(All classes, 6A and District 3 teams unless otherwise shown....Districts 3, 4, 5, 6, 9)
1 State College (6-0, D6)
Isaiah Edwards had a 22 yard touchdown catch, a 64 yard kick-off return and caught 4 passes for 74 yards as the Lions won easily against Central Dauphin East who dropped to 2-4. The score was 28-7 after a quarter and 41-7 at the half. Qb Brady Dorner completed 11 of 15 for 172 yards and 2 touchdown passes as Dre Green rushed for 92 yards and 2 scores on 19 carries. SC showed nice balance, rushing 34 times for 280 yards to compliment 185 yards passing for 465 yards of offense. Dorner has always been a solid and versatile talent, playing quarterback and wide out over the years until finally getting the nod this year. But they couldn’t contain CD East’s Bryce Baker (few can) who rushed for 172 yards on 25 attempts. East was held to 221 total yards, most of that by Baker. Up next for State is the opportunity to show their stuff in a battle of heavyweights with Harrisburg coming in Friday off their big game with Central Dauphin. Harrisburg won last year 32-17 against a banged up SC O-Line where at least two starters were out.
2 Manheim Township (6-0)
This one began with a bang with Wilson’s Avanti Lockhart powering 55 yards on the second play from scrimmage to give Wilson’s home crowd something to yell about. At 6-2 215, he gets your attention. But it was short lived when Township’s Blue Streaks scored on their first play from scrimmage where Harrison Kirk connected with sophomore speedster Anthony Ivey (PSU offer) who streaked 83 yards for the score. Still in the 1st quarter, Kirk hit Mickey Stokes for a 21 yard score getting Township’s crowd back in the game for a 14-7 lead. Lockhart evened the score at 14 a piece scoring from a yard out. But the Streaks weren’t done yet when Ivey again got loose for another score, outrunning everyone 76 yards for the score and 21-14 lead going into the half. He had been projected as a key element of their offense this year but has been out most of the season with injuries. He ended the game with 292 yards on 8 receptions to set a new Lancaster Lebanon single game record. What a return! Kirk ended with 14 completions on 29 attempts for 388 yards and 3 touchdown passes. Got some good Qbs in 3 this year! Jaden Floyd got 72 yards rushing on 18 carries. All totaled, Township laid it on Wilson, 462 total yards to 239. The spent emotion and physicality of the first half seemed to take a toll. That and halftime adjustments by two good coaching staffs shut down both offenses except for Jackson Wright field goals of 32, 37 and 25 yards to secure Township’s 30-14 win. In yet another battle of unbeatens, they travel to Warwick (6-0, 2-0 5A) Friday where the Warriors will be looking for some after losing a hard fought game last year at Township 28-20. This is a battle between the district’s top seeds in Class 6A and 5A.
3 Central Dauphin (4-2)
Central Dauphin played their best game of the year last week when they edged Harrisburg at Severance Field 15-14. The line gave sophomore quarterback Max Mosey all day to complete 17 of 20 attempts for 98 yards while opening enough holes to move the chains enough to effectively slow things down. That was more the result of matchups than a strategy. And as always, the defense was huge, picking off five passes, all in the first half, one, on Harrisburg’s first possession. They also recovered a fumble. For openers, a Nick Chimiente pick at CD’s 45 was returned to Harrisburg’s 35 where the Rams pounded it in (3:48, 1st qtr) on a Max Mosey keeper, assisted by Harrisburg penalties. Priorto this, the two slugged it out, eking out a few first downs but doing little damage. Noticed that CD did a lot more substitution than Harrisburg. The 2nd quarter saw more Harrisburg mistakes that plagued them the entire game; eg, a high snap at their 33 putting them back to their 18. But a monster punt, from their 25 to CD’s 17 (talk about a roll!) saved them here. Mosey was finding his rhythm about now, with short stuff, pitch and catch, inside handoffs moving the chains but not scoring any points. Credit Harrisburg’s D for stepping up to cover all those interceptions by keeping Central Dauphin off the scoreboard on four of the five picks. A scoreless2nd quarter provided a 7-0 halftime score. A penalty filled 3rd quarter saw both moving the ball with Harrisburg continuing to misfire with subs coming in wrong, off sides and holding calls. Otherwise they were moving well, going more to wide out Kamera Day who ended with just over 100 yards in receptions. But CD’s OL was also opening holes with Timmy Smith outside for little and Dan Ficca (5-10, 210) pounding the middle and some yards. Getting around Harrisburg’s flanks was almost impossible. Following a second CD missed field goal the Cougars put together a good drive on two long completions getting to a 3rd and goal where Tymek Evans (5-9, 230, believe he’s a lineman) bulled in at the 3:38 mark of the 3rd quarter to tie it up. The 4th quarter saw Harrisburg hitting open spots in the zone. Then another mistake, a 12 yard punt, hit a surprised Ram with Harrisburg recovering at CD’s 31 with 10:20 to play. On a 2nd and two at the 12 yard line, Nicari Williams hit Trevion Carey who laid out for the catch giving Harrisburg their first lead of the game at 14-7 with 7:27 to go. A failed onside kick….!??!....gave CD a short field at their 46 (newspaper called it a botched kick), where they moved to the Cougars 32 on a Tyrese Fuller catch. A 10 yard run took it to the 22 where Qb Mosey (6-0, 165, so) sped around the left side (unbalanced the other way) for a touchdown. Coach McNamee went for two with Mosey again getting around the edge for the winning points with 5:13 to go. Following the kickoff, CD recovered another Harrisburg fumble with 2:28 left but was forced to punt to the Cougars 27 where they went on a march. CD had been getting pressure with just three on the line but now dropped almost everyone into coverage (?) to no avail with Harrisburg advancing to their 40 (1st and 10), grounding it (advanced to the 38?) with 17.7 seconds left. On the final play of the game, Nicari Wiliams connected with Carey coming across the middle inside the 20, getting tackled at the 2 with the clock showing all zeros, which was impossible since the play could not have taken that long. At 17.7 second mark, the clock immediately went to .00 with the snap. Maybe 30 seconds later with both teams milling around the end zone, the clock suddenly showed 5 seconds........but CD was leaving field with refs calling the game. Big question is what happened to the official time keeper, Wrap up; it was a terrible way for Harrisburg to lose a game, feeling they were denied a chance to win. Regardless of the clock, CD played a disciplined game with few mistakes while Harrisburg had a poor and sloppy performance. Two of Harrisburg’s picks were in the red zone. Throughout game CD had great kick offs and coverage, which you rarely hear about, never allowing Harrisburg to return a long one. Special Teams! Their zone defense (good tackling) allowed a lot of yardage but few points. DEs Jackson Talbott (6-3, 225), Amir Walton (6-0, 215) and Marques Holton (6-0, 220) stood out, with DBs Malachi Bowman (5-10, 170) who had 2 picks and Nick Chimiente. As always, the line backing corps was fast enough, physical and smart. And the D rotating bodies to stay fresh, bent but it did not break. This frustrated Harrisburg which is used to a more up tempo game. The OL was equal to Harrisburg’s DL and then some. LT Blaise Heshler (6-4, 290), LG Quentin Hatcher (6-0, 255), C Ryan Hohenshelt 6-5, 255) RG Bryce Thoman (6-5, 270), RT Chad Layton (6-2, 285) and TE Jackson Talbott (6-3, 220) can go up against anything in the Mid Penn Commonwealth. Altoona (1-5) is next, coming to Landis Field Friday night.
4 Harrisburg (4-2)
Harrisburg lost a 15-14 heartbreaker at home to Central Dauphin last week where a clock malfunction will forever and indelibly leave an asterisk beside this one. Will say that Nicari Williams (6-3, 190, sr, Steel High transfer) had a productive game completing 12 of 16 passes for 184 yards. Unfortunately he threw 3 interceptions. The other quarterback John McNeil (6-0, 185, jr), completed 10 of 15 passes for 99 yards and threw 2 interceptions. They also lost a fumble. Receiver Kamere Day (5-10, 160, so) had 9 receptions for 122 yards and Trevion Carey (5-8, 175, sr) had 6 for 88 yards and a touchdown. If motoring up and down the field won football games Harrisburg would have won, accumulating 397 total yards of offense to CD’s 194. And while that will always be impressive to a fault in box scores and highlights, it doesn’t win football games. All the Cougars got for those yards was 14 points. And it took them 28.35 yards to get each one of them. 28.35 yards! Not too effective. Conversely, Central Dauphin’s meager 194 yards of offense produced 15 points, showing they only had to go 12.93 yards to score a point. But you know Coach Cal Everett is telling the guys we need to put this one behind us and move on. The Mid Penn-Commonwealth race is wide open with Central Dauphin and State College at 3-0, followed by Chambersburg and Harrisburg at 2-1. The schedule shows them all facing major hurdles ahead; Harrisburg at SC, home to Chambersburg; SC home to Harrisburg and CD; CD at SC, home to Chambersburg; Chambersburg at Harrisburg and CD. For Harrisburg it starts Friday night at undefeated State College where they need to regroup against a teams that will not be as good a match up as Central Dauphin was.
5 Wilson (5-1)
Wilson suffered a 30-14 loss at home to Manheim Township last week that drastically affected the district power structure for post season concerns and especially for home field advantage. Township already defeated Central Dauphin 10-7 earlier in the year to put them more firmly atop the power ratings ahead of the Bulldogs at #2. Harrisburg still has the 3 spot with CD now 5. Cedar Crest (5-1), also of the Lancaster Lebanon-Section One is #4. How about the LL-1 this year, currently with three teams in the top four in 6A with Warwick (6-0) #1 in the 5A classification. About last week’s game with Township, props to Twp for holding them to 116 yards rushing and 123 passing at Gurski! But the same can be said about Wilson’s rush defense that held the Streaks to 74 yards rushing. The problem was so-so pressure verses Township’s OL (a historic Township strength), and more, a pass defense that simply couldn’t match up to Township’s receivers, allowing 388 yards passing; 292 yards on 8 receptions to Ivey alone. Kirk was only 48% (14/29), but people were open. Back in week #1, Central Dauphin came in with a rookie sophomore quarterback who torched them for 243 yards on 15 completions in 21 attempts. This with a vanilla offense per his inexperience and O-Line injuries. First start….sophomore! So there’s a weakness. About Township’s defense, they took away a big piece of Wilson’s offense by containing Qb Kaleb Brown’s running ability, holding him to 38 yards on 11 carries. He came in averaging 7.68ypc for 384 yards. Take that away from Wilson and you’re in the game. Next up for the Bulldogs are three tough games at Hempfield (2-4), home to Warwick (6-0) and at Cedar Crest (5-1). Hempfield is coming off a major upset defeating previously unbeaten Lampeter Strasburg (5-1, 4A, LL-2) 27-20, and seems to have settled on Tanner Hess under center after the 55-7 disaster at Warwick two weeks ago. Nice move as he’s passed for 255 yards and rushed for 586 on 96 carries.
6 Warwick (6-0, 5A)
Warwick took on previously undefeated Cedar Crest last week, getting a scare through the first half where Lebanon’s finest took a 14-7 lead at the half. That prompted a response you’d expect from a veteran team and the 2018 LL-1 Tri Champ who outscored the Falcons 27-0 in the second half to remain atop the conference and 5A rating with a 34-14 win. Joey McCracken had another strong outing, completing 17 of 26 passes for 280 yards and 2 touchdown tosses. Through 6 games, he’s at 71% completion rate for 1632 yards with a Td/Pick ratio of 19 to 1. Again, District 3 has impressive quarterbacks. Numbers like that mean he has good receivers and does he ever with Conor Adams snagging 7 passes for 198 yards and a score (29/622/8 Tds on season) and Caleb Schmitz catching 6 for 98 yards (28/524/7 Tds on season). Running back Colton Miller had 122 yards on 22 carries and 4 touchdowns, bringing his season total to 602 yards with 15 Touchdowns on 93 attempts. At 40ppg (292 total pts), it’s a big attack. And at 47 points allowed all year they play defense in Lititz, at 7.8ppg. Next up is a rare matchup between the top rated “big schools” (6A and 5A) in the district with Manheim Township coming in hot off their 30-14 win over Wilson last week.
7 Southern Columbia (6-0, 2A, D4)
Southern Columbia’s wrecking ball of a football team trounced South Williamsport (5-1) 76-6, extending their record consecutive regular season winning streak to 77 game. While they’ve had a number of great teams, this has to be the best since I’ve been doing these write ups (2008), especially with a lineup that includes receiver Julian Fleming (6-3, 210, sr, Ohio State), Qb Preston Zachman (6-2, 210, sr, Wisconsin), running back Gaige Garcia (5-10, 205, sr, Michigan) and linebacker Cal Haladay (6-1, 205, sr, Michigan State). Speaking of records, Fleming broke PA’s career receiving yards (2630) and Touchdowns (61) set by Harrisburg-McDevitt’s Brian Lemelle and Ligonier Valley’s Aaron Tutino. Also, after rushing for three touchdowns, Gaige Garcia broke the state record of 120 career rushing touchdowns set by Clairton great Lamont Wade, currently at Penn State. Back to the game, Southern blew the lid off this one early scoring 42 1st quarter points followed by 27 more in the 2nd quarter. Gaige and Gavin Garcia did most of the damage with Gaige getting 6 carries for 236 yards and Gavin with 10 for 98 yards. SCA may be good but two backs getting 334 yards on 10 carries is somewhere beyond embarrassing for South’s defense. This is a proud program with a 69-22 record since 2012, including a 2014 State Semifinal 10-2 team that was edged by Bishop Guilfoyle (16-0) 28-21. Jersey Shore (4-2, 4A) is next, but has already lost to local 3A ruffian Montoursville (6-0), 49-12….who averages 50ppg, allowing 7, and Mount Carmel (4-2, 2A) 34-18.
8 Middletown (6-0, 3A)
Jose Lopez dominated again, rushing for 150 yards on 12 carries while scoring touchdowns of 2, 18 and 71 yards as the Blue Raiders sent Boiling Springs reeling with their sixth loss of the season. Once again, the game was over at halftime with Middletown up 27-0, in full control of the Bubblers. Duel quarterbacks Anthony Powell and Julio Rodriguez completed 8 of 11 passes for 69 yards while the outgunned Bubblers managed 100 yards rushing and 16 yards passing in a 35-0 loss. Milton Hershey (5-1, 4A) is next. The Spartans are a worthy opponent and program well under the radar to those outside District-3 with a history of 16 winning seasons the last 18 years, making them and Steel High the historic powers in the conference, not Middletown; Trinity and East Pennsboro are up there to a lesser degree with all of them ebbing and flowing through various conferences in the Mid Penn but of similar enrollments. This will be Middletown’s most difficult opponent since McDevitt a month ago. Although they lack a signature win, they have a pile of quick and agile veteran players with their only loss coming to another quick and agile group, Susquehanna Township (5-1, 4A). This game will go a long way to deciding the MP-Capital race and is realistically the last challenge on Middletown’s schedule. They presently hold the #2 seed behind Wyomissing with MH at 3 in 4A.
9 Central York (5-1)
South Western’s three game winning streak came to an end last week in York losing to a good Central High team 47-7. The Mustangs came in all full of themselves after defeating Carlisle 27-14 and Dallastown 21-7 followed by the upset of Red Lion 17-14. Despite the upset, Red Lion, Carlisle and Dtown are not Central. Last week saw them show some depth with their big junior quarterback Kyle Fontes (6-4, 205) in for sophomore Beau Pribula, still sidelined with a shoulder. A 30-0 first quarter said Fontes was up to the task as the Panthers rolled 47-7. Spring Grove (2-4, 5A) is next. Like the Paper Mill in town, they get you attention, putting enough points on the board at 22ppg, but give it back with a sieve like defense allowing 39ppg. Central has an offense that’s way beyond expectations this year, averaging 42ppg after last year’s heavy graduations. As surprising is a defense allowing 10 a game. Central can name the score here.
10 Shippensburg (6-0, 5A)
Shippensburg isn’t a complete team yet (passing) but the running game and D are definitely there, getting their second shutout of the year in a 39-0 conference win against Greencastle Antrim. Before Ship, and despite a 1-4 record then, Greencastle was averaging 25ppg, which clearly got Coach Foust’s attention. So they’re looking good with a defense at 6.5ppg that could propel them deep into the postseason, especially knowing it comes with a powerful running game. With West Perry, Northern and Red Land up next, all 4-2, (3-3 Big Spring in finale), the MP-Colonial is wide open and a challenge to the Greyhounds quest for an undefeated regular season after going 9-1 last year. The schedule should be good prep for the postseason, facing more challenging teams late in the season since they have yet to play a Manheim Central, Warwick caliber 5A team. But they could get a taste of it Friday against West Perry (4-2, 4A) with their multi-talented quarterback Kenyon Johnson (5-11, 180, sr). He is over 1100 total yards, rushing for 599 yards on 77 carries and passing for 547 minus York Tech game stats.
11 Chambersburg (4-2)
After taking a 6-0 halftime lead on Tyler Luther’s 33 and 29 yard field goals, two second half miscues by Cumberland Valley sealed their fate just when things looked promising. Chambersburg fumbled the punt, giving CV new life and possession at the 6 yard line. But they threw away a golden opportunity when linebacker Terrell Williams stepped in front of a Alex Kovach pass (play action), returning it 94 yards for the score. Not bad for a 6-2, 230 pound linebacker. Talk about a swing of emotions to start the second half! On CV’s next possession, a blitzing Jayden Jones (CB, 6-0, 180) hit Kovach from behind, jarring the ball loose for DT Tyrion Hodges (6-0, 265) to recover. Six plays later Brady Stumbaugh hit Terrell Williams for a 10 yard score making it 20-0. They got some icing on the cake when Keshawn Johnson (12 for 88) score from the 13 and Tyler Luther split the uprights again from 27 yards out for the final score of 30-0. Saw this one on Mid Penn Broadcasting and was surprised seeing how dominating Chambersburg was at CV. They rolled in the second half once they got field position that was lacking in the first half. So here they are at 2-1 tied with Harrisburg, a game behind 3-0 Central Dauphin and State College. CD East (2-4) is next. And the reason you can’t dismiss them is Bryce Baker who is one of the premier backs in the area with 725 yards on 82 carries. He got 92 on 18 carries against Manheim Township’s nearly impenetrable D-front and 95 yards against Archbishop Wood. Surprised they’re still standing after playing Township, Wood, Harrisburg and State College already, losing by a combined score of 161 to 13. The Trojans are better but new to winning at this level and cannot let down, not against a back like Bryce Baker.
12 Manheim Central (4-2, 5A)
If you like offense and unending fireworks, Manheim was the place to be Friday night when Central and Cocalico locked up in a fierce one, exploded for 56 first half points that featured big plays most of the game. Manheim Central started it off when quarterback Evan Simon connected with Ben Wagner streaking down the sideline for a 56-yard touchdown just over a minute into the game. Cocalico responded on the ensuing kickoff when super talented Ronald Zahm zigged and zagged then took off on a 98 yard return to even the score. What a start! Summarizing; it settled down after that but not by much with Central’s quarterback connecting this time with Colby’s’ brother Ben for a 30 yard score, then back to Colby for a 22 yard touchdown pass. Between all that were 1 yard and 10 yard keepers by Simon, a 14 yard run by Jake Harbach and finally a 25 yard field goal by Nate Reed. Central led 29-27 at the half. Cocalico’s scores after their 1st quarter kickoff return featured quarterback Noah Palm’s 20 yard run, 1 yard and a 50 yard run, plus a 73 yard toss to Ronald Zahm. Once again Zahm got people off their feet with a 4th quarter kickoff return, this time for 98 yards! Too many individual stats to list but here are a few. QB Evan Simon completed 10 of 17 for 280 yards and 3 touchdowns, rushing for 118 yards on 18 carries and 2 scores. Colby Wagner caught 6 passes for 201 yards. The difference between the teams can be seen in part with Cocalico’s quarterback Noah Palm completing 7 of 10 for 70 yards while rushing for 175 yards on 25 attempts. Ronald Zahm rushed for 33 yards, caught 4 passes for 113 yards and had the 2 kickoff returns. Central knocked down a final desperation pass by Noah Palm to take home a heart stopping 46 to 43 win. They move on for what could be another stiff LL-2 test at Lampeter Strasburg (5-1, 4A) where the Pioneers are coming off their first loss of the year, losing at Hempfield 27-20.
13 Susquehanna Township (5-1, 4A)
Susquehanna Township is right behind Manheim Central in the rankings with their only loss being a 16-7 struggle at Manheim Central in the opener. Last week saw them coming off an easier than expected 34-0 win against Mechanicsburg (4-2, 5A). The Wildcats couldn’t get much going and didn’t take advantage when they did. Hanna will do that to you, blitzing often with a fast and physical squad that got 8 sacks and held Mechanicsburg to 68 total yards! Offensively they ran almost at will with Michael Reece getting 88 yards on 22 carries, Brandon Arkward 64 on 9 attempts and 5 catches for 91 yards, while Steven Graves III had 74 yards on 9 carries and 71 yards in receptions. Nice O show by the Tribe rushing for 228 yards and passing for 128. This week is Conrad Weiser (3-3, 4A), off a tough 28-21 loss to Exeter, meaning both the Scouts and Indians are coming off conference games for a weird non-conference matchup seven weeks into the season. They’ve been playing since 2014 with Hanna winning the last 4 including last year’s 19-6 win against a good 9-3 Weiser team that won the Berks-Section One. They lost a lot from that team but are competitive excluding the opening 42-15 loss to Cocalico, with two other losses to Fleetwood and Exeter. Qb Logan Klitsch is their primary weapon, getting 252 yards after completing 18 of 31 against Exeter last week. Their problem is the running game that generated only 44 yards on 28 carries against the Eagles.
14 Cocalico (4-2, 5A)
How often do you rack up 393 total yards of offense and lose the game, especially when you complete 7 of 10 passes for 153 yards with a Veer offense? Probably not too often. But when the opponent is Manheim Central, even in a down year, that’s not always enough. The Barons are in fact limping along with a 4-2 record, well below their statistical and scoring norms at 27ppg and 26 yield. From 2012 through last year they averaged 40ppg and allowed 14, putting Cocalico up against some serious odds even before the game started. Despite Cocalico’s success offensively, the Barons powering over them for 484 yards of offense, 204 rushing, 280 passing. And they had no answer for quarterback Evan Simon who also rushed for 118 yards on 26 carries. So that’s how you lose after racking up 393 yards of offense. Conestoga Valley (2-4, 5A) is next.
15 Berks Catholic (3-3, 4A)
Banged up Berks overcame injuries enough to eke out a 9-0 win at Hamburg (3-3, 4A) despite generating a meager 235 yards of offense. They are really struggling this year as a result heavy grad losses, their best players being injured or compromised and the lack of a passing attack; Bradley Hoffman completing only 2 of 17 passes for 25 yards. Hamburg is a scrappy bunch this year in spite of the Saints faithful being used to sending them packing early by huge margins. BC’s top running back Abdul MacFoy had 12 carries for 80 yards with CJ Carwll adding 71 on 8 carries. Kutztown (0-6, 3A) is next, followed by Schuylkill Valley where the Saints should get healthier in a hurry with two more W’s in the win column before ending he regular season with Fleetwood (5-1) and Wyomissing (6-0).
16 Exeter Township (4-2, 5A)
Exeter scored with just over a minute left in the game when Gavin McCusker hit Alex Javier with a 64 yard strike to get the win against stubborn Conrad Weiser 28-21. Back in the first quarter, McCusker connected with Javier for a 74 yard scoring strike. And by the end of the game, he had one of his best performances of the season, completing 10 of 18 passes for 240 yards and 4 touchdown tosses. Most of the yardage was gathered up by Javier who snagged 2 for 142 yards and 2 touchdowns. Got to give Weiser credit for coming in swinging, with a 14-7 lead at the half trying to hold on to their Berks-Section One title. It’s still right there with only one conference loss in what’s shaping up as a super tight race between them, Exeter (4-2, 2-0), rejuvenated Governor Mifflin (3-3, 3-0), on a 3 game winning streak and reeling Reading (5-1, 2-1), two weeks removed from the 49-6 loss to Mifflin. We’ll see if they’re fully recovered Friday night at Exeter.
17 Milton Hershey (5-1, 5A)
Quarterback Tigere Mavesere, Dion Bryant and Josh Parra put on one heck of show taking Trinity completely apart in a 59-14 romp. You could say the Shamrocks ran out of luck after opening with wins against small school Double-A’s Delone Catholic 23-8 and York Catholic 20-14, then Single-A Marian Catholic 48-0, all with a combined won-loss of 5-13. Then came the reality of a small school that plays serious football when the storied Steamrollers of Steelton Highspire (6-1, 2A) rolled all over them 78-34. Rollers! Back to the Spartans who are a pretty fine bunch themselves having way too much speed and quickness for most teams in the area. Quarterback Tigere Mavesere is a good example, completing 11 of 20 passes for 206 yards with touchdown passes of 86 and 24 yards and two more touchdowns rushing for 42 yards. Receiver Josh Parra had 144 yards on 4 catches and a touchdown. And how about Dion Bryant gashing the Rocks for 202 yards on 9 carries. They’re jelling at just the right time scoring 34ppg and allowing 12; good timing with a game at Middletown Friday. Middletown has the home field and tougher schedule, defeating McDevitt 6-2 and Steel High 49-21, while Milton Hershey failed their test vs Susquehanna Township 20-13 way back on August 30th which was a long time ago when talking football.
18 Wyomissing (6-0, 3A)
Wyomissing had no trouble with previously undefeated Fleetwood, beating the Tigers twice, once on Friday when the game was called because of weather with Wyo up 21-0, and again Sunday afternoon, outscoring Fleetwood 14-7 for an important 35-7 conference win. Recently converted guard Evan Niedrowski (6-2, 230, sr) rushed for 102 yards with Max Hurleman getting 94 yards. Fleetwood’s hot handed quarterback Charlie Maddocks was held to 114 yards passing, 50 yards rushing and threw 2 interceptions. Wyomissing’s D that came in allowing 12.2ppg, shut the Tigers down to 171 total yards to their 336. They move on to Hamburg who is one feisty 3-3 team that with a bounce here and there could be 6-0.
19 Cedar Cliff (3-3, 5A)
The Colts moved up a notch with an impressive win against struggling Lower Dauphin. Hard imaging how far the Falcon’s fortunes have fallen with their 39-11 run from 2012 through 2015. Where did that program go? It’s been a while, in fact a long while since they got to the state final in 1995 losing to Penn Hills 35-14. For the southeast PA crowd, their runner up silver medal was sandwiched between two fine Downingtown teams; one losing a nail biter in 1994 to McKeesport 17-14, the other winning gold in 1996, taking Woodland Hills apart 49-14. Back to Cedar Cliff who is on a roll after losing to Harrisburg, defeating Hollidaysburg 49-8 and bitter conference rival McDevitt 20-17 before last week’s win Against LD, they did what you’re supposed to do against a winless team, shutting them down to 38 rush yards, 94 passing and 6 first downs. Conversely, the Colts were in full gallop with Jaheim Morris running for 220 yards on 19 carries and returning a kickoff 86 yards. How fun is that! He’s currently at 992 yards on the year. Jamir Reynolds-Vasquez made his single carry count going 48 yards for a score. And Gannon McMeans stayed loose, completing 7 of 17 passes for 103 yards and a touchdown as the Colts racked up 399 total yards of offense in a 47-7 win. Hershey is next. But at 1-5 they’re fading fast, in part due to a front loaded schedule composed of Cedar Crest 5-1, Milton Hershey 5-1, Mechanicsburg 4-2, Susquehanna Township 5-1 and Red Land 4-2, with Cedar Cliff and McDevitt looming. Sometimes you get dealt a bad hand. The CC Colts will roll here and hope to stay healthy for the grinding final three weeks of Mechburg, Hanna and Red Land.
20 Cedar Crest (5-1)
If you’re looking for a positive in a 20 point road loss, you might think the D wasn’t a total bust after holding an undefeated opponent on his turf to 18 points below their scoring average. Nahh! But the score like many scores, doesn’t always reflect the truth of a game where Cedar Crest lost to Warwick 34-14. They had the Warriors on the ropes, holding a 14-7 half time lead when Cedar Crest Qb Chris Danz found Cole Miller in the back of the end zone from the 6 yard line with a few seconds left in the half. All the talk about momentum swings on scores before heading to the locker room are somewhat exaggerated if the other team has more weapons and is just the better team. That’s the case here when the Warriors came out in warrior mode, Coach saying they “challenged them” (survived a few of those!) then opened it up to score 27 unanswered points. Chris Danz survived a tough road opponent, completing 13 of 22 passes for 174 yards and throwing a touchdown, while Tyler Cruz ran for 82 yards and a score on 20 carries. Wide out Cole Miller stung them for 138 yards on 10 receptions and a touchdown. The Falcons are a nice team that just came up short against a better team. Look for a bounce back Friday at home against Penn Manor (2-4).
Honorable Mention:
Northeastern (5-1, 5A) home South Western 3-3, 5A
Suburban (6-0, 4A) at Dover 2-4, 5A
Lampeter Strasburg (5-1, 4A) home Manheim Central 4-2, 5A
Montoursville (6-0, 3A, D4) home Danville 4-2, 3A
Gettysburg (5-1, 4A) home Kennard Dale 3-3, 4A
Steelton Highspire (5-1, 2A) at Camp Hill 1-5, 2A
Mount Carmel (4-2, 3A, D4) at Hughesville 0-6, 2A
Bishop McDevitt (3-3, 4A) home Lower Dauphin 0-6, 5A
Governor Mifflin (3-3, 5A) at Boone 1-5, 5A
York (4-2, 5A) home Red Lion 4-2
1 State College (6-0, D6)
Isaiah Edwards had a 22 yard touchdown catch, a 64 yard kick-off return and caught 4 passes for 74 yards as the Lions won easily against Central Dauphin East who dropped to 2-4. The score was 28-7 after a quarter and 41-7 at the half. Qb Brady Dorner completed 11 of 15 for 172 yards and 2 touchdown passes as Dre Green rushed for 92 yards and 2 scores on 19 carries. SC showed nice balance, rushing 34 times for 280 yards to compliment 185 yards passing for 465 yards of offense. Dorner has always been a solid and versatile talent, playing quarterback and wide out over the years until finally getting the nod this year. But they couldn’t contain CD East’s Bryce Baker (few can) who rushed for 172 yards on 25 attempts. East was held to 221 total yards, most of that by Baker. Up next for State is the opportunity to show their stuff in a battle of heavyweights with Harrisburg coming in Friday off their big game with Central Dauphin. Harrisburg won last year 32-17 against a banged up SC O-Line where at least two starters were out.
2 Manheim Township (6-0)
This one began with a bang with Wilson’s Avanti Lockhart powering 55 yards on the second play from scrimmage to give Wilson’s home crowd something to yell about. At 6-2 215, he gets your attention. But it was short lived when Township’s Blue Streaks scored on their first play from scrimmage where Harrison Kirk connected with sophomore speedster Anthony Ivey (PSU offer) who streaked 83 yards for the score. Still in the 1st quarter, Kirk hit Mickey Stokes for a 21 yard score getting Township’s crowd back in the game for a 14-7 lead. Lockhart evened the score at 14 a piece scoring from a yard out. But the Streaks weren’t done yet when Ivey again got loose for another score, outrunning everyone 76 yards for the score and 21-14 lead going into the half. He had been projected as a key element of their offense this year but has been out most of the season with injuries. He ended the game with 292 yards on 8 receptions to set a new Lancaster Lebanon single game record. What a return! Kirk ended with 14 completions on 29 attempts for 388 yards and 3 touchdown passes. Got some good Qbs in 3 this year! Jaden Floyd got 72 yards rushing on 18 carries. All totaled, Township laid it on Wilson, 462 total yards to 239. The spent emotion and physicality of the first half seemed to take a toll. That and halftime adjustments by two good coaching staffs shut down both offenses except for Jackson Wright field goals of 32, 37 and 25 yards to secure Township’s 30-14 win. In yet another battle of unbeatens, they travel to Warwick (6-0, 2-0 5A) Friday where the Warriors will be looking for some after losing a hard fought game last year at Township 28-20. This is a battle between the district’s top seeds in Class 6A and 5A.
3 Central Dauphin (4-2)
Central Dauphin played their best game of the year last week when they edged Harrisburg at Severance Field 15-14. The line gave sophomore quarterback Max Mosey all day to complete 17 of 20 attempts for 98 yards while opening enough holes to move the chains enough to effectively slow things down. That was more the result of matchups than a strategy. And as always, the defense was huge, picking off five passes, all in the first half, one, on Harrisburg’s first possession. They also recovered a fumble. For openers, a Nick Chimiente pick at CD’s 45 was returned to Harrisburg’s 35 where the Rams pounded it in (3:48, 1st qtr) on a Max Mosey keeper, assisted by Harrisburg penalties. Priorto this, the two slugged it out, eking out a few first downs but doing little damage. Noticed that CD did a lot more substitution than Harrisburg. The 2nd quarter saw more Harrisburg mistakes that plagued them the entire game; eg, a high snap at their 33 putting them back to their 18. But a monster punt, from their 25 to CD’s 17 (talk about a roll!) saved them here. Mosey was finding his rhythm about now, with short stuff, pitch and catch, inside handoffs moving the chains but not scoring any points. Credit Harrisburg’s D for stepping up to cover all those interceptions by keeping Central Dauphin off the scoreboard on four of the five picks. A scoreless2nd quarter provided a 7-0 halftime score. A penalty filled 3rd quarter saw both moving the ball with Harrisburg continuing to misfire with subs coming in wrong, off sides and holding calls. Otherwise they were moving well, going more to wide out Kamera Day who ended with just over 100 yards in receptions. But CD’s OL was also opening holes with Timmy Smith outside for little and Dan Ficca (5-10, 210) pounding the middle and some yards. Getting around Harrisburg’s flanks was almost impossible. Following a second CD missed field goal the Cougars put together a good drive on two long completions getting to a 3rd and goal where Tymek Evans (5-9, 230, believe he’s a lineman) bulled in at the 3:38 mark of the 3rd quarter to tie it up. The 4th quarter saw Harrisburg hitting open spots in the zone. Then another mistake, a 12 yard punt, hit a surprised Ram with Harrisburg recovering at CD’s 31 with 10:20 to play. On a 2nd and two at the 12 yard line, Nicari Williams hit Trevion Carey who laid out for the catch giving Harrisburg their first lead of the game at 14-7 with 7:27 to go. A failed onside kick….!??!....gave CD a short field at their 46 (newspaper called it a botched kick), where they moved to the Cougars 32 on a Tyrese Fuller catch. A 10 yard run took it to the 22 where Qb Mosey (6-0, 165, so) sped around the left side (unbalanced the other way) for a touchdown. Coach McNamee went for two with Mosey again getting around the edge for the winning points with 5:13 to go. Following the kickoff, CD recovered another Harrisburg fumble with 2:28 left but was forced to punt to the Cougars 27 where they went on a march. CD had been getting pressure with just three on the line but now dropped almost everyone into coverage (?) to no avail with Harrisburg advancing to their 40 (1st and 10), grounding it (advanced to the 38?) with 17.7 seconds left. On the final play of the game, Nicari Wiliams connected with Carey coming across the middle inside the 20, getting tackled at the 2 with the clock showing all zeros, which was impossible since the play could not have taken that long. At 17.7 second mark, the clock immediately went to .00 with the snap. Maybe 30 seconds later with both teams milling around the end zone, the clock suddenly showed 5 seconds........but CD was leaving field with refs calling the game. Big question is what happened to the official time keeper, Wrap up; it was a terrible way for Harrisburg to lose a game, feeling they were denied a chance to win. Regardless of the clock, CD played a disciplined game with few mistakes while Harrisburg had a poor and sloppy performance. Two of Harrisburg’s picks were in the red zone. Throughout game CD had great kick offs and coverage, which you rarely hear about, never allowing Harrisburg to return a long one. Special Teams! Their zone defense (good tackling) allowed a lot of yardage but few points. DEs Jackson Talbott (6-3, 225), Amir Walton (6-0, 215) and Marques Holton (6-0, 220) stood out, with DBs Malachi Bowman (5-10, 170) who had 2 picks and Nick Chimiente. As always, the line backing corps was fast enough, physical and smart. And the D rotating bodies to stay fresh, bent but it did not break. This frustrated Harrisburg which is used to a more up tempo game. The OL was equal to Harrisburg’s DL and then some. LT Blaise Heshler (6-4, 290), LG Quentin Hatcher (6-0, 255), C Ryan Hohenshelt 6-5, 255) RG Bryce Thoman (6-5, 270), RT Chad Layton (6-2, 285) and TE Jackson Talbott (6-3, 220) can go up against anything in the Mid Penn Commonwealth. Altoona (1-5) is next, coming to Landis Field Friday night.
4 Harrisburg (4-2)
Harrisburg lost a 15-14 heartbreaker at home to Central Dauphin last week where a clock malfunction will forever and indelibly leave an asterisk beside this one. Will say that Nicari Williams (6-3, 190, sr, Steel High transfer) had a productive game completing 12 of 16 passes for 184 yards. Unfortunately he threw 3 interceptions. The other quarterback John McNeil (6-0, 185, jr), completed 10 of 15 passes for 99 yards and threw 2 interceptions. They also lost a fumble. Receiver Kamere Day (5-10, 160, so) had 9 receptions for 122 yards and Trevion Carey (5-8, 175, sr) had 6 for 88 yards and a touchdown. If motoring up and down the field won football games Harrisburg would have won, accumulating 397 total yards of offense to CD’s 194. And while that will always be impressive to a fault in box scores and highlights, it doesn’t win football games. All the Cougars got for those yards was 14 points. And it took them 28.35 yards to get each one of them. 28.35 yards! Not too effective. Conversely, Central Dauphin’s meager 194 yards of offense produced 15 points, showing they only had to go 12.93 yards to score a point. But you know Coach Cal Everett is telling the guys we need to put this one behind us and move on. The Mid Penn-Commonwealth race is wide open with Central Dauphin and State College at 3-0, followed by Chambersburg and Harrisburg at 2-1. The schedule shows them all facing major hurdles ahead; Harrisburg at SC, home to Chambersburg; SC home to Harrisburg and CD; CD at SC, home to Chambersburg; Chambersburg at Harrisburg and CD. For Harrisburg it starts Friday night at undefeated State College where they need to regroup against a teams that will not be as good a match up as Central Dauphin was.
5 Wilson (5-1)
Wilson suffered a 30-14 loss at home to Manheim Township last week that drastically affected the district power structure for post season concerns and especially for home field advantage. Township already defeated Central Dauphin 10-7 earlier in the year to put them more firmly atop the power ratings ahead of the Bulldogs at #2. Harrisburg still has the 3 spot with CD now 5. Cedar Crest (5-1), also of the Lancaster Lebanon-Section One is #4. How about the LL-1 this year, currently with three teams in the top four in 6A with Warwick (6-0) #1 in the 5A classification. About last week’s game with Township, props to Twp for holding them to 116 yards rushing and 123 passing at Gurski! But the same can be said about Wilson’s rush defense that held the Streaks to 74 yards rushing. The problem was so-so pressure verses Township’s OL (a historic Township strength), and more, a pass defense that simply couldn’t match up to Township’s receivers, allowing 388 yards passing; 292 yards on 8 receptions to Ivey alone. Kirk was only 48% (14/29), but people were open. Back in week #1, Central Dauphin came in with a rookie sophomore quarterback who torched them for 243 yards on 15 completions in 21 attempts. This with a vanilla offense per his inexperience and O-Line injuries. First start….sophomore! So there’s a weakness. About Township’s defense, they took away a big piece of Wilson’s offense by containing Qb Kaleb Brown’s running ability, holding him to 38 yards on 11 carries. He came in averaging 7.68ypc for 384 yards. Take that away from Wilson and you’re in the game. Next up for the Bulldogs are three tough games at Hempfield (2-4), home to Warwick (6-0) and at Cedar Crest (5-1). Hempfield is coming off a major upset defeating previously unbeaten Lampeter Strasburg (5-1, 4A, LL-2) 27-20, and seems to have settled on Tanner Hess under center after the 55-7 disaster at Warwick two weeks ago. Nice move as he’s passed for 255 yards and rushed for 586 on 96 carries.
6 Warwick (6-0, 5A)
Warwick took on previously undefeated Cedar Crest last week, getting a scare through the first half where Lebanon’s finest took a 14-7 lead at the half. That prompted a response you’d expect from a veteran team and the 2018 LL-1 Tri Champ who outscored the Falcons 27-0 in the second half to remain atop the conference and 5A rating with a 34-14 win. Joey McCracken had another strong outing, completing 17 of 26 passes for 280 yards and 2 touchdown tosses. Through 6 games, he’s at 71% completion rate for 1632 yards with a Td/Pick ratio of 19 to 1. Again, District 3 has impressive quarterbacks. Numbers like that mean he has good receivers and does he ever with Conor Adams snagging 7 passes for 198 yards and a score (29/622/8 Tds on season) and Caleb Schmitz catching 6 for 98 yards (28/524/7 Tds on season). Running back Colton Miller had 122 yards on 22 carries and 4 touchdowns, bringing his season total to 602 yards with 15 Touchdowns on 93 attempts. At 40ppg (292 total pts), it’s a big attack. And at 47 points allowed all year they play defense in Lititz, at 7.8ppg. Next up is a rare matchup between the top rated “big schools” (6A and 5A) in the district with Manheim Township coming in hot off their 30-14 win over Wilson last week.
7 Southern Columbia (6-0, 2A, D4)
Southern Columbia’s wrecking ball of a football team trounced South Williamsport (5-1) 76-6, extending their record consecutive regular season winning streak to 77 game. While they’ve had a number of great teams, this has to be the best since I’ve been doing these write ups (2008), especially with a lineup that includes receiver Julian Fleming (6-3, 210, sr, Ohio State), Qb Preston Zachman (6-2, 210, sr, Wisconsin), running back Gaige Garcia (5-10, 205, sr, Michigan) and linebacker Cal Haladay (6-1, 205, sr, Michigan State). Speaking of records, Fleming broke PA’s career receiving yards (2630) and Touchdowns (61) set by Harrisburg-McDevitt’s Brian Lemelle and Ligonier Valley’s Aaron Tutino. Also, after rushing for three touchdowns, Gaige Garcia broke the state record of 120 career rushing touchdowns set by Clairton great Lamont Wade, currently at Penn State. Back to the game, Southern blew the lid off this one early scoring 42 1st quarter points followed by 27 more in the 2nd quarter. Gaige and Gavin Garcia did most of the damage with Gaige getting 6 carries for 236 yards and Gavin with 10 for 98 yards. SCA may be good but two backs getting 334 yards on 10 carries is somewhere beyond embarrassing for South’s defense. This is a proud program with a 69-22 record since 2012, including a 2014 State Semifinal 10-2 team that was edged by Bishop Guilfoyle (16-0) 28-21. Jersey Shore (4-2, 4A) is next, but has already lost to local 3A ruffian Montoursville (6-0), 49-12….who averages 50ppg, allowing 7, and Mount Carmel (4-2, 2A) 34-18.
8 Middletown (6-0, 3A)
Jose Lopez dominated again, rushing for 150 yards on 12 carries while scoring touchdowns of 2, 18 and 71 yards as the Blue Raiders sent Boiling Springs reeling with their sixth loss of the season. Once again, the game was over at halftime with Middletown up 27-0, in full control of the Bubblers. Duel quarterbacks Anthony Powell and Julio Rodriguez completed 8 of 11 passes for 69 yards while the outgunned Bubblers managed 100 yards rushing and 16 yards passing in a 35-0 loss. Milton Hershey (5-1, 4A) is next. The Spartans are a worthy opponent and program well under the radar to those outside District-3 with a history of 16 winning seasons the last 18 years, making them and Steel High the historic powers in the conference, not Middletown; Trinity and East Pennsboro are up there to a lesser degree with all of them ebbing and flowing through various conferences in the Mid Penn but of similar enrollments. This will be Middletown’s most difficult opponent since McDevitt a month ago. Although they lack a signature win, they have a pile of quick and agile veteran players with their only loss coming to another quick and agile group, Susquehanna Township (5-1, 4A). This game will go a long way to deciding the MP-Capital race and is realistically the last challenge on Middletown’s schedule. They presently hold the #2 seed behind Wyomissing with MH at 3 in 4A.
9 Central York (5-1)
South Western’s three game winning streak came to an end last week in York losing to a good Central High team 47-7. The Mustangs came in all full of themselves after defeating Carlisle 27-14 and Dallastown 21-7 followed by the upset of Red Lion 17-14. Despite the upset, Red Lion, Carlisle and Dtown are not Central. Last week saw them show some depth with their big junior quarterback Kyle Fontes (6-4, 205) in for sophomore Beau Pribula, still sidelined with a shoulder. A 30-0 first quarter said Fontes was up to the task as the Panthers rolled 47-7. Spring Grove (2-4, 5A) is next. Like the Paper Mill in town, they get you attention, putting enough points on the board at 22ppg, but give it back with a sieve like defense allowing 39ppg. Central has an offense that’s way beyond expectations this year, averaging 42ppg after last year’s heavy graduations. As surprising is a defense allowing 10 a game. Central can name the score here.
10 Shippensburg (6-0, 5A)
Shippensburg isn’t a complete team yet (passing) but the running game and D are definitely there, getting their second shutout of the year in a 39-0 conference win against Greencastle Antrim. Before Ship, and despite a 1-4 record then, Greencastle was averaging 25ppg, which clearly got Coach Foust’s attention. So they’re looking good with a defense at 6.5ppg that could propel them deep into the postseason, especially knowing it comes with a powerful running game. With West Perry, Northern and Red Land up next, all 4-2, (3-3 Big Spring in finale), the MP-Colonial is wide open and a challenge to the Greyhounds quest for an undefeated regular season after going 9-1 last year. The schedule should be good prep for the postseason, facing more challenging teams late in the season since they have yet to play a Manheim Central, Warwick caliber 5A team. But they could get a taste of it Friday against West Perry (4-2, 4A) with their multi-talented quarterback Kenyon Johnson (5-11, 180, sr). He is over 1100 total yards, rushing for 599 yards on 77 carries and passing for 547 minus York Tech game stats.
11 Chambersburg (4-2)
After taking a 6-0 halftime lead on Tyler Luther’s 33 and 29 yard field goals, two second half miscues by Cumberland Valley sealed their fate just when things looked promising. Chambersburg fumbled the punt, giving CV new life and possession at the 6 yard line. But they threw away a golden opportunity when linebacker Terrell Williams stepped in front of a Alex Kovach pass (play action), returning it 94 yards for the score. Not bad for a 6-2, 230 pound linebacker. Talk about a swing of emotions to start the second half! On CV’s next possession, a blitzing Jayden Jones (CB, 6-0, 180) hit Kovach from behind, jarring the ball loose for DT Tyrion Hodges (6-0, 265) to recover. Six plays later Brady Stumbaugh hit Terrell Williams for a 10 yard score making it 20-0. They got some icing on the cake when Keshawn Johnson (12 for 88) score from the 13 and Tyler Luther split the uprights again from 27 yards out for the final score of 30-0. Saw this one on Mid Penn Broadcasting and was surprised seeing how dominating Chambersburg was at CV. They rolled in the second half once they got field position that was lacking in the first half. So here they are at 2-1 tied with Harrisburg, a game behind 3-0 Central Dauphin and State College. CD East (2-4) is next. And the reason you can’t dismiss them is Bryce Baker who is one of the premier backs in the area with 725 yards on 82 carries. He got 92 on 18 carries against Manheim Township’s nearly impenetrable D-front and 95 yards against Archbishop Wood. Surprised they’re still standing after playing Township, Wood, Harrisburg and State College already, losing by a combined score of 161 to 13. The Trojans are better but new to winning at this level and cannot let down, not against a back like Bryce Baker.
12 Manheim Central (4-2, 5A)
If you like offense and unending fireworks, Manheim was the place to be Friday night when Central and Cocalico locked up in a fierce one, exploded for 56 first half points that featured big plays most of the game. Manheim Central started it off when quarterback Evan Simon connected with Ben Wagner streaking down the sideline for a 56-yard touchdown just over a minute into the game. Cocalico responded on the ensuing kickoff when super talented Ronald Zahm zigged and zagged then took off on a 98 yard return to even the score. What a start! Summarizing; it settled down after that but not by much with Central’s quarterback connecting this time with Colby’s’ brother Ben for a 30 yard score, then back to Colby for a 22 yard touchdown pass. Between all that were 1 yard and 10 yard keepers by Simon, a 14 yard run by Jake Harbach and finally a 25 yard field goal by Nate Reed. Central led 29-27 at the half. Cocalico’s scores after their 1st quarter kickoff return featured quarterback Noah Palm’s 20 yard run, 1 yard and a 50 yard run, plus a 73 yard toss to Ronald Zahm. Once again Zahm got people off their feet with a 4th quarter kickoff return, this time for 98 yards! Too many individual stats to list but here are a few. QB Evan Simon completed 10 of 17 for 280 yards and 3 touchdowns, rushing for 118 yards on 18 carries and 2 scores. Colby Wagner caught 6 passes for 201 yards. The difference between the teams can be seen in part with Cocalico’s quarterback Noah Palm completing 7 of 10 for 70 yards while rushing for 175 yards on 25 attempts. Ronald Zahm rushed for 33 yards, caught 4 passes for 113 yards and had the 2 kickoff returns. Central knocked down a final desperation pass by Noah Palm to take home a heart stopping 46 to 43 win. They move on for what could be another stiff LL-2 test at Lampeter Strasburg (5-1, 4A) where the Pioneers are coming off their first loss of the year, losing at Hempfield 27-20.
13 Susquehanna Township (5-1, 4A)
Susquehanna Township is right behind Manheim Central in the rankings with their only loss being a 16-7 struggle at Manheim Central in the opener. Last week saw them coming off an easier than expected 34-0 win against Mechanicsburg (4-2, 5A). The Wildcats couldn’t get much going and didn’t take advantage when they did. Hanna will do that to you, blitzing often with a fast and physical squad that got 8 sacks and held Mechanicsburg to 68 total yards! Offensively they ran almost at will with Michael Reece getting 88 yards on 22 carries, Brandon Arkward 64 on 9 attempts and 5 catches for 91 yards, while Steven Graves III had 74 yards on 9 carries and 71 yards in receptions. Nice O show by the Tribe rushing for 228 yards and passing for 128. This week is Conrad Weiser (3-3, 4A), off a tough 28-21 loss to Exeter, meaning both the Scouts and Indians are coming off conference games for a weird non-conference matchup seven weeks into the season. They’ve been playing since 2014 with Hanna winning the last 4 including last year’s 19-6 win against a good 9-3 Weiser team that won the Berks-Section One. They lost a lot from that team but are competitive excluding the opening 42-15 loss to Cocalico, with two other losses to Fleetwood and Exeter. Qb Logan Klitsch is their primary weapon, getting 252 yards after completing 18 of 31 against Exeter last week. Their problem is the running game that generated only 44 yards on 28 carries against the Eagles.
14 Cocalico (4-2, 5A)
How often do you rack up 393 total yards of offense and lose the game, especially when you complete 7 of 10 passes for 153 yards with a Veer offense? Probably not too often. But when the opponent is Manheim Central, even in a down year, that’s not always enough. The Barons are in fact limping along with a 4-2 record, well below their statistical and scoring norms at 27ppg and 26 yield. From 2012 through last year they averaged 40ppg and allowed 14, putting Cocalico up against some serious odds even before the game started. Despite Cocalico’s success offensively, the Barons powering over them for 484 yards of offense, 204 rushing, 280 passing. And they had no answer for quarterback Evan Simon who also rushed for 118 yards on 26 carries. So that’s how you lose after racking up 393 yards of offense. Conestoga Valley (2-4, 5A) is next.
15 Berks Catholic (3-3, 4A)
Banged up Berks overcame injuries enough to eke out a 9-0 win at Hamburg (3-3, 4A) despite generating a meager 235 yards of offense. They are really struggling this year as a result heavy grad losses, their best players being injured or compromised and the lack of a passing attack; Bradley Hoffman completing only 2 of 17 passes for 25 yards. Hamburg is a scrappy bunch this year in spite of the Saints faithful being used to sending them packing early by huge margins. BC’s top running back Abdul MacFoy had 12 carries for 80 yards with CJ Carwll adding 71 on 8 carries. Kutztown (0-6, 3A) is next, followed by Schuylkill Valley where the Saints should get healthier in a hurry with two more W’s in the win column before ending he regular season with Fleetwood (5-1) and Wyomissing (6-0).
16 Exeter Township (4-2, 5A)
Exeter scored with just over a minute left in the game when Gavin McCusker hit Alex Javier with a 64 yard strike to get the win against stubborn Conrad Weiser 28-21. Back in the first quarter, McCusker connected with Javier for a 74 yard scoring strike. And by the end of the game, he had one of his best performances of the season, completing 10 of 18 passes for 240 yards and 4 touchdown tosses. Most of the yardage was gathered up by Javier who snagged 2 for 142 yards and 2 touchdowns. Got to give Weiser credit for coming in swinging, with a 14-7 lead at the half trying to hold on to their Berks-Section One title. It’s still right there with only one conference loss in what’s shaping up as a super tight race between them, Exeter (4-2, 2-0), rejuvenated Governor Mifflin (3-3, 3-0), on a 3 game winning streak and reeling Reading (5-1, 2-1), two weeks removed from the 49-6 loss to Mifflin. We’ll see if they’re fully recovered Friday night at Exeter.
17 Milton Hershey (5-1, 5A)
Quarterback Tigere Mavesere, Dion Bryant and Josh Parra put on one heck of show taking Trinity completely apart in a 59-14 romp. You could say the Shamrocks ran out of luck after opening with wins against small school Double-A’s Delone Catholic 23-8 and York Catholic 20-14, then Single-A Marian Catholic 48-0, all with a combined won-loss of 5-13. Then came the reality of a small school that plays serious football when the storied Steamrollers of Steelton Highspire (6-1, 2A) rolled all over them 78-34. Rollers! Back to the Spartans who are a pretty fine bunch themselves having way too much speed and quickness for most teams in the area. Quarterback Tigere Mavesere is a good example, completing 11 of 20 passes for 206 yards with touchdown passes of 86 and 24 yards and two more touchdowns rushing for 42 yards. Receiver Josh Parra had 144 yards on 4 catches and a touchdown. And how about Dion Bryant gashing the Rocks for 202 yards on 9 carries. They’re jelling at just the right time scoring 34ppg and allowing 12; good timing with a game at Middletown Friday. Middletown has the home field and tougher schedule, defeating McDevitt 6-2 and Steel High 49-21, while Milton Hershey failed their test vs Susquehanna Township 20-13 way back on August 30th which was a long time ago when talking football.
18 Wyomissing (6-0, 3A)
Wyomissing had no trouble with previously undefeated Fleetwood, beating the Tigers twice, once on Friday when the game was called because of weather with Wyo up 21-0, and again Sunday afternoon, outscoring Fleetwood 14-7 for an important 35-7 conference win. Recently converted guard Evan Niedrowski (6-2, 230, sr) rushed for 102 yards with Max Hurleman getting 94 yards. Fleetwood’s hot handed quarterback Charlie Maddocks was held to 114 yards passing, 50 yards rushing and threw 2 interceptions. Wyomissing’s D that came in allowing 12.2ppg, shut the Tigers down to 171 total yards to their 336. They move on to Hamburg who is one feisty 3-3 team that with a bounce here and there could be 6-0.
19 Cedar Cliff (3-3, 5A)
The Colts moved up a notch with an impressive win against struggling Lower Dauphin. Hard imaging how far the Falcon’s fortunes have fallen with their 39-11 run from 2012 through 2015. Where did that program go? It’s been a while, in fact a long while since they got to the state final in 1995 losing to Penn Hills 35-14. For the southeast PA crowd, their runner up silver medal was sandwiched between two fine Downingtown teams; one losing a nail biter in 1994 to McKeesport 17-14, the other winning gold in 1996, taking Woodland Hills apart 49-14. Back to Cedar Cliff who is on a roll after losing to Harrisburg, defeating Hollidaysburg 49-8 and bitter conference rival McDevitt 20-17 before last week’s win Against LD, they did what you’re supposed to do against a winless team, shutting them down to 38 rush yards, 94 passing and 6 first downs. Conversely, the Colts were in full gallop with Jaheim Morris running for 220 yards on 19 carries and returning a kickoff 86 yards. How fun is that! He’s currently at 992 yards on the year. Jamir Reynolds-Vasquez made his single carry count going 48 yards for a score. And Gannon McMeans stayed loose, completing 7 of 17 passes for 103 yards and a touchdown as the Colts racked up 399 total yards of offense in a 47-7 win. Hershey is next. But at 1-5 they’re fading fast, in part due to a front loaded schedule composed of Cedar Crest 5-1, Milton Hershey 5-1, Mechanicsburg 4-2, Susquehanna Township 5-1 and Red Land 4-2, with Cedar Cliff and McDevitt looming. Sometimes you get dealt a bad hand. The CC Colts will roll here and hope to stay healthy for the grinding final three weeks of Mechburg, Hanna and Red Land.
20 Cedar Crest (5-1)
If you’re looking for a positive in a 20 point road loss, you might think the D wasn’t a total bust after holding an undefeated opponent on his turf to 18 points below their scoring average. Nahh! But the score like many scores, doesn’t always reflect the truth of a game where Cedar Crest lost to Warwick 34-14. They had the Warriors on the ropes, holding a 14-7 half time lead when Cedar Crest Qb Chris Danz found Cole Miller in the back of the end zone from the 6 yard line with a few seconds left in the half. All the talk about momentum swings on scores before heading to the locker room are somewhat exaggerated if the other team has more weapons and is just the better team. That’s the case here when the Warriors came out in warrior mode, Coach saying they “challenged them” (survived a few of those!) then opened it up to score 27 unanswered points. Chris Danz survived a tough road opponent, completing 13 of 22 passes for 174 yards and throwing a touchdown, while Tyler Cruz ran for 82 yards and a score on 20 carries. Wide out Cole Miller stung them for 138 yards on 10 receptions and a touchdown. The Falcons are a nice team that just came up short against a better team. Look for a bounce back Friday at home against Penn Manor (2-4).
Honorable Mention:
Northeastern (5-1, 5A) home South Western 3-3, 5A
Suburban (6-0, 4A) at Dover 2-4, 5A
Lampeter Strasburg (5-1, 4A) home Manheim Central 4-2, 5A
Montoursville (6-0, 3A, D4) home Danville 4-2, 3A
Gettysburg (5-1, 4A) home Kennard Dale 3-3, 4A
Steelton Highspire (5-1, 2A) at Camp Hill 1-5, 2A
Mount Carmel (4-2, 3A, D4) at Hughesville 0-6, 2A
Bishop McDevitt (3-3, 4A) home Lower Dauphin 0-6, 5A
Governor Mifflin (3-3, 5A) at Boone 1-5, 5A
York (4-2, 5A) home Red Lion 4-2
Last edited:
