Zimmerman is a dual-threat weapon at QB for Souderton, paves way in win over Quakertown
QUAKERTOWN — Souderton senior co-captain Jared Zimmerman is an accomplished quarterback and his skills were on display for all to see in a 34-20 Suburban One League Continental Division win over host Quakertown on Friday night.
Zimmerman completed 12 of 23 passes for 174 yards and a touchdown. He also carried the ball 11 times for 64 yards and a score to lead the Indians.
Those are some pretty impressive numbers. But even more impressive is that all but eight of his passing yards and 11 of his 12 completions came in the first half when Souderton jumped to a 24-6 lead.
“Through film study all week, we figured out what their defense does,” Zimmerman said. "We found the seams that we wanted and we took shots at it.”
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Indeed they did.
Zimmerman teamed with junior receiver Danny Dyches for six completions in the first quarter for 101 yards. Dyches’ first three catches got the Indians down close enough to allow Zimmerman to score on a 1-yard keeper. He later found Dyches for a 14-yard scoring toss, giving Souderton a 14-0 lead.
Holding a 24-6 advantage over the Panthers in the second half, Zimmerman got it done with his feet. He carried the ball seven times in the half for 42 yards, helping keep the ball away from Quakertown.
So which part of his game does he like better? It was a hard question for him to answer.
“I feel like running would be more of a strong suit,” Zimmerman said. “But my throwing is pretty equal I would think. I like to run a lot because it’s really fun to get out there moving. It’s a lot of fun.”
He made good use of his arm and legs to give the Souderton a win on the Panthers' home turf and return the 309 Bowl trophy to Souderton.
“He’s a heck of an athlete, definitely a competitor,” Indians coach Ed Gallagher said. “That’s the one thing I love about that kid. He just gets out there. He wants the ball in his hands, he wants to make plays and he continues to make plays.”
Three things we learned:
∎ Souderton can beat you in any number of ways. In the first half, the Indians threw the ball 18 times for 166 yards and built a 24-6 lead. In the second half, they threw it just five times, but ran for 95 yards, including 57 yards during their final drive.
∎ The Indians have quite a kicking game. Senior Ty Quintois booted field goals of 36 and 33 yards with plenty of room to spare. His understudy, junior Rylan Zuk, kicked a pair of extra points that soared high over the bar. Zuk spent a good portion of the night practicing kicks into the net on the sideline.
∎ There is no quit in Quakertown. Finding themselves down 24-6 at halftime, the Panthers used their passing game to score a touchdown in the third quarter and used it to set up a rushing score on their final drive of the night. Vince Micucci finished the night with 156 yards passing.
Game balls
Danny Dyches, Souderton WR – Dyches , a junior, caught eight passes for 118 yards and a touchdown, all in the first half. His efforts helped stake Souderton to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter.
Max Morris, Quakertown WR – Morris caught seven passes from Vince Micucci for 97 yards. One of the junior’s grabs went for 35 yards and a touchdown just before halftime.
Shaun Purvy, Souderton RB/CB – Offensively, Quakertown held the usually explosive Purvy in check. The senior only accounted for 22 total yards of offense. But he picked off Micucci’s first pass of the game. The ball bounced off Owen Jaegers’ hands and into Purvy’s. His pick set up Souderton’s second touchdown.
They said it:
“I feel really good,” Souderton coach Ed Gallagher said about his team’s 5-1 start. “Obviously it’s the second-best thing to being 6-0. You can’t have everything, but I’m pretty happy with where we’re at this point in the season, especially missing Danny (Dyches) for two games and Shaun (Purvy) for two games. So to be 5-1 right now heading into the deeper part of our schedule, we’ve just got to stay healthy and keep on getting better.”
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: PA High School football: Souderton knocks off Quakertown
