Having completed the KSFL regular season with an unblemished 6-0 record, the Knights’ 8-man football team subsequently claimed the school’s first-ever playoff victory on November 2 with a convincing 42-22 win over Model Secondary School of the Deaf, setting the stage for a home championship tilt one week later against the league’s two-time defending champions, Maryland School for the Deaf. 

Unfortunately, despite a heroic fourth-quarter comeback spearheaded by senior quarterback Sam Dixon, DC fell just eight points short of forcing overtime, resulting in a 26-18 championship loss to the Orioles on Saturday, November 9.

After quickly falling behind 12-0 in the first quarter on a pair of short MSD touchdown runs on back-to-back possessions, head coach Lloyd Hill’s squad gamely fought back in the second stanza, retaliating with a five-year touchdown run by Dixon–the 2023 KSFL Offensive Player of the Year–and effectively cutting the deficit to six before halftime.

The third quarter, though, proved to be reminiscent of the first one as the visitors flexed their rushing muscles, stunning the Knights with a 58-yard scoring run on the first play from scrimmage after halftime, this before adding yet another short scoring burst en route to assuming a commanding 26-6 lead.

Mired in a 20-point deficit, the Knights refused to go away quietly. Dixon found Titus Mayo on a 28-yard scoring pass midway through the fourth quarter before connecting with another sophomore, Andre Kremin, on a 39-yard scoring strike with just under three minutes remaining in the contest, reducing the visitors’ lead to eight points.

The game would then come down to a pivotal special teams play that followed on the heels of Dixon’s second scoring aerial. The Knights appeared to have secured senior Caleb Videon’s perfectly executed onside kick in Orioles’ territory, but officials awarded the ball to the opposition, citing dual possession. 

Still, the never-say-die Knights valiantly rose up several plays later, recovering an Orioles’ fumble deep in their own territory with just under a minute remaining in the game. DC’s flickering hopes ended several plays later, though, when Dixon’s final deep ball was intercepted by MSD near the opposition’s thirty-yard line

While the loss was hugely disappointing for the Knights, the season was not without its highlights. Incredibly, the squad outscored their opponents during the regular season, 275-99, and scored forty-two or more points in all but one game—the exception being a 30-24 win over MSD. Also of note, the Knights garnered their first-ever KSFL postseason victory, while becoming the only KSFL team to defeat the Orioles in consecutive regular-season contests since MSD’s 2022 admission to the league.

”We have come so far from where we started in this league,” remarked Dixon, “and that in itself is something to be proud of, regardless of the results of the final game. I am very thankful to God for my coaches and the impact that they have had on my life and on the life of the team. I can truly say that I am a better person and man of God because of their steadfast leadership.”

Admittedly, the Knights will lose six seniors to graduation—most notably, Dixon; the multi-tooled Videon; and first-year, two-way contributor Reid Darnall. Nevertheless, DC will return strength and depth at most positions, including more than a dozen returnees who saw significant playing time on one or both sides of the ball this season. 

Among those returnees is junior tight end and defensive stalwart Christian O’Donnell, who looks forward expectantly to the 2025 season: “This season changed me a lot. We had a brotherhood on and off the field, and it hurts me that we couldn’t get the job done. I will be ready to go for next season with extra motivation.”

Long-time assistant coach Mr. Chip Ridewood was similarly optimistic about DC’s 8-man football squad: “Despite coming up just short of our goal of winning the KSFL championship, this year’s team ‘re-proved’ the potential of our team as a championship contender. The players…are men of great character who take their relationship with the Lord seriously and understand that we don’t derive our value from numbers on the scoreboard but from the fact that we are all made in the image of God.”

One year removed from a stellar 5-2 regular-season record and a fourth-place finish in the wildly competitive Keystone State Football League, the DC Knights’ varsity football team looks to field yet another strong entry in 2024 as Head Coach Lloyd Hill’s seasoned squad takes aim at capturing their first 8-man title in school history.
Under the tutelage of Hill and long-time Assistant Coach Chip Ridewood, the Knights will once again hang their hopes on senior quarterback sensation Sam Dixon, the KSFL 2023 Offensive Player of the Year. With Dixon at the trigger, the Knights produced massive offensive numbers last year, largely the result of the two-year starter hurling 14 scoring strikes to a bevy of capable targets while galloping through opposing defenses to the tune of twelve hundred-plus yards and an incredible 20 rushing touchdowns. “We had a phenomenal season last year,” remarked Coach Hill.
Despite the departure of the graduating tight-end tandem of Tommy Goneau and Jackson Lewis, the cupboard is hardly bare of complementary pieces on the offensive side of the ball. Multi-tool senior Caleb Videon and long-striding wideout Ian Pruessner are but two of a wealth of skill players who will offer Dixon multiple options as the Knights seek to replicate last year’s proclivity for offensive fireworks.
Along the offensive line, the Knights will no doubt miss the presence of stalwart center Liam McKinley but look to lean heavily on a group of underclassmen led by juniors Sam Sahle and Jesse Payson, as well as a pair of developing sophomores, Gabe DiGregorio and Paxton Ellis. Moreover, the Knights hope that the tight-end tandem of junior transfer Christian O’Donnell and sophomore Anders McKeaney will not only bolster the running game but will also fortify an already impressive passing arsenal.
On defense, the Knights will likely employ many of the offensive starters, save Dixon, in a 2-3-3 format, though coaches are extremely high on senior newcomer Reid Darnall and sophomore Nathan Burd–both of whom will be probable contributors in the secondary. In addition, senior linebacker/slotback Luke Fox, special teams guru Noah Dague, and sophomore wideout/defensive back Titus Mayo will likely see duty on both sides of the ball this fall.
“We have some key leadership guys returning,” noted Coach Hill. “I’m looking forward to that—guys that take charge, lead the team, and be positive role models for their teammates.”
Supporting Hill and Ridewood on the sidelines will be returning assistant coach Andy Krider and newcomer Malik Graves, both of whom will play key roles in providing valuable input for quarterback and secondary play, respectively. 
Possessed of a growing roster approximating 30 players, Head Coach Hill and Assistant Coach Ridewood anticipate a challenging home schedule as the Knights will open the season against the league’s 2023 runner-up, MODEL, on September 14 before playing host to the KSFL’s reigning back-to-back champions, Maryland School of the Deaf, on September 28. Sandwiched between away contests, the Knights will conclude their regular-season home slate with a Homecoming date against visiting Mercersburg Academy on October 12–a rematch of last year’s memorable 112-point combined outburst. 
Interspersed throughout the schedule will also be a trio of away dates at second-year program Coventry Christian, at always-tough Perkiomen School, and a season-ending contest at upstart Girard College. With the departure of Randolph-Macon Academy and Valley Forge Military from the KSFL, the league will return to a six-game round-robin schedule, though the Knights do plan to compete in an 11-man scrimmage versus Ridley High School’s junior varsity squad on October 5.           
“We expect the guys to go out and compete hard each and every week,” remarked Coach Ridewood, “and give ourselves a chance to capture our first KSFL championship.”