State College’s weapons lead to District 6 Class 6A football crown

Friday night was the last time State College senior football players got a chance to play on Memorial Field. However, the weapons the Little Lions have aren’t all seniors.

Those weapons were firing on all cylinders in a 42-7 rout of Mifflin County for the District 6 Class 6A football championship.

“They have a lot of playmakers,” Huskies coach Scot Sechler said. “I thought we were in position a lot of times. We just couldn’t come up with tackles. Those guys are very elusive. My hats off to them. They have a fantastic team. I wish them the best in the rest of the season.”

One of those elusive playmakers is sophomore Dresyn Green. He ran for a game-high 210 yards on 13 carries and had one touchdown. He accounted for 58 percent of his team’s offensive output.

“I’m not surprised. I’m proud of that kid,” State College coach Matt Lintal said. “He’s special. Every yard he gets, it’s not about him, it’s about his team. We’ve got a lot more football to play with him.”

Green echoed the words of his coach: “Shout out to my o-line and all my teammates. I couldn’t do it with out them. I’m really grateful for all of them.”

Green didn’t show all of his skills until the second half when he had eight carries for 127 yards. His touchdown came in the third quarter on a 31-yard run, which pushed the Little Lions’ lead to 35-7.

His final carry of the night was a 68-yard burst that took State College from their own 29 to Mifflin County’s three-yard line. Junior Isaiah Edwards finished the three-play drive with his second touchdown of the night, which kicked the mercy-rule clock into play with the score 42-7.

“We knew they (Mifflin County) were coming out really strong because they were talking on Twitter,” Green said. “We really like that. It was a really emotional past week because of our seniors. It is their last chance to play (here). We just played hard.”

It was all the seniors in the first half for the Little Lions.

Quarterback Tommy Friberg became the all-time leader in program history for passing yards. He finished with 92 yards -- 83 in the first half, which sits him at 3,719 yards with another game to add more.

“It means everything. I’ve worked really hard for this,” Friberg said of the accomplishment. “I have to give a lot of credit to my receivers and my blockers.”

Friberg help State College race out to a quick 21-point lead with three scores through the air. Two of them went to Penn State commit Keaton Ellis and the other was to Cohen Russell, both of whom are seniors.

Ellis and Friberg combined to score the first two touchdowns of the game, one from 11 yards out and the other was for seven yards. The second score, the Little Lions ran the same exact play twice in a row, a jump ball to Ellis in the end zone. He made a spectacular one-hand grab in the corner of the end zone.

“These kids are very naturally gifted but they work their tails off everyday,” Lintal said. “They are special because of their work ethic. Them pushing like they do, is the reason they are what they are.”

State College extends its season by another week with the familiar subregional game of the PIAA playoffs against the District 10 champion. It will take on McDowell, which is a team Lintal is all to used to. The site, date and time are to be determined yet but Lintal’s team will be ready.

“McDowell is a tough physical football team, year in and year out,” Lintal said. “Coach Orlando does a great job. They are always tough and ready to play us. We’ve been fortunate to go up there and get wins. We’ve got to prepare like we do each and every week.

“Every time you get a W, these kids can say they are still high school football players. We are really focusing on those seniors and the memories they are making in this run.”

This story was originally published November 2, 2018 at 11:12 PM.