior quarterback most.

“We weren’t strong enough to beat the bigger, better teams,” Hirshman said. “You could tell even by the way they shook our hands after games.”

There’s no denying the Knights’ strength—nor resolve—this season. Hirshman, along with many returning players were part of the Knights’ 2-7 inaugural season last year. An off-season commitment made them a little larger, a little faster, a little stronger. They were also expected to win a few more games, too.

But what’s happening at Delco Christian may be slightly more than what Hirshman or his teammates envisioned. The Knights have shown an ability to come from behind in tense games, and have shown dominance over teams that they should dominate, like win-less George School.

Delco Christian was brilliant in dismantling George School 50-21 Saturday night, and doubling the Knights’ victory total from a year ago to remain undefeated at 4-0. The Knights picked up over 400 yards of total offense, and if wasn’t for Knights’ coach Jim Favino being so kind in pulling his starters at halftime, it could have been considerably worse.

A slew of school records came crashing down for the fledgling program—highlighted by tailback Zak Moore’s school–record 91-yard touchdown run, a single-game record for points scored (50), passing yards (156) and total yards (418) in a game.

There were a few occasions last year when Delco Christian was on the
receiving end of a few bombs. Not anymore, it seems.

“We told ourselves after last year we had to work harder,” said Moore, who gained a career-best 176 yards and three touchdowns in one half—when the Knights offense amassed 375 yards of total offense. “I did think we would be awesome this year because it’s not just one guy. We have so many different weapons on offense, our offensive line and defensive lines are very good. It’s a total team.”

The game was over at halftime. The Knights had thoroughly beaten George School in every facet of the game, charging out to a 44-7 lead and instituting the 35-point mercy rule for the second half. The Knights punted once on its first possession. Then the Knights proceeded to score on seven-straight possessions.

The one surprising wrinkle was Hirshman throwing 156 yards, completing seven of 11 passes, including a 23-, 38- and 47-yard completions.

“We are a run-first team,” Hirshman admitted. “But we can pass the ball and we decided to throw the ball this game. We have four tough opponents coming up and it’s something I think we wanted to prove we could do.”

Hirshman was a master of the play-action fake, drawing the George School defense in, and Hirshman threw an accurate, strong ball. Sophomore receiver Henry Miller played a major role, too, intercepting one pass and catching three passes for 72 yards.

The Knights forced three George School turnovers that translated into 17 points for Delco Christian.

But the most exciting play was Moore’s school-record 91-yard touchdown run. With the Knights already leading 30-0, Moore took a jet sweep and cut inside, for a second, he was lost in amaze of over-pursuing George School defenders, then squirted out from the pack and used his considerable speed to outrun everyone.

Moore’s long run came after his 37-yard TD run down the sideline, where, again, his lightning speed was the difference. Moore never touched the ball again after the 91-yard TD run. Then again, the Knights didn’t need it. They had things well in hand.