Author: Damon Anderson

Damon Anderson is an army veteran and 1992 graduate of Quince Orchard High School who has covered MoCo public high school football for 15 years. Damon and Kevin Grant also started the first ever podcast covering local high school football.

MCPS

2023 MoCoShow MCPS Football Preseason Top 10

By Damon Anderson

1. Quince Orchard: The Cougars closed out the 2022 season as back to back State Champions, winning their 5th overall State title. Once again, QO has reloaded adding to an already impressive roster led by Senior Defensive End Jaylen Harvey and Junior Running Back Iverson Howard.  Quince Orchard kicks of their season vs perennial playoff contender South County from Lorton, Virginia in the MoCoShow Co-Game of the Week

2. Damascus: The Swarmin’ Hornets capped off their 2022 campaign with their state tying 12th State Championship.  With Damascus returning  players like Junior Linebacker Michael Cooley and dropping back down to the 2A classification they are odds on favorite for a record breaking 13th championship. Damascus will start their season at home vs Einstein

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Maryland

Maryland Public Schools Officially Permit High School Athletes to Monetize Their NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness)

By Damon Anderson

On Tuesday, the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association officially permitted high school athletes to monetize their NIL and maintain their eligibility. Under the new policy, it is permissible for student-athletes to financially gain from the use of their own NIL in commercial endorsements, promotional activities, social media presence, product or service advertisements or NFTs.  Student-athletes must keep their NIL activities and participation in interscholastic activities separate.

The guidance prohibits high school student athletes from doing NIL deals to promote video games.  The MPSSAA also prohibits the formation of collectives – groups of boosters that support schools through NIL activities – by employees, contractors and vendors of member schools. MPSSAA Guidance for Name, Image, and Likeness Related To Interscholastic Athletics:

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Celebrities

Former MoCo Resident and NFL Hall of Famer Tom Mack Honored by the LA Rams

By Damon Anderson

Former Darnestown resident, Tom Mack, was honored by the Los Angeles Rams last week during their game vs the Las Vegas Raiders. Mack was selected by the Los Angeles Rams with the second pick in the 1966 NFL Draft and played left guard for the Rams for 13 seasons from 1966 to 1978, appearing in 11 Pro Bowls. During his NFL career, he appeared in 184 consecutive games, 176 as a starter. He was a starter on the 1964 Michigan team that won the Big Ten Conference championship and defeated Oregon State in the 1965 Rose Bowl. He was selected as a first-team All-Big Ten player in 1965 and was inducted into the University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor in 2006. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999.

After retiring from football, Mack worked as an engineer, using the engineering degree he received at the University of Michigan. He eventually became a lobbyist for Bechtel Group, Inc., whose headquarters are located in nearby Reston, VA. Tom and his family lived in Darnestown from 1987-1993. His daughters, Katy and Cari, graduated from Seneca Valley & Quince Orchard respectively.

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MCPS

MoCo Coaches 4A All-County Football Team

By Damon Anderson

In the images below you will see the Montgomery County 4A Coaches All-County Selections (as chosen by the 4A coaches in Montgomery County). Honorable mention defense, honorable mention offense, second team all-county defense, second team all-county offense, coaches of the year, first team all-county defense, first team all-county offense, offensive player of the year, defensive player of the year, and player of the year awards can be seen:

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Damascus

The MoCoShow Maryland Football State Finals Preview & Predictions

By Damon Anderson

(*) =  Seed

4A: (2) Quince Orchard vs (1) Flowers–  The Cougars beat Broadneck 42-9 in the semifinals. RB Iverson Howard rushed for 210 yards & 2 touchdowns in the victory. WR Tavahri Groves also contributed with 129 yards of total offense and 2 touchdowns.  Flowers, from PG County, defeated Wise 20-13 in their semifinal game. This will be QO’s 9th appearance in the state finals, having won 4. Flowers will be playing in their 1st state final in school history. These two squads have only played each other once prior, in 2011 they met in the state semifinal resulting in a 23-12 Quince Orchard win. Quince Orchard vs Flowers High School Football Game of the Week (2011) The Head Coaches of QO & Flowers, John Kelley & Dameon Powell respectively, both played their high school ball in MoCo. Kelley at Seneca Valley and Powell at Sherwood. In addition, they played against each other twice in 1996, Seneca winning the regular season meeting and Sherwood getting revenge in the playoffs. Thursday night Quince Orchard vs Flowers for the 4A State Championship at Navy Memorial Stadium in Annapolis. Prediction: Quince Orchard by 17

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Damascus

Happy Thanksgiving from Damascus and Quince Orchard Football

By Damon Anderson

It is a rare privilege to still be playing high school football on Thanksgiving. Damascus & Quince Orchard Alumni gathered this morning to support the players & coaches of their respective schools as they prepared for Friday nights semifinal state playoff games. This will be Damascus’ 19th semifinal appearance and Quince Orchard’s 8th.

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MCPS

Second Round of High School Football Playoff Scores (MCPS Schools)

By Damon Anderson

Results of second round games can be seen below. Scores will be updated as we receive them (an F will signify the score is final, no F means the score is from the game while it is/was in progress). If a score isn’t listed, it’s because we haven’t yet received a report from the game.

Friday 11/11:

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