Adriel Baez hit Mike Miller down the right sideline for 33 yards on the first play from scrimmage. The 5’10, 170-pound sophomore quarterback ended up 4-of-10 for 167 yards. “He’s coming along. I gotta remind our staff this guy is a young kid. He’s gonna continue to get better,” noted Flowers. On Muhlenberg’s second play, Cam Small took an inside handoff and raced 38 yards for a touchdown. The Red Knights, who have changed to the Wing-T offense this season, fumbled on their second play. Small capped a 41-yard drive with a 2-yard run out of the Wildcat formation. The All-State running back added another 2-yard touchdown run on the following possession. It was 21-0 with 6:30 remaining in the first quarter. Small went 27 yards to make it 28-0 with nine minutes to go before halftime. The 5’11, 185-pound senior broke free down the right sideline for an 80-yard touchdown run less than three minutes later. Small scored five times in just 18 minutes of game action. “His physical presence is a lot and he goes hard. What’s special about Cam that nobody can see is he loves the guys that are around him,” emphasized Flowers. Small piled up 210 yards on a dozen carries. The Muhls rumbled for 270 rushing yards. The offensive line includes right tackle Tony Ferreira (6’8, 304) and left guard Zavier Otero (6’, 290).

Baez lofted a perfect 46-yard touchdown pass to Freddy Lacey down the right sideline to extend the lead to 41-0 with 3:24 remaining in the second quarter. Lacey provided three catches for 122 yards. “He’s so explosive and he’s playing better this year. He’s very valuable,” said Flowers. The 6’3, 184-pound senior also came up with an interception in the third quarter. Miller completed the first half onslaught with a 6-yard touchdown run 90 seconds before the break. He had 56 yards on three carries.

Reading committed a trio of turnovers. Senior quarterback Jason Plylaharn was 6-of-14 for 76 yards and an interception. The (0-2) Red Knights could never establish a running attack. They have a lot of first-year starters after losing 24 players to graduation.

Meanwhile, Muhlenberg returned eight starters on offense and seven on defense. Flowers, who spent seven years as the head coach at Reading, knows all about this rivalry. “It means a lot to our kids nowadays. The kids were super excited about the trophy. I think they’re more excited than being (2-0) right now,” he said with a smile.

Flowers was the wide receivers coach at Albright this past season. Prior to joining the Lions’ staff, he served as Daniel Boone’s head coach for five years. Flowers guided the Blazers to the District 3 playoffs in 2021. They won an Eastern Conference championship in 2018. He had a record of (17-31) while in Birdsboro.

Flowers was (26-47) over seven seasons as Reading’s head coach. He took over the Red Knights in 2011, and by 2014 he had them in the District 3 tournament. Flowers was named the Section 1 Coach of the Year that season. Reading took part in the Eastern Conference playoffs in 2015.

Flowers was the quarterback of Muhlenberg’s high-scoring squad in 1998. The Muhls won eleven games and the I-C League title. After attending Kutztown University, Flowers worked as an assistant coach for four years under John Yocum at Muhlenberg.

Flowers played professionally for the Reading Express indoor football team. They captured the AIFA championship in 2009. Flowers was named the Offensive Player of the Year that season. Now he’ll try to get the Muhls’ offense kicking again. Muhlenberg scored just 55 total points in 2023.

Flowers told me that he’s not done coaching, but his next opportunity will have to be the right fit. Before taking over the Blazers’ football program, Flowers served as the head coach at Reading High for seven seasons. He added that he wants to focus on his role as Director of Community Relations and Equity Awareness in the Daniel Boone School District.

Flowers was a standout quarterback at Muhlenberg. He was part of the Muhls’ 1998 team that won eleven games and an I-C League championship. Flowers played professionally for the Reading Express and was named Offensive Player of the Year in 2009. He led the Express to the AIFA title that season. Flowers is currently an assistant basketball coach at Hamburg High School.