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 (Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) caption:
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Surging PDS Football
Wins 4th Straight In Shining Under Saturday Night
Lights
By Bill Alden
There was electricity in the air last Saturday evening when the Princeton Day School football team hosted St. Joseph's of the Palisades in the first-ever night game at Baker Field.
Having posted three straight shutouts in putting together its first three-game winning streak in years, PDS was looking to put on a good show for the homecoming crowd on hand.
Five minutes into the game, however, electricity in the form of a violent thunderstorm delayed the proceedings for about an hour.
Once play resumed, the Panthers produced a lights-out effort as they methodically pushed St. Joe's all over the field in rolling to a 25-0 rout.
Afterward, PDS junior linebacker David Blitzer was glowing as he reflected on the night's events. "We didn't know what was going to happen, we were so excited," said Blitzer in recalling the team's mindset as it dealt with the thunder and lightning delay.
"It's great that the game did happen, we got to show the school what we can do. I'm happy with the way we played to get a victory in the first game under the lights here. It was a great treat to the school and a tribute to the players."
In Blitzer's view, the relentless Panther defense is certainly worthy of tribute. "Our defense is so stingy," asserted Blitzer, the leading tackler for the now 4-2 Panthers. "We kept putting pressure on them tonight, except for one big 30-yard play, we held them back. We just work so hard. We're aggressive and we always try to get to the ball."
Blitzer's sideline-to-sideline forays at linebacker help set the tone for the team's suffocating defensive unit.
"You never give up trying to get to the ball," asserted Blitzer, who also makes a valuable contribution to the PDS offense with his work as a blocking back. "Whenever I'm on the field, I always think go to the ball wherever it is. Get there and never give up."
While PDS head coach Bruce Devlin has seen that never-say-die attitude in his charges all season long, he acknowledged that his club produced a special effort last Saturday.
"The kids played awesome," said a giddy Devlin, whose 2003 team won only two games. "They've worked so hard, every one of them, from No. 1 to No. 30. I just told them that in my four years with this program, that is the greatest team effort I've seen. You could just feel the atmosphere. The kids are doing an outstanding job. They are listening to everything we tell them."
The aptly named Blitzer is clearly one of the squad's best listeners. "Dave is a heckuva football player," said Devlin.
"He's got a great work ethic in the off-season. He runs extra sprints, he lifts the weights hard. He goes sideline to sideline for us. He just hammers people. He's 210 pounds and he brings it every game."
The PDS defense collectively has shown that kind of intensity as it has put together its remarkable string of shutouts.
"It's unbelievable," said Devlin referring to the shutout streak. "Coach [Win] Headley, coach [Rick] Mabes, coach [Scott] Rogers, coach [Parris] McLean, have all done a great job with the defense. It's a team effort. We tell Œem what to do and they're doing it on the fly. The great thing is that we have four or five or six guys around the ball on every play. It makes a big difference."
The play of two freshmen, running back Mike Shimkin and quarterback Clint O'Brien, has made a big difference for the PDS offense.
"That Shimkin kid, he runs hard," said Devlin of his star running back who rushed for 133 yards and a touchdown in the win over St. Joe's.
"He isn't afraid of anything. He can hit the line, bounce out and keep running. He doesn't go down on the first contact. Clint has been thrown in the fire and still makes some mistakes. He's got a lot of poise. He worked all summer. He was here every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, putting in the time."
For Devlin, it his club's work ethic which has paved the way for its success so far this fall.
"There is a sense of commitment," said Devlin, whose club will look to extend its winning streak when it hosts Calvary Christian on October 23.
"My guys are well-conditioned. They have done extra 40-yard sprints and laps. They have worked with a sprint coach. I'm so happy for our seniors, they've been through hell with me, kids like Andrew Hendrickson, Jared Makrancey, Brett Gallagher, Gyan Kapur, Avery Fox. I'm proud of each and every one of them." Blitzer believes the team has developed a spirit to send those seniors out in style. "We come to practice saying that we are going to win Saturday," maintained Blitzer. "We have confidence. In the past, we would get down on ourselves. We weren't able to come back from losses. We are on a roll. We know we have two quality opponents coming up in Calvary and Pennington. We have to come prepared for them."
With the electrifying play PDS has produced in recent weeks, Calvary and Pennington better bring their A-games when they face the Panthers.
