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FOOTBALL FRIDAY: Week 3 game preview capsules

Leroy Boyer, Republican & Herald, Pottsville, Pa.
·6 min read

Sep. 7—Tonight's games

Lehighton (1-1) at Pottsville (0-2)

Radio/TV: WPPA 1360 AM, 105.9 FM

Breakdown: Interesting battle in Schuylkill/Colonial Gold Division opener for both clubs. It's hard to gauge just how good Crimson Tide are considering the strength of their first two opponents, Jersey Shore and Wyomissing. Indians return the most experience, especially with QB Brady O'Donnell and RB Dylan Moyer. This game looks even on paper, which means the team that makes the fewer mistakes (turnovers, penalties, missed tackles) will emerge victorious.

Northwestern Lehigh (2-0)

at Blue Mountain (2-0)

Live updates: Follow Republican Herald sports editor Leroy Boyer on Twitter

@pubsportsboss

Radio/TV: www.pennsportsradio.com

Breakdown: First football game on the new turf at the Eagles' Nest is a Gold Division battle of unbeatens. Blue Mountain did everything right in its win over North Schuylkill and made all the plays down the stretch. The Eagles will need to do the same against a Tigers squad that has outscored its first two opponents 97-6 and is coming off a 48-0 rout of Northern Lehigh. Senior RB Dalton Clymer has rushed for 180 yards and five TDs so far.

North Schuylkill (1-1) at Pine Grove (1-1)

Live updates: Follow correspondent Chuck Curley on Twitter @ChuckCurley

Breakdown: The Spartans hurt themselves with turnovers and costly penalties in their loss to Blue Mountain last Friday, an area they'll need to clean up as the season progresses. Sophomore Caden Mengel relieved senior Trevor Minalda in the second quarter last week and provided a spark to the North Schuylkill offense. Getting All-State WR Joey Flail more touches this week will be key. For the Cards, being physical up front and creating running lanes for RB Lane Lehman will be a point of emphasis.

Tamaqua (0-2)

at Notre Dame-Green Pond (1-1)

Breakdown: The Blue Raiders have really struggled so far, and things don't get easier against a Notre Dame squad coming off a 68-28 thrashing by Southern Lehigh. Quarterback Luke Kane has done it all so far for Tamaqua ... he needs help. Senior QB Danny Darno has rushed for 146 yards and passed for 192 in two games.

Jim Thorpe (0-2) at Salisbury (0-2)

Breakdown: The Olympians have been hit with a rash of injuries, including an ACL injury to tailback Sal Capria and have been outscored 74-14 so far. The Falcons, however, haven't won since Oct. 9, 2021, a string of 15 games. Good chance for Thorpe to get into win column.

Williams Valley (2-0)

at Schuylkill Haven (1-1)

Radio/TV: WAVT 101.9 FM

Breakdown: The Vikings' Alex Achenbach has been awesome so far, leading the area in rushing yards (573) and touchdowns (7) while also throwing for a touchdown and picking off two passes. A young Williams Valley offensive line will get a good test from the Schuylkill Haven defense, which held Nativity to 21 yards rushing and 91 total yards Saturday night. For the Hurricanes, getting similar performances from RBs Niko Carestia and Aiden Myers will be key. The two combined for 301 yards and four TDs last week.

Panther Valley (1-1)

at Mahanoy Area (0-2)

Radio/TV: WMGH 105.5 FM, Blue Ridge Cable TV-13

Breakdown: The Golden Bears have struggled to move the ball offensively so far, with senior RB Colm McGroarty held to 89 yards in two games. Getting the ground game going will be important against a Panther Valley squad coming off a loss to Tri-Valley in which it gave up 262 yards on the ground. Brody Breiner threw for 165 yards and a touchdown and rushed for another last week for Panther Valley.

Marian (1-1) at Catasauqua (1-1)

Breakdown: The Colts nearly completed an amazing comeback last Friday against Minersville, with Bruce Hopeck, Jesse Rodino and Brandon Klitsch having starring roles. They'll need to play with similar urgency against the Rough Riders, who battled Palmerton tough in a 27-7 loss last week after beating Northern Lehigh 48-22 in Week 1. QB Aiden Hess has thrown for 335 yards and five TDs. Ian Juica has 10 catches for 185 yards and four scores.

Kutztown (1-1) vs. Nativity (1-1)

Breakdown: An automatic win for teams for some years, the Cougars evened their slate last week with a 42-7 rout of York County Vo-Tech after falling to Fleetwood in their opener. Nativity struggled to move the ball in Saturday's loss to Schuylkill Haven, and some of the Green Wave's key players are banged up. Game is Nativity's first Friday night contest at North Schuylkill.

Tri-Valley (1-1) at Line Mountain (1-1)

Breakdown: The Dawgs trek up the valley to Mandata to face former their Tri-Valley League rivals. Dawgs bounced back from a Week 1 setback to Minersville with an easy win over Panther Valley. Noah Porter continues to impress, rushing for more than 100 yards for the second straight week. After rolling past Athens in its opener, Line Mountain was roughed up by Danville 51-12. Starting QB Kaiden Maurer is out with a broken arm.

Warrior Run (0-2) at Mount Carmel (1-1)

Radio/TV: www.blackdiamondsports.net

Breakdown: The Red Tornadoes begin Heartland Conference Division III play against the winless Defenders. Mount Carmel used four TD passes from Cole Spears and the running of Luke Blessing (18-151) to score an impressive win over Dunmore last week. Warrior Run has dropped games to Muncy (33-26) and Hamburg (34-27) so far.

Shamokin (0-2) at Mifflinburg (2-0)

Radio/TV: www.blackdiamondsports.net

Breakdown: The Indians look to find some consistency on both sides of the ball when they trek north to visit Mifflinburg in a Heartland Conference Division I game. Mifflinburg opened with a 42-0 rout of Midd-West before edging Central Columbia 35-28 last week. Wildcats QB Caleb Martin has completed 37-of-50 passes for 509 yards and seven scores so far, with wide receivers Kyler Troup (14-185, 2 TDs) and Troy Dressler (10-122, 2 TDs) his top targets.

Upper Dauphin (1-1) at Camp Hill (2-0)

Breakdown: The Trojans bounced back from a Week 1 loss to Williams Valley with a convincing victory over Shenandoah Valley last week. Caleb Snyder (8-130, 2 TDs) and Aidan Roadcap (5-90, TD) had big games as the Trojans rushed for 298 yards and four TDs. UDA will face stiff competition tonight as the Lions have outscored Newport and York Catholic by a combined 71-7. Drew Branstetter is 40-for-58 for 549 yards and four TDs as the Camp Hill QB.

Fairfield (0-2) at Hamburg (2-0)

Breakdown: Tyler Shuey has been dominating through the Hawks' first two games, passing for an area-best 659 yards and seven TDs while rushing for 162 yards and three more scores. Expect those numbers to climb higher against the Knights, who suffered losses to Juniata Valley (40-19) and Eastern York (32-0).

Sunday's game

Shenandoah Valley (1-1)

at Minersville (2-0)

Kickoff: 3 p.m.

Live updates: Follow sports writer Eli Doyle on Twitter @iamelidoyle

Breakdown: The Devils-Miners clash was moved to Sunday after a power outage and bad weather hit Thursday night. Nick Ryan has 11 catches and seven TDs for Shenandoah Valley. Luke Stevenosky has had two big games running the ball for Minersville.

— Compiled by Leroy Boyer