Riley Decker had a good feeling about Upper Perkiomen's chances against Boyertown. Last week, during practice, the senior expressed his confidence to his teammates.

            "I thought we could blow them out," said Decker, a standout two-way lineman.

            And the Tribe did just that.

            Logan Simmon scored four touchdowns to lead the Indians to a 42-14 victory over Boyertown in the Pioneer Athletic Conference on Oct. 16.  The junior ran for 216 yards and three scores on 25 carries in Upper Perk's first road victory in 14 months.

            The Tribe defense, which limited the host Bears to 176 total yards, forced four turnovers and pitched a second half shutout to secure consecutive victories for the first time in two years.

            "Hopefully this success will help change the team culture," head coach Tom Hontz said. "Winning becomes contagious."

            According to Decker, the Indians (2-3) enter their season finale at 6 p.m. Friday at Keeny Stadium against Phoenixville feeling confident. He said the players must continue to practice hard in order to post their first three-game winning streak since 2014.

            "We know the goal and to never underestimate the opponent," said Decker, a four-year starter.

            The Pennsburg resident, who started at left tackle as a ninth-grader on the team that reached the District One Class 3A title game, says he figured his high school career would feature numerous playoff games. However, significant injuries during his sophomore and junior seasons – combined with an ineffective offense – led to consecutive losing seasons.

            This fall, after opening the season with three straight losses, the Tribe posted a 17-point home victory over Owen J. Roberts. Last week, the offense rolled up 534 total yards of offense against Boyertown. Hunter Flack completed 10-of-22 passes for 218 yards and one score.

            "We just got tired of losing," Decker said.

            Simmon continued his emergence as the Indians' feature running back. Decker described his attributes – strength, speed and good vision – as an ideal fit for the offensive line's zone blocking scheme. Decker compared the running back favorably to Tyler Whary, a 2018 UPHS graduate who attended Kutztown University.

            "We fed Logan the ball a lot," said Hontz, whose team overcame a 14-7 deficit early in the second quarter against the Bears. "He ripped off some big plays."

            Running behind guard Daman Faraco and Decker on the left side, Simmon – who added a 63-yard TD catch in the second half to put the team ahead to stay – converted numerous counter runs in chunk plays. The coach credited the play of Upper Perkiomen's entire offensive line.

            "Logan got stronger as the game went on," Hontz said.

            The dominance of Simmon – who tied the game 14-14 with a 30-yard TD run in the second quarter, then scored from 10 and 46 yards away in the third and fourth quarters, respectively – opened up the passing game for Flack. The senior completed five passes to Malachi Duka for 69 yards. Brady Thompson caught three passes for a team-high 75 yards. 

            Though expressing appreciation for the opportunity to play an abbreviated senior season, Decker said he wishes the team could have played its regular schedule. He thinks the team would have won the Liberty Division title made a district playoff run.

            "I'm thrilled that we got to play six games," Decker said. "But it kills me that we can't play more."