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LEHIGH VALLEY WEATHER

Crusaders host battle of 2-2 teams

When Salisbury and Notre Dame (Green Pond) met in a mid-season matchup last season, no one gave the Falcons any chance against the heavily favored Crusaders. But head coach Andy Cerco and the Falcons were optimistic.

While Salisbury eventually did come up short of pulling off the upset, it showed that the Falcons were capable of winning on any given night. Many of this season’s players were part of that team and are eager for another shot at the Crusaders as the Falcons (2-2) travel to Green Pond on Friday night.

“We matched up with them for most of the game, and not one person coming into that game thought it was going to be close at all,” Cerco said. “It was 0-0 at halftime and it was a one-score game all of the way through the fourth quarter. And a lot of the kids that are on this team played in that game. So, they have an understanding of that concept that it is high school football, and no matter what team we are playing that if we do things the right way, we are in the game.”

It might not be the same type of Crusader team offensively as last year’s explosive squad, but the Crusaders (2-2) are still the favorite. Cerco and the Falcons couldn’t care less about predictions.

“They see it on film that we were one step away, or one lead away, or one play away from having a different outcome in both of the last two games,” Cerco said. “They have the confidence that they can play with a lot of these teams. I truly believe that you only learn by making a few mistakes.”

Still, the task ahead is a challenging one. It’s no secret that the Crusaders prefer to air the ball out with junior quarterback Cole DeFranco. In just four games thus far, DeFranco has thrown for 1178 yards and 10 touchdowns, completing 75 of his 115 attempts.

Perhaps what makes the Crusaders one of the most dangerous offenses in the league is the amount of weapons DeFranco has at his disposal. Four different wide receivers have caught at least 13 passes. Gerald Grube has a team-high 341 receiving yards, while Dan O’Hare (182), Isaiah DeJesus (212) and Josh Clark (280) have all shined as well.

“Their offense is predicated on throwing the ball,” Cerco said. “They have some run schemes, but that’s not what they want to do. They want to throw the ball all over the place and get matchups and those kinds of things.

“They have a lot of weapons in the passing game. All of their receivers run pretty good routes. The quarterback, if there is pressure, can run and scramble pretty well and get the ball off. They have good chemistry.”

When the Crusaders do run the ball, Grube handles a majority of the carries. He’s ran for 271 yards and two touchdowns in four games. DeFranco has also scored three times on the ground.

“They have a good scheme in the passing game,” Cerco said. “But at the end of the day, they are regular high school kids just like our regular high school kids. Do we have to work hard? Absolutely. Just like we do we every week…We have to prepare like we have for the past couple of teams.”

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. on Friday night.