Wow, it’s hard to believe Santa’s midnight ride is less than ten days away. As the song goes, it is The Most Wonderful Time of Year. And may I add, the busiest. There is so much going on at our Webb Weekly offices; the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season are in full swing.

Tip of my Santa hat to editor Steph and her three helpers from the North Pole — Tinsel McJingles, Freddy Gumdrop, and Sparky Tinselbottom. Talking about a whirlwind of Christmas activity, Steph has her elves beyond busy helping with our Annual Blaise Alexander Family Dealership Coloring Contest. See, every year, Steph recruits a little holiday temp help to process and judge all the great work the boys and girls of the West Branch Valley send us. She was lucky to get the three this year, with the nationwide employee shortage and all.

It always amazes me the effort the kids put into the contest. One entry actually glitter bombed our Kane Street office; I’m lucky there were no workman’s or elfman’s comp claims filed. Seriously though, I’m glad I don’t have to judge; in my eyes, every child would be a winner.

We will be allowing a little extra time this year to receive all the amazing artwork the kids have done. This due to the USPS being a little overburdened and deliveries are taking a little longer. Maybe Steph can send them the three elves to help out after the coloring contest ends.

That leads me to if, for any reason, you do not receive your weekly Webb, please let me know. I will make sure you have one in your hand, lickety-split. Who knows, I might be bringing it myself with the use of Santa’s sleigh and those magical reindeer.

Next up on our holiday hit list, please don’t forget about our Red Kettle collection in remembrance of Dave Sechler. For every dollar you contribute to the great cause of The Salvation Army, I match it. No strings attached; no extended warranty needed.

Simply stop by our office at 280 Kane Street, Suite 2 in South Williamsport 17702, and drop it in the Red Kettle. You may also mail it in, mark it “Remembering Dave,” and we’ll make sure it gets into the Red Kettle. If you drop by the office and make a donation, we will have a Webb Weekly mug filled with candy for you, just to say Merry Christmas and thank you.

The Salvation Army does amazing work with all contributions kept local. They are always there in times of need for our friends, family, neighbors, and our community. With your help since we began the campaign to continue ringing the bell for Dave Sechler, over $50,000 has found its way into that Red Kettle. A heartfelt thank you and Merry Christmas to all that have contributed.

Moving Santa’s sleigh right along to the amazing season the Jersey Shore Bulldog footballers had. They added another district title and a 3rd straight trip to the PIAA Final Four at the 4A level. In wrapping things up this week, I would like to put a bow on the outstanding Bulldog season by celebrating some great individual seasons. Everyone always begins talking about a team’s accomplishments with the offensive numbers; I’m gonna kick it off talking about some mad Dawgs on Defense.

First up, a tip of my coaching cap to defensive coordinator Alex Jackson. He is simply the best D.C. in PA. The Bulldog D featured three players that went over the magic number of 100 tackles. Senior Karter Peacock – 131, fellow linebacker Junior Hayden Packer – 121, and defensive end/move him around on the D line Sr. Connor Davis – 109; Connor has been spectacular on the D line the last two seasons. All three should represent Jersey Shore as All-State defenders.

A shout out to Jr. Luke Springman, who recorded 94 tackles.

The sack leader for the Dawgs was sophomore Tate Sechrist; he got home 7.5 times to say hello to the opposing QB.

Sr. Cayden Hess led the team with six interceptions and was again tremendous on both sides of the ball, and will be an All-State repeater.

Hayden Packer was also the team leader with 19 tackles for loss.

What an absolute Bulldog tough defense.

Now on to the offensive side, the Bulldog Band and cheerleaders got a lot of action on Friday nights celebrating touchdowns. Junior QB Brady Jordan matured into one of the best signal-callers in the state. Brady threw for 2,099 yards and 18 touchdowns and scampered for another 1,016 yds and 14 touchdowns. Brady accounted for 3,115 total yards and 32 TDs during his stellar season.

Cayden Hess was the team’s leading receiver with 55 catches for 999 yards. After further review, I found one yard that was missed, so I’m giving him 1,000 for the season. What a remarkable career this young man has had for the Orange and Black.

Hayden Packer hit both magic numbers for his positions. He was also the team’s leading rusher with 1,237 yards scoring a team-high 20 TDs. For my money, he is the State’s 4A Player of the Year.

In addition to Brady Jordan, Hayden Packer, and Cayden Hess, the Dawgs had two others top 1,000 all-purpose yards. Freshman Elijah Jordan totaled 1,039 yds. And all everything performer Jr. Cooper Peacock contributed 1,107 yds. Just impressive numbers posted by the Bulldog offense.

Congratulations to the Jersey Shore Bulldog football nation on another great season. And for those keeping score at home, the Bulldogs got a heap of talent returning next year to make another run at the gold medal.

God Bless America.