Marc Narducci: Cherokee and Shawnee put up another thriller

Score another one for an opening-day classic between two rivals. Cherokee and Shawnee have shown a recent pattern of playing opening football games that don't lack hitting or suspense.

Of course, both these teams have a longer tradition of being among the best in South Jersey. In this series even the loser can take plenty of positives, which is why Shawnee wasn't hanging its head after Cherokee scored a 14-7 win over the host Renegades in last night's interdivisional Burlco/Olympic Conference game.

Cherokee is ranked No. 4 in South Jersey by The Inquirer and Shawnee is No. 9 after starting and finishing last year No. 1.

In the last four years, Cherokee has won three of these openers, by a total of nine points. Shawnee won last year 14-9, its closest game in a 12-0 season.

This one wasn't decided until Shawnee's Ed Royds was stopped for no gain by Cherokee's Danny DaTorre on a fourth-and-one play from the Chiefs' 15-yard line with 41.5 seconds left.

Finally the Chiefs could exhale, but the Renegades also could breathe fairly easily.

"I was proud of the way we played," Shawnee coach Tim Gushue said. "We'll get better and capitalize on this."

Rarely does a team talk about capitalizing on a loss, but a good showing in this game can carry a team, regardless of the outcome.

Take last year, for instance. Cherokee was so demoralized by losing the opener to Shawnee that the Chiefs went out and won nine in a row.

"There is no better way to open a season," said Cherokee bruising 6-foot-3, 230-pound running back Sean Farrell, who scored the Chiefs first touchdown on a 1-yard run. "It's just a great rivalry and I am so proud to be part of it."

Before the game Gushue was worried about what he calls, Cherokee "five- and six- yarding us."

That did happen, but the Shawnee defense remained resilient. Shawnee junior linebacker Dillon Lucas didn't make every tackle, but he sure didn't miss many either. Cherokee did seem to wear Shawnee down, but the Renegades somehow found that extra bit of wind.

It's all part of this rivalry between teams from the Lenape School District. And last night there was little trickery. It was one team going right at the other, old-time football played on modern artificial turf. "It was smash-mouth football at its best," Farrell said. That's easy for him to say; he didn't have to tackle himself.

Cherokee led 7-0 at halftime, but both teams slightly got their offensive legs in the third quarter.

Shawnee tied the score at 7-7 when Vince Corbi hit Steven Hodge with a 23-yard pass in the far corner of the end zone with 4 minutes and 18 seconds left in the third quarter. Cherokee came back and scored on the next possession when Mike Zeuli burst 13 yards up the middle for the winning score.

"I had been mad at myself for blowing an assignment on defense so I wanted to get in there," Zeuli said. He didn't blow too many assignments. Zeuli and Tyler Powell are two safeties who tackle as well as they defend the pass.

So now Shawnee will regroup, but the Renegades, despite being hit hard by graduation, showed that they can still hang with the elite in South Jersey.

And Cherokee didn't do anything to hurt its reputation as a team that could make a serious run at No. 1, where there are no shortage of candidates.

The only thing better than last night's game is a rematch, and this year it could happen since Shawnee has moved from Group 3 to Group 4.

"It would be great if we could meet again," Farrell said.

Cherokee 0 7 7 0 - 14

Shawnee 0 0 7 0 - 7

C: Farrell 1 run (Morrissey kick)

S: Hodge 23 pass from Corbi (Garganio kick)

C: Zeuli 13 run (Morrissey kick)