Arundel at Old Mill Rewind

Leading up to the season opener there might have been some speculation from outsiders as to how serious Arundel Coach Chuck Markiewicz was when he said the Wildcats were going to run the ball more. But if Arundel's 34-27 win over the Patriots Friday was any indication of what to expect from the Wildcats, it's probably a safe bet running back Joseph Blackwell may become as well known for the Wildcats as quarterback Billy Cosh.

"It's really nice to have him," Markiewicz said of Blackwell, who transfered from Archbishop Spalding last year. "I guess he's kind of a secret — or he was. He's not now. He came to us and when we first saw him he was kind of stiff, but geez he gets better every day. Then tonight we gave him the rock and he didn't get tired of anything."

The combination of Blackwell and occasionally Cosh on the ground gives the Wildcats an entirely new set of options. Instead of being the pass-first and always team, Arundel can manipulate the clock with the ground game and keep defenses honest.

"They only had five guys in the box a lot of the time and that's a matchup we have to exploit by running the ball," Cosh said. "Joe's been working his butt off, he really got after it. Spalding's a different offense it's more of a zone, shotgun, a completely different system but he's done a really good job picking things up."

As for the passing attack, which graduated All-Met wide receiver Alec Lemon, Arundel hasn't skipped a beat. In addition to R.J. Harris, keep an eye on sophomore wide receiver John White, who had eight catches for 53 yards Friday.

Both teams appeared to be working off some of the early season rust though. Old Mill had several players suffer leg cramps as the game went on and the teams combined for five fumbles -- four by Arundel.

"We had two penalties after touchdowns on kickoff positioning that really hurt us," Old Mill Coach Damian Ferragamo said. "The kids were cramping like crazy, which is my fault. We needed to be in better shape. But we knew that win or lose, this game couldn't be our season."

The Patriots' opponents will probably continue to receive heavy doses of running backs Josh Furman and Jason Clements, who both chewed up significant chunks of yardage at times but were ultimately unable keep pace with Arundel's offense.

Furman had some eye-popping carries in the contest though -- including his 86 yard sprint to the end zone after wrestling his way through about five would-be tacklers and a 42-yard run in the fourth quarter during which he was running full speed then slowed to a stop on the sideline to fake his way past a defender for about six additional yards.