2010 DISTRICT 9 CLASS A PLAYOFF OUTLOOK

Predications

(8) Smethport at (1) Curwensville

WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 12, Riverside Stadium, Curwensville (Directions)

WINNER PLAYS: Cameron County or Clarion, Nov. 19 or 20, in semifinals at neutral site.

GAME NOTES: Curwensville beat Smethport 49-26 in Week One at Curwensville. The Hubbers trailed by just nine, 15-6, at halftime but Curwensville scored 27 straight points in the third quarter to break the game open. Alex Holland ran for 148 yards and two touchdowns in that game and Hunter McCracken threw for three touchdown passes. Curwensville’s special teams also scored twice – a 78-yard punt return by Shane Hoover and an 89-yard kickoff return by Shea Best. Kevin Lord had a touchdown catch and a touchdown run in the game for Smethport.

ABOUT THE SMETHPORT HUBBERS

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Jesse Cheatle

2010 RECORD:  4-5

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 0-4

TOP PLAYERS: Junior QB/S Kevin Lord (35 of 86 passing, 608 yards, 6 TDs, 7 Ints; 81 carries, 542 yards, 8 TDs; 9 total TDs); Senior RB/DB Ryan Wells (114 carries, 899 yards, 10 TDs; 16 catches, 245 yards, 2 TDs; 3 ½ sacks); Senior RB/LB Brian Zetwick (53 carries, 343 yards, 5 TDs; 35 tackles, 1 int); Senior OL/LB Tony Farrell (73 tackles, 1 int, 2 fumble recoveries)

NOTABLE: Smethport snuck into the postseason for the first time since 2004 thanks to rival Coudersport deciding it didn’t want to enter the postseason and Johnsonburg playing a 10^th game – a loss at Keystone in Week 10 – that Smethport didn’t play. But the Hubbers aren’t apologizing and nor should they. They won three straight to close the season after starting 1-5 and are one of the hottest teams in the Class A field. Smethport is looking for its first postseason win since winning the 1998 District 9 Class A title and advancing to the PIAA Semifinals. That year, the Hubbers beat Clarion 53-14 in the D9 semifinals and Clarion-Limestone 28-14 in the title game and then beat Kennedy Christian 46-7 in the opening round of the PIAA playoffs and Bishop Carroll 34-21 in the quarterfinals before losing to Rochester 41-6 in the semifinals.

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 12/2004 (34-6 loss to Coudersport in first round).

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: 6 (5 Class A, 1 Class AA)/1998 (Class A)

ABOUT THE CURWENSVILLE GOLDEN TIDE../../Rosters/Curwensville.htm

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Andy Evanko

2010 RECORD: 8-1

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 4-0

TOP PLAYERS: Junior RB/ILB Alex Holland (217 carries, 1,842 yards, 22 TDs; 7 catches, 53 yards, 1 TD; 62 tackles, 1 sack, 1 int, 3 fumbles caused, 2 fumbles recovered); Sophomore QB/DB Hunter McCracken (26 of 59 passing, 450 yards, 9 TDs, 5 Ints); Senior RB/ILB Zach Dimmick (78 carries, 426 yards, 8 TDs; 45 tackles, 2 ints, 2 fumbles recovered, 1 fumble forced); Senior SE/DB Shane Hoover (16 catches, 286 yards, 6 TDs); Senior SE/DB Shae Best (15 catches, 350 yards, 6 TDs; 30 tackles, 1 int)  

NOTABLE: The Golden Tide were the No. 1 seed last year as well but got upset by fourth-seeded Coudersport 28-21 in the semifinals … Curwensville’s lone loss came Oct. 8 to AML Champion Brockway 41-26 … Holland is trying to become District’s 9 first 2,000-yard rusher since Curwensville’s Nate Sipes had 2,511 yards in 2004 and only the second 2,000-yard rusher in District 9 since 2000 – Dave Richards of Clearfield had 2,506 yards on 2002 … Holland also needs 57 yards to pass Bradford’s Pat Pascarella, whose season is over, to become the leading rusher in District 9 this season. That isn’t unusual for a Curwensville player, as Curwensville runners have led District 9 in rushing four times since 2004 including last year when Jed Greslick had 1,699 yards … Curwensville is a young team. Not only is Holland and junior and McCracken a sophomore, but the roster features only one senior offensive lineman.

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 8/Last year (28-21 loss in semifinals to Coudersport).

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: 2/2004

(7) Kane at (2) Redbank Valley

WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 12 at Redbank Valley High School  (Directions)

WINNER PLAYS: Port Allegany or Elk County Catholic, Nov. 19-20, in semifinals at neutral site.  

GAME NOTES: This is the first-ever meeting between these teams.

ABOUT THE KANE WOLVES

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Jason Barner

2010 RECORD: 4-5

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 0-3

TOP PLAYERS: Senior RB/DB Logan Depto (103 carries, 421 yards, 2 TDs); Senior RB/LB Dylan Eckstrom (53 carries, 308 yards, 4 TDs; 62 tackles, 1 sack); Junior RB/DB Pat Anderson (51 carries, 244 yards, 1 TD); Senior TE/DB Evan Depto (13 catches, 272 yards, 1 TD; 73 tackles, 1 sack); Junior OL/DL Josh Kibbie (63 tackles, 5 sacks); Senior OL/LB Shane Cotterman (61 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 int); Senior OL/DL Marty Niklas (58 tackles, 7 ½ sacks).

NOTABLE: Kane is back in Class A after spending the past two seasons as a Class AA team. The last time the Wolves were in Class A they won the title in 2007 and advanced to the PIAA semifinals … Senior Alex Anderson (41 of 96, 580 yards, 4 TDs, 5 ints) started the season at quarterback but hasn’t played since Oct. 15 because of an injury. Sophomore Sean Jordan has stepped in and played solid going 14 of 25 for 272 yards, 3 TDs … The Wolves have allowed the fewest points among the Class A teams in District 9 this season with 144 (16 ppg).

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 6 (4 Class A; 2 Class AA)/Last year (Class AA – Lost to Karns City 40-0 in semifinals)

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: 1/2007 (Class A)

ABOUT THE REDBANK VALLEY BULLDOGS

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Frank Fabian

2009 RECORD: 5-5

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 0-1

TOP PLAYERS: Senior QB/DB Brandon Bain (81 of 152 passing, 1,192 yards, 14 TDs, 3 Ints; 102 carries, 382 yards, 3 TDS; 3 ints on defense); Senior FB/LB Caleb Delp (117 carries, 788 yards, 11 TDs; 13 catches, 169 yards, 1 TD; 8.8 tackles per game); Junior WR/LB Keaton Delp (27 catches, 594 yards, 9 TDs); Junior OL/DL Braden Bowser (5.2 tackles per game, 7 sacks).

NOTABLE: Redbank Valley is in the postseason for the seventh straight season but it looking for its first postseason win since advancing to the Class A semifinals in 2007 … Fabian is in his first year as head coach but was also an assistant coach for the Bulldogs during all but two of those playoff runs in the 2000s, and his defensive coordinator Ed Wasilowski was the head coach during all but the last two playoff appearances in that streak … The Bulldogs are the No. 2 seed despite a 5-5 record because of the pre-seeded nature of the D9 playoffs that started this year. They are a bit of a controversial No. 2 seed because they finished a game back of Clarion in the KSAC Small School Division and lost to the Bobcats but are the No. 1 seed out of the KSAC because of the D9 point system.

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 13 (9 Class AA, 4 Class A)/Last year (Lost to Curwensville in first round 30-8).

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: 3 (3 Class AA)/1996 (Class AA).

(6) Port Allegany at (3) Elk County Catholic

WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 12 at St. Marys HS (Directions)

WINNER PLAYS: Kane or Redbank Valley, Nov. 19 or 20, in semifinals at neutral site.

GAME NOTES: This is a rematch of a Week Four game won 27-20 by ECC in St. Marys. Ricky Pearsall led ECC with 141 yards and a touchdown while Kyle Schneider threw for a touchdown and ran for a score. Seth Lowery had 142 yards rushing and two touchdowns to lead Port Allegany.  

ABOUT THE PORT ALLEGANY GATORS

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Mike Bodamer

2009 RECORD: 5-4

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 1-3

TOP PLAYERS: Sophomore QB/DB Matt Bodamer (76 of 123, 1,604 yards, 19 TDs, 5 Ints; 83 carries, 450 yards, 9 TDs; 4 ints on defense); Senior RB/LB Seth Lowery (109 carries, 736 yards, 4 TDs; 50 tackles); Senior RB/S Camrin Stuckey (26 catches, 607 yards, 11 TDs; 3 ints on defense).

NOTABLE: The Gators overcame a 3-game losing streak early in the season by winning four of their last five games with the lone loss coming in overtime to AML North champion Cameron County … Port Allegany is making back-to-back playoff appearances for just the third time in school history (1996-97; 2003-05) … Gators were top scoring team in AML North this season with 289 points.

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 9 (6 Class A, 3 Class AA)/2009 Class A (Lost to Cameron County 29-22 in first round).

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: None.

ABOUT THE ELK COUNTY CATHOLIC CRUSADERS

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Travis Skrzypek

2009 RECORD: 7-2

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 3-1

TOP PLAYERS: Senior RB/DB Ricky Pearsall (200 carries, 1,469 yards, 17 touchdowns; 53 tackles); Senior QB/DB Kyle Schneider (41 of 83 passing, 727 yards, 8 TDs, 2 Ints); Senior SE/DB Tyler Herzing (17 catches, 387 yards, 4 TDs); Senior TE/DE/P (13 catches, 194 yards, 2 TDs; 61 tackles, 2 sacks; 22 punts, 38.77 per punt, 7 punts inside the 20-yard line); Senior RB/LB Sam Schneider (63 tackles); Senior G/DE Zac Brody (59 tackles).

NOTABLE: ECC started the year 6-0 before losing back-to-back games to Brockway (10-0) and Curwensville (8-1). Still, it’s the best regular-season record for the Crusaders since going 7-2 in 1998 … Pearsall is a 3,000-yard career rusher with 3,337 yards in three years with 35 touchdowns including 2,680 yards and 29 scores the last two seasons … ECC is a senior-laden team. Of the 34 players on the opening-game roster, 13 were seniors and most of the key players for the Crusaders are upperclassmen.

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 7/Last year (Lost to Clarion 29-2 in first round).

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: None

(5) Cameron County at (4) Clarion

WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 12, Clarion University’s Memorial Stadium (Directions)

WINNER PLAYS: Smethport or Curwensville, Nov.19 or 20, in semifinals at neutral site.

GAME NOTES: This is the third straight season these two teams have met in the postseason and the winner the last two years has been District 9 Class A champions. Last year, Clarion beat Cameron County 18-0 in the semifinals at Brockway on its way to the D9 title. Two years ago, the Red Raiders topped the Bobcats 18-8 in the District 9 title game also at Brockway … Cameron County is the fifth seed despite the better record because of the pre-seeding formula implemented this season that had the No. 2 team out of the KSAC seeded fourth and the No. 3 team out of the AML fifth.   

ABOUT THE CAMERON COUNTY RED RAIDERS

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Mark Morelli

2009 RECORD: 7-3

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 3-1

TOP PLAYERS: Senior RB/DB Jason Blose (174 carries, 1,192 yards, 12 TDs; 14 catches, 191 yards 1 TD); Senior RB/LB Andrew Fragale (86 carries, 502 yards, 7 TDs; 8.2 tackles per game); Junior QB/DB Zack Austin (38 of 96 passing, 549 yards, 4 TDs, 10 Ints; 67 carries, 361 yards, 6 TDs); Junior OL/DL Aaron Burnside (6.0 tackles per game, 11 sacks).

NOTABLE: Morelli is the third coach in three years for Cameron County, but that hasn’t slowed the Red Raiders who won their fourth straight AML North title this year. Unfortunately for the Red Raiders, they are 0-4 in AML Title game and that continued with the 57-22 loss to Brockway last week … Cameron County is playing its first road playoff game since losing 17-6 at Johnsonburg in 2006 as the fifth seed.   

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 5/Last year (Lost 18-0 to Clarion in semifinals).

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: 2/2008         

ABOUT THE CLARION BOBCATS

Roster; Stats; Schedule

HEAD COACH: Judd Allan

2009 RECORD: 5-5

RECORD VS. PLAYOFF FIELD: 1-0

TOP PLAYERS: Senior QB/LB Danny Walters (36 of 85 passing, 614 yards, 5 TDs, 6 Ints; 118 carries, 687 yards, 7 TDs; 70 tackles, 2 sacks); Senior RB/CB Kris Burkhart (120 carries, 564 yards, 8 TDs); Sophomore WR/DB Camron Kirkland (21 catches, 397 yards, 3 TDs; 18 carries, 155 yards, 1 TD); Senior LB Lewis Armstrong (89 tackles, 2 sacks); Senior WR/DB (6 catches, 110 yards; 82 tackles, 4 ints)   

NOTABLE: Clarion is playing in the postseason for the 14^th time but for only the second time without Larry Wiser as head coach. The other time was in 1987 when the Bobcats made the postseason for the first time losing to Johnsonburg 20-6 in the title game, the only game that season … The Bobcats will try to become the first repeat champion in Class A since Coudersport won in 2005 and 2006 … Injuries have beset Clarion this year with the Bobcats losing starting guard/LB Ian Matson (80 tackles) one of the best two-way lineman in the district, sophomore defensive end T.J. Armstrong, last season’s CHAMP D9Sports.com Rookie of the Year and starting quarterback Brandon Heeter, who split time with Walters and was 17 of 43 for 266 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions before getting hurt … Clarion is 5-0 against Class A teams and 0-5 against Class AA and AAA teams this year.

PREVIOUS DISTRICT 9 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES/LAST: 14/Last year (Won D9 title 7-0 over Coudersport).

DISTRICT TITLES/LAST TITLE: 2/2009.