Freedom’s Jason Roeder and Nazareth’s Tom Falzone are two of the best coaches in Lehigh Valley football.
They have combined for 289 wins and five District 11 6A titles since the PIAA expanded the classifications to six in 2016.
Both are good at setting the right temperature for their teams entering big games, not making it a bigger deal than it is.
And that’s the approach both are taking entering Friday’s Patriots-Blue Eagles game at Andy Leh Stadium.
While it’s Week 4 of the season, it’s also the opening weekend of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference schedule and games count in determining division and league champions.
But it’s basically a good early-season test for both programs which look like they will be at the forefront of league and district championship chases. Both teams are 2-1 and looking to gain traction as they have learned from their losses and want to hit their stride as they enter the heart of their schedules.
“We’ve had some great battles with these guys over the years, and it has always been competitive,” Roeder said. “It’s always a four-quarter game. There’s never a lead that’s safe against these guys and you know they have a chance to go the distance on every play, and they put stress on your defense because they’re extremely aggressive in terms of scheme and the way they play the game. We have to be assignment-sound on defense and trust what we’re doing.”
Falzone reciprocated with a lot of compliments for the Freedom offense.
“We’ve got to find a way to slow them down,” he said. “That’s going to be the big question for us. They’re super physical up front. They’ve got great size up there. That’s going to be a big challenge for us. They run the ball extremely well with a very experienced running back [Lashawn Johnson], who is one of the best in the league, and they have a veteran quarterback [Michael Stofanak] who is doing a really nice job and putting the ball where it needs to be.”
This has typically been one of the highest-scoring EPC games of the year and again this year the scoreboard operator figures to be kept busy.
Freedom got the first look at Nazareth quarterback Cooper Madson last year after he played the entire second half of the Blue Eagles’ 56-21 win after then quarterback Peyton Falzone went down with an injury and never returned.
“He kind of had his coming out party against us last year in the second half and as someone else said, he’s the next in line for Nazareth and he’s doing a really good job,” Roeder said.
At the same time, Freedom has faced three quality teams in Downingtown West, Parkland and Phillipsburg and the win over the Stateliners provided a great litmus test for the Patriots. They passed by rallying three times.
“When you come into the year, you’re not exactly sure about your team,” Roeder said. “You don’t know how tough you are, how resilient you are. Our kids showed they are tough and resilient by coming back three different times in that game coming off the loss we had against Parkland. I was just really proud of our kids.”
Likewise, Falzone is proud of how his kids have responded after giving up 63 points in an opening-night loss to Garnet Valley, which runs the triple-option.
“We prepared for that offense throughout the summer and had plenty of time to get ready for it and we were prepped for that stuff, but they were really good at it,” Falzone said. “We had a lot of coverage busts, more than I can ever remember for a single game. We had six busted coverages and five of them led to scores. We just got caught looking into their backfield the entire night and you get in that trance of the triple option and the next thing you know they’re running by you. We just weren’t locked in that night. So, we redirected the squad and we hit them pretty hard making the corrections. We had a nice rebound against Whitehall and continued it the next week against Central.”
But Freedom may pose the best challenge Nazareth will face all season.
“We have our work cut out for us,” Falzone said. “This is one of the toughest games we have our schedule. It’s going to be a great challenge.”
It’s the type of game Roeder relishes.
“This is where you want to be,” Roeder said. “It’s a big game getting a lot of attention. We’ve already had three tough games, but this is the league. This is where you start counting wins and losses for your standings. It should be a great night of high school football.”
Friday’s games
Dieruff (1-2) at Pocono Mountain West (2-1)
The storylines: The Huskies got a much-needed jolt of confidence with their shutout win over East Stroudsburg North and they are getting healthier as well. The Panthers also got back in the win column, beating 31-6 Hazleton Area after a dismal effort against Lehighton the week before. With East Stroudsburg North on the schedule next for West, Jim McCarroll’s team has a chance to get to 4-1 at the midway point before the schedule stiffens in the second half of the season.
Players to watch: West’s Teddy Stiehler had five tackles for loss, including three sacks, in the win over Hazleton. He also had 12 tackles overall. Panthers’ safety Jalil Evans had six tackles for loss. Dieruff’s Kayson Barlow has made an impact on both sides of the ball. He had a 40-yard touchdown run against North and six tackles on defense. Rafe Matos had 10 tackles, including six for losses, against North,
Keith Groller’s pick: Pocono Mountain West 27-16
East Stroudsburg North (0-3) at Allen (2-1)
The storylines: The Timberwolves continue to seek improvement under new coach Todd Moody. The Canaries are looking to get to 3-1 and bounce back from their first loss of the season, a competitive 24-20 defeat to Pocono Mountain East.
Players to watch: The Canaries have impressive skill-position talent in quarterback Julian Pagan, running back Michael Taylor and tight end TeShon Gaynair. Timajh Plott caught two TD passes against East. Taylor and Curtis Cooper both had eight tackles against East last week.
Keith Groller’s pick: Allen 40-0
Freedom (2-1) at Nazareth (2-1)
The storylines: It’s one of the season’s marquee matchups and a renewal of a great rivalry. It has been an even series with each team winning seven games since 2013. And most of the games have been high scoring. Since Nazareth beat Freedom 37-29 for the 2020 District 11 6A title, the winning team in this game has scored at least 38 points, including Nazareth’s 56-21 win last year in a game in which Peyton Falzone was spectacular in what proved to be the final half of football in his high school career.
Players to watch: Nazareth quarterback Cooper Madson and Freedom’s Michael Stofanak are third and fourth respectively in the EPC in passing yards with 686 and 551. The Blue Eagles also have three of the league’s top 13 receivers in Luke DiPietro, Mason Marinelli and Matt Leluga. Freedom’s Lashawn Johnson is fourth in the league in rushing with 444 yards.
Keith Groller’s pick: Nazareth 35-30
Northampton (2-1) at Liberty (1-2)
The storylines: Two teams that appear to be headed in different directions. After a 2-0 start, Northampton was beaten up front and had no answer for Tanner Dogmanits in its loss at Whitehall. Liberty, meanwhile, showed plenty of resiliency and showcased some new potential stars in its win over previously unbeaten Stroudsburg. While this game may not reach marquee status, it’s a game that could go a long way in determining who and who won’t make the District 11 6A playoff field.
Players to watch: Northampton’s Chase Kessler continues to be one of the area’s most productive running backs. He is No. 2 in the EPC in rushing, behind only Parkland’s TJ Lawrence, with 476 yards and has scored seven touchdowns. The Hurricanes have another 1-2 receiving punch with Zyaire Davis and Greg Tillman combining for 24 catches for 428 yards.
Keith Groller’s pick: Liberty 24-21
Pleasant Valley (2-1) at Whitehall (2-1)
The storylines: The Bears are looking to get back on track after a tough 20-19 loss to Pottsville. The Zephyrs, meanwhile, must avoid a letdown after an emotional win over Northampton on the night the program celebrated 100 seasons of football. The salute to the past continues with each decade being recognized, but the 2026 team must focus on the task at hand and that’s an always tricky thing to do against the triple-option offense run by PV.
Players to watch: When people think of the Zephyrs, they generally think of star quarterback Tanner Dogmanits and running back Jeziah Gregory along with receiver Henry Shultz. But the key to this team’s success is on defense. After getting peppered for seven touchdowns in a 49-13 loss to Nazareth, Whitehall’s defense tightened it up against Northampton. Leading the way was Aiden Harris, who had 12 stops in the 31-19 win over Northampton. Chris Ward ran for 187 yards and a touchdown in the loss to Pottsville.
Keith Groller’s pick: Whitehall 38-20
Pocono Mt. East (3-0) at Emmaus (1-2)
The storylines: The Cardinals and Bethlehem Catholic are the league’s only unbeaten teams, but this is East’s biggest test so far. Emmaus got into the win column for the first time last week with a rout of Scranton and seems to be playing with more confidence. The Cardinals are already in the 5A playoffs — all four teams in that classification qualified automatically — while this one has much more importance for the Green Hornets, who figure to be on the Class 6A tournament bubble until the end of the season.
Players to watch: The Cardinals are looking to get their offense going. They had 436 yards against Bangor, but just 231 against both Dieruff and Allen. Evan Garrett is seventh in the EPC in rushing with 370 yards. Prince Albino is among the league’s top pass-catchers with 14 for 214 yards. The Green Hornets had a breakout rushing performance Manolo Bermudez in its rout of Scranton. Bermudez ran for 186 yards on 10 carries and scored a touchdown.
Keith Groller’s pick: Emmaus 30-20
Saturday’s games
East Stroudsburg South (1-2) at Allentown CCHS (1-2)
The storylines: Both teams are looking to find some consistency. Both have lost two in a row after opening-night wins, and both have struggled on offense. South totaled just 23 points in losses to Wallenpaupack and Delaware Valley. The Vikings have scored just 48 points in three games. These programs don’t meet very often. They haven’t played since splitting a pair of games in 2016-17 with South winning the more recent contest 33-21 nine years ago.
Players to watch: South’s Avery Walker is averaging 8.6 yards per carry, while Trey Torres-Johnson is getting six yards per carry for the Vikings. Central’s Tahir Edmondson has 12 catches for 108 yards.
Keith Groller’s pick: Allentown CCHS 24-21
Easton (1-2) at Bethlehem Catholic (3-0)
The storylines: There’s a good chance that by the time Saturday night rolls around the Golden Hawks will be the league’s last unbeaten team. Can they end the night that way? It will be tough. Easton has won the last two meetings — 28-7 and 35-9 — after losing seven in a row to Becahi. The Rovers will be looking for a bounce-back effort after losing 44-14 to Parkland. The Golden Hawks have something to prove, too, since their three wins are over teams with a combined record of 1-8.
Players to watch: Becahi has the EPC’s No. 1 passer in Axel Burkart, who has thrown for 774 yards and eight TDs. The Golden Hawks also possess the league’s top receiver in Carter Vassa, but his status is uncertain due to injury. Becahi’s Jonathan Ayache has 31 tackles. Easton will test the Golden Hawks secondary with Sean McPeek, who has 17 receptions for 326 yards and a pair of TDs.
Keith Groller’s pick: Bethlehem Catholic 21-20
Independent game
Executive (2-1) at Tamaqua (2-1)
The storylines: The Raptors are playing another first-time opponent in Tamaqua after losing to Northern Lehigh 17-14 in their season opener. Since then, Executive combined for 88 points in wins over Berks Catholic and Bristol. The Raptors were excited to get on their new state-of-the-art turf field outside their building for the first time this week and are looking forward to playing their first game there next Friday. Tamaqua, meanwhile, is also on a two-game win streak win after losing to Lehighton in Week 1.
Players to watch: Executive quarterback Shawntez Whitsett has thrown for 584 yards and four touchdowns. He has also run for 236 yards and five scores. Ayden Ramos has 191 yards rushing and three scores and Lezius Bravo had 17 catches for 140 yards and a TD. Tamaqua is led by Terrence McDowell Jr., who has rushed for 499 yards and seven TDs.
Keith Groller’s pick: Executive 21-16
Note: Keith Groller’s picks were 9-3 last week and are 31-12 on the season.
