Cougars, Panthers Square Off in Battle of Unbeatens

Quince Orchard and Paint Branch haven't played in the regular season since 2006, but it will still be a very familiar foe standing on the opposing sidelines Saturday when these two unbeaten teams square off.

Mike Nesmith, now in his fifth season as head coach of the Panthers, spent five years at Quince Orchard and for three of those years—from 2004-2006—he was Dave Mencarini's offensive coordinator.

Now, Nesmith and Mencarini, who had coached alongside each other for the better part of a decade, will meet for the first time since Nesmith left Quince Orchard, when the Cougars put their 2-0 record on the line in their first road game of the season.

"Well, first off, Paint Branch is an excellent football team," Mencarini said. "Obviously Mike is a tremendous coach. They're an explosive football team. They can score a lot of points, and their defense is excellent so it's going to be quite a challenge for us."

Quince Orchard enters the game fresh off a 42-6 win over Blair, which allowed Mencarini to rest many of his starters in the second half. While in though, running back Mark Green scored two rushing touchdowns and quarterback Billy Plante scored on a run and threw a touchdown pass.

Mencarini will once again be leaning on Plante's athleticism Saturday to make plays for the Cougars while complimenting Green's ground game.

The Panthers also enter the game undefeated after a 19-0 win over Magruder last week. But Mencarini said he doesn't pay much attention to what his opponents' records are when it comes to game time. His focus remains on ensuring his players prepare each week regardless of who they play.

"Really, we approach each week with the same mentality," Mencarini said. "It's not about our opponent, it's about us getting better every single game. Our defensive coordinator, John Kelley, said it best. He told the kids 'you only have 10 opportunities to take advantage of all of the hard work you put in during the off-season.' So we approach each week with that attitude."

For Paint Branch, its game plan is pretty simple this week. Nesmith said that his team's biggest focus will be stopping Green.

"Mark is really the engine that makes that offense go," said Nesmith, who left QO one year before it won its second state title in school history in 2007. "If we can't at least slow him down, we don't have much of a chance to win this game. He's the type of guy capable of making a big play every time he touches the ball."

As far as the relationship between Nesmith and Quince Orchard, Nesmith addressed his connection to its program in an interview with Patch earlier this week.

"For me, this game is going to be a lot of fun," said Nesmith, who played at Seneca Valley and was a member of the Screamin' Eagles coaching staff when they won four state titles in the 1990s. "Even though I left QO, I still have great relationships with Dave and a lot of those guys over there. It's going to be a great atmosphere and Dave and I have had fun this week talking about the match-up."

Nesmith also stated that he learned a lot about running a program from Mencarini, as well as other coaches he has worked with over the years such as long-time Seneca Valley coach Terry Changuris and current Seneca coach Fred Kim, who was Quince Orchard’s head coach for two years prior to Mencarini taking over. A lot of what he has tried to implement at Paint Branch comes from his long history with some of the county’s top programs, Nesmith said.

While Mencarini also acknowledges the relationship and stated that he and Nesmith remain very close, he is trying to treat this game like any other.

"Mike and I are great friends," Mencarini said. "He was a big part of our early success and he and I are great buddies. But it’s not about Mike and me. It's about QO and Paint Branch."

Saturday's game will take place at 2 p.m. at Montgomery Blair High School.