How’s that for starters?
Week 1 in District 10 featured a number of memorable performances (Sharpsville’s Caullin Summers and Dalton Byerly chief among them), an overtime game, some surprises and a glimpse of what may be to come.
The Week 2 slate is once again heavy on non-region action, including a showdown between Farrell and Warren G. Harding (Ohio), as well a 2022 playoff rematch between Eisenhower and Cambridge Springs, and others.
Region 5 action is in full force with three matchups, while there are two Region 1 games and Wilmington has its second Region 3 game in as many weeks.
Let’s dig in.
NON-REGION
Farrell (1-0) at Warren G. Harding (1-1)
These two schools are separated by about 20 miles, and there has been a lot of chatter among the fanbases this week in anticipation of the showdown.
The Steelers got off to a slow start against a talented North East squad that returns most of its key pieces from a year ago before pulling away for a 32-14 win. Kabron Smith threw for a pair of touchdown passes and three receivers – Brandon Chambers, Simeir Wade and Danny Odem had at least three receptions, while Juelz Johnson had a touchdown rushing, receiving and on defense.
Harding, meanwhile, comes in 1-1, having lost to McKinley 33-14 in its opener before coming back and beating Buchtel 20-16 last week. Harding overcame four second-half turnovers to beat Buchtel, with Ryan Powell’s 2-yard touchdown run with 1:13 to play in the game the difference. Powell had two rushing touchdowns in the win, and Harding came up with four turnovers of its own on defense.
Eisenhower (1-0) at Cambridge Springs (1-0)
These two teams met twice last season, a 27-14 Eisenhower win in Week 2 and a 25-20 Knights’ win in the D10 1A semifinals in which they had to rally late.
Eisenhower is coming off a 49-19 win over Cochranton in which Shawn Pascuzzi and Kris Bunk combined for three first-half touchdown passes. Pascuzzi finished with 171 yards passing and 97 yards rushing and two more scores, while Bunk had five catches for 109 yards. Tucker Lindell and Logan Penley also had rushing touchdowns for the Knights.
Cambridge Springs, meanwhile, ran wild in a 63-24 win over Kennedy Catholic in Week 1. Brett Kania carried the load, rushing for 177 yards and four touchdowns on 13 carries. Preston Gorton also had a pair of rushing touchdowns. Quarterback Morgan Applebee only had to put the ball in the air once against Kennedy, but the experienced junior is a capable passer.
Titusville (1-0) at Sharpsville (1-0)
What will Caullin Summers, Dalton Byerly and the Sharpsville Blue Devils do for an encore? Summers threw for 410 yards and seven touchdowns, including the 63-yard game-winner to Aiden Puskar with under 30 seconds to play in a 49-42 win over Wilmington in Week 1. Byerly, meanwhile, was on the receiving end of four of those touchdowns and had 210 yards receiving.
Titusville was impressive in its own right in a 34-16 win over Franklin. Ian McDonadl threw for 108 yards and two touchdowns to Mark Titus and Jaxon Covell. McDonald also had two rushing touchdowns, while Covell led the Rockets on the ground with 87 yards on 12 carries.
Hickory (1-0) at Franklin (0-1)
The Hornets got on a roll early in a 45-7 Week 1 win over Harbor Creek. Quarterback Zander Tellez was nearly perfect, completing 13-of-14 passes for 212 yards and four touchdowns. Two of those touchdowns went to Tylon Cousin Jr., while William Acrie and Timmy Krivosh each had one. Freshman Kevlin Morrison 107 yards and a touchdown on just six carries.
Franklin, meanwhile, is coming off a 34-16 loss to rival Titusville in its opener. Jason Carey threw for 112 yards, 103 of which went to Cole Buckley, while Toby Sanchez has 105 yards on the ground.
Oil City (1-0) at Corry (0-1)
The Oilers had no trouble in a season-opening 76-0 win over Warren, the largest margin of victory ever in the series which extends over 100 years. Record-breaking running back Ethen Knox rushed for 218 yards and six touchdowns on just 11 carries. The Oilers as a team rushed for 468 yards. They put the ball in the air just three times, although one of those was a 35-yard touchdown from Cole Findlay to Gavin Stephens.
Corry played Meadville tough in Week 1, ultimately falling by a 27-14 score. Nolan Carey threw for 148 yards and a touchdown, while Mason Savitz carried 15 times for 60 yards and a score.
Sharon (1-0) at Warren (0-1)
Sharon was impressive in a 26-0 win over Neshannock of the WPIAL in Week 1. Mister Ham made his first start at quarterback and was efficient, going 9-of-13 for 109 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 93 yards. Bryson Roberson and Cortez Nixon were on the receiving end of those touchdowns, while Ike Friday added a rushing touchdown.
Warren struggled to get much going in its loss to Oil City. Sam Harvey led the offense with 37 rushing yards. The Dragons will likely be without star running back/defensive back Tommy Nyqusit in this one due to injury.
Slippery Rock (0-1) at Mercyhurst Prep (1-0)
The Lakers rushing attack was impressive in a season-opening 43-14 win over Fairview. JJ Ganska rushed for 192 yards and a touchdown, quarterback Paul Johnson was also over 100 yards rushing and had two scores and Stephen Grayson (1 passing, 1 rushing) and Ja’son Ellman (1 receiving, 1 rushing) also found the end zone.
Slippery Rock, meanwhile, was locked in a tight battle with General McLane before falling, 27-17. Eli Anderson was 22-of-33 for 212 yards and a touchdown and also had 100 yards rushing for the Rockets.
Grove City (0-1) at Northwestern (0-1)
Grove City fell to defending WPIAL 3A finalist Avonworth, 35-15, while Northwestern lost in overtime to Girard, 21-20. Do-it-all quarterback/defensive back Hunter Hohman had the big highlight for the Eagles in Week 1 with an 80-yard touchdown run. The Eagles lost to Avonworth a year ago as well before going on to win the D10 3A title.
Lloyd Fountain threw for 212 yards and two touchdowns for Northwestern in Week 1, with Kolten Sutter and Braden Swift on the receiving end of those scores. Fountain also had a team-high 69 yards rushing.
Meadville (1-0) at Butler (0-1)
There are new faces, but it’s the same rushing attack for the Meadville Bulldogs. Bradyn Miller rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-14 win over Corry, while Jordan Lawrence also had 103 yards and a score.
Butler is looking to get on track following a season-opening 38-7 loss to Shaler. Alec Teff threw for 119 yards in the opener, while Landen Lacey had 65 receiving yards.
McDowell (0-1) at Barberton (Ohio, 1-1)
McDowell led 28-20 at halftime in its opener against Walsh Jesuit before a fierce second-half rally by the home team to win 49-28. Blayze Myers made his varsity starting debut at quarterback and threw for four first half touchdowns and 188 yards. Three of those touchdown passes went to Leo Whitaker, covering 35, 26 and 46 yards.
Barberton, meanwhile, is coming off a 47-23 win over Stow-Munroe Falls. In that game, Dominic Wilson threw for 282 yards and four touchdowns, two of which went to Kenny Larry.
Seneca (0-1) at Conneaut (0-1)
Two teams in search of their first win after Seneca fell to Lakeview, 40-25, and Conneaut lost to Fort LeBoeuf, 29-0. Nolan Seabury leads Seneca. The senior dual-threat quarterback threw for 192 yards and two touchdowns against Lakeview and also added 58 yards and two more scores on the ground.
Conneaut, meanwhile, will look to lean on its run game, led by Logan Groover and an experienced offensive line.
Iroquois (0-1) at Maplewood (0-1)
Maplewood fell to Saegertown, 26-13 in its opener, while Iroquois lost a hard-fought battle with Mercer, 31-28. The Tigers had six different players carry the ball against Saegertown, with Michael Wickstrom rushing for 39 yards and a touchdown and Andrew Proper for a team-high 45 yards.
REGION 1
Lakeview (1-0) at Saegertown (1-0)
The Sailors ran wild in their opening 40-25 win over Seneca, amassing 368 yards on the ground. Mitchell Tingley 222 yards and three touchdowns on just 13 carries, while Aiden Osborne had 101 yards and two touchdowns on just six carries. Leyton Zacherl also threw a touchdown pass to Blake Skiles.
Reese Wilkinson had 63 yards rushing and two touchdowns for Saegertown in their win over Penncrest rival Maplewood last week. Luke Young also had 103 yards rushing and a score and also threw for 109 yards.
Mercer (1-0) at Reynolds (1-0)
Reynolds picked up right where it left off in a 44-6 win over Union City. Gabe Minjarez, replacing the program’s all-time leading rusher, Jalen Wagner, in the backfield, rushed for 163 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries, while Gavin Alabran also threw for 76 yards and a score.
Daeymin Mattocks ran for four touchdowns for Mercer in their 31-28 win over Iroquois and also had the game-sealing interception on defense.
REGION 5
Fort LeBoeuf (1-0) at General McLane (1-0)
A win over Fort LeBoeuf spearheaded GM’s 9-game regular season winning streak a year ago. Issac Zeitz threw for 150 yards and two touchdowns to Jared Cornman and Jacob Zeitz, who had 69 and 68 yards receiving respectively in the win over Slippery Rock. Magnus Lloyd had 58 yards and a touchdown on the ground and also had a team-high 12 tackles.
Connor McChesney ran for three scores and threw for another in LeBoeuf’s win over Conneaut last week, with the defense keeping the Eagles off the scoreboard.
North East (0-1) at Girard (1-0)
Girard is riding high following its overtime win over Northwestern, while North East held its own in a 32-14 setback to a talented Farrell squad. Jeremiah Colon rushed for 103 yards and what proved to be the game-winning touchdown in the 21-20 win for the Yellow Jackets.
Jackson Humes threw for over 100 yards for North East, with Jamari Curlett on the receiving end of one of his two touchdown tosses.
SATURDAY
NON-REGION
Cathedral Prep (0-1) at Canisius (NY, 0-0)
The Ramblers lost to Archbishop Hoban for the second consecutive time to being the regular season, 44-12. Suhtaun did have a big game on the ground despite the loss, rushing 15 times for 146 yards and a touchdown, while Dajoure Hollingsowrth rushed for 43 yards.
This is the season-opener for Canisius. Prep won the meeting between the two teams a year ago, 40-6.
Union City (0-1) at Kennedy Catholic (0-1)
A pair of teams in search of their first win after Union City fell to Reynolds (44-6) and Kennedy Catholic lost to Cambridge Springs, 63-24. Skylar Olmstead rushed for 56 yards and a touchdown last week for Union City.
Erie (0-1) at Shaw (Ohio, 0-2)
Erie will look to get its offense rolling after scoring all of its points via defense in a 14-4 loss to Euclid (Ohio) last week. Tajhae Thomas led the Royals on the ground last week, rushing for 91 yards.
Shaw, meanwhile, is in search of its first points of the season after a pair of 58-0 losses.
