By Andy Shay: 

Inside The Mid-Penn Conference

Each week during the 2020 season we’ll offer some news, notes, tidbits and opinions from each of the five divisions in the Mid-Penn Conference.

Commonwealth Division

Do-it-All Timmy Smith fueling Rams offense:

Central Dauphin LB-RB-WR-KR Timmy Smith already has 625 all-purpose yards for the Rams in only three games. For all of his offense, don’t forget he was an All-State linebacker a season ago. Smith has 322 rushing yards, 160 receiving, 122 on kickoff returns and 21 on punt returns. Smith also has six touchdowns. There is literally nothing he can’t do. Overall, the Rams’ offense is averaging more than 500 yards a game. With such a diverse set of weapons, slowing them down is going to be difficult at best.

Harrisburg explodes our of the gate:

That was a powder keg of offense Harrisburg unleashed on Berks Catholic, still a quality Class 4A program, after 11 months between games. Based on the Saints’ defense this season, the Cougars putting up 62 was not a real surprise. Harrisburg coach Calvin Everett is still looking for two more games before the Oct. 26 deadline to be eligible for the District 3 playoffs. Harrisburg will play J.P. McCaskey this week, so that’s two of the four he needs before the deadline. The clock is ticking.

Down year for the Commonwealth? 

It’s a strange season in so many ways as we all already know, and that includes the Commonwealth Division sporting an 8-11 overall mark with only two teams, Central Dauphin and Altoona, boasting a winning record. Harrisburg isn’t included. Overall, the division is down from its normal standard of being one of the deeper divisions in Pennsylvania.

Little Lions picking up momentum:

State College will pick up steam with each passing game after dropping its opener to Central Dauphin. You could see the Little Lions have plenty of emerging talent on both sides of the ball that will serve them well in the near future. Dominated Cumberland Valley 31-0 in their second game, and my sneaky suspicion is they will make big strides with each passing week.

Panthers racking up the miles: 

For the record, CD East, which literally will play anybody, anywhere with a defense that travels extremely well, has already traveled more than 400 round-trip miles to play its three games. Road warriors!

By Eric F. Epler:

CLASS 6A                                  Rec.      Previous
1 St. Joseph’s Prep (12)             1-0       1
2 North Allegheny (7)                4-0       2
3 Central Dauphin (3)                3-0       3
4 La Salle College HS (12)         3-0       7
5 Archbishop Wood (12)            0-0       5
6 McDowell (10)                       3-0       6
7 Delaware Valley (2)                1-1       8
8 Nazareth (11)                         3-0       10
9 Parkland (11)                         1-0       NR
10 Bethlehem Freedom (11)      2-0       NR
Teams to watch: Central York (3) 4-0, Harrisburg (3) 1-0, Northeast (12) 0-0, Pennridge (1) 2-0, State College (6) 1-1.
 

CLASS 5A                                  Rec.      Previous
1 Pine-Richland (7)                    4-0       1
2 Warwick (3)                           4-0       2
3 Gateway (7)                           2-0       3
4 Peters Township (7)                4-0       4
5 Cathedral Prep (10)                4-1       5
6 Governor Mifflin (3)                3-0       6
7 East Stroudsburg South (11)    1-0       7
8 Penn-Trafford (7)                   3-1       8
9 Upper Dublin (1)                    2-0       NR
10 Imhotep Charter (12)            0-0       9
Teams to watch: Exeter Township (3) 3-1, Mechanicsburg (3) 3-0, South Fayette (7) 3-2, Woodland Hills (7) 4-1.
  

CLASS 4A                                  Rec.      Previous 

1 Thomas Jefferson (7)              4-0       1
2 Jersey Shore (4)                      5-0       2
3 Lampeter-Strasburg (3)           4-0       3
4 Bishop McDevitt (3)                3-0       4
5 Aliquippa (7)                          5-0       5
6 Oli City (10)                            5-0       7
7 Belle Vernon (7)                     4-1       8
8 Harbor Creek (10)                   5-0       NR
9 Allentown C.C. (11)                 2-1       10
10 Crestwood (2)                      5-0       NR
Teams to watch: Berks Catholic (3) 2-2, Bethlehem Catholic (11) 2-1, Chartiers Valley (7) 4-1, McKeesport (7) 4-1, Plum (7) 5-0. 

CLASS 3A                                  Rec.      Previous 

1 Central Valley (7)                    5-0       1
2 Wyomissing (3)                      3-0       2
3 Hickory (10)                           5-0       3
4 Montoursville (4)                    5-0       6
5 Neumann-Goretti (12)            0-0       5
6 Bedford (5)                            5-0       7
7 Scranton Prep (2)                   2-0       8
8 Notre Dame-Green Pond (11) 5-0       9
9 North Schuylkill (11)               5-0       NR
10 Saint Mary’s (9)                    4-0       10
Teams to watch: Central Martinsburg (6) 5-0, Danville (4) 4-1, Fort LeBoeuf (10) 5-0, North Catholic (7) 5-0, Tyrone (6) 4-0.

CLASS 2A                                  Rec.      Previous 

1 Southern Columbia (4)            4-0       1
2 Wilmington (10)                     5-0       2
3 Dunmore (2)                          2-0       3
4 Berlin-Brothersvalley (5)         5-0       4
5 Beaver Falls (7)                       5-0       5
6 Bellwood-Antis (6)                  5-0       6
7 Western Beaver (7)                4-0       NR
8 McGuffey (7)                          4-1       NR
9 Farrell (10)                             3-2       7
10 Richland (6)                          4-1       10
Teams to watch: Brookville (9) 5-0, Mount Carmel (4) 2-1, Palisades (11) 4-1, Windber (5) 4-1, York Catholic (3) 4-0.

CLASS 1A                                  Rec.      Result 

1 Clairton (7)                             4-0       1
2 Old Forge (2)                          2-0       2
3 Jeannette (7)                          4-1       3
4 Steel-High (3)                         3-0       4
5 Canton (4)                              2-0       5
6 Muncy (4)                              5-0       6
7 Williams Valley (11)                4-1       7
8 Portage (6)                             3-0       9
9 Delone Catholic (3)                 4-0       10
10 Tri-Valley (11)                       2-0       NR
Teams to watch: Bishop Guilfoyle (6) 3-2, Coudersport (9) 4-0, Reynolds (10) 5-0, Springdale (7) 4-1, Tussey Mountain (5) 5-0.

Each week, our crew will dish out ‘Game Balls” to athletes who turned in impressive performances across our coverage area. Here are our selections for Week of Oct. 9-10 of the regular season. 

Jake Adams’s Game Balls

Max Mosey, QB, Central Dauphin: I’ll be honest. I didn’t think the Rams played the most inspired game Friday night, despite beating Carlisle 35-0. They showed little urgency in the first half when they could’ve scored at least 1-2 more touchdowns and buried the Herd by halftime. And Mosey seemed frustrated at times by that as well. They also didn’t take shots deep against a susceptible defense early on. But credit to CD and Mosey for adjusting in the second half and tossing grenades downfield that blew the game open for good. The aggressive offense really boosted Mosey’s final line, with the lefty completing 10-of-14 passes for 147 yards and three TDs that covered 14, 23 and 30 yards. He also ran to the pylon from 5 yards out, finishing with 32 yards rushing. He wants to put a cinder block on the gas pedal at all times. I respect that.

Jaydan Barrick, TE-MLB, Boiling Springs: If you haven’t already, start showing the Bubblers some respect. They’re 3-0 with three very convincing wins. And each week it seems someone new leads them to victory. This week, just for fun, it wasn’t a running back who shined the most. It was Barrick, whose 16-yard pick-6 and 7-yard blocked punt return TD lifted the Bubblers past rival Big Spring 35-21 in the Battle of the Springs. Those consecutive scores came at the perfect time, too. The Bulldogs had scored first and were making things tough. Bubbletown claimed a 14-7 lead early in the second quarter, but Barrick’s two scoring trips locked the game up. 

Micah Brubaker, QB, Mechanicsburg: Holy Football Gods. Brubaker looks every bit as good as last year’s breakout version, except better. He’s more accurate, he’s playing more within the offense rather than freelancing the majority of the time and he’s still making plays with his legs. Look no further than Friday’s 48-0 whooping of Greencastle-Antrim. The senior toyed with the Blue Devils, running for an astounding 223 rushing yards, nearly 100 more than his career high a season ago. He ran in three TDs of 8, 60 and 72 yards. And his arm wasn’t really needed, although he again completed more than 60% of his passes (6-of-9, 29 yards), his accuracy among those things that’s improved quite a bit in the last 12 months. Those three incompletions are the most he’s had through three games. Brubaker now has four passing scores and seven with his legs.

Andy Shay’s Game Balls

Lek Powell, QB, Bishop McDevitt: That was some third quarter performance by the Crusaders’ signal caller in a 40-28 come-from-behind victory over Cedar Cliff (the Colts did lead 28-27 late in the third quarter for 59 seconds). Powell struggled a bit in the first half with some pressure in the pocket that impacted throws, and then his mechanics went haywire in a hurry. He came out in the third quarter throwing darts and never stopped. He was 9-of-12 for 207 yards and four touchdowns in the third quarter, tossing TD passes covering 9, 44, 70 and 23 yards. And two of his three misfires in the quarter were dropped. Overall, Powell finished with 330 yards through the air and five touchdowns. And don’t forget, he did rally the Crusaders after they fell behind.

Davey Loyd, WR, Hershey: Everyone knows the Trojans in 2020 are going to take some shots down the field. And so far they have been connecting on just enough of them to be huge difference makers. What everyone also knows is Davey Loyd is their best receiver. and the passing game plan always involves him as the No. 1 priority. In the Trojans’ first non-last-minute victory of the season against Palmyra, 40-6, the senior had a very big night. Loyd hauled in four catches for 130 yards. That’s a tidy 32.5 yards per catch. That’s stretching the field like this Hershey offense wants and needs. The major impact, though, is taking three of those four catches to the house for touchdowns. That’s changing a game.

Zack Zeiders, QB-DB, East Pennsboro: When the offense piles up 38 points and nearly 350 total yards, good bet your quarterback enjoyed a pretty big night. Zeiders is the Panthers quarterback and earns my game ball this week not so much for his work as the signal caller, but the combination of his contributions on offense and what he did on defense for 2-1 East Pennsboro, winners of two straight after taking out West Perry 38-21. Zeiders led the Panthers in tackles with eight and also came up with two of the three interceptions for East Pennsboro on the night. That’s a solid outing right there. The key is on a night when the Mustangs turned it over four times, East Pennsboro didn’t have one giveaway. Zeiders took care of the football, and East Pennsboro pounded the ball on the ground on its way to victory. He did have a touchdown rushing as well as two picks he snared. I call this a sneaky game ball, because you have to dig a little to see the entire picture of the impact. Well done, Zack.

Adam Kulikowski Game Balls

Kiev Gregg, RB, Harrisburg: Welcome back, Cougars. Kiev Gregg helped Harrisburg race past Berks Catholic 62-28 in the team’s first competition of the season. Behind a strong offensive line, Gregg reached paydirt three times–8,37,and 20-yard scampers–totalling 112 clicks before the night was over. Who is up next to take on this Cougars team? Bueller?…. Bueller?

Trenten Smith, WR-KR, Cedar Cliff: This young man can ball. On a night when the Colts’ offense totaled just over 200 total yards, Smith electrified the crowd with a 92-yard kick-off return for a touchdown–and it came at a critical moment in the game. As the Colts and Crusaders traded haymakers in the third quarter–combining for 47 points–Smith’s return gave Colin Gillen’s team a 28-27 lead late in the quarter.  Not bad for a lad who never strapped on a helmet before this year in a varsity football game. 

Michael Bullock’s Game Balls

Jacob Condo, QB-LB, Juniata: Condo’s late-game heroics helped the Indians hold off Lower Dauphin 21-14 in overtime in a Mid-Penn crossover. While Condo found Yaneil Ortiz with a short touchdown pass to force the extra session, his short TD run in OT generated the game-winning points. Condo finished 16 of 25 passing for 143 yards and 1 touchdown.

Brayden Boyer, WR-DE-PK, Line Mountain: Registering a pick-six on a well-diagnosed screen pass, Boyer’s 12-yard interception return had Brandon Carson’s Eagles  in complete command midway through the second quarter. While Boyer added a number of stops to his defensive performance, he also provided oomph to the Line Mountain kicking game by converting all six of his placement attempts and blasting a pair of field goals.

Austin Kenny, RB-LB, Susquenita: Kenny accounted for nearly one-third of the Blackhawks’ 500-plus offensive yards, but it wasn’t enough to produce a positive result as Scott Acri’s club lost 48-31 at Upper Dauphin. Kenny wound up rushing for 171 yards on 19 carries — Susquenita piled up 519 offensive yards — and one score.

Bryce McKee, WR, Susquenita: Here’s another Blackhawks performer that uncorked a productive effort in a 48-31 loss at Upper Dauphin. Just a freshman, McKee hauled in seven passes for 152 yards and one touchdown for Scott Acri’s bunch. Susquenita totaled more than 500 yards of offense in the Mid-Penn Liberty Division loss.

Kyle Casner, DB-WR, Upper Dauphin: Casner pitched in plenty as the host Trojans broke into the victory column with a 48-31 victory over Susquenita. Defensively, the 6-1 senior swiped a pair of passes and paced Kent Smeltz’s club with seven tackles. Offensively, Casner collected one pass for 13 yards and pocketed one two-point conversion.

By 4th Down staff:

Welcome to 4th Down Magazine’s vote for Player of the Week presented by Crown Trophy of Harrisburg (in Lemoyne).

The nominees for the week are listed below. Vote for the player with the most impressive performance.

The poll will remain open until Tuesday at 11 p.m. and voting is allowed once per hour. The winner will be announced on Wednesday.

1. Jamir Reynolds-Vasquez, RB, Cedar Cliff: Impressive performance with a game-high 105 rushing yards on 21 carries and a touchdown in a 40-28 loss to Bishop McDevitt. Ran almost exclusively between the tackles and picked up a ton of yards after contact against a physical Crusaders defense.
2. Omari Hopkins, WR-KR, Bishop McDevitt: The senior finished with 171 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns in a 40-28 victory over Cedar Cliff. He caught five passes for 91 yards and a touchdown from his wideout spot, and kicked off the scoring with an electric 80-yard punt return for a score in the first quarter.
3. Micah Brubaker, QB, Mechanicsburg: A pair of Wildcats make this list, and for good reason. Brubaker had a career day on the ground, rushing 15 times for a whopping 223 yards, a career high by almost a football field’s length. Scored thrice from 8, 60 and 72 yards, and completed 6-of-9 passes for 29 yards in a 48-0 win over Greencastle.
4. Lek Powell, QB, Bishop McDevittl: The senior finished with 330 yards through the air with five touchdowns and that’s not really the story. It was the third quarter where he went 9-of-12 for 207 yards and four touchdowns to spark the Crusaders past Cedar Cliff.
5. Jaydan Barrick, TE-MLB, Boiling Springs: A pick-6 and a blocked-punt return for a score land Barrick on this list. Bubblers fans have lots to be happy about right now. Barrick’s defensive score, which covered 16 yards, and special teams TD, which covered 7, have Bubbletown 3-0 and one of the darlings of the 2020 season.
6. Yaniel Ortiz, WB-DB, Juniata: The Indians’ diminutive two-way back flashed his clutch gene several times with the result still in doubt, collecting a 9-yard scoring pass with 1:18 remaining in regulation to force OT against Lower Dauphin and then authoring a 10-yard sack on third down that greatly helped Juniata preserve a 21-14 win. Ortiz finished with 68 yards rushing on 7 carries — his touchdown had Juniata up early — and caught 6 passes for 43 yards and his aforementioned TD. Also recorded six stops.
7. Kiev Gregg, RB, Harrisburg: A Cougar needs to be mentioned this week after they blitzed Berks Catholic 62-28 in the Cougars’ first game of the season. Gregg gets the nod, but count this as a hat tip to the dominant o-line as well. Gregg ran seven times for 112 stripes, scoring on runs of 8, 37 and 20 yards. 
8. Ethan Stroup, FB, Altoona: A bring-your-lunchpail performance for Stroup, who toted the rock 41 times for 232 yards and two scores as the Mountain Lions trampled Chambersburg 42-28. It was the second straight week the Trojans were run through. Stroup’s TDs came on runs of 10 and 18 yards.
9. Chance Crawford, RB-DB, Upper Dauphin: Big two-way night for Crawford, who scored one TD rushing and another with a 98-yard scoop-and-score fumble recovery. Crawford only carried the ball 11 times, for 89 yards and a touchdown, but UDA put away Susquenita 48-31. Also added a 16-yard reception, 79 yards on punt and kickoff returns and rang up three two-point conversions.
10. Davey Loyd, WR, Hershey: Three of his four receptions led to trips to the end zone, a mighty efficient night. Loyd scored on passes from Jackson Bouslough (8-of-9, 176 yards) that went for 35, 10 and 21 yards, finishing with 140 yards in a 40-6 win over Palmyra.
11. Chase Herb, RB-DE, Tri-Valley: Averaging nearly 10 yards per pop, Herb rolled up 215 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 22 carries as the Bulldogs tamed Mahanoy Area 40-7 in Schuylkill 2 play. The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder’s three touchdowns covered 9, 38 and 9 yards as Jeff Sampson’s club took command early. Herb also totaled six stops.
12. Garret Laudenslager, RB-OLB, Line Mountain: Fourth Down’s reigning Player of the Week, Laudenslager continued to rack up sparkling numbers as he rushed for 141 yards and three touchdowns on just 15 carries in the Eagles’ 48-21 thumping of Mid-Penn Liberty playmate Halifax. Laudenslager scored on runs of 46, 4 and 31 yards, thrilling the Senior Night gathering at the Mountain’s Glenn Ressler Field.
13. Ryan Stahl, WR-DB, Halifax: Stahl performed wonderfully in the Wildcats’ 48-21 setback at Mid-Penn Liberty rival Line Mountain, catching 10 passes for 158 yards and three TDs. Stahl’s first score came late in the first half when he grabbed a 14-yard scoring pass, but he later added touchdown receptions of 37 and 10 yards.
14. Bryce Herb, QB-DB, Williams Valley: Herb enjoyed a marvelous night throwing the ball, completing 12 of his 20 attempts for 308 yards and five touchdowns as Williams Valley chewed up Panther Valley 49-20. As a result, the 6-1 senior moved into first place on the Vikings’ career touchdown passes list with 57, surpassing the 53 put up by predecessor Levi Engle. Herb also rushed three times for 40 yards and another score.
15. Jesse Engle, TE-ILB, Williams Valley: Engle continued his remarkable play, catching seven passes for 142 yards and three touchdowns in a 49-20 romp over Panther Valley. Engle also moved into first place on the Vikings’ career touchdown receptions chart with 33 scores, two better than the number totaled by Jake Wolfgang. Engle also enjoyed another banner night defensively, accumulating 12 tackles from his inside backer spot.

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By Andy Shay: 

Each week during the 2020 season we’ll offer some news, notes, tidbits and opinions from each of the five divisions in the Mid-Penn Conference.

Capital Division

Capital Division depth

Look at the MPC Capital showing some depth in the early going. Steel-High, Boiling Springs and Camp Hill are all 2-0. And division kingpin Middletown is still a strong squad at 1-1. The Bubblers have caught my eye a bit. It’s not the fact that they’ve knocked over two lesser opponents, and ended an 11-game losing streak in the process. It’s how they’ve done it by pounding those teams. A more thorough examination awaits from 1-1 Big Spring this week.

Weapons galore at Steel-High

*I know Steel-High has more 6-foot-3 athletic receivers than any team should be allowed. But to me that’s the eye candy of this offense. The meat and potatoes is the offensive line growing in confidence and Odell Greene running for 100-plus a game.

Shuster fueling the Lions success

*Camp Hill QB Daniel Shuster has moved from being a pretty good high school quarterback to very good. He’s spreading the ball around more, making his receivers better and giving the Lions more of a shot to win in 2020. Some small-school college is going to get a good one in the future. Just what I see.