By Andy Shay:
What a splendid Week 2 of football for the Mid-Penn Conference in the strange odyssey that is the 2020 season. Plenty to get to this week as well pour through what we saw, heard and observed on what was a typical cool and crisp Friday evening.
Since we live in a COVID-19 world today, congrats to Lower Dauphin and State College for getting their seasons off the ground. And we hope Susquehanna Township can return to the field soon after missing the Week 2 festivities. Stay safe.
My starting point for the Sunday QB is always what either struck me or grabbed my full attention. And that is Hershey – yes I’m aware Steel-High had a monster win over Middletown and that’s next on my docket.
The Trojans are 2-0 for the first time since … well I can’t remember the last time Hershey was 2-0. And it’s not so much that a struggling program is off to a fast start it’s who Mark Painters club upset – state-ranked Cedar Cliff – to get its second win in as many games.
And, well, maybe it also had something to do with how the Trojans did it – rallying to score twice in the final 2:08 to win 28-21. Cedar Cliff, who turned the ball over five times and can squarely point a finger at itself for this one, scored three straight second-half touchdowns to grab a 21-14 lead with five minutes to play.
The worm had turned for the Colts it appeared. And despite a myriad of mistakes, Cedar Cliff looked good to escape with a win. Enter quarterback Jackson Bouslough for Hershey. Before the dying minutes of the game he had completed only two passes. His final completions won the game. They covered 55 yards to Davey Loyd with 2:08 to play and 69 yards to Joey Corado inside the final 30 seconds. Wow!!
Now the Rollers. That 43-21 victory over Middletown was a signature win for the 2020 regular season. My partner on High School Football Now, Dean Eric F. Epler, called the game spot on. Full props. It wasn’t so much the Rollers scored 43 points, it was holding the Blue Raiders to 21 and playing solid defense that grabbed my attention. Time to put the Rollers in the Class 1A state power category in 2020? Just asking.
Mehki Flowers was a game changer and exactly what you need from a high-end talent on a big stage. A couple TD catches for the wideout, but also a long-range TD run and a 90-yard punt return for a score. All RB Odell Greene does is rack up consistent 100-yard performances. Against his former school he carried the load with 25 totes for 148 yards and a couple of touchdowns.
So Mechanicsburg is 2-0 – remember they got off to a fast start in 2019 as well – and Shippensburg is 0-2? The Greyhounds, the long-time Colonial Division heavyweight are struggling big-time. And it’s a mild surprise. Week 1 was a close loss to Waynesboro on a failed 2-point conversion late. No biggie. This wasn’t even a game, though. The Wildcats led 35-0 at the break and with the clock running the second half, packed it and said our work here is done. The final score was close, but the REAL game wasn’t.
Wildcats do-everything QB Micah Brubaker accounted for 195 total yards and four touchdowns. He completed 7 of 9 passes for 117 yards and added 78 yards on the ground. Solid numbers for basically a half of work. Wildcats are a player in their new home, the MPC Colonial, and Shippensburg is 0-2 and struggling.
Don’t read too much into the final score between Central Dauphin and State College, a 35-13 Rams victory. Clearly CD is the better team with more weapons, but if State High can keep its season going they are going to more of a handful with each passing week. It’s still a very-high quality win for the Rams.
State College made a ton of mistakes early in terms of pre-snap penalties – expected in the first game after probably thinking it was not going to play at all this season. The entire DL is new, the quarterback was making his first start and the OL had some serious holes to fill. And it’s best playmaker, senior RB Dresyn was on the sidelines in street clothes.
The Rams are powerful and have 524 yards against State College to prove it but they also made a ton of mistakes that need a bit of next-level discipline in terms of being an elite team. Three turnovers in the first 13 minutes all three giving the ball to State College in plus territory. Rams D made sure the miscues didn’t have an impact. And nine penalties approaching 100 yards is a lot of lost field in my book.
Northern is 2-0 after holding off West Perry by a touchdown. Anybody played better the first two weeks and came up short both times than the Mustangs? Polar Bears QB Jordan Heisey went off with 330 total yards (231 rushing, 99 passing) and three touchdowns to power Northern. And the Polar Bears needed it.
Cumberland Valley 7, CD East 6. Not exactly an enticing scoreline, but I’m sure Eagles new skipper and alum Josh Oswalt will take it. Combined these teams didn’t make it to the 300-yard barrier. Nothing wrong with some good defense. Two weeks in a row the Panthers have shown some chops on D. Myles Mims hit Romeo Fleck for a 49-yard bomb in the final minute to make it 7-6. And the Panthers went for the win with a 2-point conversion. I love the call by CDE head coach Aaron Blanding. Why not, right? Good for the Eagles stuffing the run to hold on.
My weekly Crazy Colonial Update has Mechanicsburg, Waynesboro (after another gut-check win taking out Greencastle-Antrim 14-7) and Northern are all 2-0. And Shippensburg is 0-2. Raise your hand if you saw this coming. My early clubhouse favorite is the Wildcats. I’m often wrong, though. Sorry coach Rose.
