Harry Susi and his Coatesville teammates will take it. No matter how ugly it looked at times.
Coatesville could have used a test as the District 1 Class 6A playoffs near, and the perennial district title contender got one Saturday afternoon in a real slugfest against Chester, surviving a 34-28 scare.
Coatesville upped its record to 7-1 overall, while Chester lost for the first time this year, dropping to 7-1.
As the season inches towards November, this was a quality win against a quality team that could spell dividends in preparing for a November playoff push.
Red Raiders’ junior quarterback/defensive back Harry Susi was at his best when he had to be, making numerous defensive plays, though more importantly, connecting with Tommy Ortega on a 32-yard touchdown pass with the winning score on a third-and-14 play with 1:26 left in the game.
“We’re a team that fights to the very end,” said Susi, who completed four of 10 passes for 85 yards, though rushed for 96 yards on 18 carries, including TD runs of 18 and three yards. “It’s good to play teams like this late into the season. A win is a win, even if it’s ugly.”
It was.
Coatesville did play well in crunch time, although, arguably, the case could be made it was more of a case of Chester’s losing it with unforced errors than Coatesville winning.
The Clippers, led by senior quarterback Isaiah Freeman, and senior receivers William Smith and Kylie Harper, were flagged 11 times for 96 yards. Leading 22-20, the Clippers had two chances inside the red zone on consecutive drives in the second half and came away with nothing.
One drive, near the end of the third quarter, stalled at the Coatesville 8 after the Clippers were called for a penalty. On the next series, Chester drove to the Coatesville 18 and once again came away with no points.
“Coming into this game we knew Chester was a very good football team,” Coatesville coach Ricky Ortega said. “Our team finds ways to battle, battle, battle. Our kids never put their heads down, and we made the plays when we had to make them.
“I pulled Harry aside before the final drive, I could see it in his eyes that he had ice water in his veins and was going to make the plays.”
It was a tough loss for Chester coach LaDontay Bell, but in many ways, he got a chance to see how his teams respond to adversity. Freeman showed great determination and though his numbers don’t leap out, he’s the heart and soul of what could eventually be a special season for Chester, which has never qualified for the District 1 playoffs in football. Going into the weekend, the Clippers were the only undefeated team in District 1 5A and were No. 1 in the district playoffs.
What also surfaced in the loss was how young Chester is. Freshman tailback Nah’ree Melvin showed great promise, stepping in for the injured E’Shone Nickens, junior defensive lineman Jerimiah Gates was a force in the middle, and sophomore tight end Dominic Toy was a matchup nightmare.
Chester lost, but the Clippers now have a better glimpse of what a playoff game will be like in November.
Bell saw what he needs to fix.
“We left 14 points off the scoreboard, and when we get to the red zone, we have to capitalize,” Bell said. “It was a great game. I appreciate how my guys played. We always look at the gridiron as a classroom and this was a learning lesson.
“This was a quiz to get ready for the test.”
Chester is all but assured a District 1 5A playoff berth, its first in school history. What the Clippers showed in defeat was a team, barring self-inflicted wounds, could be playing meaningful games deep into November.
Scoring Summary
Coatesville (7-1) 7 7 6 14-34
Chester (7-1) 6 8 8 6-28
1st Quarter
Coat – Semaj Turner 20 run (Ryan Ashbee kick), 9:27
Ches – Kylie Harper 24 pass from Isaiah Freeman (kick failed), 4:27
2nd Quarter
Coat – Turner 7 run (Ashbee kick), 4:22
Ches – Harper 32 pass from Freeman (Dominic Toy pass from Freeman), 2:37
3rd Quarter
Ches – William Smith 75 kickoff return (Freeman run), 11:48
Coat – Harry Susi 18 run (pass failed), 8:01
4th Quarter
Coat – Susi 3 run (Turner run), 6:27
Ches –Smith 12 pass from Freeman (run failed), 2:59
Coat – Tommy Ortega 32 pass from Susi (kick failed), 1:26
Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.
