Here’s what to look for in Week 3 of Centre County high school football
Week 2 was eventful for Centre County football and Week 3 is sure to bring more excitement.
Bald Eagle is set to take on Bellefonte for the Curtin Bowl, Hollidaysburg travels up to State College, Penns Valley is on the road at Huntingdon and Philipsburg-Osceola will ride to Tyrone, with each matchup taking place on Friday.
Here’s what to know about each team’s matchup in Week 3 of the regular season:
Bald Eagle (0-2) @ Bellefonte (0-2)
Time: 7 p.m. Friday
Coaches: Jesse Nagle (Bald Eagle), Vaughn Donmoyer (Bellefonte)
Last Meeting: Oct. 15, 2021 (48-0, Bald Eagle)
Player to Watch: RB/LB Trey Greene (Bald Eagle), RB Jamal Saunders (Bellefonte)
How to Watch: NFHS Network
The Skinny: Both Bald Eagle and Bellefonte are searching for their first wins of the season, and this time the Curtin Bowl trophy is on the line. The Eagles are coming off of an 8-3 season in 2021 and haven’t been able to find the same offensive success. In their two games against Troy and Clearfield, they’ve just scored 12 points. They’ve also allowed just 27 points between games and are led by senior linebacker Trey Greene. Greene had 12 total tackles in Bald Eagle’s 20-9 loss to Troy and three of them were for loss.
As for Bellefonte, the team improved greatly off of a 32-0 loss to Selinsgrove in the opening week. Last Friday, the Red Raiders owned a 20-14 lead over Penns Valley on the road at halftime. Then, the offense was stifled and they lost 34-20. Bellefonte is still allowing senior running back Jamal Saunders to come along slowly by splitting carries, but he looked nearly back to normal in the team’s game with Penns Valley. He had 61 yards and a touchdown.
Hollidaysburg (0-2) @ State College (2-0)
Time: 7 p.m. Friday
Coaches: Homer DeLattre (Hollidaysburg), Matt Lintal (State College)
Last Meeting: Sept. 10, 2021 (34-20)
Player to Watch: QB Tucker Rossman (Hollidaysburg), RB D’Antae Sheffey (State College)
The Skinny: Hollidaysburg has come close to victory in what has been a tough schedule for the team. The Golden Tigers opened up with Altoona at Mansion Park, losing 19-9 and lost 26-23 to Allegany (Maryland) the following week. Senior quarterback Tucker Rossman has been a leader on the team, completing 32-of-62 (51.6%) of his passes for 492 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions during that point.
State College has the opportunity to go 3-0 after a victory against a semi-local opponent. The Little Lions beat Downingtown East 32-31 in a late-game thriller. Freshman running back D’Antae Sheffey continues to impress with 23 carries for 204 rushing yards and three touchdowns in his first two varsity games.
Penns Valley (2-0) @ Huntingdon (1-1)
Time: 7 p.m. Friday
Coaches: Martin Tobias (Penns Valley), Shane Thomas (Huntingdon)
Last Meeting: Sept. 3, 2021 (40-7, Penns Valley)
Player to Watch: RB Ty Watson (Penns Valley), QB Eric Mykut (Huntingdon)
The Skinny: Penns Valley had every chance to fall to the hand of Bellefonte. The Rams were down 20-14 at the half last Friday at home and the coaches went into the locker room, looking to fire their team up. Senior running back Ty Watson had three rushing touchdowns in the second half to go with 79 total rushing yards in his response. He’ll be Penns Valley’s lead man heading into its first road game this season.
Huntingdon too could’ve conceded defeat. The Bearcats erased a 10-point Philipsburg-Osceola lead with less than five minutes left in the game. Quarterback Eric Mykut drove the team downfield twice — first with a 49-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Long and a second drive, capped off with an Ashton Steele 1-yard plunge into the end zone. Huntingdon will not quit.
Philipsburg-Osceola (1-1) @ Tyrone (2-0)
Time: 7 p.m. Friday
Coaches: Jeff Vroman (Philipsburg-Osceola), John Franco (Tyrone)
Last Meeting: Oct. 15, 2021 (38-7, Tyrone)
Player to Watch: QB Ben Gustkey (Philipsburg-Osceola), QB Ashton Walk (Tyrone)
The Skinny: With mere minutes left in the game, Philipsburg-Osceola blew a 10-point lead to fall to Huntingdon at home by a score of 14-10 last Friday. Senior quarterback Ben Gustkey has done a great deal to keep the Mounties in games with his legs, rushing 15 times for 61 yards against Huntingdon. Philipsburg-Osceola will need to get everything it can from Gustkey and Jakodi Jones on the ground to fight Tyrone.
The Golden Eagles have dismantled their opponents this season. First, they beat Bellwood-Antis 27-12 in Week 1 and followed up with a 30-0 blowout of Brookville last Friday. They’ve outscored opponents 57-12 this season. Tyrone sophomore quarterback Ashton Walk has had a very smooth start to season. He’s started by going 22-for-34 (64.7%) on passes for 357 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. He is the catalyst for the Golden Eagle’s offense.
