ProfessorBriggs.com

(Statistical Information Courtesy of Professor Briggs' archives, The Herald and Erie Times-News)

WEEK FOUR FOOTBALL PREVIEWS

COVID-19 has shuffled the original Week Four schedule, leaving some teams with new opponents, others without an opponent, and additional games in doubt during the week. Week Four also features the first Thursday game this year for a local team, as well as one Saturday night game. Only eight of the area's 12 teams are scheduled to play.

THURSDAY NIGHT

Kennedy Catholic at Iroquois, 7:00 p.m. at Harbor Creek

Series History: Iroquois, 1-0
Last Iroquois Win: November 4, 1995 (39-0, District 10 Class A semifinal at Meadville)
Last Kennedy Win: None
First Meeting: November 4, 1995 (Iroquois won 39-0)

Kennedy returns to action after a 13-day layoff Thursday night to face Iroquois in non-conference action at Harbor Creek. The turf is still being replaced at Iroquois's home field, John L. Post Stadium, forcing the Braves to play their home games at nearby Harbor Creek. Thursday's meeting will be the first regular-season meeting between the programs.

Kennedy fell to 0-2 overall and in Region 1 with a 47-14 setback at Reynolds in Week Two. Sean Yeager's 59-yard touchdown run opened the Golden Eagles' scoring while Simeir Wade added a 57-yard touchdown reception from Rayvion Wilbon-Venable.

Wilbon-Venable leads Mercer County in completion percentage (64.3 percent), having completed 18 of 28 attempts. A freshman, he also leads the area by averaging 10.3 yards per pass attempt. Wade has 12 catches for 212 yards in two games. He ranks second in the area in catches per game (6.0) and receiving yards per game (106.0).

Defensively, Kennedy leads the area by forcing an average of three turnovers per game. However, Kennedy has turned over the ball eight total times in its two outings.

Iroquois evened its record at 1-1 last Friday night with a 28-18 victory at Union City in Region 2 action. The Braves' Delaware Wing-T offense amassed 333 rushing yards as two backs went over the 100-yard mark. Ethan Klinzing ran for 160 yards and two touchdowns while Michael Hoopsick added 156 yards and two scores.

Hoopsick leads Iroquois with 252 rushing yards. Quarterback Sean Divins is 2 of 6, good for 64 yards. Iroquois opened the season with a 35-7 "home" loss to Maplewood at Harbor Creek. Divins scored on a 13-yard touchdown run.

COVID-19 issues at Saegertown forced the postponement of Iroquois' Week Two game.

This is Kennedy's first Thursday game since October 2, 2003, when the Golden Eagles earned a 27-16 win at District 9's Union Rimersburg. This is Kennedy's first trip to Erie County since a 40-12 victory at Mercyhurst Prep September 20, 2003. Kennedy is 5-2 all-time in the regular season in Erie County, along with a 2-1 record in postseason play in Erie County.

Kennedy's first game in Erie County came October 21, 1967, when the Golden Eagles earned a 34-0 win at St. Mark in Erie. That win clinched the first winning season in program history. Kennedy finished 7-2 that year under head coach Anthony Paulekas.

Kennedy will play its first game on artificial turf since a 35-0 loss at Neshannock September 4, 2009. That is a span of 56 games. The Golden Eagles' last win on artificial turf came in the 2006 District 10 Class A semifinals November 10, 2006, when Kennedy earned a 41-14 win over Saegertown at Meadville. Kennedy's last regular season win on turf came the previous year -- a 14-12 win over Clarion High School at Clarion University's Memorial Stadium October 21, 2005.

FRIDAY NIGHT

Grove City at Slippery Rock, 7:00 p.m.

Series History: Grove City, 25-12
Last Grove City Win: September 18, 2020 (34-21)
Last Slippery Rock Win: October 9, 2020 (17-14, OT)
First Meeting: November 5, 1976 (Grove City won 29-20)

Undefeated Slippery Rock (2-0) opens Region 3 play Friday night by hosting the league's co-leader, Grove City, at Troy-Alan Stadium. Slippery Rock did not play at Titusville last week due to COVID-19 issues at Titusville. Grove City, meanwhile, picked up a 42-20 win over visiting Conneaut, Ohio, in league action.

Friday night's game features the area's top two passing attacks as Grove City and Slippery Rock rank atop the leaderboard. Grove City sophomore quarterback Hunter Hohman leads the area with 683 passing yards and six touchdowns. His 63.0 completion percentage ranks second in the area.

Meanwhile, Slippery Rock junior quarterback William Mokel ranks second to Hohman in passing yards per game, averaging 171.5. He has thrown the most passes in the area (40) without being intercepted this season. Mokel's five touchdown passes rank second in the area.

Not surprisingly, Grove City also features the area's leading receiver as sophomore wide receiver Gavin Lutz has caught a county-high 25 passes this season. Fellow sophomore Joey Hathaway ranks third in the county with 250 receiving yards.

Grove City also features Mercer County's No. 2 rusher this season, senior running back Curtis Hovis. He has rushed for 411 yards on a county-high 79 carries this year. Overall, Grove City leads the county in total offense, averaging 393.3 yards per game. The Eagles also average 67 offensive plays per game.

Grove City accumulated 462 offensive yards on 69 plays against Conneaut, Ohio. Hovis ran for 156 yards and a touchdown on 31 carries. Junior Anthony Nemec added 61 rushing yards and two scores. He also caught a 54-yard screen pass for a touchdown from Hohman. Lutz caught eight passes for 83 yards. Hohman finished 15 of 19 for 189 yards.

Lutz also returned a fumble 35 yards for a touchdown and intercepted a pass.

The Eagles' up-tempo spread attack will face a stiff test, however, as Slippery Rock allows only 202 yards per game and 4.2 yards per play. Slippery Rock ranks third locally in both categories. The Rockets also hold opponents to 3.7 yards per carry.

Slippery Rock held Sharpsville to seven first downs September 4 in the Rockets' last outing. Sharpsville managed only 89 rushing yards on 39 attempts and also went 2 for 11 on third downs against the Rockets' retooled 4-2-5 defensive alignment.

Senior running back Shane Thompson leads Slippery Rock with 132 rushing yards while junior Brett Galcik has 68 yards through the first two games. He averages 7.6 yards per attempt. Thompson and John Sabo share the team lead with six receptions while Galcik and senior running back Ryan Montgomery each have four catches.

The teams split their two regular season meetings last year, with the home team winning each game. Grove City earned a 34-21 home win in Week Two as Hovis and Nemec combined for 271 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Hovis ran for 181 yards and two scores while Nemec added 90 yards and one touchdown. Mokel completed 20 of 35 passes for 212 yards and a touchdown for Slippery Rock.

Slippery Rock evened the season series with a 17-14 overtime win at home three weeks later. Alex Duffalo's 27-yard field goal gave the Rockets the win after they tied the game with 12 seconds left in regulation on Ethan Plesakov's five-yard touchdown catch from Mokel.

Mokel completed 24 of 44 attempts for 279 yards. Sabo had six catches for 120 yards while Thompson added five receptions for 54 yards. Hovis paced Grove City with 125 rushing yards.

Friday night, Slippery Rock will honor its 1984 football team, which went 10-0 in the regular season and then advanced to the District 7 Class AA playoffs. That year, Slippery Rock faced Grove City in the third game of the season. Slippery Rock won the non-league game at Grove City's Forker Field, 22-13. That marked Slippery Rock's first win in the series.

The Grove City-Slippery Rock league rivalry began in 1988 as members of the Keystone Football League.

The game will be broadcast on Sports Radio 96.7.

Live Stats available here.

Conneaut, Ohio at Hickory, 7:00 p.m.

Series History: First Meeting

It may be an elimination game in the Region 3 race Friday night as Hickory hosts Conneaut, Ohio, in a matchup of teams looking to rebound from road losses in the league opener last weekend. Hickory fell at archrival Sharon, 14-7, Saturday night while Conneaut dropped a 42-20 decision at Grove City in league play.

Turnovers and penalties plagued Hickory last week at Sharon. Hickory turned over the ball four times and had nine penalties for 111 yards. Hickory took a 7-0 lead on the first play of the game as sophomore Keenan Scullin scored on a 70-yard hook-and-lateral from quarterback Logan Woods via wide receiver Nash Porada. Sharon held Hickory to 101 yards the rest of the game, however.

Hickory's defense yielded only 150 plays on 53 total plays. Hickory held Sharon to a 4-for-14 effort on third down and forced seven punts. Joey Fazzone and Peyton Lawrence both recorded sacks for Hickory.

Scullin has been one of the county's breakout performers in 2021 as he leads the area with 337 receiving yards and 25.9 yards per reception. Fellow sophomore Sean Kennedy now ranks 10th in the county with 163 rushing yards.

Junior quarterback Logan Woods has thrown for 500 yards and five touchdowns in his first three offensive starts. He ranks second in the county in both categories.

Conneaut used three quarterbacks last week against Grove City. Junior Nathan Koston went 5 of 8 for 53 yards before being pulled after an interception. Senior Kiefer Mandagelo threw for 99 yards on 2-of-6 passing while sophomore Max Gleason went 2 of 3 for 13 yards and a touchdown. Gleason led the Spartans' final touchdown drive. He also ran for 23 yards. Junior Zack Rice led Conneaut with 32 rushing yards. He leads the Spartans (2-2, 0-1) with 461 rushing yards.

In addition to counting towards the Region 3 standings, the game also affects Conneaut's potential playoff positioning. All regular season games in Ohio count toward the playoffs, so a Conneaut win over Hickory would enhance the Spartans' playoff hopes. Conneaut is Division V in Ohio classification and a member of OHSAA Region 17. Conneaut is "2A" in Pennsylvania nomenclature.

Hickory's last win over an Ohio team came August 31, 2001, when the Hornets picked up a 27-20 win at Brookfield. Hickory's last home win over an Ohio foe came in the 2000 opener. The Hornets recorded a 28-0 shutout of visiting Champion September 1, 2000.

Conneaut is 22-8 against Pennsylvania opponents since the start of the 2016 season. 

This is the first of three straight home games for Hickory. Hickory, thanks to District 10's derpy scheduling, will then close the regular season with three straight road games, including trips to Slippery Rock and Grove City in Weeks Seven and Eight.

The game will be broadcast on News/Talk 790 WPIC.

Sharpsville at Jefferson, Ohio, 7:00 p.m.

Series History: First Meeting

Sharpsville will make its second trip to Ashtabula County, Ohio, in the last three seasons Friday night when the Blue Devils visit Jefferson High School. Both schools had open dates Friday night after their respective opponents had to postpone/cancel games due to COVID-19.

Sharpsville had been scheduled to visit Region 1 opponent Lakeview. Meanwhile, Jefferson planned to host Northeast-8 rival Niles in a matchup of 3-1 squads.

Sharpsville opened Region 1 play in Week Three with a 33-7 victory over Greenville at West Middlesex. Senior halfback Zack Tedrow ran for 108 yards and three touchdowns, including an 83-yard touchdown sprint that opened the game's scoring. He also threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to Killian Whalen in the victory.

Tedrow became the third different Sharpsville player to lead the team in rushing this season. Chris Roth led Sharpsville in the season opener with 71 yards rushing against Loudonville, Ohio, while Braedon Summers led Sharpsville with 40 rushing yards against Slippery Rock.

 Roth, who missed Week Two due to illness, ranks ninth in the county with 168 rushing yards. No county team has attempted more rushing plays (120) this year than Sharpsville. Sophomore quarterback Caullin Summers ranks second in the county in yards per attempt (9.4) and first in yards per completion (18.8).

Defensively, Sharpsville ranks second in the area in stopping the run. The Blue Devils allow only 82.3 yards per game and 3.2 yards per carry this year.

Jefferson fell 35-34 last week at Girard in Northeast-8 play. Quarterback Grant Hitchcock threw for 262 yards and added 77 rushing yards, according to the Ashtabula Star-Beacon. Trent Hodge racked up 140 receiving yards.

Jefferson opened the season with a 48-8 win over county rival Grand Valley (0-4). The next week, the Falcons defeated Painesville Harvey, 23-19. In Week Three, Jefferson downed Edgewood (2-2), 48-21. Edgewood's other loss came to Conneaut, Ohio, 41-6.

Jefferson is ranked seventh in this week's Ohio Division V Region 17 computer rankings. The Falcons are the top one-loss team in the poll.

Brandon Hanna is in his first year as Jefferson head coach. He previously worked as offensive coordinator under former head coach Ed Rankin. At 3-1, Jefferson is off to its best start since the 2015 team won four of its first five games. The Falcons won only five total games from 2017 to 2020.

Jefferson owns a 4-1 record all-time against Mercer County opponents. The lone loss came September 21, 1985, when the Falcons fell 33-7 at West Middlesex. Jefferson last played a Mercer County team August 29, 2014. That night, Jefferson blanked visiting Sharon, 19-0. Jefferson's first game against a Mercer County team came 46 years ago, when the Falcons opened the season with a 6-2 win over Lakeview. 

Two years ago, Sharpsville fell at Conneaut, Ohio, 43-7. Sharpsville's last win in Ohio came October 26, 2013, when the Blue Devils rolled past Warren John F. Kennedy, 35-7. Sharpsville last win in Ashtabula County came September 21, 1945 -- a 13-0 win at Conneaut.

Sharon at Oil City, 7:00 p.m.

Series History: Sharon, 16-3
Last Oil City Win: November 5, 2010 (22-19)
Last Sharon Win: November 4, 2011 (44-15)
First Meeting: October 24, 1925 (Sharon won 13-0)

The Oil City-Sharon series dates back 96 years but has only been played 19 times in that lengthy span. Friday night, the 20th all-time meeting will take place when the teams meet at The Oil Field.

Oil City had a Week Four open date on its schedule at the start of the season. Sharon quickly filled that opening after the Tigers' Week Four foe, Titusville, had to cancel due to COVID-19 issues. This will be Oil City's 2021 home opener.

While Sharon will not return to league play until October 1, the Tigers opened Region 3 play last Saturday night by rallying for a 14-7 victory over archrival Hickory at Sharon Tiger Stadium. Sharon trailed 7-6 in the closing seconds but junior quarterback Mikey Rodriques scrambled 10 yards for the go-ahead touchdown.

Rodriques completed 11 of 22 passes for 96 yards and added a team-leading 27 rushing yards.

Sharon trailed 7-0 after the first scrimmage play of the game. But the Tiger defense stiffened, allowing only 101 yards the rest of the game. Sharon held Hickory to eight total first downs and forced four turnovers.

Sharon shares the county lead with eight total takeaways. Sharon has an area-high six interceptions, led by Ja'on Phillips' three thefts. Overall, Sharon ranks second in the county in total defense, allowing only 170.3 yards per game. The Tigers allow only 9.3 points per game, third-lowest in the Mercer County area.

Phillips ranks second in the county with 15 receptions and 271 receiving yards. His three interceptions also rank second.

Oil City (1-1) has not played since a 38-18 win September 2 at Conneaut. COVID issues caused Oil City to cancel its Week Three home game with Wilmington. Oil City opened the season with a 33-12 loss at General McLane. Ethen Knox ran for 185 yards and a touchdown in the opener at General McLane. He then ran for 290 yards and three touchdowns in a come-from-behind win at Conneaut.

Oil City won the District 10 Class 4A title last year. In the state playoffs, Oil City earned one-point wins over Juniata (34-33) and Upper Moreland (28-27) before falling to state champion Thomas Jefferson in the state semifinals. Oil City won the D-10 Class 5A title in 2019.

Sharon has won seven of the nine meetings with Oil City in Venango County. Sharon is also 4-0 at The Oil Field in District 10 playoff games.

The most lopsided game in Mercer County history involved Sharon and Oil City. On November 17, 1928, Sharon rolled to a 108-0 win over Oil City.

Sharon head coach Jason McElhaney has never faced Oil City as a head coach. Oil City head coach Dan York has never faced Sharon as a head coach. Yet, the two respective head coaches have met six previous times. Those meetings occurred when McElhaney coached West Middlesex and York coached Lakeview. McElhaney holds a 5-1 edge in those six games. 

This is the first time since September 5, 2008 that Oil City has hosted a Mercer County area team for its home opener. That year, the Oilers hosted Slippery Rock.

SATURDAY NIGHT

Wilmington at Greenville, 7:00 p.m.

Series History: Wilmington, 22-5
Last Greenville Win: October 25, 2013 (41-21)
Last Wilmington Win: October 2, 2020 (48-0 at Greenville)

First Meeting: October 16, 1998 (Greenville won 14-0)

Wilmington returns to Region 1 play for the first time since Opening Night when the Greyhounds visits Greenville in the lone Saturday game on this week's card. Both teams look to rebound from Week Three setbacks. Wilmington's 22-game regular season win streak ended with a 35-14 setback at Liberty-Benton, Ohio, last Saturday night. Meanwhile, Greenville fell at league foe Sharpsville, 33-7, in West Middlesex.

Saturday night's game features two of the area's top rushing attacks. Wilmington ranks second in the area by averaging 249.5 yards per game. Meanwhile, Greenville ranks second in yards per carry (6.6) and fourth in yardage (190.7).

Senior running back Luke Edwards helped pace Wilmington last Saturday night by rushing for 107 yards on 14 carries. He opened the Greyhounds' scoring with an 80-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Junior Gage DeCaprio added 54 yards on 15 attempts.

Edwards ranks fourth in the area in total rushing yardage (257) and third in yards per game (128.5).

One week after amassing 440 rushing yards against Lakeview, Greenville managed only 47 yards rushing against Sharpsville. Senior quarterback Jalen Ritzert threw for 189 yards and a touchdown on 14-of-32 passing, including a 67-yard touchdown strike to junior wide receiver Jase Herrick. Herrick caught seven passes for 134 yards while Jack Strausser and Brayden Porter both had three catches.

Herrick ranks sixth in the area with 159 receiving yards while his 10 catches places his him seventh locally.

Wilmington has won 10 straight in the series, including two regular season victories last year. Wilmington opened the 2020 season with a 48-0 home win over Greenville, then prevailed 48-6 in Greenville three weeks later.

Wilmington held Greenville to 75 total yards in the first meeting, then recorded four quarterback sacks in the rematch.

Wilmington has won 7 of the 10 meetings at Greenville. Wilmington also owns two playoff wins at Greenville. In 1995, the Greyhounds defeated Cambridge Springs (27-8) and Grove City (21-19) in the District 10 Class AA playoffs at Stewart Field.

Wilmington last lost consecutive games in 2015, when the Greyhounds lost at West Middlesex (24-7) and at home to Farrell (37-6). It has been 11 years since Wilmington lost road games on successive weeks. That year, Wilmington fell at Hickory (35-19) and then at Grove City the next week, 7-3. Wilmington has not been below .500 since 2013, when the Greyhounds opened 1-2.