HAVERFORD — Brian Allen sees how dominant Springfield’s defense is on a weekly basis and can’t help, but think the offense is lagging behind just a bit.
Although the senior quarterback engineered three scoring drives and the Cougars moved the ball with proficiency throughout the second half of a convincing 21-7 triumph over Haverford, Allen believes there’s for room for improvement.
“The defense is phenomenal, man,’ Allen said. “You’ve got (linebackers) Adam Krauter, Ricky Sterling, (lineman) Brian Layden … they’ve been phenomenal. Right now, they’re holding it down and winning games for us. The offense is slacking some and we’ll pick it up, but the defense is the heart of this team right now.’
The Cougars (4-0, 3-0) don’t care how it gets done — so long as it gets done. Friday night they remained unbeaten and kept pace with Conestoga, which downed Penncrest, for first place in the Central League.
Guess who’s next on the Cougars’ schedule?
“We’re playing great football,’ Allen said. “Next week is Conestoga at home and it should be a great game.’
The turning point in Friday’s tilt came on the Cougars’ first drive of the second half. Offensive coordinator Sam Mormando called for a quarterback sneak on third-and-2. Allen had no room between the tackles, but bounced around the edge and darted 23 yards for a key first down. Ten plays later, Ricky Sterling bulldozed his way into the end zone from a yard out to put the Cougars ahead to stay. Springfield wore down Haverford’s offense with a potent ground attack. Of the 36 offensive plays the Cougars called in the second half, 33 were designed runs.