Rick O'Brien: This season, Carroll has all the speed it needs

Archbishop Carroll's first two nonleague football foes, Radnor and Conwell-Egan, didn't expect the Patriots to show up in track shoes.

Last year, lacking overall speed, Carroll tried to beat opponents with long, methodical drives down the field. That approach failed, with a 3-6 record and two scoreless showings serving as proof.

The quicker Patriots reversed last year's defeats against Radnor and Conwell-Egan, beating the Red Raiders and Eagles by a combined score of 75-13. "I don't think they thought some of our guys could run the way they do, and that helped us," 11th-year coach Dan Bielli said.

The top burners for Carroll, duplicating its 2-0 start in 2007, are quarterback Jalal Timmons, a first-year starter, and wideout-kick returner Teron Dobbs, both juniors.

An imposing backfield also features left halfback Julian Franklin, right halfback Ryan Shea and fullback Jake Peabody.

In a wing-T scheme, often in a spread formation, Timmons has rushed for five scores and is averaging nearly seven yards per carry. "He has good leadership abilities," Bielli said. "He makes us a better team."

Is Bielli concerned about defenses loading the box against the Patriots? "If we have to throw the ball, we can throw it," he said. "Jalal can throw it a long way."

An improved offensive line includes center Tim Dugan (6-foot-1, 220 pounds), guards Andrew Cartafalsa (5-9, 185) and guards Bill Ghaul (5-11, 210), tackles Bill McClatchy (6-1, 215) and Matt Donaldson (6-4, 235) and tight ends Kevin McLaughlin (5-11, 170) and Tim Llull (5-11, 180).

In a 34-6 win over neighboring Radnor, Carroll, coming off two straight losing seasons, rushed for more than 250 yards on 43 attempts. Timmons hit on 5 of 8 passes for 89 yards.

Ghaul and McLaughlin are tackles in a 4-3 defense, guided by new coordinator John Sexton, with Donaldson and fellow hoops player Lou Dominique (6-4, 210) as the ends. At linebacker, Dugan is flanked by Llull and rising sophomore Sage Stevenson (6-0, 190).

Against Radnor, the unit held senior running back Vinny Caniglia, a 1,000-yard rusher last season, to 42 yards on 12 carries. The secondary includes cornerbacks Franklin and Greg DiSanto and safeties Shea and McLaughlin. Dan Parke fills in at safety.

Carroll hosts former Catholic League Class AA rival Bishop McDevitt at Radnor's field Friday at 7:30. The Lancers (1-1) won both meetings last year, including a 21-0 triumph in a playoff semifinal.

New home. Berj Yepremian, an honorable-mention all-Central League placekicker for Radnor last season, is now playing for Abilene Christian (Texas), which was ranked No. 4 in the country by USA Today before losing to Cocoa (Fla.), 24-21, last week.

Yepremian's father, also named Berj, was an all-American kicker at the University of Florida. His uncle, Garo Yepremian, kicked for 14 seasons in the NFL, winning two Super Bowls with Miami.

On Aug. 29, in a 36-27 win over Belton in the Texas Football Classic at the Alamodome, Yepremian, a 5-8, 170-pound junior, booted a 25-yard field goal and hit three extra points.

Abilene (2-1) is the defending Class 5A Division 2 champion. The loss to Cocoa was just the Eagles' fourth in three-plus seasons.

Garo Yepremian, 66, and his wife, Maritza, live in Oxford, Pa. In 1991, his youngest son, Garo Jr., kicked for Oxford.

Eighth-grade prodigy. In nonleague action Friday night, Interboro puts its 2-0 record on the line against visiting Red Lion Christian Academy, of Bear, Del.

Red Lion, a coed private school with an enrollment of about 750, is home to eighth-grade QB David Sills, who gained national attention in February when, as a 13-year-old, he orally committed to Southern Cal.

In the Lions' opener last Friday, the 6-foot-1, 160-pound Sills completed 10 of 14 passes for 164 yards, with no TDs or interceptions, in a 35-9 win over visiting Smyrna. His high school debut attracted a standing-room-only crowd and ESPN crew.