Buckhorns Preparing in Earnest for Subregional Showdown With Trojans

Wallenpaupack Area coaches know that they’ll have their hands full with District 11 powerhouse Parkland on Friday night.

The Bucks will travel to Allentown to battle the Trojans in a District 2/11 Subregional. Paupack is seeded #6 in the Class AAAA bracket, while Parkland is rated third.

Under the direction of Coach Jim Morgans, the Trojans went 7-2 in Lehigh Valley Interscholastic Athletic Conference action this season. Parkland enters the ‘09 tournament with an overall record of 8-2.

“We’ve already watched alot of film on them and they’re definitely a good team,” Dr. Mark Watson told TWI Sports. “They like to run the ball and they’re really physical. They have a ton of athletic kids, so we’ll have to play well to win.”

Opening kick-off for Friday night’s ballgame is set for 7:00 p.m. Should the Bucks emerge victorious, they will advance to meet the winner of Bethlehem Liberty and East Stroudsburg South next weekend.

Forging Ahead
Dr. Mark Watson took over the program four years ago and has led the Bucks on an upward arc to success.

Paupack eked out just three wins that first year, but things have been looking up ever since. The Bucks went 4-6 in ‘07, but four of those losses came by a total of 11 points.

Last fall, Paupack upped the ante. Dr. Watson’s lads posted a 7-3 regular season record and earned an invitation to the Eastern Conference play-offs.

Although the Bucks suffered a 34-10 quarterfinal thrashing at the hands of Easton, it gave them a good idea of what to expect in the future.

“We’re always looking to take that next step,” Dr.Watson said. “We are never satisfied just to sit back and relax. We’ve been preaching hard work and dedication since Day One and the kids are really buying into it.”

That formula has resulted in a string of on-field successes...and a litany of accolades.

Paupack’s coaching staff was chosen to lead the City in its annual Dream Game quest versus the County. Dr. Watson and his crew “coached ‘em up” in that one, rolling to a 14-8 win.

At the end of the ‘08 season, he was also honored as LFC’s Division One Coach of the Year.

“It’s an overwhelming experience,” Dr. Watson said at the time. “It’s great to get an award like that, but I’m only a small part of the big picture. I have a phenomenal coaching staff and the school district gives us incredible support.”

Another Step Up
This year, Paupack took yet another big step in its evolution as an elite program.

The Bucks graduated from Eastern Conference to District Two play-offs. Dr. Watson’s lads will battle Parkland Friday in a Class AAAA quarterfinal.

The Trojans are a run-based team offensively. They are led by fullback Andre Williams. A senior who has committed to play at Boston College, Wil-liams rushed for more than 1,400 yards and 22 TDs this fall.

“He’s a big kid and we’ll have to work hard to contain him,” Dr. Watson said of Parkland’s MVP. “They really don’t like to throw the ball, so we’ll do our very best to bottle him up and make them try to pass.”

Defensively, the Trojans use an off-breed 3-5 base set. Parkland will pack eight defenders in the box and blitz liberally in an effort at stopping Paupack’s high octane ground attack.

The Bucks boast one of the area’s truly formidable offensive backfields with Joey DeFebo at tailback and Taylor Newcomer at fullback.

DeFebo is a First Team All-State performer. He’s rushed for more than 5,100 yards in his storied varsity career. Joey has piled up 2,149 yards and 27 TDs this season alone.

Newcomer is a bulldozer on offense and a wrecking ball on defense. Taylor provides the lead block on a majority of DeFebo’s TD runs and wreaks havoc on enemy ballcarriers from his linebacker position.