Downingtown East stops OJR’s Brumfield, wins 42-7

Owen J. Roberts' Ryan Brumfield is used to a lot of carries, big gains, and putting up huge numbers.

What he ran into Friday night against Downingtown East at Kottmeyer Stadium in the opening round of the District 1 Class AAAA playoffs was something out of the ordinary.

Brumfield, the 8,291-yard career rusher for the Wildcats, was shut down by the Cougars, gaining just 43 yards. Meanwhile, Downingtown East's Drew Harris carried the ball 20 times for 213 yards and three touchdowns, leading the Cougars to a 42-7 win.

Downingtown East head coach Mike Matta said the team prepped for Brumfield by running dummy plays that mimic Roberts' offense in practice.

"We worked really hard, the defense had a great plan," Matta said, adding that taking away Brumfield's cutback lanes and sealing the edge were reasons why his team was successful.

Harris had touchdown runs of 40, 41, and 56 yards.

"The line did a great job, I kept my eyes open to look for running lanes and made the cuts," Harris said after the game, his teammates chanting his name as they walked down the tunnel to the Downingtown East locker room.

"Drew is a very competitive guy," Matta said of his own star back. "I knew it would be a challenge between the backs [Harris and Brumfield]. The bigger the game is, the bigger Drew plays. Drew is a big-game player."

Downingtown East (9-2 overall, 6-1 league), seeded sixth in the district tournament, established the tenor of the game early, scoring on its opening three drives, slashing minutes off the clock, and keeping Brumfield on the sidelines.

East's opening series was nine plays, covering 83 yards across 4 minutes, 4 seconds. The drive was capped by a 40-yard gallop my Harris, a junior.

East quarterback Trey Lauletta finished the game 9 for 12 for 112 yards passing and two touchdowns. Tyler Kroft caught six balls for 85 yards for the Cougars and was the recipient of both Lauletta TDs.

Harris, who entered the game with 1,621 yards for the season, collected 121 yards on 12 carries in the first half alone. After his 56-yard TD, which put East ahead, 35-0, the PIAA running-clock mercy rule went into effect.

Brumfield, who entered the game with 2,548 yards this season, opened the second half taking direct snaps from center, but was still rendered ineffective. He was pulled from the contest with about eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. He carried the ball 20 times, but his 43 yards was his lowest total in three years.

Roberts (8-3, 8-1) was the tournament's No. 11 seed. The Wildcats averaged nearly 40 points per game before Friday's loss.

Owen J. Roberts   0 0 7 0 - 7

Downingtown East   7 14 14 7 - 42

DE: Harris 40 run (Mayes kick)

DE: Kroft 6 pass from Lauletta (Mayes kick)

DE: Harris 41 run (Mayes kick)

DE: Kroft 6 pass from Lauletta (Mayes kick)

DE: Harris 56 run (Mayes kick)

OJR: Brazier 24 pass from Megay (Pennell kick)

DE: Mastrog 19 run (Mayes kick)