North Pocono’s Ryan Bush tries to escape the hold of Scranton’s Sean Fairweather at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton Friday, September 4, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton’s Deandre Allen runs against North Pocono at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton Friday, September 4, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton’s Christopher Manning runs for a gain against North Pocono at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton Friday, September 4, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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North Pocono’s Ryan Bush tries to escape the hold of Scranton’s Sean Fairweather at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton Friday, September 4, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
SCRANTON — North Pocono had six possessions in the first half.
The sixth doesn’t really count because it came right before halftime, and resulted in a one-play kneel down by quarterback Chase Zimmerman.
The rest of the drives had one common denominator: Each one started on Scranton’s side of the field. And with a powerful, physical offense, that’s almost like gifting the Trojans a touchdown.
Five to be exact.
Joseph Briskie and Jayden Taylor each ran for two scores, and Cole West accounted for the fifth rushing touchdown of the first half as North Pocono pulled away for a 35-6 over win over the Knights at Scranton Veterans Memorial Stadium in a Lackawanna Football Conference Division I game Friday night.
“It’s awesome to run behind a line like that,” said Taylor, who had 32 yards on six carries. “We have two really great offensive line coaches, and an awesome line. They are young guys, but they keep getting better each day. Right now, it’s about watching that film and getting ready for next week. We know that our schedule has a lot of challenges ahead.”
Sometimes, it’s about the intangibles that don’t show in box scores. Field position created by long punt returns and defensive stops that pinned the Knights several times with their backs on the goal line.
Two North Pocono possessions started from the Knights 48. The last one began inside the red zone.
“Field position is a big thing,” North Pocono head coach Greg Dolhon said. “We know that they have a young football team, and their coach is going to build that program. We are happy to get the win tonight, but Scranton has a lot of young kids playing right now. They will be a team to be reckoned with in the future. Right now, we are just a little bit older and physical.”
It was about the big, physical boys in the trenches, who opened up massive holes for each back to dart through. North Pocono averaged close to 10 yards per carry in the first half, and racked up 11 first downs in the opening 24 minutes.
Not just bruising bursts between the tackles, but explosive speed sweeps and cutbacks in the middle of the field to add on to those already-big chunk plays. North Pocono ran for 126 yards in the opening half — with Briskie scoring on runs of 4 and 3 yards, and Taylor bulldozing through for two, short-yardage touchdowns.
The fifth score came off a Wildcat option keeper by speedster West as North Pocono took a 35-0 lead into the break.
“When you start on that side of the 50, we feel like we should score touchdowns with our offense,” Dolhon said. “We are happy with how our line is playing. We have some young kids up there. All of those guys are starting for the first time in those spots this year. They have a lot of work to do, but they are coming off the ball well and are strong kids. They’ve put in the work in the weight room, and we are really proud of that.”
Give the Knights credit for battling.
On the opening play of the second half, quarterback Christopher Manning connected with Ian McAndrew for an 80-yard touchdown as the young Knights showed promise, heart and determination in the second half with the game out of reach.
Manning finished 7 of 9 for 175 yards and the score, while rushing for another 35 yards.
“We were looking for effort,” Scranton head coach Jack Miles said. “We knew going into the game that we were a little overmatched. We had five kids who started last week that weren’t available this week. They kept playing hard, and that’s all we can ask. We are very young up front, so we have a little bit of growing to do, but that’s all right. We are happy with the effort. They just keep working hard.”