Not when a rich football tradition is armed with a recent PIAA Class AA Championship trophy. Not while riding the crest of three consecutive District 3-AA titles. And certainly not for the countless number of graduates who played and continue to play on Saturdays and Sundays.
No.
The 14 young men who honored the McDevitt family in their final season will someday appreciate nothing less. Fans and patrons who religiously follow the Navy Blue and Gold should expect nothing less.
Period.
First-year coach Jeff Weacter had barely enough time to sample the local cuisine when he found himself leading The Crusaders to battle in Olney, Md. Weachter, who spent the previous five seasons reversing the football misfortunes at Lebanon Catholic, was a late-replacement for the departed Four Chapman. Chapman's final crop of players were responsible for 44 total wins and the aforementioned title-runs, leaving Weachter with only scant amounts of varsity experience. Would his underclassmen collapse under the tremendous weight of the Mid-Penn Conference?
Weachter would soon have his answer, but at the moment, McDevitt had its hands full with its opening day opponent, Good Counsel. Haunted by four turnovers, including a pair inside Good Counsel's 5-yard line, McDevitt found itself on the wrong side of a 17-13 final. Despite the setback, senior quarterback David Stone, handsdown the most remarkable story of the season, emerged as a mid-state player to watch.
Stone, who is deaf, threw for 145 yards and a pair of touchdowns to TE Dan Acri and WR Fred Lee. Ground support would compliment McDevitt's effective passing game in the coming weeks.
The Swank soil of Reservoir Park would cling to Williamsport, McDevitt's home opener, in week 2. Led by senior TB Brad Sersch, a returning Mid-Penn Conference second-team selection, and senior FB Justin LaManna, McDevitt piled up a planetary 454 yards rushing in a 40-29 victory. Sersch (20-for219) and LaManna (13-for-173) each scored twice while RB Vern Greir and transfer QB Terence Doyle helped the Crusaders reverse a 10-7 deficit with second-quarter scoring runs. LaManna extolled his dominating offensive life after McDevitt's initial win. Sersch credited Weachter's words of encouragement. Confidence loomed large.
Weachter, much lighter now after shaking the proverbial monkey, and McDevitt made it two straight with a numbing 13-10 victory over week 3 rival, Central Dauphin East.
The Panthers had done everything right for three-quarters, leading 10-0, but Stone promptly hit WR LeRon McCoy for a 80-yard touchdown strike to close the gap in the final stanza. After the defense forced a three-and-out, Lee would register the final margin of victory, collecting Stone's strike at the Panthers' 20, shaking a tackler and finding the end zone with less than 5 minutes remaining. CD East would take one final shot at the upset, moving to the McDevitt's 15-yard line before attempting a game-tying field goal with seven ticks left. But DE Diarra Thompson led McDevitt's front surge and blocked kicker Scott Myers effort, the Panthers' second ill fated attempt of the game.
There was small cause for celebration following the first 14 days of the season. Still, McDevitt had been grossly one-sided in both of its wins to date. The War Eagle defense had propped its doors wide open on more than one occasion, evident by Williamsport's Damion Sims rushing for 209 yards and three touchdowns on just 19 carries. Sure there were improvements to be made, but McDevitt had dodged the early season bullets. Unfortunately, a pair of rough customers in Central Dauphin and Chambersburg were about to expose McDevitt's weakest links.
The Crusaders' third-consecutive home game would result in its worst defeat since 1976. A George Chaump-led Central Dauphin squad ripped through foggy McDevitt Field with deadly precision, parlaying a pair of blocked punts, two interceptions, a safety, 174 rushing yards and three touchdown passes into a 48-0 debacle. Only the brand new "mercy rule," which keeps the clock running when a 35-point margin is reached in the second half, saved McDevitt from further embarrassment. Sersch, nursing a sprained right ankle, could muster only nine stripes against an exacting Ram's defense that yielded just 34 total yards.
One week later, Aaron Edwards rushed for 101 yards and four touchdowns to keep Bishop McDevitt winless in the newly formed Mid-Penn Conference Commonwealth Division. Final score: Trojans 35, Crusaders 0. After Weachter had worked so diligently to reaffirm McDevitt's proud legacy, mountains of question marks surfaced, idle conversations turned sour. Turns out, it was the perfect time for a gut-check.
Captains play a critical role when things get skewed during a typical football season. And Sersch, LaManna and LB Allen Livingston, the 1998 leadership corps, quickly decided that despite McDevitt's recent breakdown, the season could be salvaged. Mid-Penn championships, District 3 and PIAA royalties clearly evaporated in the aftermath of back-to-back shutouts. However, the Crusaders stood steadfast on making a bit of noise on their way out.
Red land hosted the Crusaders at rain-soaked West Shore Stadium in week 6. The Patriots struck first in the third quarter when QB Matt Alvarez breached the end zone from the 1, handing Red Land a 6-0 edge after the PAT sailed wide left. With the offense sputtering, McDevitt's defense stood tall as Doyle recovered Alvarez' fumble to give McDevitt another shot. The Crusaders would stall again, only for a minute, as a pair of completions from Stone and 1 17-yard clip from Sersh on their next possession landed McDevitt on Red Land's 2 deep in the fourth quarter. As Searsch, who rushed 31 times for 119 yards, dashed from deciding points, the ball squirted forward and LaManna dropped his 6-2, 240-pound frame on top of it in the end zone. Brendan Bevan's PAT was the difference in a 7-6 McDevitt win. Sersch finalized the deal when he picked off Alvarez' third-down heave in the waning seconds. McDevitt, still winless in the Commonwealth ranks, moved to 3-3 overall.
Lee, perhaps McDevitt's most lethal weapon, had been relatively quiet since his 6-catch, 94-yard performance in week 1. He would break that trend when Cedar Cliff marched onto McDevitt soil in mid-October. Bevan's 39 yard field goal drew first blood in the opening frame, but it was Lee who grabbed center stage in the final three quarters. Blessed with significant speed, the 5-10 sophomore corralled Stone's 69-yard touchdown pass in the second, then hauled in a 24-yard halfback toss from Searsch to lead the Crusaders to victory 30-19. Lee's final statement put McDevitt ahead by 17 points in the fourth when he returned an errant pass from Colts QB Andy Kerstetter for a 35-yard touchdown. McDevitt's second, two-game winning streak would serve notice to arch-rival Harrisburg for the upcoming city championship.
Harrisburg running back Darnell Henry (23-for-211) would throw fits into Weachter's defensive scheme, but McDevitt's big-play ability would ultimately fuel the Crusaders to a 31-27 victory at home. LB Maurice Baltimore's 6-yard interception return in the third quarter coupled with Acri's 48-yard pick-and-run, moved McDevitt two games above 500 at 5-3. Lee and WR Steve Burke scored first quarter touchdowns and Bevan sealed the win with his 38-yard field goal with 5:58 remaining. Although the Cougars were reeling through one of their worst campaigns in recent memory, McDevitt's triumph served as a the season's high point.
In week 8, Cumberland Valley, desperately needing a victory to keep their playoff chances intact, hosted the Crusaders in Mechanicsburg. McDevitt secured the early momentum, riding Lee's 66-yard touchdown reception and Livingston's 76- yard fumble return to a 19-7 halftime advantage. The Eagles would awaken shortly after intermission. CV scored 35 second half points, including a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns by TB Art Thomas, to sneak past the Crusaders 42-35. Overshadowed by the loss, Lee grabbed six passes from Stone (234 yards) for 166 yards and two scores.
Bishop McDevitt's season ended much like it started. Gettysburg jumped out to a 14-0 halftime lead and held on for a 21-13 win, ending McDevitt's roller coaster ride at 5-5.
Full circle.
Partisans will label the 1998 season a failure. Weachter, proud parents and players will argue otherwise. "Tradition does indeed cast a very long shadow," said one savvy sports writer, and it's difficult, sometimes impossible, to live up to recent success stories. Then again, that is why you play football at Bishop McDevitt High School.
-Eric F. Epler