WDHS 2011-2012 Team Of The Year

In a season where the West Deptford High School football team broke the South Jersey scoring record, the offensive unit was still outshined at times by the team’s defense.

Yes, that’s how dominant the Eagles were last fall.

The Eagles scored 517 points in 12 games (43 points a game), while also putting together a in a season that ended with a Group 2 championship. The only thing that was missing was a conference title, but the Eagles more than redeemed themselves by .

Gerald (Towns) Owens was a major reason for the team’s success, shedding 25 pounds from the previous year to become a workhorse back with the rare combination of brute strength and breakaway speed. He finished with over 1,500 yards in a season where he was resting on the bench by the third quarter of most games.

Jake Hannan guided the offense with precision, developing a great relationship with Tom Jakubowski along the way. Although the Eagles ran a run first, second and third offense, the two always seemed to connect on one or two big plays each game.

As great as the team was the turning point of the season may have actually come in the team’s .

The Eagles were sloppy that Friday night, turning the ball over and missing tackles against the defending Group 2 champions.

Head coach Clyde Folsom told the players they would be better for that game and would use the loss as motivation going forward.

After giving up an early touchdown the next week, West Deptford went on to string together 24 scoreless quarters in which it outscored its opponents 280-0. And don’t think the Eagles were running-up the score either. Reserve players were in the game by the third and fourth quarters in each of the wins.

“I remember after the loss to Haddonfield, our pride was still one,” said nose guard Scott Dennis after the team's . “No one could separate us.”

“We definitely took it to heart strong,” added senior lineman Jamil Pollard. “We thought about it, we all looked in the mirror. I know we all thought about that moment, and after the loss, we woke up. We are not the team from before, we are another team and we needed a strong defense.”

Much of the credit goes to the defensive line, which Folsom described as one of the best and deepest he has had. Defensive ends Phil Fisher, Nick Pulli and Owens, as well as tackles Pollard and Josh Roane and nose guards Dennis and Brandon Holmes made it next to impossible for running backs to reach the second level. And when running backs were so fortunate, there was a trio of talented linebackers waiting for them.

Of course, the story doesn’t end with the shutout streak. The season’s true defining moment came a little over two months later, when the Eagles once again faced the Bulldawgs for the Group 2 championship.

West Deptford jumped out to a 19-0 lead and held on for a 22-14 win, grabbing the program’s fifth state championship. Owens was again a man among boys, rushing for 182 yards and three touchdowns, frequently dragging defenders for yards after getting first hit.

Tom Jakubowski had two interceptions and also caught Jake Hannan’s only completion—a 25-yard catch on third-and-14. The defense forced four turnovers in total—including a sack and fumble on the Bulldawgs’ goal line. It was a team effort in every form of the word.

All of the team’s accomplishments are made even greater when you consider how much the team lost entering the season. West Deptford graduated 40 varsity players over the previous seasons, the two largest classes in program history.

Then you consider the fact that Owens thought he might be a lineman because he wasn’t in game-shape early in training camp. Then there was a midseason injury to Roane and an in-game injury to Hannan in the state final.

Whatever the hurdle, the Eagles overcame. Like all great teams, they showed grit and determination when challenged and knew how to put a team away when they had them down. The Eagles took pride in defense and it showed.

Their performance embodied what can be accomplished when a group of players—no matter the age or experience level—buy into a system and play up to their potential.

A few other notable performances and from the season:

–The Eagles showed off their depth at running back against Haddon Heights when Connor Smith (46 yards), Fisher (54 yards) and Josh Cornelius (55 yards) each scored on long touchdown runs. That isn’t even counting Jakubowski’s 65-yard touchdown reception. Did we mention Haddon Heights entered the game undefeated, ?

–Owens put up monster numbers just about every game this season, but no game signified his pure dominance against weaker competition then . Owens ran for 154 yards and three touchdowns … on five carries.

–, helping the Eagles hold the Panthers to just 88 yards of total offense.

–Owens, Dennis, Jarrell and Pollard were all honored by the South Jersey Touchdown Club at different times last season.

–The Eagles were highlighted by nearly every publication: They were selected as the Gloucester County Times Football Team of the Season, finished ranked No. 5 in the Courier-Post and were ranked No. 13 in the entire state by MaxPreps.