Week 1 winners and losers

It's time to reflect on the first week of the high school football season. Some teams were better than we thought, others ... not so much. But it's a long season and those good (or bad) vibes from Week 1 can quickly be replaced by Week 5 or 6.

Biggest winners

Northern -- OK, coach Mauck, you got me. Worried about a stiff Bermudian Springs defense and a young backfield, Northern coach Rick Mauck stressed his concerns about the Polar Bears' opener. And I bought it. A tight 214 yards from RB Robbie Bleiler on 12 carries and a stout defense lifted Northern to a 30-13 destruction of the Eagles.

Mechanicsburg -- A big, physical offensive line dominated Carlisle and opened loads of daylight for RB Tarik Leftenant, who chipped in 173 yards and three touchdowns for the Wildcats. It never hurts to pitch a shutout right off the bat.

Trinity -- This is the new Redeem Team. A 25-0 loss in the District 3-AA final to a team it beat earlier in the year 34-13 left a bad taste in the Shamrocks' mouth. The road to redemption started Friday with a 20-0 whitewash of state-ranked Lancaster Catholic. Three forced fumbles and 10 tackles from Matt Connors paced the 'Rocks' suffocating defense. QB Ted Spinelli (above) rushed for 100 yards in the muck.

Biggest losers

Red Land -- Yes, the Patriots beat rival Cedar Cliff, 10-7, but there won't be many more of those favorable outcomes if the team, back in the Class AAAA ranks, continues to pile up over 100 yards of penalties.

Carlisle -- This was a team with high hopes of starting 3-0 and using that as a springboard to at the very least a .500 record. The reality is the Thundering Herd struggled against Mechanicsburg's skill people and will face an even faster team in Central Dauphin East on Friday. A week later a highly-touted Hempfield team that blasted Conestoga Valley, 41-13, comes to town. Then it's a trip to defending 3/6-AAAA champion Harrisburg before ... well, let's just take it one week at a time.

Week 1 projections

Well, it doesn't appear that MaxPreps, with a redesigned site, will have predictions ready for opening weekend. No worries, here are my personal picks for Week 1 with Market Street Madness thrown in to make it an even dozen:

Bermudian Springs 16, Northern 10
Camp Hill 22, Biglerville 9
Boiling Springs 29, Big Spring 12
Red Land 24, Cedar Cliff 10
Cumberland Valley 31, Red Lion 10
Mechanicsburg 19, Carlisle 14
Middletown 17, East Pennsboro 13
Susquenita 12, Newport 10
Shippensburg 26, Halifax 14
Lancaster Catholic 10, Trinity 7
Indian Valley 18, West Perry 0
Bishop McDevitt 23, Harrisburg 13

Rankings correction

In the initial Pennsylvania Football News preseason rankings, the publication inadvertently listed Wilson Area, out of District 11, as a Class AA school. In the offseason, the Warriors moved up to Class AAA.

In the updated rankings, Wilson checks in at No. 10 in Class AAA and bumped Selinsgrove from No. 10 to the Others to Watch list.


The AA rankings had a bit more movement as the Warriors were ranked No. 3. Everyone moved up one spot with local entrant Trinity jumping to No. 7. The Shamrocks' Week 1 opponent, Lancaster Catholic, appeared in the No. 10 spot.

Light(s) at the end of the tunnel

Unless you're Harrisburg or Bishop McDevitt, this Friday's scrimmages will offer a taste of what's ahead on Aug. 29. Most of the teams will meet an opponent under the lights for the first time in 2008 - Cumberland Valley has a jump on everyone after scrimmaging South Western at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Speaking of those Eagles, it might be smart to check out their scrimmage at Chapman Field on Friday at 7 p.m. against J.P. McCaskey from Lancaster. This will give CV a good idea of where it stands in terms of speed. The Red Tornado, despite last year's 3-7 mark, usually boasts its share of speed. With regular-season games against traditionally fast opponents State College, Altoona, Central Dauphin East, Harrisburg and Central Dauphin this scrimmage will be very useful.

Another safe bet is South Western vs. Red Land and head coach Frank Gay (above) at West Shore Stadium. Kickoff between the two, who met for the 2006 District 3 Class AAA championship, is at 7 p.m. Both teams were shuffled back to the AAAA ranks in the offseason, making a rematch in the district playoffs unlikely.

The complete scrimmage schedule for Mid-Penn teams:
Friday
Area
West Perry at Trinity, 4
Bermudian Springs at Boiling Springs, 6
Eastern York at Big Spring, 6
Elizabethtown at East Pennsboro, 6
Lebanon at Mechanicsburg, 6
Kennard-Dale at Shippensburg, 6:30
Carlisle at Red Lion, 7
Cedar Cliff at Reading, 7
Dover at Northern, 7
Lancaster McCaskey at Cumberland Valley, 7
Newport at Camp Hill, 7
South Western at Red Land, 7
Others
Harrisburg at Wyoming Valley West, 10 a.m.
State College at Bethlehem Liberty, 4
Greencastle-Antrim at Gettysburg, 6
Hershey at Mt. Carmel, 6
Bishop McDevitt at Manheim Township, 6
Lower Dauphin at Susquehanna Township, 6
Steelton-Highspire at Shenandoah Valley, 6
Central Dauphin East at Wilson West Lawn, 7
Erie Cathedral Prep at Altoona, 7
Governor Thomas Johnson (Maryland) at Chambersburg, 7
Lewistown at Milton Hershey, 7
Middletown at Littlestown, 7
Saturday
Area
Susquenita at Millersburg, 11 a.m.
Others
Boonsboro (Maryland) at Waynesboro, 10 a.m.
Scotland at Fairfield, 10 a.m.
James Buchanan at Schuylkill Valley, 1

Ready for some football?

Possibly the most intriguing scrimmage this Saturday is the one involving New Oxford at Carlisle.

For the Thundering Herd, this scrimmage will christen Year 3 of the Wing-T offense under coach and offensive coordinator Brett Ickes.

Carlisle, which calls the Mid-Penn Keystone home, has high expectations that include a winning record and an appearance in the District 3 Class AAAA playoffs for the first time since 2005.

How the Herd fares against New Oxford, a YAIAA Class AAA school that went 4-6 in 2007, could tell a lot about how the team will do in games that count.

None of Carlisle's first three opponents (Mechanicsburg, Central Dauphin East and Hempfield) had a winning record last season. Starting in Week 4 with reigning District 3-6 Class AAAA king Harrisburg, the Herd meets five 2007 playoff teams over the final seven games.

A fast start is vital to a Carlisle team that will be breaking in a new quarterback and is a tad thin depth-wise on the offensive line.

Here's a list of the other scrimmages involving Mid-Penn teams this Saturday:

Area
Big Spring at Scotland, 10 a.m.
Boiling Springs at Newport, 10 a.m.
Camp Hill at Kennard-Dale, 10 a.m.
Cumberland Valley at South Western, 7
East Pennsboro at Cedar Cliff, 10 a.m.
Huntingdon at Shippensburg, 10 a.m.
Lebanon at Susquenita, 10 a.m.
Mechanicsburg at West Perry, 10 a.m.
New Oxford at Carlisle, 10 a.m.
Northern at West York, 10 a.m.
Red Land at Northeastern, 9 a.m.
Trinity at Halifax, 10 a.m.
Others
Central Dauphin at Lancaster McCaskey, 10 a.m.
Chambersburg at York , 10 a.m.
Conestoga Valley at Bishop McDevitt, 10 a.m.
Donegal at Steelton-Highspire, 9:30 a.m.
Gettysburg at Susquehannock, 10 a.m.
Hanover at Greencastle-Antrim, 10 a.m.
Indian Valley at Central Dauphin East, 11 a.m.
Palmyra at Milton Hershey, 9:30 a.m.
Pottstown at Middletown, 11 a.m.
Reading at Harrisburg, 10 a.m.
Red Lion at Hershey, 10 a.m.
Spring Grove at Lower Dauphin, 9:30 a.m.
Susquehanna Township at Shamokin, 10 a.m.
Waynesboro at Dover, 11 a.m.

Top recruits for 2009

In the Aug. 4 edition of Sporting News, the national weekly announced the top recruits for 2009 by state. Pennsylvania ranked seventh of 10 and of the five names mentioned, none were from District 3.

The only two seniors from the western portion of the commonwealth come from the same school. Dorian Bell and Corey Brown, a linebacker and athlete, respectively, both hail from Gateway, a suburban Pittsburgh school in Monroeville. The duo have verbally agreed to join 2007 recruiting darling and former Jeannette quarterback Terrelle Pryor at Ohio State University.

The Gators, who went 11-1 last year, lost to eventual state champion Pittsburgh Central Catholic in overtime in the District 7 (WPIAL) final and were ranked No. 2 in the state by the Pennsylvania Football News in the final rankings.

SN's list of top 2009 recruits:

1. Dorian Bell, Gateway, linebacker, 6-foot-0/226 pounds, Ohio State

2. Eric Shrive, Scranton West, offensive line, 6-7/285, Penn State

3. Je'Ron Stokes, Philadelphia Northeast, wide receiver, 6-1/178, Tennessee

4. Corey Brown, Gateway, athlete, 6-1/180, Ohio State

5. Tom Savage, Cardinal O'Hara, quarterback, 6-4/217, Rutgers

SN's list of top high school football states:

1. California

2. Texas

3. Florida

4. Ohio

5. Louisiana

6. Georgia

7. Pennsylvania

8. North Carolina

9. Alabama

10. South Carolina