BPI Predictions: Week 5

Below is a look at what the Born Power Index thinks will happen this weekend in Mid-Penn football.

Last week, the BPI went 12-4 straight up and was a disappointing 7-9 against the spread. For the year (since Week 2) the BPI is 44-14 straight up and 26-31-1.

*-denotes home team

Friday
Commonwealth Division
Central Dauphin by 17 over Central Dauphin East*
Cumberland Valley* by 42 over Chambersburg
Harrisburg by 2 over State College*

Keystone Division
Bishop McDevitt by 9 over Lower Dauphin*
Cedar Cliff by 27 over Red Land*
Hershey by 19 over Mechanicsburg*

Colonial Division
Big Spring by 18 over West Perry*
Shippensburg* by 40 over James Buchanan
Northern by 1 over Gettysburg*
Greencastle-Antrim by 49 over Waynesboro*

Capital Division
Boiling Springs by 26 over Camp Hill*
Milton Hershey by 20 over Susquenita*
Palmyra by 10 over Steelton-Highspire*
Trinity by 20 over Middletown*

Non-division
Susquehanna Twp. by 26 over Carlisle*

Non-conference
Lancaster Catholic by 18 over East Pennsboro*

District 3 Power Ratings: The Pairings

Because we absolutely love high school football playoffs at The Sentinel, we offer the first look at what the first-round pairings would be if the District 3 postseason began Friday night. These are based on the official District 3 power ratings that Bob Baker computes.

Class AAAA
Central Dauphin East (16, 2-2) at Dallastown (1, 4-0)
Warwick (9, 3-1) at Harrisburg (8, 3-1)

William Penn (12, 2-2) at Governor Mifflin (5, 3-1)
Manheim Twp. (13, 2-2) at Wilson (4, 4-0)

Cedar Cliff (11, 3-1) at Red Lion (6, 3-1)
Central York (14, 2-2) at Daniel Boone (3, 4-0)

Cumberland Valley (10, 3-1) at South Western (7, 3-1)
Spring Grove (15, 2-2) at Central Dauphin (2, 4-0)

Class AAA
Cocalico (16, 2-2) at Lampeter-Strasburg (1, 4-0)
Shippensburg (9, 3-1) at East Pennsboro (8, 3-1)

Bishop McDevitt (12, 2-2) at Conrad Weiser (5, 3-1)
Central Catholic (13, 3-1) at Hershey (4, 3-1)

Big Spring (11, 3-1) at Lebanon (6, 3-1)
West York (14, 2-2) at Susquehanna Twp. (3, 3-1)

Hamburg (10, 3-1) at Dover (7, 3-1)
Palmyra (15, 3-1) at Greencastle-Antrim (2, 4-0)

Class AA
Annville-Cleona (8, 2-2) at Littlestown (1, 4-0)
Boiling Springs (5, 3-1) at Delone Catholic (4, 3-1)

Bermudian Springs (6, 3-1) at Wyomissing (3, 3-1)
Trinity (7, 3-1) at Lancaster Catholic (2, 4-0)

Class A
Camp Hill (8, 0-4) at Holy Name (1, 3-1)
Steelton-Highspire (5, 2-2) at Halifax (4, 3-1)

Columbia (6, 1-3) at Millersburg (3, 3-1)
Upper Dauphin (7, 1-3) at York Catholic (2, 3-1)

BPI Predictions: Week 4

Below is a look at what the Born Power Index thinks will happen this weekend in Mid-Penn football.

Last week, the BPI went 15-6 straight up and 11-9-1 against the spread.

*-denotes home team

Friday
Commonwealth Division
Chambersburg* by 5 over Central Dauphin East
Cumberland Valley* by 3 over State College

Keystone Division
Cedar Cliff by 6 over Hershey*
Lower Dauphin by 20 over Red Land*

Colonial
Gettysburg by 26 over James Buchanan
Shippensburg by 20 over Big Spring*
Northern* by 15 over Waynesboro
Greencastle-Antrim* by 40 over West Perry

Capital
East Pennsboro* by 15 over Middletown
Trinity* by 12 over Steelton-Highspire
Palmyra* by 16 over Susquenita

Non-division
Central Dauphin* by 41 over Mechanicsburg

Non-conference
Boiling Springs* by 20 over Columbia

Saturday
Commonwealth
Harrisburg* by 27 over Carlisle

Keystone
Bishop McDevitt* by 28 over Susquehanna Twp.

Capital
Milton Hershey* by 29 over Camp Hill

East Penn appears on rankings; CV falling

Earlier today we posted an entry detailing why Cumberland Valley shouldn't fall out of the top five in the Pennsylvania Football News' Class AAAA rankings following its 35-21 loss to Class AAA No. 2 Bishop McDevitt.

Unfortunately, a computer malfunction wiped that entry out and time constraints prevented us from posting it again. Well, the PFN released its new rankings this afternoon and the Eagles (2-1) tumbled all the way No. 10 in Class AAAA behind other District 3-AAAA teams Wilson and Central Dauphin. We still think CV is a top five team but now they'll have to prove it on the field and make the long and difficult climb back to the top.

In other rankings news, unbeaten East Pennsboro (3-0) is listed as a team to watch in Class AAA. Behind sensational quarterback Kelvin White, the Panthers are rolling and averaging 44 points per game during the unbeaten start.

White leads the area with 550 passing yards and nine touchdowns. The senior has completed 41 of 56 attempts.

The Panthers host Middletown on Friday before welcoming defending PIAA Class AA champion Lancaster Catholic to Saxon Memorial Stadium on Oct. 1 and heading to COBO Field for a date with Trinity on Oct. 8.

The next three weeks will say a lot about East Penn.

"We have some huge games coming up," East Penn coach Todd Stuter (above) said before Tuesday's practice session. "We've always preached one game at a time. We just play one play at a time. We play one play at a time and when we're done with that play we go on to the next play.
"We're breaking the game down, playing it one step at a time and enjoying what we're doing. Things could fall apart real quick but we're just staying with what we're doing."

Looking back at McDevitt vs. CV

In the rush that is a Friday night in The Sentinel, some vital pieces of information were left out of the story detailing Bishop McDevitt's 35-21 win over Cumberland Valley at Chapman Memorial Field.

That, and the fact that the game was arguably the biggest in Pennsylvania that evening we decided to take a quick lock back before completely turning the page to Week 4.

The first important fact is that both offenses eclipsed the 400-yard mark. Bishop McDevitt totaled 460 yards of offense (281 rushing, 179 passing) and CV went off for 402 (253 rushing, 149 passing). Due to the potency of the offenses, the teams combined for 40 first downs (21 for McDevitt, 19 for CV).

The game itself lasted two hours and 51 minutes but it wasn't because incomplete passes from McDevitt quarterback Matt Johnson (above), who completed 8 of 14 for 179 yards, two passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown. Johnson and running back Jameel Poteat, who rushed 35 times for 227 yards and three touchdowns (one receiving), were the two best players on the field.

McDevitt somehow overcame a whopping 11 penalties for 96 yards. CV drew only five flags for 40 yards.

As exciting as the game was Friday night - in truth, it could have gone either way despite the 14-point final - we'll have to wait another year for these two behemoths to meet again. McDevitt chose to compete at the Class AAA level for at least this year and next while CV remains in Class AAAA.

BPI Predictions: Week 3

Below is a look at what the Born Power Index thinks will happen this weekend in Mid-Penn football.

*-denotes home team

Friday
Capital Division
Steelton-Highspire* over East Pennsboro in OT
Milton Hershey over Boiling Springs* by 6
Palmyra over Camp Hill* by 21
Trinity over Susquenita* by 27

Non-division
Bishop McDevitt by 6 over Cumberland Valley*
Chambersburg* by 28 over Gettysburg
Susquehanna Twp.* by 7 over Greencastle-Antrim
Middletown by 14 over James Buchanan*
Northern by 3 over Mechanicsburg*

Non-conference
Carlisle by 6 over Red Lion*
Lampeter-Strasburg* by 6 over Cedar Cliff
Hershey by 20 over Cedar Crest*
Kennard-Dale by 17 over Big Spring*
Shippensburg* by 28 over Northeastern
Dover* by 4 over Red Land
Central Dauphin East* by 13 over Susquehannock
Mount Carmel* by 24 over West Perry
South Western* by 10 over Lower Dauphin
New Oxford by 11 over Waynesboro*

Saturday
Non-conference
Central Dauphin by 60 over Delaware Valley Charter*
Harrisburg by 26 over William Penn

The best of the non-conference best

Of the games that involve coverage area teams stepping out of the Mid-Penn Conference this season, the one that will take place in Lampeter on Friday night is at the top of the list.

Cedar Cliff (2-0) takes its high-flying offense, powered by dual quarterbacks Tim Kelly (right) and Tyler Orris, into Lancaster-Lebanon League country to meet Section II member Lampeter-Strasburg (2-0) on Friday at 7 p.m.

This will be the Colts' final warm-up before they enter Mid-Penn Keystone Division play and the Pioneers should easily prepare Cedar Cliff for what it will face in the division.

L-S has blasted Class AAAA teams Hempfield and Penn Manor in the first two weeks of the season by a combined score of 82-7. The plus-75 point differential is second in the L-L and the Pioneers' total points are third behind Lancaster McCaskey's 92 and Lancaster Catholic's 84.

The game offers Cedar Cliff and coach Jim Cantafio a chance to make noise on the district level. If this weren't the weekend that Bishop McDevitt is playing Cumberland Valley, Cantafio's team might have been playing under the brightest lights in District 3. Regardless, the fact that the Colts are involved in a game that is generating a decent amount of buzz isn't something to be taken lightly.

"It's great that we're finally getting some respect," Cantafio said Monday night. "My hats off to my coaching staff, the players, the booster club ... everybody that worked together to get this program turned around. We have it turned around and it's great. Cedar Cliff hasn't had this type of excitement for football in many years."

Despite previous coaching stops at L-L schools Conestoga Valley and Wilson, Friday night will mark the first time Cantafio will coach at Pioneer Stadium.

"This will be the first test our kids have faced in a long time on the road," Cantafio said. "On the road in hostile, unfamiliar territory, this is where you really have to toughen up."

For more on this game, please pick up a copy of Football This Week in the Friday edition of The Sentinel.

Greener pastures?

Word broke in January of 2009 that the Altoona Area High School was applying, with neighbor Hollidaysburg Area High School, to join the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League for football.

The move also would guarantee that the Mountain Lions and Tigers would compete in the District 7 (WPIAL) playoffs in classes AAAA and AAA, respectively.

Both teams had been members of the Mid-Penn Conference since 2004 - Hollidaysburg bolted after two years of membership - but when word reached Harrisburg that Altoona approached the WPIAL for admittance it took the league by surprise. Altoona never bothered to inform the MPC that it was looking for a new home.

So when the MPC realigned, it decided to do so with the Mountain Lions, whether they were welcomed into the WPIAL or not.

What followed was a tough final act for Altoona in the MPC. The Mountain Lions won only two games in league play and were outscored 282-62 their other seven games. Those losses included a dud to Central Dauphin East (it was the Panthers' only win of 2009) and a 75-6 home defeat to Harrisburg.

Friday night, in its first true game as a member of the WPIAL - Altoona opened the season at Hollidaysburg - Altoona was blasted at home by McKeesport, 60-0. The Tigers held a 25-0 lead after one quarter and scored three defensive touchdowns. The Altoona Mirror's Jim Lane describes the horror from Mansion Park here.

What might be worse than that final score is the fact that McKeesport probably won't turn out to be the best team Altoona faces this year. The Mountain Lions have a trip to preseason top five Woodland Hills on Oct. 1 and also travel to honorable mention Erie McDowell on Oct. 29.

At home, the Mountain Lions play perennial power Penn Hills on Oct. 8 and Pittsburgh Central Catholic, which is ranked No. 7 in the Pennsylvania Football News state rankings, on Oct. 22.

Conversly, had Altoona remained in the MPC it would only play two teams - Cumberland Valley and Central Dauphin - that are either ranked or listed as honorable mention in the PFN rankings.

Statewide praise continues for CV

Thanks to a 45-6 rout of visiting Red Lion on Friday night, Cumberland Valley has risen into the top five of most statewide polls.

The Pennsylvania Football News has the Eagles ranked third behind defending PIAA Class AAAA champion LaSalle College and Easton. RodFrisco.com has CV even higher. The former Patriot-News high school football writer slots the Eagles at No. 2 behind defending District 1 champion Ridley.

The highest praise of all comes from Easternpafootball.com where Joshua Funk has the Eagles as the top-ranked Class AAAA team in the state.

Cumberland Valley, which went 12-3 last year and won the District 3 Class AAAA title, travels to Central York (0-1) on Friday night at 7 p.m. before a huge showdown at Chapman Field on Sept. 17 against rival Bishop McDevitt, which is ranked in the top five of most Class AAA polls.

BPI Predictions: Week 2

Below is a look at what the Born Power Index thinks will happen this weekend in Mid-Penn football.

*-denotes home team

Thursday
Non-division
South Western by 3 over Cedar Cliff*

Friday
Capital Division
Boiling Springs over Palmyra* in OT
Trinity* by 30 over Camp Hill
Steelton-Highspire by 12 over Middletown*
East Pennsboro* by 6 over Susquenita

Non-division
Bishop McDevitt by 24 over Central Dauphin*
Mechanicsburg* by 4 over Gettysburg
Lower Dauphin over Carlisle* in OT
Milton Hershey by 24 over West Perry*
Chambersburg* by 22 over Waynesboro

Non-conference
Cumberland Valley by 27 over Central York*
Dallastown by 21 over Red Land*
Hershey* by 14 over Elizabethtown
Harrisburg by 10 over Pennsbury*
Muhlenberg by 4 over Northern*
Susquehanna Twp. by 22 over Spring Grove*
Solanco* by 11 over Central Dauphin East
Greencastle-Antrim by 18 over New Oxford*

Saturday
Non-conference
Big Spring by 11 over Octorara*
Shippensburg by 10 over Kennard-Dale*
James Buchanan by 47 over Carson Long*