Mounties will pose challenge for Dragons football team
High school football
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Central has enjoyed a long run of success on the high school football field over the past decade-plus, but last year's season opener against Philipsburg-Osceola was an eye opener for many of the Scarlet Dragons and coach Jerry Albright.
The Mountaineers doubled up Central, 48-24, which started a stretch where the Scarlet Dragons went 1-5.
"Unfortunately, we really took it on the chin that first game," Albright said. "It helped motivate us the rest of the season to get better."
The players have taken that to heart even after the season ended with Central winning three of its last four games.
"We probably had our best summer offseason workouts that we have had in the last 10 years," Albright said. "Our numbers were probably twice of what we had the previous couple years. We had workouts several times a week for linemen and skill guys and had numbers at each of them. The guys were motivated by last season. They want to come back and be better and get back to the Central tradition set in the past of winning several district titles. They want to win for themselves, win for the school and win for their community."
Friday's rematch against Philipsburg-Osceola in Roaring Spring at 7 p.m. won't be easy despite the preparation.
"They have a lot of skill guys coming back," Albright said. "They have a new fullback who runs tough. (Damarcus) Law is back for them, and he's super fast. We know we have to make sure we keep him boxed in and have a lot of guys running toward him when he touches the ball."
The Mountaineers nearly returned to the District 6 playoffs last year before injuries derailed the second half of their season and they finished 5-5.
"Preseason camp has gone well. This group has worked very hard and does everything we ask of them," P-O coach Jeff Vroman said. "As with all first scrimmages, we were able to evaluate each position and see who fits best at each one. I truly miss the 'old days' and two scrimmages. That second scrimmage was a much truer game audition than only having one. We got a lot of good work in against another team, and now we get back to preparing for game situations."
Vroman is ready for a more experienced Central squad.
"We need to limit big plays defensively, because they are able to make plenty of them," Vroman said. "As with any first game, we need to limit turnovers and mistakes and make them earn everything."
Albright is hoping the Scarlet Dragons are in a position to do that.
"As they got more experience and got more confident, they developed as a team more than anything else," Albright said. "Once they started playing for each other, we started playing better as a team and good things happened at the end."
BG ready for year
A year ago, Bishop Guilfoyle Academy opened its season against a Penns Valley team that ended up going 2-8.
The Marauders led just 14-12 at halftime before pulling away in the second half and figuring things out.
Friday instead of going to Spring Mills, BG will take on the Rams at Hollidaysburg at 7 p.m.
"We talked to the kids about that a lot," Bishop Guilfoyle coach Justin Wheeler said. "We have been watching their film throughout camp. We talked about not starting slow and playing up to their level. At our scrimmage, I thought we did it. We started fast."
The Marauders made it through camp healthy and are feeling confident.
"We knew we had a good group of guys back -- several all-state players," Wheeler said. "Then you bring back your quarterback and three linemen and a couple kids in every area of the team, skills and linemen, and you feel pretty good about the guys you're bringing back. I think we have guys that are ready to make that transition from junior varsity to varsity after a great offseason."
In addition to players making the jump from not playing much varsity to starting roles, BG has many players who started last year that could make a jump.
"We're a different team this year," Wheeler said. "We're a little more diverse. Jake (Kissell) was just the man last year. My son (quarterback Justin Wheeler) was just starting for the first time. Now, a bunch of these guys are two-year and three-year starters. I think we'll be much more diverse and won't have to rely on just one thing. I think that will help us and help the offense."
Big ICC game
Juniata Valley will begin its quest to return to the District 6 championship on Friday with a long trip to District 5 powerhouse Berlin Brothersvalley.
"They have a reputation of always being a tough, hard-nosed football team," Juniata Valley coach Bill Musser said. "We have to go up and make sure that we match physicality. We have to get off the bus first of all. A two-hour bus ride is going to be a little bit of a challenge for us, but I'm pretty happy with our scrimmage being able to go against the likes of BG and Bald Eagle Area. It gives us a pretty good look at what it's going to take to beat a team like Berlin."
The Green Hornets return a lot of starters, including Andrew Clark -- one of the top scorers and rushers in the Mirror's coverage area last season.
But rather than see what happened last year continue, Musser would like to see more consistency and improvement.
"We were a little inconsistent through camp," Musser said. "I think we got the work done that we needed to get done. I feel like we have some work to get done this week going into the season to be ready. As a coach, we're never satisfied."
Musser is hoping Juniata Valley can get an early lead, despite the long trip.
"We have to be mistake free, play disciplined football and have to come out and be the aggressor," Musser said. "If we play from behind or on our heels, we'll be in trouble."