The Bulls are riding a four-game winning streak, have a 6-3 overall record and are 4-0 in the league, while Interboro is 9-0 overall, clinching a PIAA District 1 Class AAA playoff berth, and is also 4-0 in the Del-Val League. The winner will take the league title outright, the loser won't win anything.

No Bucs' player ever wants to be on the team that loses the title streak. The 5-6, 165-pound Pfaff will do his best to prevent that from happening.

"It is a big deal to anyone who ever wears an Interboro uniform; it's kind of expected by us," said Pfaff, the Bucs' slot back/outside linebacker and also one of Interboro's most dangerous players, scoring 12 touchdowns. "The pressure is on the team, not one person, and that makes you feel comfortable. You always know someone will pick you up. It just feels great that we're an all-around team that it can be anyone at any time. We all do it together."

Pfaff and his teammates were given white T-shirts during the summer with black letters that read, "Going For 12." Before the season began, Pfaff kept hearing whispers about the cracks in the wall at Interboro.

"We heard that Penn Wood was coming up, and that we'd be competitive, but since we shared the title last year, that we wouldn't be in the position we're in," Pfaff said. "It's about winning the league title clean this year. By now, we're getting a lot of credit, but we're the only ones in this position again. I looked right at the Glen Mills game the last game of the season, I knew that game would be real big and it is."

Pfaff and his Bucs' teammates will have a few less doubters this time.

Definition of a leader

Mark McHugh won't wow you with stats or bowl you over with amazing plays. But the Garnet Valley quarterback rarely makes a mistake, and carries the kind of confidence that makes players follow him. The 5-11, 190-pound senior just wins, as he did Friday night in guiding the Jaguars to a 20-14 victory over Ridley in a crucial Central League game. He's also 20-2 in 2 years as a starter for the Jags.

"Stats don't really mean much to me, team stats are more important than individual stats," said McHugh, who went 5-for-15 for 140 yards and the game-winning touchdown pass to Alex Warden. "I take a more serious attitude towards practice than I ever did, but I still like to have fun out there. I'd like to think nothing rattles me - or I try not to let it show if I am rattled."

Beating Ridley for the second year for McHugh, who threw for two touchdowns and rushed for two more his junior year against Ridley, meant a share of the Central League title and a PIAA District 1 Class AAAA playoff berth, with possibly the No. 2 seed.

"I feel like this should be another great year and I think we should be able to go pretty deep in the playoffs," said McHugh, who directed two one-point victories for the Jags this season. "We're finding ways to win."

Delco's Rushmore

They often go unnoticed, except for the head coaches they work under, for the effort, commitment and countless hours they put into forming a defensive game plan every week.

If there were a Mount Rushmore of Delco defensive coordinators it would include Ridley's Ralph Batty, Garnet Valley's Rick Stroup, Strath Haven's Jim Connor and Interboro's Mike D'Esposito. It's not a mystery why most years those four programs are in contention for league titles, and it's a job that only a head coach can appreciate.

"As far as the job of coordinators on any staff, they create the game plans that make sure the kids are in a position to be successful," Garnet Valley coach Mike Ricci said. "As far as Rick Stroup here at Garnet Valley, he's absolutely phenomenal. He thoroughly prepares each week and I can't say enough about him. To say defensive coordinators are invaluable to what they mean to head coaches is an understatement."

With high school offenses becoming more diverse, teams have to change week-to-week as to what they'll face. In the Central League alone, with Springfield's spread offense, Strath Haven's and Garnet Valley's complicated running attacks, and Ridley's traditionally great passing game, a defensive coordinator better have a sound game plan. The challenge is incorporating the weaknesses of opposing offenses, which comes from countless hours of charting plays and watching films. After that, break down what's learned into a defensive scheme that the players can understand.

"It's absolutely a daunting task, and none of the coordinators anywhere get the credit that they deserve, but we all know as head coaches what they do, and it is appreciated," said Ricci, who was once an offensive, defensive and special-teams coordinator.i

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