Rivalry week on tap for area football teams

This weekend marks the end of the high school football regular season in Pennsylvania, but for area teams, that means this is one of the biggest weeks of the year.

Traditionally the last week of the regular season in the NTL is rivalry week, and this year looks destined to be filled with a number of great games.

One of the biggest rivalry matchups every year is for the Bronze Helmet, as the Wyalusing Rams will travel to Towanda to take on the Black Knights this year.

It's rivalry week, that's all you have to say," Wyalusing coach Jim Huffman said. "The kids are excited."

Both coaches know that when it comes to rivalry week, anything can happen.

"It's Wyalusing and like I've said year in and year out, nothing really matters other then Friday night and this game," Towanda coach Craig Dawsey said. "Last year we went down there and I think we were ahead 6-0 at halftime in a game people thought we were going to have no problems.

"We knew we were going to have problems. Anytime you play Wyalusing you are going to get their best football game. It's the Wyalusing/Towanda game at 7 p.m. and nothing else matters."

For both teams, this game has big implications beyond tonight.

The Rams enter the game 6-3 on the year, winners of the NTL small-school title and they need a win to secure a spot in districts. The Black Knights are 9-0, winners of the NTL large-school title and a victory would give them homefield advantage throughout districts.

"You have to remember, they are champions, and I don't care if it's small school or large school," Dawsey said. "They are good; they have proven they are good. They have gone through a league season, they have gone nine games so far and they have a winning record. They have improved. They have fought through adversity and they are champions and they deserve that title.

"This is going to be a great matchup. It's a great script - I don't know that you could right it any better. I think the kids are excited. It's at home and it's parents night on top of that. There is just a lot of great things going on, I'm sure, at both schools this week. It's Wyalusing vs. Towanda. I don't really need to say more."

Huffman knows how big this game is for his team.

"It has been a successful year winning the small school. The next step is getting into districts and of course getting the Bronze Helmet back," he said. "With this game we control how much further we go. It's a big game."

Both teams know they will be in for a tough matchup this week.

"They are very sound; they capitalize on your mistakes," Huffman said of the Black Knights. "They are very good. Coach Dawsey has them playing very good right now. We basically have to play mistake-free football. We have to play very sound, make very few mistakes."

For the Black Knights, the matchup will not be an easy one.

"They are very methodical offensively and they will pound you," Dawsey said of the Rams. "They have showed it time and time again. They can go from one end of the field to the other and they can take up a lot of clock and they can pound it right down your throat."

For the seniors on both squads, this will be their last Bronze Helmet game.

"This is basically the game where you get the kids prepared and you turn them loose," Huffman said. "You let them get their emotions involved. Anytime it's the last time you play a team, the last time you get to play for the Bronze Helmet, it's big. They have been talking about it all week."

For the teams, this is a game they look forward to all year.

"This is one of those games that makes or breaks the season no matter how good your season is, or how bad it is," Dawsey said. "When it comes down to this game, it's a season-maker or a season-breaker."

CANTON AT TROY

Last week both the Trojans and Warriors dropped tough, close games, with the Trojans falling at Muncy and the Warriors dropping a game to North Penn.

Both teams are excited to get back on the field this week.

"We have to win. We talked about that this week," Troy coach Kevin Schucker said. "After what happened last week, we had to sit down and have some serious thoughts about what we want to accomplish. We know what happened last week - we let one get away. We talked about that early in the week, not playing for the full 48 minutes and what happens if you don't."

The Warriors fell to 4-5 on the year after dropping a close game against a solid Panthers squad.

"The year overall hasn't quite gone the way we expected with some late-game losses," Canton coach Miller Moyer Jr. said. "But, you know what they always say, you want to win the first game and the last game, especially if the last game is your rivalry.

"We lost another close game last week, but myself and the assistant coaches felt that, probably overall, that was the best game that we played all year. Hopefully they come together for one last push."

With the two teams meeting for the Old Shoe, both coaches know that what happened up until this point doesn't matter.

"You can be 0-9 and 9-0 and it's going to be a good game," Schucker said. "Both teams come to play, both play hard. These are two evenly matched teams.

"The kids are real excited. They have been pumped all week. They are having fun, hooping and hollering, getting excited about playing this game."

For the seniors in the, game it will be their last rivalry game, and for the Warrior players, it is likely the last game of their high school careers.

"They haven't really said it, but I know it's on their mind," Moyer Jr. said. "For most of them, it will be the last time they play an organized game."

Both teams know this will be a tough test.

"They are a very good football team," Schucker said of the Warriors. "With what Miller has to work, with he's done an excellent job this year. They aren't very big, but they are quick. They come off the ball hard for 48 minutes. They play good football; they play Canton football. They are small and tenacious and they fight to the end. They had a lot of injuries, but from what I have seen they have everyone healthy again."

The Warriors know that the Trojans are a strong opponent.

"They are a good team," Moyer Jr. said. "In the large school division their loss to Towanda could have gone either way and their game with Athens could have gone either way."

ATHENS AT SAYRE

Last week the Athens Wildcats moved to 6-3 on the year with a victory at Cowanesque Valley, while the Sayre Redskins fell to 3-6 with a tough loss at Wyalusing.

While the Redskins lost the game, they were happy with their effort last week.

"We felt really good because of how we played against Muncy," Sayre coach Larry Hanafin said. "We shaped our goals into, we have to go and play as if we had some pride, and they did play like they had some pride. Other then losing a tough one, I did feel good about how they performed."

For the Wildcats, last week's win helped them bounce back from a loss to Towanda the previous week.

"The kids are excited. They feel like they've gotten over a little bit of a hump there and they want to play well," Athens coach Jack Young said.

Both teams know that in a rivalry game for the Rusty Rail, anything can happen.

"It doesn't matter what we've done or what they've done, this year or in years past," Young said. "This is going to be a ballgame. I know Sayre is going to come ready to play."

Sayre knows that this is a key game on the schedule.

"It's the big game," Hanafin said. "We don't play Waverly anymore, so basically it's the only natural rivalry we have going. The kids know each other, they are excited, but we have to bring the focus and realize that we are there to play a football game and not be part of the show."

Both teams expect their opponent to be tough.

"Sayre is a scrappy bunch," Young said. "They are definitely an improved team. They get off the ball well on both sides of the ball. This (Rob) Rought kid is really dangerous. He is a threat to score every time he touches the ball. The (Tyler) Williams kid does a good job of running their football team."

Sayre knows that Athens is always a challenge.

"You watch film on them and they are still very good," Hanafin said. "Defensively they are outstanding. They swarm you and we are concerned about that. Offensively they do things that are very sound. It's an uphill battle every week. We just have to have a very good week and be concerned with how we play, and not who we play."

WELLSBORO AT

NORTH PENN

A handful of close losses has North Penn at 4-5 as they enter today's matchup, and they would like to build off a close win at Canton last week.

"It seemed like it was a long time coming with Saturday's win," North Penn coach Tom Dickinson said. "We were on that opposite side a lot of times, but we were able to hang in there.

"We needed to get that to try and finish at .500. To finish .500 with this young team would be nice."

For the squads, this rivalry is always a big matchup.

"This is a game that is always marked on our schedule," Dickinson said. "They put it to us pretty good last year. We had the trophy for a couple of years before that. I think the kids are really focused and they are planning on playing well."

The Green Hornets are 1-9 on the year with a young squad.

"They have some skill at the two running back spots," Dickinson said of Wellsboro. "They are young, but they have shown some sparks the past few weeks."

While North Penn comes in with the better record, Dickinson knows anything can happen with this matchup.

"We talked about it tonight. I think it was two years ago they were having a pretty successful year, and we weren't that good, and we knocked them off," Dickinson said. "We have to be ready and come ready to play. They will."

COWANESQUE VALLEY AT OTTO-ELDRED

After back-to-back wins to start the second half of the season, the Indians have dropped two straight to fall to 2-7 and they are looking to end the year strong.

"We have an opportunity to finish out the season on a high note and hopefully we can do that," Cowanesque Valley coach Jeremy Loveland said. "We have been working all year as far as building the foundation to success. We have been working to win, to learn to win."

For the Indians, a lot of goals can be accomplished today.

"As a team we are a little disappointed with how the season went so far," Loveland said. "We do still have a couple of goals we can still meet. We can still match our wins for last year at three and Evan McCall is still within reach of 1,000 yards.

"The first goal is to get the win and the next goal is to help Evan get that milestone."

Loveland believes Otto-Eldred is much like his team.

"Their record doesn't show how good of a team they are," he said. "They are similar to us - they have a lot of potential."

One challenge for the Indians will be making a long bus trip on a day when they don't have school.

"Our school district doesn't actually have school and I have stressed how important it is for the guys to get up early, get ready and not sleep all day," Loveland said. "There are a lot of things that come into play when you go into a situation like this."