Top 10 High School Football Rankings

Southeastern Pennsylvania Football

Featuring District 1, 12 and the Inter Ac

December 8, 2009

 

Thinking I may have been remiss by not doing this a little earlier this season, I’d first like to take a moment to recognize the two local web sites that publish these rankings -- HavenFootball.net with web master Mike Mayer and NeshaminyFootball.com and the two fellows over there, Bruce Traney and Bob Willits. They are all great guys whose knowledge of high school football is daunting. Their dedication to the game and web sites provides a great resource for all of us to enjoy. Next I’d also like to thank Rich Vetock and Tom Elling at PennsylvaniaFootballNews.com for all the great materials they make available. Plus TedSilary.com is another great site with a ton of resources about Philadelphia football. One of them is Ed “Huck” Palmer. He and Ted are tireless researchers, expert in all things having to do with Philadelphia scholastic football. And last but not least is Don Black’s epasports.com, with standings, schedules and scores for the entire state going back through 1999. Check out all these sites if you haven’t already but not before preparing yourself to be blown away.

Okay, how about last week’s games at the quad-A level? I don’t think it’s a stretch calling the games upsets, however mild. It’s a lot about perception where Easton was made out to be a team that might just out-physical LaSalle. Lehigh Valley pedigree. All that stuff. But at the end of the day, it was the Explorer’s who were out muscling the Lehigh Valley boys, punching out 178 yards on the ground to Easton’s 88. Maybe next year they’ll be talking about the tough, physical teams out of the Philadelphia Catholic League! Staying on the Eastern side of the board shows Ridley’s Mean Green rising to the occasion to beat highly regarded and top ranked North Penn. The Knights were ranked 11th by USA Today before the game. All those in attendance know the better team won that night. Still, it would have been nice seeing the Knights play with a full compliment of players rather than shorthanded with a few key players out and others lost during the course of the game.

Moving over to the Western half of the state finds two more upsets with Cumberland Valley beating highly regarded-ranked Bishop McDevitt and State College stopping Woodland Hills. Back that way, everyone knew CV and McDevitt was going to be a war and it was with Cumberland Valley prevailing in double overtime. Nothing fluky about it either. CV was the better team. State College produced the fourth upset of the weekend when they beat injury riddled Woodland Hills. Woody looked like a title team a few weeks ago but SC is a real team that will exploit any weakness. If CV comes in gloating after the McDevitt win, the Lions will knock their heads off. We may have lost some marquee teams in last week’s upsets but we are still left with four fine teams that will likely give us memorable games.

THE PLAYOFFS, All classes:

4A East: Ridley (13-1) vs. LaSalle (12-1); 12/12, 1PM, Northeast HS, Philly.
4A West: Cumberland Valley (12-2) vs. State College, 12/12, 1PM, Altoona HS.
3A East: Selinsgrove (14-0) vs. Archbishop Wood (11-2), 12/11, 7PM, Hershey Park Stadium.
3A West: Manheim Central (14-0) vs. West Allegheny (13-2), 12/11, 7PM, Altoona HS.
2A East: Lancaster Catholic (13-1) vs. West Catholic (12-2), 12/12, 1PM, Coatesville HS.
2A West: Wilmington (13-1) vs. Greensburg CC (12-2), 12/12, 1PM, Slippery Rock University.
1A East: Bishop McCort (13-0) vs. Tri Valley (10-4), 12/11, 7PM, State College HS.
1A West: Farrell (14-0) vs. Clarion (13-1), 12/11, 7PM, Slippery Rock University.

SE PA Top Ten

1. Ridley (13-1) Ridley shot to the top of the rankings, hurdling LaSalle in the process on the strength of their 19-10 win over previously undefeated and top ranked North Penn in the District-One final. What a game! It was held at Red Raider Stadium in Coatesville, played before a packed house that got their money’s worth. It looked like the Knights might just run away with it at the beginning when super quick Brandon Mercer burst through the line at the mid-point of the first-quarter for an electrifying 65-yard gain. Wow! Some kind of speed. But the Raider’s stepped up to demonstrate what a truly great defense they have by keeping the Knights out of the end zone and holding them to a Dylan Harris 32-yard field goal. Unfortunately, a few minutes before, North Penn lost a force at linebacker when Ralphie Reeves went down with what appeared to be a broken ankle. Not long after this, Brandon Mercer left the game with a broken collar bone, leaving the Knights without the services of two key players. After suffering terrible field position for most of the first quarter, fortunes changed with the Raiders getting it together offensively then scoring on a 27-yard Colin Masterson to Norm Donking touchdown pass at the three minute mark of the second-quarter. It seemed Ridley might go to the locker room with a 6-3 lead. But the Knights struck back on a fourth and two at the Ridley 31-yard line, when running back Craig Neehammer (in wildcat) took a direct snap and instead of banging ahead for the first, passed to Dom Taggart who came back for it, juggled it, shook off a Raider defender then ran in for the score. Talk about a momentum shifter. Now it appeared the Knights would hit the locker room with the lead. But there were 39 seconds left in the half, when Alex Nicolino fielded the kick-off on the seven-yard line, swung a little left to the sideline, made a nice move on a Knight and was gone, untouched for a 93-yard return that once again dramatically shifted momentum, sending the Green Raiders into the half with a 13-10 lead they would never relinquish. A scoreless third-quarter was followed by a game sealing fourth quarter three-yard blast by Ridley’s Shahaid Smith and it was over. The game featured momentum shifts, some interesting play calling, a few big plays, stops by Ridley’s defense (North Penn’s early on) and unfortunate injuries to a number of North Penn players including linebacker Mike Culbreath, quarterback Todd Smolinski, running back Craig Needhammer and those mentioned earlier. Also, Ridley’s line that, for whatever reason, is unendingly said to be small, is not. In fact, as the game progressed, they came to dominate the line of scrimmage, moving at will for their last score. North Penn hurt themselves with three turnovers, two picks and a fumble. Failing to make a first down early in the third-quarter with a fourth and one from Ridley’s six didn’t help. The win moves Ridley to the state semifinal for a game against LaSalle from District-Twelve's PCL. This one should be special with all the skill these two put on the field. Quarterbacks Colin Masterson (63%, 2,280py, 24 TDs) and Drew Loughery (60%, 2,180, 23TDs) all see the field well and have a deep, glue-fingered receiver corps. LaSalle has five players with over 20 receptions, including running back Jamal Abdur-Rahman coming out of the backfield. He is a slippery runner at 5-10, 170 with 1,019 yards rushing. That’s a lot of bodies to keep track of. All the receivers present large targets from Kevin Foster (6-1, 175) and Connor Hoffman (6-2, 200) to Sam Feliccia (6-3, 225) and tight end Steve Jones (6-5, 225). They score 31 a game on average and allow 13. At Ridley, everyone can catch, but the primary targets are Dion Shaw (6-0, 170), Alex Nicolino (5-8, 160) and Norm Donkin (5-11, 180). The backs are sophomore Jalen Randolph (6-0, 195), Shahaid Smith (5-6, 160, jr), Casey DePrinzio (5-11, 225, sr, big hitter on D) and Sam Dixon-Dougan (5-10, 180, jr). Both teams have talent galore and more offensive-striking power than anything coming out of the West. What a game this is going to be!

2. LaSalle (12-1) LaSalle showed a lot of moxie by recovering from a 14-0 first-quarter deficit and scoring 17 unanswered points in a hostile environment to pull out a 17-14 win against Easton in the quad-A quarterfinal game at Bethlehem Area School District Stadium. Nice, especially knowing snow and cold did their best to rob both of at least a piece of their passing game, especially LaSalle with their vaunted passing attack. Things got off to a rough start for them where Jashaad Gaddy almost single handedly beat them by intercepting a Drew Loughery pass and returning it to the 21-yard line. There, quarterback Justin Pacchioli connected with Kadeem Pankey on a 21-yard touchdown toss early in the first-quarter. Five minutes later, Gaddy, who rushed for 114 yards, got free on a reverse, streaking 85-yards to the end zone to make it 14-0 with five minutes left in the quarter. Phew, things were looking bad! But the Explorer’s showed a lot of heart for a team with so little PIAA post season experience and got back in the game in the second quarter. Quarterback Drew Loughery got LaSalle on the board early in the quarter, running one in from 17 yards out. Easton seemed to be having more trouble with the cold and snow than LaSalle when on their next series, running back Quran Hughes fumbled on his 21 yard line and the Explorer’s recovered. Seven plays later, Loughery hit his tight end Steve Jones for a five-yard touchdown, tying the score at 14 a piece at the half. The defenses locked things down in the second-half except for Mike Bennett’s 35-yard game winning field goal with a minute left in the third-quarter. Interestingly, LaSalle was able to run all over the Rovers, out-gaining them 178 yards to 88. Jamal Abdur-Rahman led LaSalle with 61 yards rushing on 17 carries. Fullback Time Wade contributed 32 yards on eight carries with Sam Feleccia and Drew Loughery adding 44 and 41-yards respectively. Loughery completed seven of 18 passes for 73-yards. The win sets up a possible classic with two gunslingers at quarterback when the Explorer’s square off against Ridley in the semifinal Saturday at Charlie Martin Stadium at 1:00 PM. It also brings together the genius of Ridley’s defensive coordinator Ralph Batty and the offensive prowess of LaSalle’s head coach Drew Gordon.

3. North Penn (13-1) Don’t feel too bad for the Knights after they secured their seventh double-digit winning season in the last eight years for a combined won-loss of 93-16 (85%), especially knowing they return so many great players for next year. They are going to be loaded (what’s new?), heavily favored to win the Continental and field another strong team. Ridley has great stuff coming up too so look for further close encounters between these great programs in the years ahead. Add in Garnet Valley growing a program; Avon Grove and Penncrest getting a taste; Coatesville with a promising young coach; Downingtown East, Neshaminy and Pennsbury with a strong core; St. Joseph’s Prep and West Catholic returning a bundle and I’m already excited about next year even though we still have some football to play this season!

4. St. Joseph's Prep (9-3)

5. Avon Grove (11-2)

6. Downingtown East (10-3)

7. Neshaminy (9-3)

8. Downingtown West (10-2)

9. Archbishop Wood (AAA, 11-2) Archbishop Wood broke into the Top Ten for the first time this year after upsetting previously undefeated Pottsgrove, 30-28. Been saying that a lot lately with previously undefeated Bishop McDevitt and North Penn also going down last weekend. So how about Archbishop Wood, putting together an 11 game winning streak since opening the season 0-2. If given the chance I doubt this group would lose again to Cardinal O’Hara as they did in the opener, 35-14. The other loss was to a spooky good Chestnut Hill Academy (9-1) team, 29-23, in overtime. Any way you look at it, they are helping to hoist the Philadelphia Catholic League banner even higher in the state this year by appearing in their second consecutive AAA semifinal. Joining them in other semi-final action are LaSalle at the 4A level and West Catholic at the 2A. Nice. The game against Pottsgrove (14-1) had a lot of swings and a number of big plays. None bigger than Scott Adkins 84-yard return of the opening kickoff. What a way to start a playoff game against an undefeated team with a punch straight to the gut. The second-quarter got real fun with the two combining for 24 points. Terrell Chestnut got the Falcon’s on the board with a ten-yard run in the second quarter, matched by Jerry Rahill’s one-yard run. Fullback Kayvon Greene scored form ten yards out, knotting the score at 14 a piece. Just before the half, Wood took a 17-14 lead when Nick Visco knocked a 33-yard field goal through the uprights. The third-quarter mimicked the first-quarter with the defenses prevailing until deep into the period where Terrell Chestnut found Scott Madl wide open over the middle for a 43-yard touchdown that put the Falcons back on top, 21-17. The Vikings responded when Rahill found Colin Thompson for a three-yard touchdown on the opening play of the fourth-quarter. That’s where it stayed until late in the quarter when Pottsgrove ground out what appeared to be a game winning 15 play drive of 60 yards. Kayvon Greene carried it in from a yard out giving them a 28-24 lead with three and a half minutes left in the game. It looked like lights out for Wood but they showed the heart of a true champion by storming back with a beautiful 64-yard nine play drive topped off by Jerry Rahill’s nine-yard run around the right side on a 2nd and goal for the score with 56 seconds left on the clock. Wow! He had spectacular game, accounting for 95% of Wood’s total offense, passing for 245 yards and running for another 94. The team gained another 17 yards of offense! The win advances them to the semifinal at Hershey Park Stadium Friday at 7 PM to play undefeated Selinsgrove (14-0). The Seals had no trouble with a good Allentown Central Catholic (12-2) team last week, winning 31-10. Selinsgrove is 60 miles above Harrisburg on the Susquehanna River where they play out of the Heartland Conference-Division 1. The only teams of note they beat before last week were Mount Carmel (7-5) and Berwick (7-4). Both are having down years and were pounded, 41-0 and 34-6 respectively. The team giving them the most severe test was Southern Columbia (9-5), who extended them before losing, 35-28. Southern was upset last week in the Single-A playoffs by Tri-Valley (10-4), 35-32. The Bulldogs might find it a little tougher this week against the 13-0 Crimson Crushers from Bishop McCort. So should Selinsgrove who is the real deal but have not played a team like Archbishop Wood.

10. West Catholic (AA, 12-2) West Catholic broke into the Top Ten on the strength of their development over the course of the season, their dominant size and speed, defense, and two losses that have taken on greater meaning as the year unfolds. The speed and size thing is almost a given at West Catholic, but few expected them to be as balanced on offense as they’ve become this year. Last year’s three headed monster bowled you over with an overpowering ground game featuring multi-talented Curtis Drake under center. Curtis rushed for 1,639 yards and passed for 1,354. He completed 58% of his passes and threw 15 touchdowns. Rob Holloman rushed for 1,923 yards with Raymond Maples running for 1,309 yards. Wow, what a record setting offense! How they did not win the AA title is still perplexing. This year’s quarterback is senior Jarred Evans (6-1, 160, sr). He is no Curtis Drake, rushing for 304 yards, but he has an arm that has already tossed 15 touchdowns and passed for 1,754 yards while completing 58% of his passes. That compounds in value with a back like Brandon Hollomon (5-11, 155, jr) rushing for 1,350 yards and Joshua Mathis (5-5, 145, jr) rushing for 880 more. The receiver corps is in the sure hands of Quran Kent (5-7, 145, jr), who caught 38 passes for 753 yards and Jaelen Strong-Rankin (6-1, 175, jr). Jaelen snagged 23 tosses for 369 yards. Steady Jim Lynch holds down the tight end spot where he’s caught 14 balls for 310 yards. The offense is down from last year’s production of 48 points per game but is still large at 33ppg. It’s the complete package that has to be respected. You can’t load the box with this year’s quick striking passing attack. The O-line is massive with center Dom DiGalbo (6-3, 225, so) flanked by senior guards Jake Zuzek (6-3, 290) and Marcus Burwell (5-9, 225). Rodney Linder (6-0, 281, jr) and Eric Harper (6-1, 291, sr) man the tackle positions. The defense has improved from last year’s yield of 14 ppg to 11 ppg with a highly experienced front seven. About those two losses. They were so long ago you may have forgot about them, coming over two months ago to LaSalle (12-1), 16-14, in week three and Archbishop Wood (11-2), 28-21, in week number five. The reason those narrow or “competitive losses” are so impressive is that both teams are also in semi-final action this weekend at the AAAA and AAA levels respectively. What a year for the PCL! For West Catholic to advance, they have to beat highly talented Lancaster Catholic (13-1) after taking care of business last week against North Schuylkill 19-14. LC got a stiff challenge as well from a strong Loyalsock team before winning, 19-13. Weather had a lot to do with both scores. LC’s only loss was to Manheim Central, 42-12, played without record setting quarterback Kyle Smith. Kyle set the Pennsylvania pass yardage record two weeks ago against Delone Catholic, bringing his career total to 8,174 yards, eight more than Pat Devlin attained at Downingtown East in 2005. He also tied Chad Kroll’s record of 49 touchdowns thrown in a single season in 1994 at Clearfield by throwing three touchdowns in a blizzard last week against Loyalsock. The coach, Bruce Harbach, is well respected back in District-Three where he is 76-23 in his 9th season. The Crusader’s lost to West Catholic in the semi-final last year, 37-14, largely as a result of three big plays. So the question might be as simple as … does this year’s group have the ability to get those three big plays again? Lancaster Catholic is stronger than last year’s team with quarterback Kyle Smith completing 63% of his passes and throwing for 2,557 yards. He has 49 touchdowns this year (!) and only six interceptions. His lead receiver, senior Tyler Purvis (6-3, 205) caught 57 passes for 985 yards. He’s also a load returning punts and kick-offs. Complimenting him and Smith is running back Jordan Stewart (6-1, 195, jr) who has rushed for 1,460 yards on 211 carries. It’s a big offense averaging 41 points a game supported by a defense allowing 13 ppg. The winner gets the winner of the Wilmington-Greensburg Central Catholic game. Wouldn’t the Burrs like another shot at Wilmington!

T I E

10. Penncrest (8-4)

Honorable Mention (Grouped by conference or classification, otherwise random)

Interboro (AAA, 12-1)
Pottsgrove (AAA, 14-1)
Garnet Valley (9-2)
Abington (7-3)
Pennsbury (9-2)
Council Rock South (8-3)
Malvern Prep (7-4)
Cardinal O'Hara (8-3)
George Washington (8-3)
Unionville (8-4)
Rustin ( AAA, 11-1)


State Top 10 High School Football Rankings
December 8, 2009

1. Ridley (13-1) See Southeastern PA rankings.

2. LaSalle (12-1) See Southeastern PA rankings.

3. State College (11-2) State College pulled one of the big upsets last week by defeating powerful Woodland Hills (12-2) in the quarterfinals, 14-3. A glance to Woodland Hills injury list probably takes this out of the realm of “upset” knowing fullback Cameron Thompkins and defensive linemen Rich Gray were sidelined the entire game. Other D1 players went down when OT/DT Khaynin Mosley-Smith was carried from the field in the first-quarter followed by wide out Mike Lee. Add in a hobbled tailback in Dom Timbers (1,516 yds) who was held to 48 yards to see they were nowhere near full strength. The loss of so many key players on both side of the ball set them up for a long night. State’s big, physical team and strong defensive play did the rest. Before the game it was unheard of for any team to so dominate by putting together two long scoring drives of 12-plays each. The first came in the second quarter on an 80 yard drive following a scoreless first with Alex Kenney collecting a nine-yard toss from Dom Mills. They ended the game with 208 rushing yards and 47 yards passing. Dom (6-2, 235) started the season as the quarterback then moved back to the defense (a terror at SS) with the development of junior Matt Mazzara (6-0, 196). Unfortunately, Matt went down for the rest of the game in the second quarter. No matter as Dom took over to finish the drive and get the first score. Alex Kenney had a great game for the Lions snagging the TD toss, rushing for 88 yards, and dragging down quarterback John Yezovich a few yards shy of pay dirt to end the first half. He also had two key fourth-quarter interceptions to end Wolverine drives. Quite a game. The second-half opened with Woodland Hills putting together a drive that culminated in a Sam Scifo 35-yard field goal, cutting the score to 7-3. State High responded later that quarter with another 12-play, 74 yard drive, with FB Colby Way taking it in from three-yards out. Colby is their starting tight end at 6-3, 230 who occasionally subs at fullback. That’s how it ended with State sitting on top of a 14-3 score at Mansion Park in Altoona. They return to the Mansion Saturday to take on fellow Mid Penn Commonwealth member Cumberland Valley who is hot off their stunning upset of top ranked Bishop McDevitt. State won the first encounter way back on September 11th in the Mid Penn opener, 21-17, but will see a far different team this time around in the first ever West finals meeting between two teams from the Mid Penn Conference.

4. Cumberland Valley (12-2) Two of the Mid Penn Conference’s most successful teams gave us one for the ages when Cumberland Valley and Bishop McDevitt locked horns in a titanic struggle between two of Central Pennsylvania’s finest. You’ve got to be real careful in that conference when you say “most successful” with the likes of Central Dauphin, State College, Harrisburg, Northern, Trinity and Steelton Highspire, especially the Rollers, all playing in the sprawling MPC. What a conference. As we mentioned last week, this one brought together the year’s premier East Shore team, McDevitt and the West Shore muscle team, Cumberland Valley. A great match up of city versus suburb. For a fast peek into these programs, McDevitt has had just six losing seasons since 1975 while the Eagles have had but two, meaning both are used to winning. That in itself made it appropriate they went double overtime to settle this one. The first-quarter was a brutal feeling out process with each side weathering blow after blow by the other. McDevitt crossed into Cumberland Valley territory five times in the first half to be turned away on every occasion by the staunch Eagle defense. Coach Tim Rimpfel was mixing it up defensively, putting as many as eight into pass coverage. It paid off with Crusader quarterback Matt Johnson throwing five interceptions. He entered the game with a season total of three interceptions! CV finally made a move in the second-quarter when junior quarterback Eric Sawyer (6-0, 170, lefty) hooked up with another junior, halfback Kevin Snyder (6-2, 210), a real hitter at LB as well, on a 67-yard pass that moved them from their 30 to the McDevitt’s three-yard line. It was easy pickings from there feeding the big dog Travis Friend (6-2, 240, sr) who scored on the very next play, giving them a 7-0 lead at the half. Travis is another big time hitter at line backer. Both teams scored in the third quarter when Matt Johnson connected with Dan Leonard for a 24-yard touchdown and CV countering with Kevin Snyder scoring on a 13-yard run, following a fumbled punt by McDevitt. Turnovers plagued them all night. Fourth-quarter action witnessed a nice challenge and another counter by CV when the Crusaders scored on a Jameel Poteat nine-yard run to pull within 14-12 with 4:00 left to play. The two-point conversion attempt was an incomplete pass. CV’s counter came when Kevin Snyder got loose for a 67-yard touchdown, running over a few people in the process to take a 20-12 lead with 2:30 left to play. The extra point was blocked but it still looked like a done deal with so little time remaining. CV looked like a winner but the Crusader’s were now pumped following the block They came roaring back down the field, moving 58 yards in just over a minute and a half with Poteat taking it in from seven yards out. McDevitt had to go for two and got it when quarterback Matt Johnson cruised in to tie the score at 20-20 with 56 seconds to go. Phew! CV’s explosive offense wasn’t thinking overtime as they motored down the field once again in the closing seconds to McDevitt’s 13 where Lance Geesey’s 30-yard field goal was blocked, sending the game into overtime. McDevitt struck first on a third and three when Jameel Poteat broke through for the score. Cumberland Valley scored on their very first play when Eric Sawyer hit tight end Colton Kirkpatrick (6-1, 205) for six. Colton is another member of their fine line backing corps. In the second overtime, CV got the ball first, scoring easily on a Travis Friend 1-yard run to take a 34-27 lead. Once again the Crusaders took over only to see Matt Johnson throw his fourth interception of the game, picked off by Kevin Snyder. What a fitting ending to a great game as the Cumberland Valley faithful stormed the field in wild celebration. Kevin Snyder really stood out, catching three passes for 110 yards and rushing for 118 yards, plus that pick to end it. Eric Sawyer is a great surprise this year and was again steady completing six of 11 passes for 76 yards and one touchdown. He’s only a junior but scans the field like a veteran, looking off his first receiver for other options. McDevitt got off more plays 79, for more yards, 475, but still fell short. CV netted 410 yards on 61 plays with a possession time of just under 18 minutes! The win secured their 11th district title, but they haven’t seen gold since 1992 when they went 15-0, beating Upper Saint Clair in the final, 28-12. The semi-final against State College pits two teams that line up and come right at you. Both prefer to run it down your throat with a big backs and a shifty HB/SB on the side. CV has senior Chris Conway (5-9, 165) with over 700 yards. State College has Alex Kenney killing you with his speed and +1,000 yards rushing. If CV can manage their college like OL and they probably can seeing what they did to McDevitt’s, the difference here could be quarterback Eric Sawyer. It’s at the Mansion Saturday.

5. Bishop McDevitt (12-1) McDevitt’s world came crumbling down around them with a double overtime loss in the semi-final. But like North Penn, don’t feel too bad for them with so much talent coming back next year. It looked for a moment that they might just snatch a quad-A crown this year and possibly a triple-A next year when they drop down in classification, but it wasn’t meant to be. Many are upset by the drop in class but they’ll hang onto some of their rivalries with the big boys and get plenty of competition at this level. There is a team in Manheim that is chomping at the bit for a chance to get at McDevitt. Susquehanna Township over on the north side of town wants some too and West York, Boone, TJ, Char Val, Cathedral Prep, Archbishop Wood, Abington Heights and Berwick … to name a few, would all love the opportunity to give the Crusaders a taste of Triple-A football.

6. North Penn (13-2) See Southeastern PA rankings.

7. Woodland Hills (12-2) Twelve and two -- not bad. I’m being facetious in light of their going 4-6 in 2008 and 3-7 the year before. They had a super team this year that was crippled the last two weeks with injuries, well beyond repair for an encounter with a team like State College. Fullback Cam Thompkins (shoulder) and DE Rich Gray (ankle) were sidelined with running backs Dom Timbers (back) and Lafayette Pitts (knee) struggling to play. Regardless, they played a whale of a game against a mean bunch of Lions, nearly pulling it out before losing, 14-3. When healthy, they were as good as any team in the state and better than most. But you can’t lose 5 D1 players with Khaynin Mosley-Smith carted off the field, joined by Purdue recruit Mike Lee at wide out. They are 12-2 but still the team that beat Pittsburgh Central Catholic twice and Bethel Park twice before shutting out undefeated Gateway, 10-0 in the D7 final. Nice season.

8. Gateway (12-1)

9. Easton (13-2)

10. Bethel Park (10-2)

Honorable Mention

North Allegheny (9-2)
Wilson (11-2)
Manheim Central (AAA, 14-0)
Downingtown East (10-2)
Downingtown West (10-2)
Avon Grove (11-2)
Archbishop Wood (11-2)
St. Joseph's Prep (9-3)
Neshaminy (9-3)
Selinsgrove (AAA, 14-0)
West Allegheny (AAA, 13-2)