Season Standings:
Name: Week 1; Overall
Andy Shay 21-8; 21-8
Adam Kulikowski 18-11; 18-11
Andy Sandrik 17-12; 17-12
Week 2:
Thursday, August 28
Steel-High 18, Juniata 14:
Andy Shay: Juniata 27, Steel-High 19: First crack for the Rollers this season, while the Indians have already been through an all-out battle to get a victory. Sticky game to pick, but Juniata won’t be overpowered on any front and that matters.
Andy Sandrik: Juniata 21, Steel-High 14: This is a risky pick on my part because Steel-High is projected to have a really nice team this season. However, the Rollers didn’t have a Week 1 game, while Juniata carved out a defensive-minded victory over a tough Selinsgrove team. The rhythm built from those varsity reps – along with having Jasper Shepps on the roster – will make the difference for the Indians.
Adam Kulikowski: Steel-High 28, Juniata 21: Both teams possess the pedigree needed to end on the right side of this one. Rollers have been prepping for Juniata for two weeks now. They will be ready in what is their season opener.
Friday, August 29
Cedar Cliff 26, Central Dauphin 7
Andy Shay: Central Dauphin 27, Cedar Cliff 7: Couple of squads looking to crack the “W” ledger side of the standings. Feels like the Rams are in a much better spot after four quarters of season.
Andy Sandrik: Central Dauphin 20, Cedar Cliff 13: Rams are in a great spot to send Cedar Cliff to an 0-2 start.
Adam Kulikowski: Central Dauphin 28, Cedar Cliff 14: The Rams have an opportunity to put the Colts in a position they haven’t been in since 2008–0-2 to start the season.
Cumberland Valley 35, Carlisle 0
Andy Shay: Cumberland Valley 23, Carlisle 6: So what will we learn about these two offenses when they take another bite of the apple? First crack was less than stellar for sure.
Andy Sandrik: Cumberland Valley 25, Carlisle 0: The Eagles have plenty of work to do to get their offense on track, but they should have opportunities thanks to a stalwart defense that showed its chops by holding District 3 power Manheim Township to a single TD in Week 1.
Adam Kulikowski: Cumberland Valley 37, Carlisle 6: Neither team produced much on offense in Week 1 with a combined seven points scored among these Commonwealth teams. Eagles are poised to turn the page.
Chambersburg 26, CD East 21
Andy Shay: Chambersburg 28, CD East 19: One of those matchups where both teams will feel like this is a winnable game. Trojans might have a little more seasoning right now and are at home.
Andy Sandrik: Chambersburg 27, CD East 21: This should be a tight matchup between two squads that each grinded out hard-earned victories in Week 1. I’m giving the Trojans the advantage at home, but this one really could go either way.
Adam Kulikowski: CD East 28, Chambersburg 27: Cheers to Tyshaun Pollard on his first career victory as a head coach. I see no reason why his gents can’t keep him undefeated.
State College 37, Altoona 7
Andy Shay: State College 42, Altoona 0: Simply the difference right now between those with a full cupboard and those trying to find a can or two in the cupboard.
Andy Sandrik: State College 45, Altoona 7: No need to overcomplicate this pick. The Mountain Lions are severely outgunned here.
Adam Kulikowski: State College 41, Altoona 21: Only question here is just how long the Little Lions will need to stay on the throttle.
Gettysburg 41, Waynesboro 34
Andy Shay: Waynesboro 25, Gettysburg 20: Feels like the Warriors did enough right to win and didn’t and Waynesboro almost did enough to lose and somehow found a way to persevere. There is carry over for both of those scenarios.
Andy Sandrik: Waynesboro 23, Gettysburg 18: The Tribe made plenty of mistakes last week, but still found a way to win. Conversely, the Warriors made plenty of big plays, but still managed to lose. Both teams will be eager to repair their respective narratives on Friday.
Adam Kulikowski: Gettysburg 33, Waynesboro 28: We saw plenty of sparks from the Warriors last week to be optimistic about their chances in Week 2.
Shippensburg 22, Hershey 19
Andy Shay: Hershey 27, Shippensburg 14: Could go sideways for the Greyhounds in a hurry here if they aren’t able to control the pace and tempo against the Trojans. Hershey is a little sneaky good without you knowing it.
Andy Sandrik: Hershey 21, Shippensburg 7: The key to victory for the Greyhounds will be limiting mobile Trojans’ QB Cam Sweeney, who ran six times for 88 yards and four TDs last week.
Adam Kulikowski: Hershey 28, Shippensburg 21: If the Greyhounds are to win, they will need to force Trojans QB Cam Sweeney to beat them through the air. Tall task.
Mifflin County 14, Northern York 0
Andy Shay: Mifflin County 28, Northern York 7: When you head into Week 2 looking for your first touchdown of the season it’s always an uphill climb and the Polar Bears are going up against a defense that showed early bite.
Andy Sandrik: Mifflin County 27, Northern York 7: The Huskies have yet to allow a TD, while the Polar Bears have yet to score one.
Adam Kulikowski: Mifflin County 33, Northern York 6: This is a good time for Mifflin County to face Northern, a team still searching for its identity.
Red Land 16, Lower Dauphin 6
Andy Shay: Red Land 21, Lower Dauphin 20: I’m going to go ahead and hitch my fifth wheel to the Patriots this week. Why not? Red Land is riding sky high after a rivalry win. Still think LD overall is the more complete team, but hey we all make our choices.
Andy Sandrik: Lower Dauphin 17, Red Land 14: This pick would have been much easier to make if Red Land had not pulled off an upset victory over Cedar Cliff last week.
Adam Kulikowski: Lower Dauphin 21, Red Land 20: I’m not saying I’m not a believer in what the Patriots were able to accomplish last week. But I need to see a larger body of evidence.
Big Spring 53, Camp Hill 14
Andy Shay: Big Spring 34, Camp Hill 14: That Little Brown Jug finding its way back to Newville is a boost you can’t put a price on. Biggest upset in Week 1 belonged to Big Spring and why not make it 2-0 I say.
Andy Sandrik: Big Spring 28, Camp Hill 14: My understanding is that I’m not a popular man in Newville or on the Big Spring Barstool page after picking the Bulldogs to fall in their rivalry game against Shippensburg. Hopefully this pick will once again grant me access to Saylor’s Market.
Adam Kulikowski: Big Spring 41, Camp Hill 13: Did anyone make a bigger statement in Week 1 than the Bulldogs? Bandwagon can add a few more riders if the good times keep rolling in Week 2.
Halifax 39, Upper Dauphin 0
Andy Shay: Halifax 20, Upper Dauphin 16: If these two teams had played a week ago I might have been inclined (100 percent, actually) to go the other way. Getting rolled and losing key players to injury makes this a toss-up game for sure.
Andy Sandrik: Upper Dauphin 13, Halifax 7: Even though Upper Dauphin was facing mighty Williams Valley, I don’t think any of us expected the Trojans to get pasted by seven scores last week. I’m giving UD the benefit of the doubt for its recent program history, but the Trojans could very well be in trouble this week.
Adam Kulikowski: Halifax 21, Upper Dauphin 14: The Trojans season got off to an ugly start, getting blanked by Williams Valley and sustaining potentially season-altering injuries to Eoghan Savage and Carter Dreibelbis.
James Buchanan 20, Susquenita 0
Andy Shay: James Buchanan 29, Susquenita 23: Who can continue the fireworks on offense provides the answer to your “keys to victory” question. My today guess is JB, would probably be different tomorrow.
Andy Sandrik: Susquenita 33, James Buchanan 27: If Susquenita can put up 21 points against a bigger and stronger West Perry squad, the ‘Hawks can score even more against JB, right? The Rockets have shown some pop of their own, and won’t go away easily.
Adam Kulikowski: James Buchanan 34, Susquenita 20: The Rockets showed a little fire power in Week 1–can they continue to trend higher against the Blackhawks?
Line Mountain 62, Newport 7
Andy Shay: Line Mountain 34, Newport 14: Being more competitive is a step in the right direction, but the Eagles present problems at a whole different level for the Buffaloes.
Andy Sandrik: Line Mountain 30, Newport 14: It certainly seems like Newport is in better shape than in years past, but a Buffs win over Line Mountain and QB Kaiden Maurer would be nothing short of an upset.
Adam Kulikowski: Line Mountain 38, Newport 21: Absolutely love to see the Buffaloes trending upward after a few tough seasons. Eagles are the more refined machine at this point.
Middletown 22, Milton Hershey 7
Andy Shay: Milton Hershey 27, Middletown 20: Why not take the Spartans in a true toss-up game, right? Blue Raiders have no issues on defense but the offense has started slowly. Spartans offense showed more spark in the opener.
Andy Sandrik: Milton Hershey 23, Middletown 13: I like both the Milton Hershey offense and the Middletown defense in this one. If the Spartans can cross that 20-point barrier, I think they win.
Adam Kulikowski: Milton Hershey 21, Middletown 7: Blue Raiders offense sputtered in Week 1, mustering less than 100 yards. Finding a way to get out of first gear can open the door to more positive results as we enter division play.
Susquehanna Twp. 62, Greencastle-Antrim 6
Andy Shay: Susquehanna Township 42, Greencastle-Antrim 7: A comfortable and confident quarterback with a deep arsenal of weapons will steer Hanna comfortably past a Blue Devils defense not fully equipped for this much heat this early.
Andy Sandrik: Susquehanna Twp. 38, Greencastle-Antrim 14: There are many ways ‘Hanna can hurt you, the most potent of which is QB Torin Evans, our top player to watch in the Colonial Division this fall. Evans diced up South Western last week, completing nearly 80 percent of his passes for 268 yards and two TDs.
Adam Kulikowski: Susquehanna Twp. 45, Greencastle-Antrim 20: The Tribe’s offense is what keeps defensive coordinators up at night. Can the Blue Devils find enough answers in Week 2 to make this one relevant in the final stanza?
West Perry 28, Boiling Springs 0
Andy Shay: West Perry 32, Boiling Springs 27: I need way more information and games played from these two clubs to know enough to make a somewhat educated guess. Translated this is a pure guess. Bubblers Week 1 result was shocking and West Perry was expected but on many fronts both outfits overperformed perhaps.
Andy Sandrik: West Perry 28, Boiling Springs 21: Congrats to the Bubblers for a big Week 1 win over Littlestown. A road victory over the Mustangs – who got 266 yards and two TDs on 23 carries from Evan Jutba last week in a win over Susquenita – won’t be as easy.
Adam Kulikowski: West Perry 24, Boiling Springs 20: Mustangs found another stud back that embodies that West Perry-tough attitude. I see another heavy workload for the young lad Friday night.
East Pennsboro 16, Trinity 9
Andy Shay: Trinity 24, East Pennsboro 0: Yes the Shamrocks offense will be a work in progress this season. But they have some pieces. On the other side of the ball they are loaded and the only way to make ground is through the air to deep targets and hit them. Panthers don’t have the horses for that scenario.
Andy Sandrik: Trinity 21, East Pennsboro 7: The Shamrocks may have lost last week, but QB Mason Boyer and WR Maddox Jarzynski established quite the connection, with the signal caller finding his man 12 times for 171 yards. This type of rapport could pay dividends for Trinity in what could be a close game against East Pennsboro.
Adam Kulikowski: Trinity 27, East Pennsboro 14: In tight games, I tend to err on the side of teams with the ability to hit the homerun. That’s the Shamrocks in my book.
Saturday, August 30
Mechanicsburg 35, Palmyra 7
Andy Shay: Mechanicsburg 38, Palmyra 7: I know both teams are 1-0, but it’s still hard for me to see any way the Cougars are able to keep pace in this one as the Wildcats are explosive.
Andy Sandrik: Mechanicsburg 37, Palmyra 16: Gotta respect what Palmyra was able to do in its 30-0 win over Lebanon, but do the Cougars have the depth to stay with Mechanicsburg for four quarters?
Adam Kulikowski: Mechanicsburg 45, Palmyra 13: Perhaps we’ll be bulletin board material in the Palmyra locker room, but defeating Lebanon and knocking off Mechanicsburg are two very different beasts.
Harrisburg 29, Bishop McDevitt 21
Andy Shay: Harrisburg 27, Bishop McDevitt 20: Long live Market Street Mayhem. Enough of my old-school, throwback cheerleading. The Week 1 results matter, but in this game throw them aside and enjoy the theatrics that will unfold. Because a drama-free game is definitely NOT going to happen.
Andy Sandrik: Harrisburg 28, Bishop McDevitt 20: The Cougars come in with some pep in their step after dispatching a premier Pa. program in Imhotep Charter, while the Crusaders are still looking to find their footing after getting thumped by an all-star team from Canada. Advantage Harrisburg.
Adam Kulikowski: Harrisburg 33, Bishop McDevitt 27: The premier match up on the docket is a Saturday afternoon tilt at Severance Field. Both of these teams are stacked with Division 1 talents–but I’m giving the ready-on-Week-2 nod to Coach Cal’s Cougars.