District 3: Final Top 30-Dec 6, 2020 (playoff games, wrap ups)
**** That's it for the year. It's been fun.
State Finals Results.
6A St. Joseph’s Prep (6-0, D12) defeated Central York (10-1, D3) 62-13
5A Pine Richland (11-0, D7) defeated Cathedral Prep (7-3, D10) 48-7
4A Thomas Jefferson (10-1, D7) defeated Jersey Shore (10-1, D4) 21-14
3A Central Valley (12-0, D7) defeated Wyomissing (9-1, D3) 35-21
2A Southern Columbia (12-0, D4) defeated Wilmington (10-1, D10) 42-14
1A Steelton Highspire (10-0, D3) defeated Jeannette (10-2, D7) 32-20
1 Governor Mifflin 8-1, 5A. Berks-1 Champ
It was quite a year for the Mustangs that didn’t end as well as it began, losing a heartbreaker to Pine Richland in the 5A semifinal 44-41 after beating Wilson 48-7 in the opener. Pine went on to rout Cathedral Prep in the final 48-7. 2020 rivaled 2017’s 12-2 team that was one of their best, defeating previously unbeaten Harrisburg (11-1) 26-14 at their place. Most of us thought Harrisburg was “the” team that year, with wins against Imhotep 35-14 (12-2, lost to Cathedral in 4A final), McDevitt 35-0 (10-3), State College 51-28 (10-3, lost to Pine 49-21 in quarters) and Cumberland Valley 56-14 (10-3, beat Coatesville 21-14).
Following the unusual 48-7 win at Wilson, no one then knew the offense would maintain that level, developing into a point producing machine. The 48 scored on Wilson would be their lowest output of the year until Pine held them to 41 points. In between, they rolled teams like Exeter 56-14, Berks Catholic 62-7, Mechanicsburg 68-14; teams with a combined won-loss of 36-7. For next year, they have a line to rebuild but return many, especially on defense. The offense returns their D1 prize with at least 37 offers in Nicholas Singleton, coming off a campaign where he rushed for 1303 yards in a shortened season. But the OL rotation is gone; Dom Sheidy 6-2 290, Matt Hoffman 6-4 215, Dylan Kohl 6-1 275, Devonte Phillip 6-1 245, Matt Griffith 5-10 255, Mason Klahr 5-11 250. Juniors Nate Goodman 6-4 210, Alex Lopez 5-11 225, Daxen Washington 6-1 245, Joey Laffey 6-0 225 and Jamani Smith 5-11 310 return. LB/FB Brandon Strausser (6-0, 210, 75/676r, 43 tackles) and TE/DE Cam’Ron Stewart (6-4, 245 39 tackles) will be hard to replace. QB Connor Maryniak (62%%, 520yds, 8/2 ratio) grads. Leading tackler FB/LB Trey Rock (6-1, 190, 33/248r, 75 stops, jr) is back with promising soph Ayden Martin (3-35r, 4-128p, FS-33 stops), LB Braylon Stewart (6-1, 170, jr), QB/RB Delsin McNeil (5-10, 165, jr, 19-106r, 5-11-35-46%) and WR/DB Eden Johnson. They return a decent core plus a number of backups who got time with all those blowouts, winning games by an average score of 49-13.
2 Central York 10-1, 6A, York Adams-1 Champ....6A playoff notes.
What a year for Central York, setting all kinds of school records, notably, being the first team from York County to win a “big school” district title, and the first to win a PIAA playoff game and appear in the state final. That broke new ground, leaving the Mid Penn Conference and Lancaster-Lebanon League in their wake before it all came crashing down around them in Hershey where they were crushed by St. Joseph’s Prep 62-13 in the final. There isn’t much to say about Central York’s performance except to note they were dominated by a team that was bigger, faster and more talented. That much was evident in the 1st quarter. The story was about the Prep, who put something special on the field that evening in the form of Kyle McCord who threw at will for 339 yards, completing 22 of 29 passes at 76% with touchdowns of 27, 45, 79 and 13 yards. More often than not, his receivers got behind coverage or simply out ran it. And good luck finding a finals appearance performance to top Malik Cooper who had 5 receptions for 116 yards, a 70 yard TD catch, an 47 yard punt return for another 6, and a 55 yard touchdown toss (flea flicker) to Sahmir Hagans. Other stars shined bright with Sahmir Hagans catching 7 passes for 158 yards including a 55 yard TD reception. Marvin Harrison, Jr. caught 3 passes for 74 yards with two going for scores of 27 and 45 yards while running back Noble House (15-60r) and specialist Antonio Chada had big outings. House scored on 1 and 6 yard runs while Chada got the whole thing rolling with a 39 yard field goal in the 1st quarter and a 47 yarder in the 3rd. Despite missing linebacker Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. in the final for the second straight year, an unyielding Hawk defense set it all up, holding a Panther attack that came in averaging 53ppg to seven. The other seven goes to the offense that fumbled late in the 4th quarter with Central York recovering in the end zone. I enjoy following the defense and apologize if this stat is wrong but it seemed Nick Yagodich was everywhere, active….much of game in CY’s backfield with 6 tackles, 2 (3?) TFL/ 2 Sacks if I counted right? Beau Pribula was shut down, held to 168 yards at 50% on 38 attempts. Key to that was shutting down Judah Tomb who was held to 5 receptions for 8 yards. The win gives St. Joe’s a rare three-peat, and 6th overall state championship. The three-peat is only the second among big school teams (largest classification), with Central Bucks West doing it 97, 98, 99. Other household names did it at lower classifications; Southern Columbia, Clairton, Berwick, Bishop Guilfoyle and Cathedral Prep. And lest we forget, Mount Carmel had that unusual streak where they won it biennially (bi-peats?), winning gold in 94, 96, 98, 00 and 02. For next season Central York loses most of their senior laden team, but return many experienced players plus quarterback Beau Pribula for his senior year. Final stats; 139-197-71%-1994yds, 33/5 ratio, 81 rush atps-556 yds. #2 receiver Soph Parker Hines is back, (28-391) and running back Raquel Dewitt (26-277) to help ease the pain of losing Isaiah Sturgis who rushed for 708 yards and most of the receiving corps led by Judah Tomb (48-805), Taylor Wright Rawls (26-336) and Kyle Fontes (20-277).
3 Harrisburg 4-F, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth Co-Champ
Too bad this team missed the playoff per covid with arguably the best O-Line in the district; Tyshawn Black (6-1, 275, jr), Nate Bruce (6-5, 325, sr, PSU), James Murray (6-2, 250, sr), Roy Irvin (6-2, 295, jr) and Jamear Henderson (5-11, 235, sr), especially knowing they had a veteran, underrated quarterback returning in John McNeil. They’ll probably come back with a vengeance next year that will make for another exciting race with Central Dauphin doing some reloading of their own, Cumberland Valley in year #2 of the spread, State College….being State College, Carlisle and Altoona reborn, Chambersburg rebounding and CD East looking to turn things around after three losing seasons.
4 Warwick 8-F, 5A, Lancaster Lebanon-2 Champ
Warwick went through the season unchallenged until Hempfield game 6 where they were stressed but won 34-20. The following covid-shortened week saw them struggle in districts before defeating York Adams-2 champ New Oxford (6-1) 14-12. Unfortunately the much anticipated district final with Governor Mifflin was won by covid when Warwick had to forfeit and drop out of the playoffs. Too bad as Warwick shared some of Pine Richland’s characteristics. Next year looks like a major rebuild from a team that returned 17 starters this year, losing QB Joey McCracker (77-123-63%-1310-11/2, career-6154p 65/11, Ship ), Cincinnati bound WR Caleb Schmitz (43-777), RB Colton Miller (6-4, 220, 140-880, 23 TDs), Ivy bound TE/DE Thatcher Miller (26-415) to Cornell and future Wisconsin Badger OT/DL Nolan Rucci (6-6, 275). Sophomore Jack Reed (6-1, 180) showed well in relief of McCracken this year and running back Christian Royer (48-283, jr) was an integral part of their offense. Unlike Central York with Pribula back, Governor Mifflin with Singleton and Central Dauphin with QB Max Mosey, Warwick’s slate is wiped clean.
5 Wilson 6-1, 6A, Lancaster Lebanon-1 Champ
The Bulldogs made a great recovery from the opening 48-7 home loss to Governor Mifflin to win their last six games, averaging 36ppg with a defense allowing 14, minus the “Mifflin Massacre”. This was not your typical Bulldog team with a deep threat passing attack. Fortunately, they had a great athlete under center in Kaleb Brown who softened that impact with his rushing ability, leading the team with 746 yards on 66 carries and completing 50 of 94 passes for 567 yards. How good was Kaleb? He put on a clinic in his last game against Manheim Central, passing for 156 yards with touchdowns of 8, 41 and 31 yards and rushing for 243 more yards, scoring on runs of 80 and 4 yards. As the 5th seed in a tournament allowing four, they missed the postseason for the first time in Coach Doug Dahms’ fifteen year career, despite winning a record 27th Section-1 championship. What a blow not having Wilson, Harrisburg and McDevitt in the playoffs. Looking to next year, Gannon Brubaker may get the nod at quarterback or one of two sophomores in the hunt. You’ll probably see more of sophomore Cam Jones who is a special talent that can play multiple positions. The offense will build around their bruising running back Jadyn Jones (6-0, 220, 75/519). The defense returns a few. Not having a losing season since 1963 says they’ll be back like they were this year after graduating big numbers and their entire line.
6 Central Dauphin 5-1, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth Co-Champ
No one foresaw Central York coming to Landis Field and blowing out Central Dauphin 42-15 in the district semifinal, doing it with real attitude. The added incentive was the result their former head coach saying they weren’t tough enough, paraphrasing, ‘and that they don’t have teams like that in the York Adams League’ after Harrisburg destroyed them in the playoffs 47-14. That’s quite a statement from your coach. No one foresaw CD fumbling on CY’s 2 and 6 yards line either. All eyes now turn to 2021 where the Rams will rebuild with a decent core. Still, a lot of skill will graduate; RB Tim Smith (78-580r, 16-245p), WR Malachi Bowman (24-372p, 12-212r), RB/WR Shamarr Joppy (36-372r, 13-132p) and FB Dan Ficca (26-132r), plus the entire starting LB corps of Dan Ficca, Paul Clark, Smith and Joppy. The good news is the return of Max Mosey under center. He’s one of the more highly regarded quarterbacks in central PA, throwing for 990 yards at 63% with 13 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. The mission for 2021 is then to rebuild the defense and lines. Offensively, much of the burden falls on Max Mosey in his third year as a starter where they hope to mimic the levels reached in 2020 averaging 40 points a game. The D will rebuild around starters at DT Jamall Bellamy (6-2, 280, jr), DE Darrion Thomas (6-0, 230, jr), S/LB Tyrell English (6-0, 200, jr) and an experienced secondary led by Randy Ruby (5-11, 180, jr) and Juice Selby (5-11, 185, jr). OL/DLs Tommy McGovern (5-11, 230, jr), Myles Wallace (6-1, 220, jr) and a number of backups will fill the holes.
7 Bishop McDevitt 6-0, 4A, Mid Penn-Keystone Co-Champ
The covid cancellation of the game with Hershey to decide the Mid Penn-Keystone Division brought the 2020 season to an end. It was both frustrating and successful with one of McDevitt’s more exciting teams (averaged 40ppg) missing the playoffs. For 2021 they have a key loss in Qb Lek Powell (1591yds, 66%, 20/0 ratio) who is being recruited by most of the Ivy schools plus Holy Cross, LIU, New Hampshire et al. That’s a loss the Crusaders rarely have trouble replacing. Add in soph running back Marquese Williams (53/248, injured), promising Cyncir Bowers, another soph, and freshman Ty Kephart. Also returning are two outstanding receivers return in Kamil Foster (35/398) and Mario Easterly (34/465). A defense that returns nearly intact that allowed 8ppg will give next year’s offense and new quarterback every chance to develop. If the quarterback position is filled as successfully as it has been over the years, look for McDevitt to be the 4A district favorite. With a 118-26 record since 2010 they’ll be going for their 20th consecutive winning season.
8 Steelton Highspire 10-0, 1A, Mid Penn-Capital Champ….1A playoff notes.
Steelton Highspire and Jeannette lit into each other in the 1A final at Hershey, piling up 796 total yards of offense in an exciting game. What makes that all the more impressive is Jeannette did this without freshman quarterback Brad Birch (6-2, 190) who missed the game with an ankle. He was having a strong year, completing 59% (108-184) for 1676 yards and 28 touchdowns. With 272 yards on 63 carries he was a threat to tuck it and run. That was too bad since it robbed us of a head-to-head with Steelton’s freshman quarterback, Alex Erby. How unusual is that having two starting freshman quarterbacks in a state final? Actually, it robbed the Jayhawks of two key players when their lead running back Roberto Smith (6-0, 190, sr) shifted to Birch’s position. Smith had 746 rush yards, and for whatever reason, his running skills didn’t seem to be part of Jeannette’s game strategy. Given the circumstance, he was impressive, completing 22 of 46 passes for 382 yards, with TD throws of 34 and 47 yards plus a 4 yard scoring run. The Jayhawks receivers had big games; Toby Cline catching 7 passes for 150 yards, James Sanders with 5 for 112 yards and Brett Birch pulling down 6 for 99 yards. The down side was throwing 4 costly interceptions. Two were returned for lengthy scores in the decisive 4th quarter where Jeannette drove deep before Daivin Pryor went 80 yards (jumped the route) on a pick 6 followed by Damein Hammonds going 75 yards on his pick six off a tipped pass. Steel High shut down Jeannette’s running game, holding them to 24 yards on 25 carries, making them one-dimensional and predictable, setting up the pick sixes. The Rollers were tough enough on defense and balanced on offense, rushing for 210 yards on 48 attempts, passing for 186 yards on 23 attempts. Odell Green was unstoppable, grinding out 195 yards on 35 carries. Alex Erby completed 16 of 23 passes for 186 yards with a 50 yard scoring toss to Mehki Flowers (5-34r, 3-56p). Damein Hammonds had 11 receptions for 75 yards plus the pick-6. Next year sees most of the team returning with a big loss of RB Odell Green (1549r) and WR Damein Hammonds (752p). But, because they started 4 freshman (QB Alex Erby 6-2 200, LBs Jerion Perry 6-0 160 and Eugene Green 6-1 160, Amari Williams 6-2, 180), a sophomore (OLB Tyshaun Holland-Ali 6-1 195) and 4 juniors (DT Andrew Erby 6-3, 230, WRs Mehki Flowers 6-2 195, Tyrone Moore 6-1 180, LB/DB Davion Pryor 5-9 160), look for them to again challenge not only for districts but to successfully defend their Class 1A championship. Season ending stats: Alex Erby 6-2 200 2501, 32 TDs, Mehki Flowers 6-2 195, 60/1006, 15 Tds.
9 Wyomissing 9-1, 3A, Berk-2 Co Champ….3A playoff notes.
Wyomissing fought the good fight but couldn’t hold onto a 14-7 lead at the half with Central Valley’s Brandon Graham making two 4th quarter interceptions then going on a time consuming drive to hold off the Spartans 35-21. The third time was the charm for CV who lost in the final last year to Wyoming Area 21-14 and to Archbishop Wood 33-14 in 2014’s final. While the Warriors mercy ruled all their previous 11 opponents, Wyomissing proved to be a little more. But it wasn’t enough as CV, like St. Joe’s-Central York, simply had more of everything. They rushed for an unheard of 236 yards against the Spartan Wall that finally cracked once CV tied it then got ahead forcing them to the air. As a Wing-T team, that is not their game. But credit CV’s defense that held them to 116 yards on 46 rush attempts. That’s a special program in Monaca, getting to the final three times in the last seven years and now back-to-back appearances. District-7 (WPIAL) is hot, making five consecutive 3A finals appearances, coming away with four gold medals. For next season, Wyomissing will lose most of its team to graduation, losing nine from the offense and seven from the defense. Returning starters are RB/CB Amory Thompson (6-0, 175, jr), TE Aiden Mack (6-4, 220, jr), DL Tony Di Meio (5-9, 190, jr), ILB Tommy Grabowski (5-11, 185, jr) and CB Nevin Carter (6-3, 190, jr). Although they’re on an extraordinary run with a 73-14 record the last eight years, it looks like they’ll be significantly diminished next year, the last year of the Berks Inter-County FB League that is scheduled to merge with the Lancaster Lebanon League in 2022.
10 Lampeter Strasburg 9-1, 4A, Lancaster Lebanon-3 Champ
LS is probably one of the best kept secrets in central Pennsylvania, winning consecutive district titles after defeating Berks Catholic 35-21 in 2019 and ELCO 20-3 this year. One of the reasons for their success is stability at the top where John Manion has been the head coach for 23 seasons with a 177-83 mark and only one losing season. This year ended with a 39-35 loss in the state semifinal to Jersey Shore who lost to Thomas Jefferson 21-14 in the final. Next season looks like a significant rebuild on offense, graduating record setting quarterback Sean McTaggart. He was the heart and soul of the team, throwing for 1866 yards (57%), with a 27/4 ratio and rushing for 400 yards on 90 carries with 5 more TDs. Three primary running backs also graduate, Drew Harris (92-447r, 6-59p), Alex Knapp (58-407r, 13-415p) and Owen Fikkert (38-248r, 9-109p). The receiver corps loses Ian Herr (23-506) and Austin Stoltzfus (13-414). TE Beau Heyser (6-1, 235, 26-531, jr) is back as their leading receiver. The D returns a strong nucleus featuring DL/LB Nick Del Grande (6-4, 260, jr), DE Beau Heyser and Evan Sellers (6-0, 260, jr).
11 Manheim Township 5-2, 6A, Lancaster Lebanon-1 runner up
The Blue Streaks began the year with two straight losses, losing to LaSalle 35-27 and Wilson 31-28, before ratcheting it up a few notches to win their last 5 games. That is not a good year at Township but it’s a good way to enter the off season. Looking ahead to 2021, any team would be a factor with return/receiver Anthony Ivey (5-11, 180, 23-546p, 8 TDs, jr) returning for his senior year. He’s listed as the 6th receiver in the state and 20th in the nation depending on which site you view. He committed to Penn State with almost the entire country wanting him including LSU, Pitt, Auburn, Arizona State, etc. The way Penn State is plummeting, 6-14 vs Michigan, OSU and MSU under Franklin, who’d be surprised if he de-commits for another school. Next year sees them with decent numbers returning on defense and a receiver corps of Ivey, Elijah Fonseca and Michael Heckman. They’ll be looking for a quarterback with first year starter Evan Clark (6-3, 210, 1505p, 340r, 70%, 18/0 ratio….no picks!) graduating. Nice stats for seven game. He’s a preferred walk on at Virginia Tech and one of the more under rated single year starting quarterbacks at Township. One of the best kept secrets in the district is their under publicized tradition recently in developing quality signal callers.
12 York-William Penn 7-1, 6A, York Adams-1 runner up
The Bearcats lost to conference rival Central York in the district final 48-21, but had a strong season with a young group you’ll be hearing from next year. They led the York Adams League in team offense (3111yds) and were 7th (1740) in team defense. They were super young last year starting 3 key sophomores; quarterback in Sam Stoner (52%, 1182) and Janas Simms (21-347) at wide out, and one of the more exciting backs in central PA in Jahiem White, a 5-9, 190 pound muscle who rushed for 1332 yards….in 8 games! Speedy Jacquez Simmons (16-251p) joins Simms to give them a formidable duo. Coach Russ Stoner has turned the program around since his hire in 2016, going 1-9, 9-2, 11-2, 7-4 and 7-1 this year. The program languished for seven years with the departure of Matt Ortega (43-23, 2004-2008) to Coatesville but is on firm ground now. Look for a real war with Central York next year with Red Lion also in the mix if they find a quarterback.
13 Hempfield 4-4, 6A, Lancaster Lebanon-1 3rd
First year Coach George Eager, the youngest coach in the Lancaster Lebanon League at 33 had a good first year, in part because of the strong staff built from his connections at F&M where he was a standout. The Black Knight showed real progress negotiating a difficult schedule that had them on the road at Exeter, a 41-34 overtime loss, and Wilson where they lost competitively 27-12. At 3-1 they got Manheim Township’s full attention in a 49-7 LLSection-1 blowout before the Wilson loss, and a deceptive 34-20 loss to Warwick. They finished the year at home routing Cocalico 51-28. They’ll rebuild next year with one of the top junior quarterbacks in central PA, Cameron Harbaugh (6-1, 200). He completed 82 of 138 passes for 1173 yards with an 8/1 Td-Pick ratio and a 59% completion rate. Maybe Coach Eager will be the one to awaken the sleeping giant at Landisville. He definitely has the quarterback to lay the foundation.
14 Berks Catholic 5-3, 4A, Berks-1 runner up
Berks Catholic ended their erratic season with a 35-14 non-league win at Donegal (3-4). Hats off to the Saints for helping Harrisburg with scheduling, knowing a second loss would knock them out of the postseason with the overtime loss at Cedar Cliff taking them to 2-1 two weeks earlier. The Saints will play anyone as evidenced by recent non-conference games with Central Dauphin, Malvern Prep, McDonogh School and this year playing one of Harrisburg’s strongest teams. They return QB/DB Brad Hoffman (45%, 603, 8/3 ratio), RB/DB Christian Cacchione (562r, 10-292p), WR/DB Josiah Jordan (15-195r) and LB/RB Aiden Gallen (15-95r), WR/LB Trace Brown (10-212) and lineman OT/DT Luke Hughes (6-2, 225) plus 4 sophomores in Jacob Collazo (6-3, 290), Alex Witmer (6-2, 230), Ty Barrtto (6-0, 235) and Luke Bennethum (5-11, 230).
15 Conrad Weiser 6-1, 4A, Berks-2 Co-Champ
Conrad Weiser made things exciting in the 4A semifinal, falling to top seeded and highly ranked Lampeter Strasburg in a 56-35 shootout at Lampeter. As exciting as the Scouts were this year with a dual threat like Logan Klitsch, look for them to be more next year with much of this year’s skill returning along with Klitsch. He finished the year with impressive stats; 83/140/1336/59%, Td-Pick ratio 15/3, rushing 69/428, 10 Tds. On paper they should be a force in their classification, capable of challenging Bishop McDevitt, Berks Catholic and ELCO who all look to be strong next year……...if they can improve the defense that failed in their only real challenge of the year against Lampeter Strasburg.
16 Middletown 4-2, 3A, Mid Penn-Capital Co-runner up
Things got off to a bad start for the Blue Raiders this year when starting quarterback Tony Powell went down in the preseason. He returned to play against Wyomissing in the district final, completing 7 of 17 passes for 62 yards in a 38-16 losing effort at home. An earlier 43-21 loss to Steel High suggested they’d have trouble with the Spartans team speed. For next season they return Powell, TE/DE Tajae Brodie (6-4, 250, jr), lineman Chase Vandegrif (5-11, 225), Sebastian Dash (5-9, 235) and 65% of the roster to put them in good shape. They’ll need to be vastly improved to tangle with Steel High who is loaded with some of the best freshman and junior talent to ever come through the school. No exaggeration, this is a phenomenal group, led by a wildly talented freshman class. The MP-Capital is an interesting division with Boiling Springs on the upswing and Milton Hershey playing football again after taking 2020 off.
17 Mechanicsburg 8-1, 5A, Mid Penn-Colonial Champ
The Wildcats season ended with a 21-7 win over Northern to secure the Mid Penn Conference-Colonial Division title. Micah Brubaker showed why he is one of the best players in the conference and central PA rushing for 71 yards with touchdowns of 2 and 16 yards while completing 21 of 34 passes for 352 yards, one, a 38 yard toss to James Anderson for a score. How’s that for your last game as an outgoing senior racking up 423 total yards of offense! He finished the year passing for 1796 yards (67%, 18/5/ratio), 707 rushing and 15 TDs. Another senior, James Anderson, had a good exit strategy snagging 8 passes for 164 yards, plus the touchdown to end his season with 558 yards on 30 receptions. TE Nick Morrison will also graduate taking 435 yards and 25 receptions with him. Junior Rashawn Holton returns after catching 16 for 338 yards. DE Tyree Morris (6-6, 225) is a big loss with 58 tackles. Sam DeLuca’s (6-0, 205, jr) return is a big plus as one of the conference’s leading tacklers with 55. They face a significant rebuild (OL, skill) for 2021, especially a quarterback like Brubaker that comes along every 10 years, if you’re lucky. The 8-1 record was their highest win total since 2008’s 12-1 season.
18 ELCO 7-1, 4A, Lancaster Lebanon-4 Champ
Rheece Shuey’s 25-yard field goal was all the Raiders had at Lampeter Strasburg in a losing 20-3 effort on the road in the district final. The thing is, LS couldn’t do much either. But they were the first team of the year to have a total yardage advantage over the Raiders at 398-212. ELCO (Eastern Lebanon County) came in with a 2694 to 1312 total yardage advantage over previous opponents, but hadn’t played a complete team like LS. For next season, ELCO graduates quarterback Braden Bohannon (265py, 975ry, 20 TDs) but return just about everyone else including kicker Rheece Shuey, running backs Jake Williams (64/671), Luke Williams (62/449), Cole Thomas (37/225), Cam Martin (31/225) and good numbers on defense. Next year should be a great race between ELCO and Octorara for the LL-Section 4 honors. ELCO edged them this year 22-19.
19 Red Lion 5-2, 6A, York Adams-1 3rd
Red Lion had a competitive team this year (as always) that was overshadowed by Central York and York. Central took them apart in the opener 55-0. But it was the York game that hurt the most allowing the Bearcats to come back from a 22 point deficit to snatch a 34-30 win….in Red Lion. Quarterback Randy Fizer graduates, taking with him 870 yards passing and 1057 rushing. That’s 69% of their yardage meaning they have a monster hole to fill. Otherwise, they were young throughout the roster. So if they can come close to filling Randy Fizer’s position, a big if, they’ll be competitive with the York teams, strong enough to pull the upset as shown by their competitive loss to York this year.
20 Exeter Township 6-2, 5A, Berks-1 3rd
Exeter lost to power teams Governor Mifflin 56-14 and Berks Catholic 56-28 but defeated all others by an average score of 40-12. The highlight of the season was the opener, winning a thriller against Hempfield 41-34 in overtime. Like Red Lion, they’ll return much of their skill minus the quarterback. But they’ve established a winning attitude at Exeter, as shown in their 78-33 record the last 10 years. And with Governor Mifflin likely coming back to the pack, who knows.
21 New Oxford 6-1, 4A, York Adams-2 Champ
The Colonials won the York Adams-2 then lost to heavily favored Warwick in the 3A first round 14-12. Warwick played in a covid-shortened week, getting no practice time in. Still, a nice effort by Ox that could pay dividends next season. Junior quarterback Connor Beans had little trouble finding his receivers, completing 18 of 30 for 244 yards to keep Warwick off balance all night. Wide out Connor Herring caught six passes for 96 yards, pulling in two for scores of 36 and 6 yards. This is new territory for the Colonials having back-to-back winning seasons (7-5 last year), following a seven run of 14 wins and 57 losses, including three 0-10 campaigns. Nice seeing perennial losers turn things around instead of being the butt of unending jokes.
22 Hershey 5-1, 5A, Mid Penn-Keystone Co-Champ
Hershey ended the year deadlocked with McDevitt at 5-0 atop the Mid Penn-Keystone with a veteran team that returned seven to the offense including the quarterback. The defense returned nine. Despite having a veteran offense, they struggled, averaging 24ppg. The added pressure of a low output offense didn’t affect the defense which held firm, allowing an impressive 13ppg. This explains their going undefeated through the first six games until losing in a replacement game at Manheim Central 24-21. Oddly, this was one of their best performances of the year, outgaining MC 404 to 278 while rushing for 248 yards! Hershey quarterback Jackson Bourslough was strong, completing 13 of 19 for 161 yards. It was a tough loss with Logan Shull‘s 31 yard field goal being the difference in a game the Bears otherwise dominated. Look for a major rebuild in 2021 as most of this year’s Keystone Division co-champ moves on.
23 Carlisle 3-3, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth 4th
This once proud program regained some footing this year, fielding a vastly improved group with a competitive loss to State College 38-29, and a road win at Cedar Cliff 35-28. Against the Colts, running back Sean Thomas rushed for 334 yards, scoring on runs of 63, 11, 8 and 41 yards. He finished with 1024 yards….in six games but will graduate. Sophomore quarterback Ezeeka Thomas (6-0, 175) is a work in progress (15/62/162/24%-1/4 ratio) but was exciting with 456 rush yards. The Herd posted numbers like this because of a legitimate Mid Penn OL that projects to be decent again next year. And they were young, with an inordinate number of underclassman playing in at least 4 games; 3 frosh, 4 sophs, 4 jrs. They’re not Steel High but have some good ones that are putting the thunder back in the Thundering Herd!
24 Delone Catholic 6-1, 1A, York Adams-3 Champ
The Squires won the York Adams-3 for the 2nd straight year with a perfect 6-0 slate before districts where Steelton Highspire avenged last year’s loss with a 23-13 victory. Always stout Delone led the entire York Adams League in team defense, allowing 150.4 yards a game; 1053 total. Awesome D; really got after people like Steel High. That’s about as good as anyone played the Rollers who went on to win the Class 1A state title beating Jeannette. This was quite a year for the Squires, beating neighboring Littlestown 27-7, rival Bermudian Springs 35-14 and bitter rival York Catholic 28-10 on the road. Senior running back Tate Neiderer finished with 866 yards, 228 against Catholic’s Fighting Irish who said Delone’s title in 2019 was a fluke. Oops! With a 111-45 (71%) record the last 14 years, Delone is nobody to mess with.
25 Cumberland Valley 3-5, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth tie 4th
Big changes entering 2020 with Coach Josh Oswalt taking over for Michael Whitehead who was let go at the end of ‘19 following a 59-28 slate since 2013. The final two years of Coach Whitehead’s reign saw CV slump to 3-7 in 2018 and 5-6 in 2019. So they started over with Coach Oswalt who graduated from CV in 2004, then on to play and coach at Shippensburg before taking over Carlisle and Central York. There he developed quarterbacks Billy Burger and Eric Harris (Carlisle) into legit Mid Penn Qbs, running wide open offenses. He did the same at Central York working with Cade Pribula now a Blue Hen at Delaware and Beau Pribula who committed to Penn State. So it was out with the old and in with the new, scrapping the Wing-T for the Spread. All that in a covid-19 shortened off-season where everything was abbreviated, making it impossible to fully install so new a system. These guys were literally raised on the Wing-T with Coach Harry Chapman (71-88, 2 district titles, 2 losing seasons) running it, and Coach Tim Rimfel (9 district titles, ‘92 State Title) taking over in 1989 for 24 years, going 307-100 over the course of his 43 year career with stints at Trinity (Camp Hill) and Harrisburg-Bishop McDevitt (2 district titles). Despite the awkwardness of this season, they rebounded from a 1-4 start, losing a close one at Spring Ford 20-14, then finishing with wins against Carlisle 20-14 and Cedar Cliff 24-20 to suggest they may have turned the corner. About half the team returns that played a number of sophomores and juniors, importantly, sophomore QB Isaac Sines (44%, 760yds, 7/4 ratio).
26 Cedar Cliff 4-4, 5A, Mid Penn-Keystone 2nd
It was close but no cigar for the Colts who won overtime games against Berks Catholic and Mifflin County, with seven point losses at Hershey (6-1) and Carlisle (3-3), a 40-28 loss to Mid Penn-Keystone co-champ Bishop McDevitt, and a year ending loss to Cumberland Valley (3-5) for their first non-winning season since 2012. It looks like another rebuild with QB Gannon McMeans (56%, 1013, 11/13 ratio) and lead back Jamir Reynolds-Vasquez (789r) graduating. And, it’ll be difficult getting past a loaded McDevitt team knowing they’ll be playing with real fire feeling they were shortchanged by the district point system in missing the 4A playoffs.
27 Boiling Springs 4-2, 3A, Mid Penn-Capital tie 2nd
Heck of a rebound from 0-10 last year and 3-7, 0-10, 0-10 the preceding three years to make the playoffs. That, plus walloping Camp Hill 35-0 and hanging with Middletown, losing 20-16. Reality set in against Wyomissing losing 47-7. But it didn’t detract from the tremendous turnaround that has things looking up for the Bubblers. And with key personnel like quarterback Colin Lunde, RB/LB Joey Menke, LB Carson Garvey and others returning, they’re looking to keep it going next year.
28 Conestoga Valley 6-2, 5A, Lancaster Lebanon-2 tie 2nd
Nothing like going out a winner with five straight W’s after starting out 1-2 with non-competitive losses to Warwick 41-0 and Cocalico 33-7. The streak began Oct 16th with a 41-35 win at Manheim Central. A win that seemed to ignite the Bucks who defeated their last four opponents by an average score of 29-7, including Boone last week, 21-7. Once again, Booper Johnson (great name) was the go-to back, rushing for 102 yards on 17 carries, taking his season total to 621 yards. Quarterback Macoy Kneisley had a strange outing, completing 7 of 21 passes where three went for touchdowns of 49, 23 and 27 yards. He’s back next year plus a decent core to see if they can build on this year’s success; their first winning season since 2009.
29 Waynesboro 5-3, 5A, Mid Penn-Colonial 3rd
From 1999 through 2013, Waynesboro won 9 games and lost 121 before a mild renaissance where they strung together six winning seasons in the last seven years for an improved 42-29 slate. You knew things were turning around this year when they upset a respected Shippensburg team 22-20 in the opener, tho they tailed off at 2-3 down the stretch. Next year looks promising despite the loss of quarterback Chance Eyler (53%, 623, 8/10 ratio) with leading rushers Aiden Mencia (5-10, 140, 430r, 5-96p, jr) and Mikel Holden (5-9, 160, 687r, 13-52p, so) back. The D returns at least 7 starters making 2021’s project finding a quarterback and plugging a few holes on the lines.
30 Octorara 6-2, 4A, Lancaster Lebanon-4 2nd
It’s a brave new world for the Braves who moved from the Ches Mont-American Division in 2018, then had their first ever winning season this year. And they nearly won their section with a narrow loss to Section-4 winner ELCO (7-1) 22-19. In a game that links them to District-1, they lost at Henderson (West Chester) 24-6, making it easy with 2 interceptions and a fumble. Topping it off, they had a punt blocked that was recovered in the end zone. The game was the result of a fast scramble by Octorara to replace Garden Spot because of covid issues. For 2021 they return good numbers including dual threat quarterback Weston Stoltzfus (53%, 1098, 10/10 ratio, 409r), the 3rd leading rusher in the LL in Mike Trainor (817r, 8-87p) and 9 to the defense. Congrats to the Braves on their winning season after going 26-78 since they started playing football in 2008.
**** That's it for the year. It's been fun.
State Finals Results.
6A St. Joseph’s Prep (6-0, D12) defeated Central York (10-1, D3) 62-13
5A Pine Richland (11-0, D7) defeated Cathedral Prep (7-3, D10) 48-7
4A Thomas Jefferson (10-1, D7) defeated Jersey Shore (10-1, D4) 21-14
3A Central Valley (12-0, D7) defeated Wyomissing (9-1, D3) 35-21
2A Southern Columbia (12-0, D4) defeated Wilmington (10-1, D10) 42-14
1A Steelton Highspire (10-0, D3) defeated Jeannette (10-2, D7) 32-20
1 Governor Mifflin 8-1, 5A. Berks-1 Champ
It was quite a year for the Mustangs that didn’t end as well as it began, losing a heartbreaker to Pine Richland in the 5A semifinal 44-41 after beating Wilson 48-7 in the opener. Pine went on to rout Cathedral Prep in the final 48-7. 2020 rivaled 2017’s 12-2 team that was one of their best, defeating previously unbeaten Harrisburg (11-1) 26-14 at their place. Most of us thought Harrisburg was “the” team that year, with wins against Imhotep 35-14 (12-2, lost to Cathedral in 4A final), McDevitt 35-0 (10-3), State College 51-28 (10-3, lost to Pine 49-21 in quarters) and Cumberland Valley 56-14 (10-3, beat Coatesville 21-14).
Following the unusual 48-7 win at Wilson, no one then knew the offense would maintain that level, developing into a point producing machine. The 48 scored on Wilson would be their lowest output of the year until Pine held them to 41 points. In between, they rolled teams like Exeter 56-14, Berks Catholic 62-7, Mechanicsburg 68-14; teams with a combined won-loss of 36-7. For next year, they have a line to rebuild but return many, especially on defense. The offense returns their D1 prize with at least 37 offers in Nicholas Singleton, coming off a campaign where he rushed for 1303 yards in a shortened season. But the OL rotation is gone; Dom Sheidy 6-2 290, Matt Hoffman 6-4 215, Dylan Kohl 6-1 275, Devonte Phillip 6-1 245, Matt Griffith 5-10 255, Mason Klahr 5-11 250. Juniors Nate Goodman 6-4 210, Alex Lopez 5-11 225, Daxen Washington 6-1 245, Joey Laffey 6-0 225 and Jamani Smith 5-11 310 return. LB/FB Brandon Strausser (6-0, 210, 75/676r, 43 tackles) and TE/DE Cam’Ron Stewart (6-4, 245 39 tackles) will be hard to replace. QB Connor Maryniak (62%%, 520yds, 8/2 ratio) grads. Leading tackler FB/LB Trey Rock (6-1, 190, 33/248r, 75 stops, jr) is back with promising soph Ayden Martin (3-35r, 4-128p, FS-33 stops), LB Braylon Stewart (6-1, 170, jr), QB/RB Delsin McNeil (5-10, 165, jr, 19-106r, 5-11-35-46%) and WR/DB Eden Johnson. They return a decent core plus a number of backups who got time with all those blowouts, winning games by an average score of 49-13.
2 Central York 10-1, 6A, York Adams-1 Champ....6A playoff notes.
What a year for Central York, setting all kinds of school records, notably, being the first team from York County to win a “big school” district title, and the first to win a PIAA playoff game and appear in the state final. That broke new ground, leaving the Mid Penn Conference and Lancaster-Lebanon League in their wake before it all came crashing down around them in Hershey where they were crushed by St. Joseph’s Prep 62-13 in the final. There isn’t much to say about Central York’s performance except to note they were dominated by a team that was bigger, faster and more talented. That much was evident in the 1st quarter. The story was about the Prep, who put something special on the field that evening in the form of Kyle McCord who threw at will for 339 yards, completing 22 of 29 passes at 76% with touchdowns of 27, 45, 79 and 13 yards. More often than not, his receivers got behind coverage or simply out ran it. And good luck finding a finals appearance performance to top Malik Cooper who had 5 receptions for 116 yards, a 70 yard TD catch, an 47 yard punt return for another 6, and a 55 yard touchdown toss (flea flicker) to Sahmir Hagans. Other stars shined bright with Sahmir Hagans catching 7 passes for 158 yards including a 55 yard TD reception. Marvin Harrison, Jr. caught 3 passes for 74 yards with two going for scores of 27 and 45 yards while running back Noble House (15-60r) and specialist Antonio Chada had big outings. House scored on 1 and 6 yard runs while Chada got the whole thing rolling with a 39 yard field goal in the 1st quarter and a 47 yarder in the 3rd. Despite missing linebacker Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. in the final for the second straight year, an unyielding Hawk defense set it all up, holding a Panther attack that came in averaging 53ppg to seven. The other seven goes to the offense that fumbled late in the 4th quarter with Central York recovering in the end zone. I enjoy following the defense and apologize if this stat is wrong but it seemed Nick Yagodich was everywhere, active….much of game in CY’s backfield with 6 tackles, 2 (3?) TFL/ 2 Sacks if I counted right? Beau Pribula was shut down, held to 168 yards at 50% on 38 attempts. Key to that was shutting down Judah Tomb who was held to 5 receptions for 8 yards. The win gives St. Joe’s a rare three-peat, and 6th overall state championship. The three-peat is only the second among big school teams (largest classification), with Central Bucks West doing it 97, 98, 99. Other household names did it at lower classifications; Southern Columbia, Clairton, Berwick, Bishop Guilfoyle and Cathedral Prep. And lest we forget, Mount Carmel had that unusual streak where they won it biennially (bi-peats?), winning gold in 94, 96, 98, 00 and 02. For next season Central York loses most of their senior laden team, but return many experienced players plus quarterback Beau Pribula for his senior year. Final stats; 139-197-71%-1994yds, 33/5 ratio, 81 rush atps-556 yds. #2 receiver Soph Parker Hines is back, (28-391) and running back Raquel Dewitt (26-277) to help ease the pain of losing Isaiah Sturgis who rushed for 708 yards and most of the receiving corps led by Judah Tomb (48-805), Taylor Wright Rawls (26-336) and Kyle Fontes (20-277).
3 Harrisburg 4-F, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth Co-Champ
Too bad this team missed the playoff per covid with arguably the best O-Line in the district; Tyshawn Black (6-1, 275, jr), Nate Bruce (6-5, 325, sr, PSU), James Murray (6-2, 250, sr), Roy Irvin (6-2, 295, jr) and Jamear Henderson (5-11, 235, sr), especially knowing they had a veteran, underrated quarterback returning in John McNeil. They’ll probably come back with a vengeance next year that will make for another exciting race with Central Dauphin doing some reloading of their own, Cumberland Valley in year #2 of the spread, State College….being State College, Carlisle and Altoona reborn, Chambersburg rebounding and CD East looking to turn things around after three losing seasons.
4 Warwick 8-F, 5A, Lancaster Lebanon-2 Champ
Warwick went through the season unchallenged until Hempfield game 6 where they were stressed but won 34-20. The following covid-shortened week saw them struggle in districts before defeating York Adams-2 champ New Oxford (6-1) 14-12. Unfortunately the much anticipated district final with Governor Mifflin was won by covid when Warwick had to forfeit and drop out of the playoffs. Too bad as Warwick shared some of Pine Richland’s characteristics. Next year looks like a major rebuild from a team that returned 17 starters this year, losing QB Joey McCracker (77-123-63%-1310-11/2, career-6154p 65/11, Ship ), Cincinnati bound WR Caleb Schmitz (43-777), RB Colton Miller (6-4, 220, 140-880, 23 TDs), Ivy bound TE/DE Thatcher Miller (26-415) to Cornell and future Wisconsin Badger OT/DL Nolan Rucci (6-6, 275). Sophomore Jack Reed (6-1, 180) showed well in relief of McCracken this year and running back Christian Royer (48-283, jr) was an integral part of their offense. Unlike Central York with Pribula back, Governor Mifflin with Singleton and Central Dauphin with QB Max Mosey, Warwick’s slate is wiped clean.
5 Wilson 6-1, 6A, Lancaster Lebanon-1 Champ
The Bulldogs made a great recovery from the opening 48-7 home loss to Governor Mifflin to win their last six games, averaging 36ppg with a defense allowing 14, minus the “Mifflin Massacre”. This was not your typical Bulldog team with a deep threat passing attack. Fortunately, they had a great athlete under center in Kaleb Brown who softened that impact with his rushing ability, leading the team with 746 yards on 66 carries and completing 50 of 94 passes for 567 yards. How good was Kaleb? He put on a clinic in his last game against Manheim Central, passing for 156 yards with touchdowns of 8, 41 and 31 yards and rushing for 243 more yards, scoring on runs of 80 and 4 yards. As the 5th seed in a tournament allowing four, they missed the postseason for the first time in Coach Doug Dahms’ fifteen year career, despite winning a record 27th Section-1 championship. What a blow not having Wilson, Harrisburg and McDevitt in the playoffs. Looking to next year, Gannon Brubaker may get the nod at quarterback or one of two sophomores in the hunt. You’ll probably see more of sophomore Cam Jones who is a special talent that can play multiple positions. The offense will build around their bruising running back Jadyn Jones (6-0, 220, 75/519). The defense returns a few. Not having a losing season since 1963 says they’ll be back like they were this year after graduating big numbers and their entire line.
6 Central Dauphin 5-1, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth Co-Champ
No one foresaw Central York coming to Landis Field and blowing out Central Dauphin 42-15 in the district semifinal, doing it with real attitude. The added incentive was the result their former head coach saying they weren’t tough enough, paraphrasing, ‘and that they don’t have teams like that in the York Adams League’ after Harrisburg destroyed them in the playoffs 47-14. That’s quite a statement from your coach. No one foresaw CD fumbling on CY’s 2 and 6 yards line either. All eyes now turn to 2021 where the Rams will rebuild with a decent core. Still, a lot of skill will graduate; RB Tim Smith (78-580r, 16-245p), WR Malachi Bowman (24-372p, 12-212r), RB/WR Shamarr Joppy (36-372r, 13-132p) and FB Dan Ficca (26-132r), plus the entire starting LB corps of Dan Ficca, Paul Clark, Smith and Joppy. The good news is the return of Max Mosey under center. He’s one of the more highly regarded quarterbacks in central PA, throwing for 990 yards at 63% with 13 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. The mission for 2021 is then to rebuild the defense and lines. Offensively, much of the burden falls on Max Mosey in his third year as a starter where they hope to mimic the levels reached in 2020 averaging 40 points a game. The D will rebuild around starters at DT Jamall Bellamy (6-2, 280, jr), DE Darrion Thomas (6-0, 230, jr), S/LB Tyrell English (6-0, 200, jr) and an experienced secondary led by Randy Ruby (5-11, 180, jr) and Juice Selby (5-11, 185, jr). OL/DLs Tommy McGovern (5-11, 230, jr), Myles Wallace (6-1, 220, jr) and a number of backups will fill the holes.
7 Bishop McDevitt 6-0, 4A, Mid Penn-Keystone Co-Champ
The covid cancellation of the game with Hershey to decide the Mid Penn-Keystone Division brought the 2020 season to an end. It was both frustrating and successful with one of McDevitt’s more exciting teams (averaged 40ppg) missing the playoffs. For 2021 they have a key loss in Qb Lek Powell (1591yds, 66%, 20/0 ratio) who is being recruited by most of the Ivy schools plus Holy Cross, LIU, New Hampshire et al. That’s a loss the Crusaders rarely have trouble replacing. Add in soph running back Marquese Williams (53/248, injured), promising Cyncir Bowers, another soph, and freshman Ty Kephart. Also returning are two outstanding receivers return in Kamil Foster (35/398) and Mario Easterly (34/465). A defense that returns nearly intact that allowed 8ppg will give next year’s offense and new quarterback every chance to develop. If the quarterback position is filled as successfully as it has been over the years, look for McDevitt to be the 4A district favorite. With a 118-26 record since 2010 they’ll be going for their 20th consecutive winning season.
8 Steelton Highspire 10-0, 1A, Mid Penn-Capital Champ….1A playoff notes.
Steelton Highspire and Jeannette lit into each other in the 1A final at Hershey, piling up 796 total yards of offense in an exciting game. What makes that all the more impressive is Jeannette did this without freshman quarterback Brad Birch (6-2, 190) who missed the game with an ankle. He was having a strong year, completing 59% (108-184) for 1676 yards and 28 touchdowns. With 272 yards on 63 carries he was a threat to tuck it and run. That was too bad since it robbed us of a head-to-head with Steelton’s freshman quarterback, Alex Erby. How unusual is that having two starting freshman quarterbacks in a state final? Actually, it robbed the Jayhawks of two key players when their lead running back Roberto Smith (6-0, 190, sr) shifted to Birch’s position. Smith had 746 rush yards, and for whatever reason, his running skills didn’t seem to be part of Jeannette’s game strategy. Given the circumstance, he was impressive, completing 22 of 46 passes for 382 yards, with TD throws of 34 and 47 yards plus a 4 yard scoring run. The Jayhawks receivers had big games; Toby Cline catching 7 passes for 150 yards, James Sanders with 5 for 112 yards and Brett Birch pulling down 6 for 99 yards. The down side was throwing 4 costly interceptions. Two were returned for lengthy scores in the decisive 4th quarter where Jeannette drove deep before Daivin Pryor went 80 yards (jumped the route) on a pick 6 followed by Damein Hammonds going 75 yards on his pick six off a tipped pass. Steel High shut down Jeannette’s running game, holding them to 24 yards on 25 carries, making them one-dimensional and predictable, setting up the pick sixes. The Rollers were tough enough on defense and balanced on offense, rushing for 210 yards on 48 attempts, passing for 186 yards on 23 attempts. Odell Green was unstoppable, grinding out 195 yards on 35 carries. Alex Erby completed 16 of 23 passes for 186 yards with a 50 yard scoring toss to Mehki Flowers (5-34r, 3-56p). Damein Hammonds had 11 receptions for 75 yards plus the pick-6. Next year sees most of the team returning with a big loss of RB Odell Green (1549r) and WR Damein Hammonds (752p). But, because they started 4 freshman (QB Alex Erby 6-2 200, LBs Jerion Perry 6-0 160 and Eugene Green 6-1 160, Amari Williams 6-2, 180), a sophomore (OLB Tyshaun Holland-Ali 6-1 195) and 4 juniors (DT Andrew Erby 6-3, 230, WRs Mehki Flowers 6-2 195, Tyrone Moore 6-1 180, LB/DB Davion Pryor 5-9 160), look for them to again challenge not only for districts but to successfully defend their Class 1A championship. Season ending stats: Alex Erby 6-2 200 2501, 32 TDs, Mehki Flowers 6-2 195, 60/1006, 15 Tds.
9 Wyomissing 9-1, 3A, Berk-2 Co Champ….3A playoff notes.
Wyomissing fought the good fight but couldn’t hold onto a 14-7 lead at the half with Central Valley’s Brandon Graham making two 4th quarter interceptions then going on a time consuming drive to hold off the Spartans 35-21. The third time was the charm for CV who lost in the final last year to Wyoming Area 21-14 and to Archbishop Wood 33-14 in 2014’s final. While the Warriors mercy ruled all their previous 11 opponents, Wyomissing proved to be a little more. But it wasn’t enough as CV, like St. Joe’s-Central York, simply had more of everything. They rushed for an unheard of 236 yards against the Spartan Wall that finally cracked once CV tied it then got ahead forcing them to the air. As a Wing-T team, that is not their game. But credit CV’s defense that held them to 116 yards on 46 rush attempts. That’s a special program in Monaca, getting to the final three times in the last seven years and now back-to-back appearances. District-7 (WPIAL) is hot, making five consecutive 3A finals appearances, coming away with four gold medals. For next season, Wyomissing will lose most of its team to graduation, losing nine from the offense and seven from the defense. Returning starters are RB/CB Amory Thompson (6-0, 175, jr), TE Aiden Mack (6-4, 220, jr), DL Tony Di Meio (5-9, 190, jr), ILB Tommy Grabowski (5-11, 185, jr) and CB Nevin Carter (6-3, 190, jr). Although they’re on an extraordinary run with a 73-14 record the last eight years, it looks like they’ll be significantly diminished next year, the last year of the Berks Inter-County FB League that is scheduled to merge with the Lancaster Lebanon League in 2022.
10 Lampeter Strasburg 9-1, 4A, Lancaster Lebanon-3 Champ
LS is probably one of the best kept secrets in central Pennsylvania, winning consecutive district titles after defeating Berks Catholic 35-21 in 2019 and ELCO 20-3 this year. One of the reasons for their success is stability at the top where John Manion has been the head coach for 23 seasons with a 177-83 mark and only one losing season. This year ended with a 39-35 loss in the state semifinal to Jersey Shore who lost to Thomas Jefferson 21-14 in the final. Next season looks like a significant rebuild on offense, graduating record setting quarterback Sean McTaggart. He was the heart and soul of the team, throwing for 1866 yards (57%), with a 27/4 ratio and rushing for 400 yards on 90 carries with 5 more TDs. Three primary running backs also graduate, Drew Harris (92-447r, 6-59p), Alex Knapp (58-407r, 13-415p) and Owen Fikkert (38-248r, 9-109p). The receiver corps loses Ian Herr (23-506) and Austin Stoltzfus (13-414). TE Beau Heyser (6-1, 235, 26-531, jr) is back as their leading receiver. The D returns a strong nucleus featuring DL/LB Nick Del Grande (6-4, 260, jr), DE Beau Heyser and Evan Sellers (6-0, 260, jr).
11 Manheim Township 5-2, 6A, Lancaster Lebanon-1 runner up
The Blue Streaks began the year with two straight losses, losing to LaSalle 35-27 and Wilson 31-28, before ratcheting it up a few notches to win their last 5 games. That is not a good year at Township but it’s a good way to enter the off season. Looking ahead to 2021, any team would be a factor with return/receiver Anthony Ivey (5-11, 180, 23-546p, 8 TDs, jr) returning for his senior year. He’s listed as the 6th receiver in the state and 20th in the nation depending on which site you view. He committed to Penn State with almost the entire country wanting him including LSU, Pitt, Auburn, Arizona State, etc. The way Penn State is plummeting, 6-14 vs Michigan, OSU and MSU under Franklin, who’d be surprised if he de-commits for another school. Next year sees them with decent numbers returning on defense and a receiver corps of Ivey, Elijah Fonseca and Michael Heckman. They’ll be looking for a quarterback with first year starter Evan Clark (6-3, 210, 1505p, 340r, 70%, 18/0 ratio….no picks!) graduating. Nice stats for seven game. He’s a preferred walk on at Virginia Tech and one of the more under rated single year starting quarterbacks at Township. One of the best kept secrets in the district is their under publicized tradition recently in developing quality signal callers.
12 York-William Penn 7-1, 6A, York Adams-1 runner up
The Bearcats lost to conference rival Central York in the district final 48-21, but had a strong season with a young group you’ll be hearing from next year. They led the York Adams League in team offense (3111yds) and were 7th (1740) in team defense. They were super young last year starting 3 key sophomores; quarterback in Sam Stoner (52%, 1182) and Janas Simms (21-347) at wide out, and one of the more exciting backs in central PA in Jahiem White, a 5-9, 190 pound muscle who rushed for 1332 yards….in 8 games! Speedy Jacquez Simmons (16-251p) joins Simms to give them a formidable duo. Coach Russ Stoner has turned the program around since his hire in 2016, going 1-9, 9-2, 11-2, 7-4 and 7-1 this year. The program languished for seven years with the departure of Matt Ortega (43-23, 2004-2008) to Coatesville but is on firm ground now. Look for a real war with Central York next year with Red Lion also in the mix if they find a quarterback.
13 Hempfield 4-4, 6A, Lancaster Lebanon-1 3rd
First year Coach George Eager, the youngest coach in the Lancaster Lebanon League at 33 had a good first year, in part because of the strong staff built from his connections at F&M where he was a standout. The Black Knight showed real progress negotiating a difficult schedule that had them on the road at Exeter, a 41-34 overtime loss, and Wilson where they lost competitively 27-12. At 3-1 they got Manheim Township’s full attention in a 49-7 LLSection-1 blowout before the Wilson loss, and a deceptive 34-20 loss to Warwick. They finished the year at home routing Cocalico 51-28. They’ll rebuild next year with one of the top junior quarterbacks in central PA, Cameron Harbaugh (6-1, 200). He completed 82 of 138 passes for 1173 yards with an 8/1 Td-Pick ratio and a 59% completion rate. Maybe Coach Eager will be the one to awaken the sleeping giant at Landisville. He definitely has the quarterback to lay the foundation.
14 Berks Catholic 5-3, 4A, Berks-1 runner up
Berks Catholic ended their erratic season with a 35-14 non-league win at Donegal (3-4). Hats off to the Saints for helping Harrisburg with scheduling, knowing a second loss would knock them out of the postseason with the overtime loss at Cedar Cliff taking them to 2-1 two weeks earlier. The Saints will play anyone as evidenced by recent non-conference games with Central Dauphin, Malvern Prep, McDonogh School and this year playing one of Harrisburg’s strongest teams. They return QB/DB Brad Hoffman (45%, 603, 8/3 ratio), RB/DB Christian Cacchione (562r, 10-292p), WR/DB Josiah Jordan (15-195r) and LB/RB Aiden Gallen (15-95r), WR/LB Trace Brown (10-212) and lineman OT/DT Luke Hughes (6-2, 225) plus 4 sophomores in Jacob Collazo (6-3, 290), Alex Witmer (6-2, 230), Ty Barrtto (6-0, 235) and Luke Bennethum (5-11, 230).
15 Conrad Weiser 6-1, 4A, Berks-2 Co-Champ
Conrad Weiser made things exciting in the 4A semifinal, falling to top seeded and highly ranked Lampeter Strasburg in a 56-35 shootout at Lampeter. As exciting as the Scouts were this year with a dual threat like Logan Klitsch, look for them to be more next year with much of this year’s skill returning along with Klitsch. He finished the year with impressive stats; 83/140/1336/59%, Td-Pick ratio 15/3, rushing 69/428, 10 Tds. On paper they should be a force in their classification, capable of challenging Bishop McDevitt, Berks Catholic and ELCO who all look to be strong next year……...if they can improve the defense that failed in their only real challenge of the year against Lampeter Strasburg.
16 Middletown 4-2, 3A, Mid Penn-Capital Co-runner up
Things got off to a bad start for the Blue Raiders this year when starting quarterback Tony Powell went down in the preseason. He returned to play against Wyomissing in the district final, completing 7 of 17 passes for 62 yards in a 38-16 losing effort at home. An earlier 43-21 loss to Steel High suggested they’d have trouble with the Spartans team speed. For next season they return Powell, TE/DE Tajae Brodie (6-4, 250, jr), lineman Chase Vandegrif (5-11, 225), Sebastian Dash (5-9, 235) and 65% of the roster to put them in good shape. They’ll need to be vastly improved to tangle with Steel High who is loaded with some of the best freshman and junior talent to ever come through the school. No exaggeration, this is a phenomenal group, led by a wildly talented freshman class. The MP-Capital is an interesting division with Boiling Springs on the upswing and Milton Hershey playing football again after taking 2020 off.
17 Mechanicsburg 8-1, 5A, Mid Penn-Colonial Champ
The Wildcats season ended with a 21-7 win over Northern to secure the Mid Penn Conference-Colonial Division title. Micah Brubaker showed why he is one of the best players in the conference and central PA rushing for 71 yards with touchdowns of 2 and 16 yards while completing 21 of 34 passes for 352 yards, one, a 38 yard toss to James Anderson for a score. How’s that for your last game as an outgoing senior racking up 423 total yards of offense! He finished the year passing for 1796 yards (67%, 18/5/ratio), 707 rushing and 15 TDs. Another senior, James Anderson, had a good exit strategy snagging 8 passes for 164 yards, plus the touchdown to end his season with 558 yards on 30 receptions. TE Nick Morrison will also graduate taking 435 yards and 25 receptions with him. Junior Rashawn Holton returns after catching 16 for 338 yards. DE Tyree Morris (6-6, 225) is a big loss with 58 tackles. Sam DeLuca’s (6-0, 205, jr) return is a big plus as one of the conference’s leading tacklers with 55. They face a significant rebuild (OL, skill) for 2021, especially a quarterback like Brubaker that comes along every 10 years, if you’re lucky. The 8-1 record was their highest win total since 2008’s 12-1 season.
18 ELCO 7-1, 4A, Lancaster Lebanon-4 Champ
Rheece Shuey’s 25-yard field goal was all the Raiders had at Lampeter Strasburg in a losing 20-3 effort on the road in the district final. The thing is, LS couldn’t do much either. But they were the first team of the year to have a total yardage advantage over the Raiders at 398-212. ELCO (Eastern Lebanon County) came in with a 2694 to 1312 total yardage advantage over previous opponents, but hadn’t played a complete team like LS. For next season, ELCO graduates quarterback Braden Bohannon (265py, 975ry, 20 TDs) but return just about everyone else including kicker Rheece Shuey, running backs Jake Williams (64/671), Luke Williams (62/449), Cole Thomas (37/225), Cam Martin (31/225) and good numbers on defense. Next year should be a great race between ELCO and Octorara for the LL-Section 4 honors. ELCO edged them this year 22-19.
19 Red Lion 5-2, 6A, York Adams-1 3rd
Red Lion had a competitive team this year (as always) that was overshadowed by Central York and York. Central took them apart in the opener 55-0. But it was the York game that hurt the most allowing the Bearcats to come back from a 22 point deficit to snatch a 34-30 win….in Red Lion. Quarterback Randy Fizer graduates, taking with him 870 yards passing and 1057 rushing. That’s 69% of their yardage meaning they have a monster hole to fill. Otherwise, they were young throughout the roster. So if they can come close to filling Randy Fizer’s position, a big if, they’ll be competitive with the York teams, strong enough to pull the upset as shown by their competitive loss to York this year.
20 Exeter Township 6-2, 5A, Berks-1 3rd
Exeter lost to power teams Governor Mifflin 56-14 and Berks Catholic 56-28 but defeated all others by an average score of 40-12. The highlight of the season was the opener, winning a thriller against Hempfield 41-34 in overtime. Like Red Lion, they’ll return much of their skill minus the quarterback. But they’ve established a winning attitude at Exeter, as shown in their 78-33 record the last 10 years. And with Governor Mifflin likely coming back to the pack, who knows.
21 New Oxford 6-1, 4A, York Adams-2 Champ
The Colonials won the York Adams-2 then lost to heavily favored Warwick in the 3A first round 14-12. Warwick played in a covid-shortened week, getting no practice time in. Still, a nice effort by Ox that could pay dividends next season. Junior quarterback Connor Beans had little trouble finding his receivers, completing 18 of 30 for 244 yards to keep Warwick off balance all night. Wide out Connor Herring caught six passes for 96 yards, pulling in two for scores of 36 and 6 yards. This is new territory for the Colonials having back-to-back winning seasons (7-5 last year), following a seven run of 14 wins and 57 losses, including three 0-10 campaigns. Nice seeing perennial losers turn things around instead of being the butt of unending jokes.
22 Hershey 5-1, 5A, Mid Penn-Keystone Co-Champ
Hershey ended the year deadlocked with McDevitt at 5-0 atop the Mid Penn-Keystone with a veteran team that returned seven to the offense including the quarterback. The defense returned nine. Despite having a veteran offense, they struggled, averaging 24ppg. The added pressure of a low output offense didn’t affect the defense which held firm, allowing an impressive 13ppg. This explains their going undefeated through the first six games until losing in a replacement game at Manheim Central 24-21. Oddly, this was one of their best performances of the year, outgaining MC 404 to 278 while rushing for 248 yards! Hershey quarterback Jackson Bourslough was strong, completing 13 of 19 for 161 yards. It was a tough loss with Logan Shull‘s 31 yard field goal being the difference in a game the Bears otherwise dominated. Look for a major rebuild in 2021 as most of this year’s Keystone Division co-champ moves on.
23 Carlisle 3-3, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth 4th
This once proud program regained some footing this year, fielding a vastly improved group with a competitive loss to State College 38-29, and a road win at Cedar Cliff 35-28. Against the Colts, running back Sean Thomas rushed for 334 yards, scoring on runs of 63, 11, 8 and 41 yards. He finished with 1024 yards….in six games but will graduate. Sophomore quarterback Ezeeka Thomas (6-0, 175) is a work in progress (15/62/162/24%-1/4 ratio) but was exciting with 456 rush yards. The Herd posted numbers like this because of a legitimate Mid Penn OL that projects to be decent again next year. And they were young, with an inordinate number of underclassman playing in at least 4 games; 3 frosh, 4 sophs, 4 jrs. They’re not Steel High but have some good ones that are putting the thunder back in the Thundering Herd!
24 Delone Catholic 6-1, 1A, York Adams-3 Champ
The Squires won the York Adams-3 for the 2nd straight year with a perfect 6-0 slate before districts where Steelton Highspire avenged last year’s loss with a 23-13 victory. Always stout Delone led the entire York Adams League in team defense, allowing 150.4 yards a game; 1053 total. Awesome D; really got after people like Steel High. That’s about as good as anyone played the Rollers who went on to win the Class 1A state title beating Jeannette. This was quite a year for the Squires, beating neighboring Littlestown 27-7, rival Bermudian Springs 35-14 and bitter rival York Catholic 28-10 on the road. Senior running back Tate Neiderer finished with 866 yards, 228 against Catholic’s Fighting Irish who said Delone’s title in 2019 was a fluke. Oops! With a 111-45 (71%) record the last 14 years, Delone is nobody to mess with.
25 Cumberland Valley 3-5, 6A, Mid Penn-Commonwealth tie 4th
Big changes entering 2020 with Coach Josh Oswalt taking over for Michael Whitehead who was let go at the end of ‘19 following a 59-28 slate since 2013. The final two years of Coach Whitehead’s reign saw CV slump to 3-7 in 2018 and 5-6 in 2019. So they started over with Coach Oswalt who graduated from CV in 2004, then on to play and coach at Shippensburg before taking over Carlisle and Central York. There he developed quarterbacks Billy Burger and Eric Harris (Carlisle) into legit Mid Penn Qbs, running wide open offenses. He did the same at Central York working with Cade Pribula now a Blue Hen at Delaware and Beau Pribula who committed to Penn State. So it was out with the old and in with the new, scrapping the Wing-T for the Spread. All that in a covid-19 shortened off-season where everything was abbreviated, making it impossible to fully install so new a system. These guys were literally raised on the Wing-T with Coach Harry Chapman (71-88, 2 district titles, 2 losing seasons) running it, and Coach Tim Rimfel (9 district titles, ‘92 State Title) taking over in 1989 for 24 years, going 307-100 over the course of his 43 year career with stints at Trinity (Camp Hill) and Harrisburg-Bishop McDevitt (2 district titles). Despite the awkwardness of this season, they rebounded from a 1-4 start, losing a close one at Spring Ford 20-14, then finishing with wins against Carlisle 20-14 and Cedar Cliff 24-20 to suggest they may have turned the corner. About half the team returns that played a number of sophomores and juniors, importantly, sophomore QB Isaac Sines (44%, 760yds, 7/4 ratio).
26 Cedar Cliff 4-4, 5A, Mid Penn-Keystone 2nd
It was close but no cigar for the Colts who won overtime games against Berks Catholic and Mifflin County, with seven point losses at Hershey (6-1) and Carlisle (3-3), a 40-28 loss to Mid Penn-Keystone co-champ Bishop McDevitt, and a year ending loss to Cumberland Valley (3-5) for their first non-winning season since 2012. It looks like another rebuild with QB Gannon McMeans (56%, 1013, 11/13 ratio) and lead back Jamir Reynolds-Vasquez (789r) graduating. And, it’ll be difficult getting past a loaded McDevitt team knowing they’ll be playing with real fire feeling they were shortchanged by the district point system in missing the 4A playoffs.
27 Boiling Springs 4-2, 3A, Mid Penn-Capital tie 2nd
Heck of a rebound from 0-10 last year and 3-7, 0-10, 0-10 the preceding three years to make the playoffs. That, plus walloping Camp Hill 35-0 and hanging with Middletown, losing 20-16. Reality set in against Wyomissing losing 47-7. But it didn’t detract from the tremendous turnaround that has things looking up for the Bubblers. And with key personnel like quarterback Colin Lunde, RB/LB Joey Menke, LB Carson Garvey and others returning, they’re looking to keep it going next year.
28 Conestoga Valley 6-2, 5A, Lancaster Lebanon-2 tie 2nd
Nothing like going out a winner with five straight W’s after starting out 1-2 with non-competitive losses to Warwick 41-0 and Cocalico 33-7. The streak began Oct 16th with a 41-35 win at Manheim Central. A win that seemed to ignite the Bucks who defeated their last four opponents by an average score of 29-7, including Boone last week, 21-7. Once again, Booper Johnson (great name) was the go-to back, rushing for 102 yards on 17 carries, taking his season total to 621 yards. Quarterback Macoy Kneisley had a strange outing, completing 7 of 21 passes where three went for touchdowns of 49, 23 and 27 yards. He’s back next year plus a decent core to see if they can build on this year’s success; their first winning season since 2009.
29 Waynesboro 5-3, 5A, Mid Penn-Colonial 3rd
From 1999 through 2013, Waynesboro won 9 games and lost 121 before a mild renaissance where they strung together six winning seasons in the last seven years for an improved 42-29 slate. You knew things were turning around this year when they upset a respected Shippensburg team 22-20 in the opener, tho they tailed off at 2-3 down the stretch. Next year looks promising despite the loss of quarterback Chance Eyler (53%, 623, 8/10 ratio) with leading rushers Aiden Mencia (5-10, 140, 430r, 5-96p, jr) and Mikel Holden (5-9, 160, 687r, 13-52p, so) back. The D returns at least 7 starters making 2021’s project finding a quarterback and plugging a few holes on the lines.
30 Octorara 6-2, 4A, Lancaster Lebanon-4 2nd
It’s a brave new world for the Braves who moved from the Ches Mont-American Division in 2018, then had their first ever winning season this year. And they nearly won their section with a narrow loss to Section-4 winner ELCO (7-1) 22-19. In a game that links them to District-1, they lost at Henderson (West Chester) 24-6, making it easy with 2 interceptions and a fumble. Topping it off, they had a punt blocked that was recovered in the end zone. The game was the result of a fast scramble by Octorara to replace Garden Spot because of covid issues. For 2021 they return good numbers including dual threat quarterback Weston Stoltzfus (53%, 1098, 10/10 ratio, 409r), the 3rd leading rusher in the LL in Mike Trainor (817r, 8-87p) and 9 to the defense. Congrats to the Braves on their winning season after going 26-78 since they started playing football in 2008.
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