Thanks in part to a miscommunication experienced in the fourth quarter by Frankford's punting unit, Washington secured its third league crown in the last four years and coach Ron Cohen's 12th in 27 seasons.
"I'm proud of myself and everyone on this team," said Kevin White, a senior two-way lineman. "This is for the people out there who doubted us from the beginning. We came together as a team and made this happen."
Early in the fourth quarter of a 13-13 contest, with the Pioneers trapped at their own 3 on fourth down, the Frankford faithful could only watch as the snap went to upback Aaron Allison, instead of punter Eric Salguero, and Allison's desperation, right-side throw came nowhere close to finding a receiver.
A fake punt on fourth and 10 from the 3? Not so, Frankford first-year coach Will Doggett said afterward.
"I have no clue what they did there," he said. "It wasn't the play that was called. For some reason, our center called a fake. I have no clue where it came from."
Hakeem Sillman's 3-yard touchdown burst two plays later proved to be the difference in a penalty-marred contest.
"He [Allison] seemed surprised, like he didn't know the ball was going to be snapped to him," Washington linebacker Miguel Caban said. "I'm not sure what their plan was there. It worked out for us, though."
Next Saturday, at 4 p.m. back at Northeast, the Eagles (8-2) will face Catholic League titlist La Salle (10-1) for the PIAA District 12 Class AAAA crown.
The 5-foot-8, 190-pound Sillman carried 23 times for 144 yards and two scores. His game-winner came with 8 minutes, 37 seconds to play.
"I tried to run with heart the whole game," he said. "We were trying to show people what we were all about. This was for the Washington family."
The Pioneers (7-3) also won't soon forget a missed chance to take the lead late in the third quarter. On second-and-goal from the 5, a left-side run resulted in a fumble and cornerback Kendall Truitt recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchback.
Early in the third quarter, Frankford's Kelly Johnson (16 carries for 86 yards) forged a 13-13 tie by turning a screen pass from Tim DiGiorgio (14-for-28 passing, 171 yards) into a 20-yard TD.
George Washington 7 6 0 7 – 20
Frankford 7 0 6 0 – 13
GW: Sillman 7 run (Wright kick)
F: Johnson 7 run (Salguero kick)
GW: Villafane 30 pass from Gavrilov (kick failed)
F: Johnson 20 pass from DiGiorgio (kick blocked)
GW: Sillman 3 run (Wright kick)
Contact staff writer Rick O'Brien at 610-313-8019, robrien@phillynews.com, or @ozoneinq on Twitter. Read his blog, "The O'Zone," at www.philly.com/ozone
