Football

Playoff picture not looking bright for county clubs

Guy Cipriano

Friday, Nov. 13 could be an eerie night for anybody who cares about Centre County high school football.

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Unless offensive and defensive lines tighten, mistakes are rapidly corrected and upsets occur, the county could be without football on the postseason’s opening weekend.

A scary thought, indeed.

Entering this week’s games, State College is the only county team with a smooth playoff trail.

The 4-1 Little Lions, who visit Cedar Cliff on Friday, rest second behind Erie McDowell in the District 6-8-9-10 Class AAAA standings. Because the Little Lions play in a barren playoff bracket — all six eligible teams are invited to participate regardless of record — they are postseason-bound.

Like last season, State College should receive a first-round bye, which means its postseason doesn’t begin until Nov. 20 or 21.

Of the county’s four remaining teams, P-O could be the best bet to appear during the playoff’s opening weekend. The Mounties end the season against Penns Valley, Tyrone, St. Marys, Chestnut Ridge and Huntingdon.

The Mounties are 2-3, which places them 10th in the race for the eight District 6 Class AA spots. Three wins should get P-O into the District 6 Class AA playoffs. Two wins will create dicey

moments. Last week’s 28-0 victory at Bellefonte provides P-O with optimism entering the regular-season’s second half.

The county’s other three teams are focused on tasks such as daily improvement, cultivating future talent and getting healthy.

The following is a look at this season’s first five weeks:

Best player

When quarterback/safety Dom Mills suffered a foot injury during the State College’s Week 1 victory over Hollidaysburg, the Little Lions found themselves in a precarious situation.

Alex Kenney ensured a season filled with high expectations didn’t take a wicked turn.

Kenney rushed for 586 yards on 57 carries and scored 13 touchdowns. His two second-half touchdown runs, including a 91-yarder early in the third quarter, helped State College escape last week’s home game against Harrisburg with a 30-19 victory.

Best game

State College staged last-minute Mid-Penn tangles with Cumberland Valley and Central Dauphin.

But there’s something memorable about games that take more than 48 minutes to decide.

That leaves us with three candidates: Penns Valley’s games against Bald Eagle Area and Lewistown and Bellefonte’s victory at Brookville.

Considering the Rams and Eagles were playing for the Iron Bell and their first victories, give the nod to the Week 2 game, won by Penns Valley 25-22. The Rams scored twice in the fourth quarter to force overtime, although the Eagles blocked the PAT after the second touchdown.

Penns Valley’s offense produced a season-high 388 total yards in the victory while BEA quarterback Justin Taylor completed 10 of 20 passes for 127 yards in his second varsity start.

Going deep — twice

Bellefonte quarterback Ty Warner and wide receiver Matt Watson needed one game to break a school record as a second-quarter slant Week 1 against St. Marys developed into an 84-yard touchdown pass.

A week later, they accomplished something more meaningful. Watson turned a leaping catch into a 70-yard touchdown at Brookville.

The reception gave the Red Raiders a 28-20 fourth-quarter lead. Bellefonte won 40-34 in double overtime.

Handle with care

BEA, Bellefonte, Penns Valley and P-O are a combined 3-16, including 1-12 against non-county opponents, for many reasons.

Most coaches will tell you mistakes tops the list.

None of the four teams have a positive turnover margin. Bellefonte (minus- 12), Penns Valley (minus-5) and BEA (minus-3) are in the red while P-O has 12 takeaways and 12 giveaways.

To the air

A passing attack at BEA? Now that’s a different concept.

The play of Taylor, a junior, represents a solace in BEA’s 0-5 start. Taylor has completed 41 of 91 passes for a county-high 535 yards. As a team, the Eagles have 580 passing yards, two more than the total compiled in 11 games last year and their most since 2005, when current Robert Morris quarterback Camdin Crouse led the offense.

The passing yards are needed this year. BEA is averaging just 3.1 yards per rushing attempt.

Young up front

Some young linemen are helping P-O’s wing-T click again.

The Mounties started just one senior on their offensive line against Bellefonte as juniors Justin Shimmel and Andrew Mann and sophomores Kyle Lanich and Wes Taylor surrounded senior Matt Randolph.

P-O should receive a boost when senior Cody Pepperday returns from an injury. The development of the underclassmen could help the Mounties the next five weeks and beyond.

This can’t be happening

Conference shuffling and schedule tweaking will halt two of the area’s best rivalries.

Altoona’s move to the WPIAL will likely leave the Mountain Lions off State College’s 2010 and ’11 schedules. Some difficult-to- understand crossover arranging will likely prevent Bellefonte and P-O playing for the Luther Trophy the next two seasons.

So much for preserving tradition.

Looking ahead

State College’s ability to split against Cumberland Valley and Central Dauphin without Mills and lineman Sean McWhirter keeps the possibility of the Little Lions entering their Week 9 game against Bishop McDevitt with a gaudy record.

The game could have added juice because, barring upset, the Crusaders will arrive at Memorial Field 8-0 and ranked No. 1 in Class AAAA. State College must play Cedar Cliff, Central Dauphin East and Altoona before facing Bishop McDevitt.

Altoona’s victory over Central Dauphin means State College could repeat as Mid-Penn Commonwealth champions. State College, Altoona, Central Dauphin and Cumberland Valley are all 2-1 in Commonwealth play.

The winner will be declared the final Commonwealth champion.

The Mid-Penn is realigning into four divisions next year. State College will compete with Carlisle, Central Dauphin, Central Dauphin East, Chambers-burg, Cumberland Valley and Harrisburg in the creatively- named Division I.

Guy Cipriano can be reached at 231-4643.