Football: Defense comes up big in victory for Springfield

SPRINGFIELD — Adam Krauter gave his version of a motivational speech late in the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon.

The All-Delco linebacker and Springfield leader kept it short and sweet on the sideline before the Cougars defense would hit the field and came up with another remarkable defensive stand against Garnet Valley.

“Hey — let’s go!’ Krauter shouted. “This will be the biggest stop we’re going to have all year.’

The defense rose to the occasion every time, enabling Springfield to celebrate a historic 7-0 victory. The Cougars (8-0, 7-0) are all alone at the top of the Central League standings with two weeks to go in the regular season.

“Everyone was bringing their pads, bringing their leather on every single play,’ Krauter said. “I’ve never seen our team come together this way and just play out of our minds and give 110 percent. It sounds cliche, but I believe everyone gave 110 percent today.’

Garnet Valley drove the ball to the Springfield 21-yard line on its final possession. With one minute to play, junior Pat Smyth intercepted Garnet Valley quarterback Steve Flanagan on a fly route, sealing the greatest win for a Springfield football team in probably 20 years.

“I knew they were going to run the play, it was just a matter of time,’ Smyth said. “I just made my drops, did what I was supposed to do and the ball came to me.’

Make no mistake, this game was won by Springfield’s defense. Pure and simple. Linemen Brian Layden, Matt Cella, Joe Sweeney, Charlie Carbin and Dan Archibong gave Garnet Valley’s big, physical and talented O-linemen the fits. The Cougars got plenty of penetration and disrupted the Jaguars’ triple-option offense. It was all-hands-on-deck for the Cougars, and they delivered superior results. In particular, Layden was a mad man. The defense was buzzing the entire day, less than 24 hours after the game was postponed due to an electrical failure inside Springfield’s athletic stadium.

The extra rest did the Cougars some good.

“I woke up three or four times during the night. It was extremely hard,’ Krauter said. “At the end of the day, we still had to play a game. We just came to play. It gave us an extra few hours to prepare. ”

Springfield’s Dylan Power unleashed a hard tackle — think Sheldon Brown on Reggie Bush — on Garnet Valley wide receiver Jake Buttermore with three minutes to play, forcing the Jags to turn the ball over on downs for the fifth time. Moments later, after the Cougars offense stalled, Power came up clutch on special teams with a long punt that pinned Garnet Valley back on its 24-yard-line. While the Jags’ no-huddle offense eventually found the red zone — but never the end zone — Power’s boot put them in a tough spot from the get-go.

Everyone who suited up for Springfield found a way to contribute.

“Today was all about assignment football. If we could keep our assignments, we knew we could stop their offense,’ fullback/linebacker Ricky Sterling said. “We just kept pushing each other. We’re a great defense and we play as one.’

Springfield quarterback Brian Allen would be the first to admit the Cougars offense should have had a better performance Saturday. But Allen and Co. made the Jaguars pay on one particular play, and sometimes that’s all it takes.

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