Things have not gone to plan for North Penn-Mansfield’s football team since the pandemic began. Unlike many other teams, the Panthers were not permitted summer workouts and the weight room was shuttered. In fact, three weeks ago it appeared that they would not be allowed to play at all.

So when Will Kibler intercepted a Colton Litzelman pass and gave Wellsboro a quick 14-0 lead over the Panthers, it would have been easy for the Panthers to have thrown in the towel. They did not. North Penn-Mansfield did not allow a point the rest of the way and they stormed back to take the Morton Jones Trophy, 17-14.

“What a win for these guys,” North Penn-Mansfield coach Tom Dickinson said after the game. “It wasn’t pretty, and we have things to work on, but it says a lot about our kids.”

Wellsboro scored on an opening drive that featured two bad shotgun snaps. Isaac Keane had one of his better scholastic drives though, and hurt North Penn-Mansfield with his arms and legs. After Wellsboro got it down to the Panther 1, a bad snap backed them up to second-and-goal from the 21. Keane found Conner Adams on the ensuing play in the end zone for a 7-0 Wellsboro lead, after Jack Poirier made the extra point.

The ensuing North Penn-Mansfield drive ended with what looked like for awhile would be the start of a Hornet rout. On 4th and 1 from midfield, a bad snap forced Litzelman into duress, and his attempt to get rid of the ball was picked off by Kibler who scampered home from 40 yards out to make it 14-0.

“I should have punted there,” said Dickinson.

North Penn-Mansfield answered back with their best drive of the game. After Litzelman found 6’7 Brandon Thompson down the right sideline for 44 yards, Kohen Lehman scampered in from 21 yards out to make it 14-7, a score that would remain through halftime.

Both teams traded punts in the third quarter until senior Bryan Bogaczyk made the play of the game.

Wellsboro sent four receivers in a diamond formation out to the right and looked to set up a quick screen. Bogaczyk was unblocked and flew in to make the interception and took it 10 yards to pay dirt to knot things up at 14.

After forcing a Wellsboro punt, North Penn-Mansfield went back to work. This time, it was Bogaczyk through the ground as his tough running got the Panthers into the red zone.

Faced with a third-and-9 from the 15, Dickinson wanted to be conservative.

“Kevin (Alexander) is a great kicker and we have full confidence in him from that range,” he said. “I told Colton (Litzelman) that if it wasn’t there on third down to just throw it away.”

That’s what Litzelman did, and Alexander backed up Dickinson’s confidence by drilling the 32 yard field goal with a kick that would’ve been good from 52.

Twice Wellsboro got into North Penn-Mansfield territory down the stretch and twice they were turned away by a stingy Tiger defense. Keane was stopped short of the marker on a fourth-and-5 play with two minutes remaining, and it looked like that would be it.

However, Wellsboro made one last defensive stand and forced a Panther punt. After a first down completion to a 22 yard completion to Singer down the sideline and a few Keane scrambles, Wellsboro had it to the Panther 25 yard line with 11 seconds remaining in the ballgame.

On the game’s final play, Keane scrambled right and looked to get out of bounds. Thompson tracked him down and tripped him up from behind in the field of play and time expired, giving North Penn-Mansfield possession of the Morton Jones Trophy.