This season appears to be one of anomalies in District 9 football, and a lot of it doesn’t necessarily have much to do with the play on the field.
A week after thunderstorms postponed a number of games, something rarely seen (at least not in bulk), Week 4 seemed to represent a return to normal. Then came the Central Clarion/Moniteau cancellation. Moniteau is low on numbers and healthy bodies, and, with Central Clarion currently ranked No. 3 in the state in Class 2A, the Warriors decided to forfeit the game and get healthy for St. Marys (at St. Marys) this week.
Then, there was the case of the Ridgway at Redbank Valley on Friday. An online threat involving the Ridgway School District caused the cancelation of all after-school activities, including the football game. The game was made up on Monday, with Redbank Valley winning 52-16 behind four passing and two rushing touchdowns from junior quarterback Braylon Wagner.
The only negative now, is the fact that both teams are working on a short week. Redbank Valley will hit the road to take on Keystone, while Ridgway will play host to Coudersport.
Here’s a look at some other notes around District 9.We
Big Game in Duke Center
The way everything is shaping up, this game could go a long way toward determining the District 9 League Region 3 champion. Both teams are 3-1 overall, with Otto-Eldred also 3-1 in region and Cameron County 2-0. Both teams already own wins over third-place Coudersport (2-2 overall and in Region 3).
Otto-Eldred rebounded from its first loss of the season against Kane nicely, beating Bucktail 48-22 in a game they led 40-0 at halftime.
Cameron County, meanwhile, got locked into a defensive battle with Smethport, ultimately pulling away for a 29-7 win. The Red Raiders lost their opening game of the season to Brockway but have looked impressive in rattling off three consecutive wins by an average of 24 points per game.
State Rankings
Port Allegany in Class 1A and Central Clarion in Class 3A continue to hold steady in the Top 10 in both the Pennsylvania Football News and Harrisburg Patriot-News state rankings in Class 1A and Class 2A, respectively.
Bradford makes the trip down to Clarion this week to take on a Wildcats’ team that surely will be chomping at the bit to play after having an unscheduled week off.
Port Allegany, meanwhile, took an early punch from Brockway last week before pulling away for a 47-21 win. The Gators welcome a Union/A-C Valley team to town on Friday, and the Falcons-Knights have put together a strong 3-1 start to the season. Since a Week 1 loss to Redbank Valley, Union/A-C Valley has allowed just 20 points in wins against Ridgway, Keystone and Kane.
Elsewhere around District 9
Speaking of recovering from an early loss, DuBois has done just that after a Week 1 loss to Central Clarion, a game in which they led early in the second quarter. The Beavers have rattled off wins against Punxsutawney, Bradford and Karns City, the latter of which was on the road in a 46-43 shootout. The Beavers are averaging 46.3 points per game in their last three games, and host Brookville on Friday.
Statistical leaders through Week 4
Passing Yards
1. Braylon Wagner (Redbank Valley), jr., 1,250
2. Trey Wingard (DuBois), jr., 1,179
3. Aiden Patton (Brockway), soph., 1,101
4. Shane Magee (Otto-Eldred), jr, 835
5. Talan Reese (Bradford), sr., 753
Passing Touchdowns
T-1. Trey Wingard 14
T-1. Braylon Wagner 14
3. Aiden Patton 13
4. Shane Magee 12
5. Jase Ferguson (Clarion), sr., 10
Rushing Yards
1. Aiden Bliss (Port Allegany), jr., 915
2. Brady Collins (Clearfield), sr., 899
3. Malakai Zucal (Cameron County), jr., 774
4. Anthony Ceriani (Brookville), sr, 609
5. Tristan Kiser (Port Allegany), jr, 489
Rushing Touchdowns
1. Aiden Bliss 16
2. Brady Collins 12
T-3. Malakai Zucal 7
3. Anthony Ceriani 7
3. Tristan Kiser 7
3. Beau Thomas (Punxsutawney) jr., 7
Receiving Yards
1. Blake Picarcik (Brockway), sr., 420
2.. Logan Kohler (Bradford) 373
2. Nathan Kougher, (DuBois), sr., 373
4. Aiden Snoberger (Brockway), sr., 361
5. Danny Vanvladricken (Coudersport), sr., 339
Receptions
1. Logan Moore (Punxsutawney), jr., 23
2. Blake Picarcik 21
Logan Kohler 21
Nathan Kougher 21
Jaxon Huffman 19
5. Danny Vancladricken 19
Receiving Touchdowns
1. Blake Picarcik 7 Aiden Snowberger 4
2. Danny Vanvladricken (Coudersport), sr., 6
3. Nathan Kougher (DuBois), sr., 5
3. Isaiah Korney(DuBois), sr., 5
5. Aiden Snowberger 4
Sacks
1. Broc Monrean (Redbank Valley), sr., 4.5
T-2. Landon Farren (Cameron County), sr., 4
T-2. Isaiah Korney (DuBois), sr., 4
T-2. Juuso Young (Port Allegany), sr., 4
5. Three Players with 3
Tackles
1. Beau Thomas 44
2. Colton Ryan (Clearfield), jr., 42
3. Preston Ayers (Coudersport), jr., 41
4. Tyler Dunn (Curwensville), sr., 37 (Through week 3)
5. Jacob Henry (Keystone), jr., 36 (Through week 3)
Interceptions
1. Aiden Bliss 4
1. Matthew Gilmore (St. Marys), soph., 4
T-2. Malakai Zucal (Cameron County), jr, 3
T-2. Caleb Wonderly (Coudersport), soph, 3
5. Ten Players with 2
– Stats via MaxPreps
