2023 Preseason 6A STATE Top 10
- Thread starter Stalker
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PCC will be better than Harrisburg or State College, so that means they will be one of the best in 6A. It is too early to say if they will challenge sjp, or if they will get "crushed" by sjp. As I said two months ago, I still hold- if PCC can dominate their schedule, maybe go 9-1, they will be "good enough" challenge sjp
Go look at some of the takes you’ve had in the past year and see how wrong you were/still are, only one hitting the pipe here is you lmao
I think I’ve been correct on a majority of my takes. Not all but most
NA. A heads up that you can disagree with someone without calling them a crack head. Just a thought.
You were the one last year saying that NA was going to beat prep in Cumberland valley but saying this years PCC has no shot. Everyone was saying the same thing about pine Richland and mt lebo. The wpial winner has been the one to knock off prep in Hershey. PCC has a chance especially with the talent coming back.
"Everyone was saying"? Not people in SE PA and certainly not people at SJP. In 2017 the SJP-Coatesville game was regarded as a toss-up, and everyone who saw it knew it was as much a case of Coatesville losing the game as of SJP winning it. Some people in western PA may have wanted to depict that year's Prep team as like the one the year before--the one with Swift--but that simply wasn't the case. Much the same for the '21 season and the game against Mount Lebanon. SJP had already lost to Milton and LaSalle during the regular season, had beaten Wood with a last minute field goal in the PCL semi-final and had won a pretty close game as Freedom in the state quarterfinal. But if people in the west want to make Mount Lebanon into a giant slayer that year, then we know it's a fantasy they're enjoying.
It matters where you're from, how deep you're into HS FB, knowledge of the teams or should say, how much you think you know because I was convinced Coatesville was going to beat the Hawks in 17. Convinced! Thought it was the Red Raider's year.
I like Stalk's earlier post "about crack" it was funny... agreed we can disagree and not call each other crackheads!!!
Now.... let's not generalize "about western PA" that folks have a "fantasy about SJP." Sorry, no. Sure there's a few message board people that have lots of opinions about SJP- but 99% of folks near the burgh don't know anything about SJP. Most dont know, dont care- other than our measly 5 teams in 6A. PCC maybe, but in the next few years, no one else has a chance of ever being close to the best in PA.
Back to the thread- good for them, good for SJP they are ranked so high- at least PA has ONE team in the national top 20!!
More like 98%... 99% in the WPIAL don't know anything about Southern Columbia.
Some of my favorites...
1. They have a vo tech in their district that somehow allows them to pull kids from all over the region - legally. You know they can get transfers in that don't count towards enrollment or eligibility. When in reality, the vo tech is in Bloomsburg area school district that actually takes kids out of SCA.
2. They recruit have transfers from all over. When in reality, when you see their junior high teams, 99% of those kids are the same ones playing in the state title games.
You're right. I was over-generalizing about western PA in response to the one post. I was probably also influenced by some of the Post-Gazette's coverage which seems to have often depicted SJP as a goliath.
Yeah I remember that. One of the takes I got wrong. At that time I didn’t fully understand much advantages SJP had
SJP is Goliath. I think you’re downplaying your school. A bad year for them is losing in the state final
You were the one last year saying that NA was going to beat prep in Cumberland valley but saying this years PCC has no shot. Everyone was saying the same thing about pine Richland and mt lebo. The wpial winner has been the one to knock off prep in Hershey PCC has a chance especially with the talent coming back.
Sjp for sure has some major advantages to bring in talent. Being open boarder and playing a national schedule on national tv where you are going to have college coaches watching your games at all times helps pour in the talent. They are definitely going to be a huge favorite this year but I wouldn't say no one (especially PCC) has a chance. Especially before the season has even started. Ask pine Richland and mt lebo about that one.
everybody in the WPIAL knew in 2017 and 2021 that they could beat SJP that year, we all knew those were young SJP teams
i give Central ZERO shot of beating SJP this year, outside of 2015 Central always has their best teams when SJP has their best teams too, they didn't have the luck of timing like PR and ML
many do view ML and PR as "giant slayers" those years, i don't and i get flack for it when i remind them SJP had down years in 2017 and 2021
I'm not even convinced 2017 PR would beat 2016 Central Catholic, but hey one team had to face Deandre Swift and a senior laden team and the other team didn't so one teams gets "legendary" status
same thing with Lebo in 2021, i think 2020 PR would beat them but since Lebo beat SJP and PR decided to play weaker competition, one team is remembered and the other is forgotten
there is nothing you can say to me to convince me some small cow town in the middle of nowhere is honestly and legitimately producing state title caliber teams for literally 30 years
they are shady to say the least...
Jim Roth would be making millions in the NFL if he was that smart
the one black kid they ever had coincidentally was a top 10 national recruit LOL
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they are a goliath
two down years where a "down year" for them is losing in a state title game doesn't change that
please stop with the humble bragging, your down year is 99% of high schools all time best year
Goliath was not always victorious.
One thing I'm trying to counter is the notion that the Prep's success is almost entirely due to a dozen or so extremely talented football-playing students entering the school every year. Of course it's an advantage not to have borders--other than the distance students can commute every day--and to be located where the Prep is--pretty much at the center of the Philly area. But that very fact means that the students who enter the Prep show up rarely knowing more than a small handful of others, and sometimes none at all. Also, lots of players come there with high expectations about how much they'll play, where they'll play, etc. Many have to adjust their expectations in a big way. Nice problem to have? Sure, but it's still a problem that can cause conflicts and resentments we can all easily imagine. I've been quite impressed--and frankly surprised--by the number of Prep players who obviously came with the idea of being a starter and who've stayed right through senior year without ever starting a game.
Stalk, what is the reason Mcdeviit is not playing Harrisburg. It sure seems to be a natural local contest particularly the last couple years.
BP: P-R 2017 almost beat PCC 2016 in 2016. It was 48-35 and IIRC P-R had the ball to take the lead and couldn’t score. P-R 2017 would have Mercy ruled them like they did most everyone else.
Likewise, the P-R 2020 kids as juniors mercy ruled the Lebo group as sophomores. That’s a little longer stretch to project, but not out of the question.
Likewise, the P-R 2020 kids as juniors mercy ruled the Lebo group as sophomores. That’s a little longer stretch to project, but not out of the question.
So - my brother has coached against SCA since 2001. He literally laughs anytime someone brings up SCA having transfers or recruiting. I'm from that side of the state, I've never heard of them recruiting or getting transfers of any note. Does that mean families might not move into that district - no. But, what it does mean if they're doing it they're doing before high school ever starts.
They've had other "black" kids but none like Fleming. BTW, he played junior high ball with SCA.
Where the WPA teams struggle to compete with SCA is along the LOS. The 1A/2A teams in the WPIAL usually have them beat at the skill positions in those title games. But, they get demolished up front - see Duquesne with Fields, Bobo, etc..
Southern Columbia is much like Fort Hill in Maryland. They're very isolated. They have zero non-boundary schools in their representative counties that offer football. They have a true feeder system. Their youth programs run the same stuff the high school. They've run the under center wing t for close to 40 years. Name me any school in PA that has anything close to that type of continuity for the length of time that SCA has had.
Yeah, a lot of us hated seeing that rivalry go way. It went back to John Harris High vs Catholic High before Harris and Wm Penn merged and Catholic became Bishop McDevitt. The schools were two blocks apart with players walking to each school game day. Quite a tradition.
In 2007 McD left the Mid Penn-Commonwealth of State Coll, CD, CD East, H-burg, Cumberland Valley, etc for the FAR weaker MP-Keystone with smaller schools including Cedar Cliff, Red Land, Lower Dauphin Hershey, etc., with the rivalry limping on for a few more years til 2013 at McD's new digs at Rocco Ortenzio.
I'd attribute the demise to McD dropping down to the MP-K and moving from downtown to the burbs out near Central Dauphin East a few miles south of Central Dauphin High. Lost its luster for sure then.
As an aside McDevitt wanted to have more freedom in their scheduling and Harrisburg was at that time or near it cranking up a series with York High (William Penn), Reading and Lancaster High (JP McCaskey).
That's my understanding of events lilromeo.
The last game was 2017 where Harrisburg crushed them 35-0.
Just saw that Trey Tremba committed to West Point today. He’ll be a nice player in the spread-option they’re converting too, can catch the ball out of the backfield and is a really good athlete (a shame we never got to see him wrestle in HS after being one of the best junior high kids in the state). Poised for a big year for Parkland, even if I don’t think they’re going to be as good as Stalk does.
That’s correct. How do we lose 2 power 5 guys in one offseason? Every time I think we’re headed in the right direction. A legitimate 6’4 beast. We all know if you can’t match sjp up front you have no chance. The rich get richer. They have 3 power 5 backs excluding their qb, which if he takes off you would think it’s a rb. Losing Tyseer is one thing but we lose a guy to a conference foe. He’s better than what they lost to graduation. He's ineligible for the playoffs but word is parents compared schedules and wanted their son competing against top talent. Sjp never met with the kid. The father literally dropped him on their doorstep.
With St Joe's playing a national schedule and top teams in the country, division one coaches will be in the stands for those games. They usually play a game on ESPN as well so that'll be more eyes on that kid.
Wow. Didn't know all of that. I did hear that parents of Khalil were not happy with his recruitment to this point?
Khalil Stewart was at Penn St. this weekend with a large group of other potential recruits from the class of '25. So was Cam Smith, a class of '25 linebacker, who has transferred to SJP from Salem HS in south Jersey. I noticed also that Ausur Heard, brother of James Heard who played for SJP on the '21 team but who returned to Jersey because--from what I heard--SJP wouldn't let him go to West Virginia early and still get an SJP diploma, is at Winslow Township--not SJP. Ausur has all kinds of offers before starting high school in the fall. Here's the link that will tell you who was at PSU: https://www.on3.com/teams/penn-stat...ng-photo-gallery-lasch-bash-visitors-july-29/
I'm not crazy about all the transferring. For one thing, it must be discouraging 1) to the players on a team like Roman who see their two most talented players leaving (though I gather for very different reasons) and 2) to some of the players on a team like SJP who started in the school/program as freshmen and see that their chances to start or even get into games are diminished because guys who transferred into the school at the start of junior year are ahead of them on the depth charts. You could say they must have known this was a possibility from the start, but it still must not be easy.
Until recent years SJP very rarely took in any transfers, especially after the start of sophomore year. You just have to look at the transfer portal in college football to know the transfer bug was going to spread to high school, but you don't have to like it. As a Prep guy, I hope the school mitigates the risks--which are pretty obvious--and doesn't cut corners.
That's what the piece accessible via the link and Smith's own Twitter account say. Salem must be at least 35 miles from SJP.
I wonder how they manage it logistically. I know there are other players (e.g., Washington and Steele) who live in that direction. Is there some kind of mini-bus? Do some of them stay at another player's house during the week? I lived in Jersey and sometimes found the commuting tough during football season--but I lived only 10 miles from the school.
Smith lives closer to the bridge. I remember seeing him play little league and informing our staff to go after him. I think sjp is closer to him than Salem. I don’t understand why he would skip over some other programs and travel to Salem.
I hear Roman has a ton of skill but lacking on both sides of the lines. Is that an accurate assessment?
Pretty accurate assessment. There’s guys every where in shorts and shirts but we’ll see once the pads get to banging. 7v7 we look pretty good matching up against Imhotep but they find these massive linemen in Philadelphia that changes things. League play I think we’ll have a year similar to last year. Beat everyone and hopefully sjp is a game this year. I think we top wood and lasalle on talent. Imhotep is the hurdle. I think we could make a good run if we get pass them.
Clearly there must be some non-boundary schools in Jersey if Smith lives closer to SJP than to Salem but was going to Salem High School
I’m not a SJP hater, while I do recognize they have some immense advantages. If they can continue bringing in major transfers, the rich will get richer. I always respected that they never really took transfers. It appears that is starting to change under Roken (and I agree it starts with the collegiate players being the example). Ultimately it will make the gap even bigger between them and non-boundaries.
It has also been the case that SJP has had some players transfer out. Heard and James left last year, as did a receiver--forget his name--who went back to Jersey and is now a preferred walk-on at PSU or Rutgers. Some years back two quarterbacks (Kidd-Jackson and CJ Duell) left under very different circumstances. It's also true that transfers in after sophomore year became more common under Infante (e.g., Benny Walls and Cinaglia from the 2016 team), but it seems to be becoming more common.
What I wonder is how they manage it academically, in part because the Prep's curriculum is different from the curriculum at most other high schools. Do they have special summer courses and/or tutoring services? Certainly the demands of the football program during the school year (not just the trips, after classes begin, to Florida, North Jersey--well above NYC--and Maryland) must present a challenge to keep up academically. The school community at large (including the alumni) would not be happy to see academic standards fall.
All the transfers are both a cause and an effect of the growing gaps between strong programs and weak or so-so ones. And it's not just between boundary and non-boundary. It's also between different non-boundary schools and within district 12 at least it's between different public schools.