Golden Tigers football looks to keep the train rolling
District playoffs
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It has been a long time since Hollidaysburg defeated Taylor Allderdice in the second week of the season.
Long enough that many people might have forgotten the Dragons actually led the Golden Tigers in the fourth quarter before Hollidaysburg rallied to win en route to an undefeated regular season.
Tigers coach Homer DeLattre isn't among those people.
"We played Allderdice before," DeLattre said. "We know that they are a very athletic team. They gave us as much trouble or more trouble than anybody we played this year, maybe aside from Fort Hill. Their athleticism is off the charts, and their quickness on the offensive and defensive line is something that gave us a lot of trouble. We were losing 16-14 in the fourth quarter before we scored two touchdowns to take that game over."
Though Hollidaysburg is proud of accomplishing its second 10-0 regular season in a row, the Golden Tigers know each week is the only game that matters now.
The game that matters this week is when they host Allderdice Friday at Tiger Stadium in the District 6-8-9-10 Class 5A subregional semifinals.
"That's our approach," DeLattre said. "We have been playing very well so far this year, but we lose now, we're done. It's one of those things that changes your attitude a little bit on things. Not that every play didn't matter during the year, but it's a very important topic that every play matters -- that's going to be our focus."
Hollidaysburg has improved since that game, especially defensively. The Golden Tigers are coming off their first shutout, though many of the points they have allowed as a team came on special teams or were allowed by backup units.
"We could see it in the summer workouts," DeLattre said. "We seemed to have more team speed. During our workouts and 7-on-7s, we seemed a little faster, especially defensively. We expected to play better defense. We had some experienced guys coming back on defense coming into the year, and we knew if we found a couple pieces to the puzzle, we could be really good."
Revenge game?
Cambria Heights, the defending District 6 Class 2A champion, will open this year's postseason against the only team the Highlanders have lost to this season, Marion Center.
"I think it's two programs that have a lot of respect for each other," Cambria Heights coach Jarrod Lewis said. "We both just won a share of the conference title. Two teams that went 9-1. It's playoff football, and what I like most about it is -- it is win or go home. There is no next week. There's a finality to it. There's an excitement that comes with that. I'm hoping the number of games we have played the last few years helps us prepare for that."
The Stingers, who come in as the No. 5 seed despite only losing one game to River Valley, will travel to Patton on Friday and are led by senior quarterback Camden Rising.
"He's fantastic," Lewis said. "Any time you play a quarterback with that much experience, it's tough to trip them up. They have seen everything. He handles pressure well. He runs like a fullback. He has a very good arm. I think he's extremely accurate. His passing numbers are like video game numbers. When you face a quarterback like that with a lot of weapons it's challenging."
The winner will likely play at top-seeded McCort-Carroll in the semifinals next week.
"I think our fans will show up," Lewis said. "When we played (at Marion Center), their fans showed up. I think it's going to be a great atmosphere."
Back in Blairsville
For the second year in a row, Bellwood-Antis will travel to River Valley for a District 6 Class 2A quarterfinal game.
The Blue Devils crushed River Valley last season, 43-14, but this year's team comes into the game at 9-1 with a new coaching staff and philosophy.
"They have changed what they do offensively with Ed Dalton there as coach," B-A coach Nick Lovrich said. "We know he's been around a long time. He's a very experienced coach that will have his kids ready to play. Being in the Laurel Highlands, we don't see many teams that run the offense that they do, but it's something we have been familiar with playing teams like Westmont and Juniata Valley back in the day that ran a similar offense."
Bellwood-Antis has won three in a row after it was in danger of missing the postseason four weeks ago.
"The last three weeks, we have played pretty well," Lovrich said. "We played a 4A high school in Bellefonte and then just beat Forest Hills. It was nice to get that win. I thought our kids responded to adversity Friday night when we fumbled the first play of the second half. It was nice to see them be able to bounce back and take over the game."
Though many of the Blue Devils played in last year's game, several B-A stars will be getting their first taste of postseason action with a chance to play Richland or United Valley in the semifinals on the line.
"Being there last year, it's a great facility," Lovrich said. "They built a new stadium that's really nice. Our kids have been there. They know what it's like, but we do have some kids who haven't played playoff games. It will be exciting for them to get that first playoff game in. Alex McCartney, Chase Plummer and Bryson Hescox missed last year. We were 2-8 when they were freshmen, so it will be exciting for those guys."