Ted Silary: Morgan is a big asset for Gratz

PASSING ALONG some city high school football tidbits...

At noontime yesterday, Jamil Morgan did more than wolf down 27 cheeseburgers (slight exaggeration).

At the Daily News' request, with supervision by Gratz coach Erik Zipay, Morgan stepped onto a scale. After all, the 6-foot junior could be the heaviest player in city history to score a touchdown (except for fumble flops?), and now we know he weighs 347 pounds.

Late in the Bulldogs' 62-14 nonleague win over visiting Boys' Latin Friday night, Zipay stationed Morgan (the center) at fullback and Tamaric Richardson (guard) at tailback. Richardson managed a 4-yard gain to the 2, then Morgan rumbled the rest of the way. (Richardson added the conversion run.)

"Since Tam is a senior, we kind of wanted him to get the touchdown. I think Jamil bullied our JV quarterback," Zipay said, laughing.

"Nah, he switched up the play," Morgan said.

Morgan followed a path a shade to the right of straight ahead.

"Everybody was all excited in the huddle," he said. "I scored standing up, then was real calm. Just gave the ball to the ref then I got excited. It was amazing. Later on I was calling and texting everybody I know."

Morgan briefly played pound ball for the Olney Eagles, but had to forego football until high school because his age/weight never correctly matched.

"I did a little running there," he said. "I don't remember if I ever scored." (He'd remember.)

When Morgan was asked whether he'd already bugged Zipay about being given more ballcarrying opportunities, he said, "Not yet. But I'm planning to."

Early note to those headed for Central-Northeast on Thanksgiving: Trust your eyes. Central's Joe Guarnieri and Northeast's Howard Lynn kick rightfooted, but punt leftfooted. Meanwhile, Owen Radtke only kicks for Judge, but throws lefthanded. "I'm a unique kid," he quipped ... Let's hear it for another member of the AllConsonant Team (and we do mean all): Conwell-Egan lineman Eric Hrynczyszyn. He was preceded at C-E by brothers Brian and Chris while dad Mike and brothers Bill, Fred and Pete played at Mastbaum. Two more, John and Sam, were partial to soccer there. At pronounciation time, somehow a T sneaks into the surname and you wind up with her-in-trish-in. "That's not really it," Mike said, laughing. "We did that. Thought we'd make it a little easier to say. Americanize it."...Washington continues to mourn the loss of Heidi Shafer, a surrogate mom to many of the players. She died Oct. 17 not long after being diagnosed with breast cancer...Germantown's Michelle Grace, who almost became the first girl in city history to score a TD earlier this season, made a late tackle vs. Lincoln...Linebacker Rasoul Knight was West Philly's Homecoming king. Lineman Robert Walton was in the court, but twin brother Charles, the QB, was not...

Injury-wracked, soon-to-depart Kennedy-Kenrick dressed only 21 players for its final game against a Catholic League foe (Neumann-Goretti; cross-division and did not count in standings)...Jon McAllister, at run-dominant Chestnut Hill, has logged 49 career catches for 1,068 yards and eight TDs...Star Furness soph Sharif Smith made an interception vs. Imhotep while flat on the turf. Maybe he'd collapsed after learning the "prize" for the winning 50-50 ticket was $5?...There were 22 plays in the final 2:46 of SJ Prep's 21-14 win over O'Hara. That'd be 382 in 48 minutes...

Though his team had kicked off to start the game vs. Edison, coach Stosh Tunney made Southern, ahead by 36-0, do so again to start the second half.

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