"Our defense played absolutely tremendous," longtime Pottsgrove coach Rick Pennypacker said. "I can't say enough about our defense."
On the other side, sparked by tailback Mark Dukes and quarterback Tory Hudgins, the Falcons totaled 203 of their 246 rushing yards after intermission.
"We weren't the best we could be in the first half," senior two-way lineman Zach Birch said. "We were a little sloppy. In the second, we started pounding the ball right at them. We couldn't be stopped."
Dukes carried 20 times for 134 yards, including second-half scoring bursts of 51 and 30 yards. Hudgins netted 76 yards and one TD on 16 attempts.
"Once they get going, they're really hard to stop," Birch said.
Pottsgrove, avenging last year's 49-35 setback, improved to 5-0 overall and 4-0 in the league. Spring-Ford slipped to 4-1 and 2-1.
The Rams dominated time of possession in the first half, running 35 plays from scrimmage compared to the Pottsgrove's 16. The Falcons were limited to 43 rushing yards on 15 tries.
Junior linebacker Nick Brennan accounted for the only first-half score. Two plays after he intercepted a pass, he rumbled off left tackle for an 11-yard touchdown.
In the third quarter, after lineman Patrick Finn recovered a fumble at the Spring-Ford 46, Dukes zipped through the middle and then bounced to the right sideline en route to his 51-yard TD.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Hudgins' 17-yard keeper around left end capped a 10-play, 69-yard series and put Pottsgrove comfortably in front, 19-0.
The Rams finished with 140 yards rushing. Senior QB Hank Coyne converted only 9 of 32 passes for 85 yards.
"We had Coyne running around back there," Pennypacker said. "And our secondary was tremendous. I give them a lot of credit."
Last year, Spring-Ford snapped Pottsgrove's 12-year winning streak in the head-to-head series and went on to claim the PAC-10 crown.
"Our [current] seniors took that to heart," Pennypacker said.
The Rams again played without dynamic tailback Jarred Jones. The 5-10, 190-pound junior, a Division I-A recruit, suffered a broken elbow in a Week 3 triumph over conference rival Pope John Paul II,
The Falcons have outscored opponents by 226-27.
Spring-Ford 0 0 0 0 – 0
Pottsgrove 6 0 6 14 – 26
P: Nick Brennan 11 run (kick failed)
P: Mark Dukes 51 run (kick blocked)
P: Tory Hudgins 17 run (Montize Young kick)
P: Dukes 30 run (Young kick)
Contact Rick O'Brien at robrien@phillynews.com, or @ozoneinq on Twitter. Read his blog, "The O'Zone," at www.philly.com/ozone
