Bowiegaz 092613 by The Gazette

Gazette-Star

HOW THEY RANK Football

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

DeMatha Stags Gwynn Park Yellow Jackets Suitland Rams DuVal Tigers Flowers Jaguars Wise Pumas Douglass Eagles McNamara Mustangs Forestville Knights Roosevelt Raiders

4-1 60 pts 3-0 54 pts 3-0 46 pts 3-0 43 pts 3-0 33 pts 2-1 31 pts 1-2 24 pts 4-0 20 pts 3-0 12 pts 1-2 6 pts

Also receiving votes: Surrattsville 1.

STANDINGS

DeMatha lineman has big shoes to ﬁll Ruble, Stags ready for Friday’s annual rivalry game against Good Counsel n

DAN FELDMAN STAFF WRITER

Brock Ruble burst into DeMatha Catholic High School football coach Elijah Brooks’ office with a big problem. Literally. Ruble tore his cleat during practice the previous day and he worried about ﬁnding a replacement before the team’s 2012 game against Our Lady of Good Counsel.

“What’s the big deal?” Brooks asked. “Just get another pair.” “Coach, there aren’t many size 20 cleats just at stores,” the 6-foot9, 310-pound offensive lineman said. “They take time to order.” Ever since Ruble’s feet grew to size 18 during eighth grade, his dad attempted to keep a backup pair of cleats ready in advance, knowing how difﬁcult they were to procure. But at that point, Ruble had no alternative and was practicing in a shoe held together by tape. Brooks said they called “every store in the area.” “It became panic time,” Ruble said.

Finally, they found a pair on eBay that arrived just in time for that game. Unfortunately for Ruble, DeMatha lost, but he’s hoping the result will ﬂip when the teams are scheduled meet at 7 p.m. Friday at the Prince George’s Sports & Learning Complex in Landover. Ruble and DeMatha will attempt to snap Good Counsel’s four-game winning streak in the rivalry, which includes Good Counsel claiming its fourth straight Washington Catholic Athletic Conference championship with a win

See LINEMAN, Page A-11

On the fast track

Oxon Hill relies on no-huddle, spread offense to turn around a struggling program

Prince George’s 3A/2A/1A League

Team

Forestville Gwynn Park Surrattsville Potomac Crossland Largo Central Douglass Friendly Fairmont Hghts

All Div.

3-0 3-0 3-0 1-2 1-2 1-2 1-2 1-2 1-2 0-3

1-0 1-0 1-0 1-0 1-1 1-1 0-1 0-1 0-1 0-1

PF PA

118 12 110 48 92 32 28 68 37 82 47 64 42 71 63 60 62 64 22 118

Prince George’s 4A League Team

DuVal Flowers Suitland High Point Oxon Hill Wise Laurel Northwestern E. Roosevelt Bladensburg Bowie Parkdale

All Div.

3-0 3-0 3-0 2-1 2-1 2-1 1-2 1-2 1-2 1-2 0-3 0-3

Private schools Team

McNamara Riverdale Baptist Capitol Christian DeMatha Pallotti National Christian

66 82 94 56 78 60 49 24 67 34 34 21

20 8 45 65 27 28 72 68 51 88 55 69

All

Depending on when one happens to look at Oxon Hill High School football coach Craig Jefferies on the sideline, it’s understandable if one thinks he’s engaged in a rousing round of charades with his team instead of coaching a game. He furiously mimics scribbling on a notepad (his left hand serving as the piece of paper). He rolls his wrists as if beating on a drum. He points his arms and wrists in opposite directions, a move that would win him first prize if he were competing in a dance contest that played The Bangles’ “Walk Like and Egyptian” on a loop. What Jefferies is really doing — aside from reviving a program that one season before he took over recorded one win and was shut out five times — is delivering play calls to his Clippers as part of the newlyinstalled no-huddle offense. “Between me and the kids we came up with all the signals,” Jefferies said. “Sometimes I might come up with something they think is corny, so then they come up with things they want to do.” Inspired by what he’s learned throughout a longtime friendship with from former University of New Mexico coach and current University of Maryland, College Park offensive coordinator Mike Locksley, Jefferies is pleased with how his players have taken to the hurry-up approach. “The kids like it,” Jefferies said. “We haven’t gotten to the point where we can go turbo fast yet, but it’s still a little faster than most offenses.” Jefferies said he has noticed a significant increase in the number of plays the Clippers (2-1) have been able to run this season when compared to his first year. Speaking of last year, Oxon Hill already has matched its win total from the 2012 campaign and has scored more than half its total points from the year before (78 through three games compared to 124 through 10). To start every play, the Clippers’ offensive lineman rush to the ball after the referee spots it and they take their stance. They don’t move until the ball is snapped. Junior quarterback Anthony Dougherty, the running backs and the receivers then look toward Jefferies to watch the play call.

4-0 155 82 4-0 159 36 2-0 66 40 4-1 131 102 2-3 64 97 1-2 52 71

Last week’s scores

Forestville 48, Cardozo (D.C.) 0 Surrattsville 20, W. Wilson (D.C.) 19 Eleanor Roosevelt 39, High Point 0 Largo 21, Fairmont Heights 8 Potomac 14, Friendly 6 Pallotti 45, Loch Raven 18 Riverdale Baptist 45, Great Mills 18 Suitland 35, Bowie 21 DuVal 31, Parkdale 0 Crossland 19, Central 6 Flowers 42, Bladensburg 6 Laurel 20, Northwestern 12 Wise 27, Oxon Hill 0 Gwynn Park 40, Douglass 28, OT DeMatha 26, St. John’s College 21 McNamara 29, St. Mary’s Ryken 25 Capitol Christian 28, KIPP 6 Mt. Carmel 44, National Christian 8

BEST BET Good Counsel vs. DeMatha, 7 p.m. Friday at PG Sports & Learning in Landover. The last time the Falcons (3-2) lost three games in a season was 2005. The last time GC lost to rival DeMatha (4-1) was 2009. DeMatha is favored to end both streaks this week because of many three-year starters. GC lost its top running back, Leo Ekwoge, to injury in the opening game of the season.

Oxon Hill High School junior quarterback Anthony Dougherty. The Clippers run a fast-paced, no huddle offense.

Carries J. Baynes, R. Bapt. 55 A Brooks, DuVal 39 T. Deal, DeM. 55 R. Williams, McN. 53 A. Major, Surratts. 36 K. Freeman, Doug. 45

Yards 608 378 350 334 313 299

Top passers

Top receivers

Rec. J. Crockett, McN. 28 C. Murray, McN. 31 C. Phillips, DeM. 13 H. Malik, Laurel 11 W. Cailen, Laurel 10 N. Nelson, Suitland 7

Yards 600 382 264 241 195 192

New boys’ soccer playoff format leaves coaches wondering about postseason outcomes

Avg. TDs 11.0 7 9.7 4 6.4 4 6.3 5 8.7 3 6.6 3

Cmp-Att. Yards R. Williams, McN. 62-94 1112 D. Mason, Laurel 33-75 590 W. Wolfolk, Suit. 18-36 424 A. Brooks, DuVal 21-38 402 J. Green, Bowie 21-55 385 J. Lovett, DeM. 28-48 378

NICK CAMMAROTA STAFF WRITER

Int. TDs 3 12 2 5 3 3 1 4 2 3 0 2

Avg. TDs 21.4 10 12.3 5 20.3 2 21.9 3 19.5 2 27.4 3

TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE

See OXON HILL, Page A-11

A sectional divide

LEADERS Top rushers

NICK CAMMAROTA STAFF WRITER

PF PA

2-0 2-0 2-0 1-1 1-1 1-1 1-1 1-1 1-1 0-2 0-2 0-2

TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE

DeMatha Catholic High School lineman Brock Ruble (center) blocks a St John’s College High lineman during Saturday’s game.

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Eleanor Roosevelt High School’s Tyler Hicks (left) and Bowie’s Khalil Watson ﬁght for the ball during Friday’s match.

For a long time, the Prince George’s County high school boys’ soccer landscape was a lot like the county’s football landscape. Traditionallydominant teams jockeyed for playoff position and everyone else went along for the ride. Speciﬁcally, High Point and Bowie have been the two enduring forces over the past half decade. Much like in football, however, the County 4A League is quickly becoming more balanced and a tweak to the way the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association formats its

state tournament could provide even more intrigue as the season rolls along. This year, the state released a new alignment of the 4A South Region that breaks the 12 competing 4A schools in Prince George’s County into two sections: Section I and Section II. Section I consists of Bladensburg, DuVal, High Point, Laurel, Northwestern and Parkdale. Section II consists of Bowie, Charles H. Flowers, Henry A. Wise, Eleanor Roosevelt, Oxon Hill and Suitland. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing,” said Bowie coach Rich Kirkland, who is in his 25th year leading the Bulldogs. “We’ll have to see how it plays out.” With the new format, teams from within the same section play one another until one team remains. Then those two remaining clubs play

See SOCCER, Page A-11