BRADFORD TO PLAY HUNTINGDON IN OPENING ROUND OF PIAA CLASS AAA PLAYOFFS

Last season the Owls defeated Central Cambria 35-7 before losing to Wilmington 35-0 in the second round.

To get back to the state playoffs this season, Bradford had to beat Clearfield 28-21 in the District 9 championship game last Friday.

Huntingdon, meanwhile, topped Indian Valley 33-16 to win the District 6 title Saturday.

Bradford is a run dominated team that has rushed for 2,388 yards this season while only throwing for 482.

Hungtingdon, on the other hand, likes to run a more balanced attack. The Bearcats have rushed for 2.241 yards this season while passing for 1,384.

Bradford's rushing attack, which has helped the Owls average 37.3 points per game, is led by two backs who have topped 500 yards this season and two more who have gone over 250 yards for the year.

Jason Casey leads the Owls in rushing with 747 yards on 89 carries, an average of 8.4 yards per carry. He has scored eight touchdowns. Elliot George is adding 528 yards rushing on 75 carries an average of 7.04 yards per carry while scoring nine touchdowns. Jim Nuzzo is contributing 488 yards on 88 carries (5.5 ypc) and has scored four times and Mike Fair has rushed the ball 47 times for 264 yards and seven touchdowns while being used mainly in short yardage situations.

When the Owls do pass they put the ball in the hand of quarterback Kevin Rose who has completed 24-of-53 passes this season for 482 yards and four touchdowns while throwing just one interception. Rose's main target is Ben Copeland who has caught 15 passes for 367 yards and four scores.

The Owls defense has been pretty strong most of the year as well allowing only 143 points on the season an average of 14.3 per game.

Huntingdon's offense is pretty potent as well averaging 35.1 points per game while the Bearcats defense is allowing only 6.8 points per contest.

The Bearcats rushing attack is led by the combination of Jon Riley and Ben Gibboney.

Riley is the team's leading rusher with 797 yards on 146 attempts and 11 touchdowns. He scored on a season-long 96-yard run. Gibboney, meanwhile, is adding 707 yards rushing on 96 carries (7.4 ypc) while scoring four touchdowns.

Other key players in the Huntingdon rushing attack are Jerrod Smith (240 yards & 3 TDs) and Geoff Kozak (191 yards & 4 TDs).

The passing game for the Bearcats is directed by sophomore quarterback Bo Boder who has completed 73-of-117 passes (62.4%) for 1,254 yards and 17 touchdowns while throwing eight interceptions.

Boder likes to spread the ball around with four receivers catching at least 10 passes.

Gibboney is the pass catch leader with 21 grabs for 276 yards and three touchdowns, while Jimmy Cook has 15 catches for 252 yards and two scores. Jason Brindle is the top receiver yardage wise with 16 grabs for 331 yards and six scores, while Kozak has added 12 catches for 238 yards and three touchdowns.

The two teams had one like opponent this season in Bellefonte. Bradford defeated Bellefonte 30-20, while Huntingdon beat Bellefonte 18-7.

EDITORS NOTE: For more information on Huntingdon football please visit the team's web site at www.bearcatfootball.com