PHOTO GALLERY | North defense looks to seize opportunity in 1st Summit Bank Ken Lantzy All-Star Classic

Tackling machines David Ray and Dawson Shutty from Westmont Hilltop and Northern Cambria, respectively, will be tasked with leading the North defense come 7 p.m. Friday night in the 1st Summit Bank Ken Lantzy All-Star Classic.

Thrilled to be selected, the duo are willing to put it all on the line Friday night.

“I’ve always wanted to play in this game,” said linebacker Ray, who led the Hilltoppers with 86 tackles and 21/2 sacks in 2023. “It’s going great, honestly. We got a bunch of studs on the defense. We won a battle against the offense today (Monday), so that was pretty nice.”

PHOTO GALLERY | Ken Lantzy All Star Classic squads practice in Richland

As an anchor on the Colts defensive line with 101 tackles – including 241/2 for loss of yardage – and 31/2 sacks in 2023, Shutty hopes the defensive line causes havoc.

“I know a lot of us, we’re all kind of brawlers,” Shutty said.

“We’re all trying to fight for a spot right now. (Westmont Hilltop’s) Achilles (Baloglou) and I have been going at it, just switching spots, taking different reps against different people.”

Shutty is proud to follow in the footsteps of uncles Luke Shutty and Sam Shutty, who also played in the Ken Lantzy game.

“It’s definitely really special,” Dawson Shutty said. “Ever since I was a little kid at Thanksgiving meal and Christmas, they always talked about how amazing it was and how great an experience it was, how special it is that you’re here that you don’t realize it. I always thought they were just talking, but now that I’m here, I realize it actually is really special. There’s only select people that get to experience this and it’s really amazing.”

The North’s defense also includes college football recruits in Chestnut Ridge linebacker Jeb Emerick (Juniata) and Meyersdale defensive lineman Brady McKenzie (Washington & Jefferson). Emerick totaled 97 tackles in 2023.

PHOTO GALLERY | Familiarity helps North offense mesh for Ken Lantzy All-Star Classic

Neighboring school districts Chestnut Ridge and Northern Bedford County make up 11 of the 40 players on the North squad for Friday's 1st Summit Bank Ken Lantzy All-Star Classic at Greater Johnstown High School's Trojan Stadium.

Having a solid foundation in fundamentals has the defense prepared even though it is restricted in terms of not blitzing and only playing certain coverages.

“Obviously, the offenses can exploit some things because of the rules of the game,” North and Northern Bedford County coach Garry Black said. “People want to come to the game to see teams score points. Coach (Chuck) Kassick from Claysburg(-Kimmel) is organizing the defense. He has Coach (Kevin) Gable and Coach (Mike) Wiant helping him. They’ve done a great job already in the early part of the week helping them to adapt to any formation that is thrown their way. That way they can take a look at it, visualize it and then adjust.”

Ray was thankful for the memories he made early in the week.

“All these guys are super-welcoming,” Ray said. “We just got a great group of guys.

“Going out to eat, hanging in the dorms, it’s been a great time. Meeting people I’ve never met before and going against the best in the area, it’s awesome. There’s nothing like it. It’s been a great time.”

PHOTO GALLERY | College prep | South defenders view Ken Lantzy contest as opportunity

Berlin Brothersvalley linebacker Cody Kimmel views the 1st Summit Bank Ken Lantzy All-Star Classic both as a cap to an outstanding scholastic career and a first step toward college football.

Ken Lantzy week has a way of getting people out of their shells.

“I’m not really an outgoing person, but I know some of my buddies and they kind of introduce me to people,” Dawson Shutty said. “Everyone is really nice, and everyone is really friendly and easy to get along with.

“It’s been really amazing getting to know new people.”

At the end of Monday’s early afternoon practice, players competed against other athletes within the same position group to create a sense of competition, conditioning and fun.

“We’re trying to have fun,” Black said.

“Nobody wants to condition in an all-star game. We’re doing a little bit of sprint work. Some of the stuff that I’ve tried to learn about football, you come back after a layoff and you have cramps. One of the reasons that I found it’s not that you haven’t run 15 110s (yard sprints), it’s the fact that you haven’t sprinted and gone all out and try to exert yourself. When you create competition, nobody likes to lose when everybody’s looking at them, so you know you’re going to get everything out of them.”

Jake Oswalt is a copy editor for The Tribune-Democrat. Follow him on Twitter @TheWizOfOz11.