2022 Schuylkill Colonial Conference Preview: “RED Division”
Tagged under: Conference Previews, District 11, News
Daniel Reed | August 20, 2022
2022 Schuylkill/Colonial Conference Preview: “RED Division”
2021 FINAL Division Results:
TEAM – Regular Season Record – (Division Record)
North Schuylkill Spartans – 9-1 – (7-1)
Notre Dame Green Pond Crusaders – 7-2 – (5-1)
Northern Lehigh Bulldogs – 7-3 – (5-2)
Jim Thorpe Olympians – 6-4 – (4-3)
Tamaqua Blue Raiders – 2-6 – (2-4)
Palisades Pirates – 2-8 – (2-5)
Salisbury Twp. Falcons – 2-8 – (2-5)
Pen Argyl Green Knights – 0-10 – (0-7)
2022 SEASON PREVIEW and OUTLOOK:
Palmerton Blue Bombers
Head Coach: Chris Walkowiak
Coaches Outlook:
Offensively, we have a great group of skill kids returning that provided much explosiveness in our offense last season. Our line has a key nucleus of starters returning which will need to help with development of the younger lineman in the unit. Defensively, we return 7 starters and have a key core group of players that gained a ton of playing experience last season. We will need to rely on our experience and team speed this year. Special Teams, we will look to replace our punter and make improvements in our kicking game.
PFN Outlook:
Palmerton moves up a class this year to AAA, and will also be moved to the RED Division this season. This will definitely add talent to the already talented field of teams in this division. I had the pleasure of watching Palmerton’s junior QB Matt Machalik twice last season and I can say, he will be near the top of the league in passing yards.
Returning Starters: Matt Machalik – Jr – QB/FS, Daniel Lucykanish – SR – Athlete/DB, Dalton Drake – SR – WR/DB, Stephen Jones – JR – RB/OLB, Ty Sander – JR – RB/OLB, Clayton Christman – JR -OL/DL, Zack Anthony – JR – OL/DL, Alex Konze – JR – OL/DL, Emilio Gonzalez – JR – LB
Key Players Lost: Lost 6 Seniors from the Class of 2022
Key Newcomers: Kendall Robinson – SR – DB/WR, Logan Anthony – FR – OL/DL, Jameson Trainer – Sophomore – DB/Athlete, Bryce Marino – JR – LB/WR
North Schuylkill Spartans
Head Coach: Walter “Wally” Hall
Coaches Outlook:
“From a year ago, we lost some key players that were very productive for us offensively. We placed great emphasis on evaluating personnel and are confident of the direction we are going offensively. Defensively we return many veteran players and players with game experience. Special teams’ strength will be with our kicker. As a team, we have a large roster where we continue to develop players. In the past, we had many one-way players. With some talented players it is hard not to play them offensively, defensively, and within our special teams. Having a very competitive schedule we will all need to focus daily and weekly on our opponents.”
PFN Outlook:
The Spartans will still be at or at least near the top of the standings all season. The O’line will need to take of their QB and open holes. The defense will need to grab some turnovers to help the offense keep rolling this season. Overall, I feel they’ll be fine.
Returning Players on offense & Position: (6)
Joey Flail – Jr – Wr, Brady Salukas – Sr – OL, Jack Dean – Sr – TE, Steven Davis – Sr – OL, Sander Stokes – Soph – OL, Robbie Weitz – Sr – OL
Returning Players on Defense & Position: (11)
Steven Davis – Sr – DL, Robbie Weitz – Sr – DL, Jared Tinari – Sr – LB, Jaxson Chowansky – Jr – LB, Chris Long – Sr – DE, Neekoli Carabolla – Jr – DE, Jack Dean – Sr – LB, Colin McGee – Jr – SS, Ricky Halford – Jr – LB
Offensive Newcomers & Position: (8)
Trevor Minalda – Jr – QB
Collin McGee – Jr – WR
Colin Stanakis – Jr – WR
Bradlee Himes – Jr – OL
Jared Tinari – Sr – RB
Ricky Halford – Jr – RB
Zander McElhenny – Jr – WR
Yerick Tlacuatl – Sr – OL
Defensive Newcomers & Position: (3)
Bradlee Himes – Jr – DL
Colin Stanakis – Jr – DB
Zane McElhenny – Sr – LB
Key Players Lost:
Jake Hall QB, Carey Wahalec OL, Adam Scott DE, Evan Stanakis SS/WR, Josh Chowansky RB, Gavin Whalen WR
Northern Lehigh Bulldogs
Head Coach: Joe Tout
Coaches Outlook:
“Offensively, we lost four starters that made up 80% of our offense last season. Matt Frame our leading rusher, Trevor Amorim our leading receiver and second leading rusher, Brett Misera our second leading receiver, and Dylan Smoyer our quarterback. We do return our entire offensive line and our two tight end set(Jack Tosh Jr TE). We also have skill players that we are excited about. Nick Frame will move to quarterback and we will utilize a two tailback system with Ramos and Jimenez.
Defensively, we feel that the strength of our defense will be our front. We do have depth with our lineman and feel that we may be able to rotate or platoon as the season progresses. We do return 2 of 3 linebackers and must find depth at that position. We expect our defense to be the strength of our team this year.”
PFN Outlook:
We have to agree with Coach Tout here with being that the defense will be the strength of their team this season, with that said, I seen Nick Frame a few times last year, and the kid can and will excel at whatever position he plays over time but quickly. Palmerton, North Schuylkill, and Northern Lehigh should all contend for the division in my opinion.
Returning on Offense:
C – Jr – Jackson Van Norman
Guard- Sr. Ethan Karpowich
Guard- Sr. Lucas Farmer
Tackle- Jr. Sam Frame
Tackle- Sr. Jayden Krempasky
Tight End- Sr. Austin Smyth
Running Back- Sr. AJ Jimenez
Wide Receiver – Sr – Nick Frame
Returning on Defense:
DT – Sr – Jayden Krempasky
DT – Jr – Sam Frame
DE – Sr – Austin Smyth
DE – Sr – AJ Jimenez
LB – Sr – Ethan Karpowich
S – Jr – Nick Frame
CB – Sr – Izaiah Ramos
Key Newcomers: Sr – Ben Reitz – OT, Sr – Seth Adams – OT, So – Landon Moll – G/DE, Jr – Bailey Smith – WR/LB, Jr
– Jack Tosh – RB/LB, Grady Newhard – DB/RB, So – Ayden Oswald – QB/DB, So – Cyrus Kinchen – OT/DT
Players Lost: Matt Frame – RB, Dylan Smoyer – QB, Brett Misera – WR/CB, Trevor Amorim – WR
Jim Thorpe Olympians
Head Coach: Mark Rosenberger
Coaches Outlook:
Looking forward to the season with a lot of talent returning on the offensive side of the ball. Defensive line should be tough with the return of Rosahac and Heydt. Will need to replace a lot of players in the back end of the defense but there is a lot of competition for those spots.
PFN Outlook:
Coach Rosenberger seems to always be competitive in some way or another during his time at Jim Thorpe, and I feel this year, even though have lost some key players, when I seen a few of the players during media day, they are big. If everything can come together for the Olympians over the next two weeks, look for them to make some noise and upset some teams.
Returning Starters:
QB – Brett Balliet
RB – Sal Capria
WR – David Fioritto
C – Nate Lopez
G – Noah Rosahac
G – Tiernan McCartney
T – Paul Rutledge
TE – Bryson Heydt
DE – Bryson Heydt
DT – Noah Rosahac
LB – Dom Berger
CB – Justin Yescavage
Key Newcomers:
FB’S Jave Butler, and Ben Goldberg
RB’S – Vince Letosky, and Andrew Coolbaugh
OL – Austin Fronheiser and Marcus Muffley
DL – Paul Rutledge, and Wiliam Newton
LB’S – Ben Goldberg, and Jave Butler
DB’S – William Schwartz, Josh James, and Cole Lazorick
Players Lost: Camron Tinajero – FB/LB, Bryan Bowen – DE, Derryl Fisher – CB/WR, Drew Wimmer – FS, Matt Stauffer – SS, David Wiley – T/DT, Travis Benson – P
Notre Dame Green Pond Crusaders
Head Coach: Philip Stambaugh
Coaches Outlook:
Offensively, we have to replace a lot of graduating talent. Jr-QB Danny Darno started 2 games in ’21 and won both of the, Sr-OL Aiden Compton, and Sr-OL Mason Ludlow will anchor the offensive line in ’22. We have depth in our skill positions and there will be a lot of competition to get into roles within the offense this summer. We are returning varsity letter winners on the offensive line and expect to have depth there as well. Key is going to be developing our players heading into week 1 which I am confident we will do and getting better situationally as an offense. Defensively, Coach Anthony Casciano is back this season to be the defensive coordinator. We lost starters to graduation on defense as well, but we return a good number of varsity letter winners. In the secondary, we return 3 starters and expect that group to lead our defense this season… In the defensive interior, we will replace some very good players from a year ago… We have good potential and we are excited to see how they will develop heading into the season. Special Teams are wide open for us this year and we need to replace multi-year All-State K Nick Garrido who is headed to Lehigh University.
PFN Outlook:
The Crusaders have to replace a lot of talent offensively and will struggle early on which will make it hard for them to make playoffs in Class 3A.
Returning Players:
Sr – OL – Aiden Compton
Sr – OL – Mason Ludlow
Sr – OL – Evan Strand
Jr – RB/WR/DB – Josh Ludlow
Jr – QB – Danny Darno
Sr – DB – Anthony Pez
Sr – DB – Matt Hatzakos
Sr – LB – James Cartier
Jr – DE – Dainn Vassallo
So – DL – Anthony Crisafulli
Key Newcomers:
Sr – DE – Trevor Kent
Sr – OL/DL – Kendrick Eure
Sr – OL/DL – Carson Stranzl
Sr – DB – Firoz Davis
Sr – WR – Chase Marcks
Sr – WR/LB/DE – Cole Fulton
Jr – OL/DL – Zach Kraska
Jr – OL – Jack Cameron
Jr – QB/WR/DB – James Wisecarver
Jr – WR – Julian Baker
Jr – WR/DB – AJ Lozano
Jr – RB/LB – Michael Manlove
Jr – RB – Joe Cuvo
Jr – WR – John Maldonado
Jr – DB – Brenden Ferraro
Jr – WR/DB – Gavin Hoff
Jr – LB – Ben Garcia
Jr – DL – Cameron Coulter
Jr – OL/DL – Gino Guerrisi
Jr – DL – Brayden Quigley
So – WR/LB – Christian Rivituso
Jr – WR/DB – Nino Morici
Players Lost: Collin Quintano, Logan Castellano, Nick Garrido, Ryan Carroll, Josh Hoffert, Ethan O’Neill, Nadir Sanders, Gavin Gibbs, Anthony Silfani, Alex Crus, Jayden Becker, Tarif Muhammad, Luke Bittner, Owen Baur
Pine Grove Cardinals
Head Coach: Dave Shiffer
Coaches Outlook:
We are looking to improve upon our record from last year and be competitive with our jump to the highly competitive Red Division. We have experience coming back, but we are still a relatively young team overall. We want to continue to build on the foundation set by a strong offseason.
PFN Outlook:
The Cardinals are making their first appearance in the RED division after finishing last season 1-9(0-5 in white division). Pine Grove returns Mason Kroh – QB/DB – Sr, Lane Lehman – RB/SS – Jr, Nick Wolff ATH/FS – Sr, Carter Raudabaugh – OG – Sr, and a few others that can definitely make an impact. Pine Grove begins its season wanting to avenge a season opening losses to Northern Lebanon Vikings last year 13 to 7 and Williams Valley Vikings 26 to 14.
Returning Starters: Mason Kroh – QB/DB – Sr, Lane Lehman – RB/SS – Jr, Nick Wolff – ATH/FS – Sr, Carter Raudabaugh – OG – Sr, Tyler Sleva – OT – Jr, Brennden Etzweiler – C – Jr, Hunter McConnell – OG/LB – Jr, Xaviar Yeagley – OL/DE/LB – Jr, Ty Drumheller – S – Jr , Colin Haddock – LB – Jr, Evan Karenda – K – Jr.
Key Newcomers: Sr – OG/DT – Gary Pominville, Sr – LB – Adam Cooper, Sr – WR – Chaz Wolfe, Jr – RB/WR – Ty Drumheller, Jr – WR/CB – Owen Hannevig, Jr – HB – Colin Haddock, Jr – WR/S – Alec Osatchuck, Jr – CB – Evan Karenda, So – WR/CB – Brody Ibarra, So – TE/DE – Robbie Schaeffer, Fr – HB/DE – Wyatt Snyder, Fr – DL – Tyler Nein, Fr – OL – James Barra,
Player Lost: Brennan Stanton, Brodie Lyons, Aaron Crumrine, Dalton Geesey, Colin Ibarra, Javin Ward, Steven Shanahan
Tamaqua Blue Raiders
Head Coach: Sam Bonner
PFN Outlook:
Tamaqua comes into this season looking to rebound after finishing 8-10 over the last two seasons. Curvey and Stewart, the both RB’S will need to find the holes and get the offense rolling like Coach said, as well as I think the TE play will be very important to this team. The Blue Raiders will improve but I feel their still a year away from contention.
Coaches Outlook:
Offensively, Our offense needs to be more efficient than last year establishing the line of scrimmage to get the run game going. The passing game will also need to be better this year starting with better chemistry being built this offseason.
Defensively, The defense needs to focus on stopping the run first this year in order to be successful. We had a lot of guys rotate defensively last year which should help our experience and leadership on the field. Forcing turnovers will be another key to our defense that we need to do more of this year.
Returning Starters:
Offense: Sr – RB Warren Stewart, Sr – WR – John Klein, Sr – WR – Gabe Coleman, Sr – OL – Ryan Snyder, Sr – OL – Josh Shelton, Jr – OL – Spencer Dennis,
Defense: Sr – DL – Vinny Schlosser, Jr – DL – Michael Styka, Jr – DL – Spencer Dennis, Sr – LB – Warren Stewart, Sr – LB – John Klein, Jr – DB – Conner Dillon, Jr – DB – Damon Sell,
Special Teams: Jr – P – Michael Styka
Key Newcomers: Sr – FB/LB – Isaac Curvey, Sr – RB/DB – Love Ortiz, Jr – OL/DL – Matt Welsh, Jr – WR/DB – Devin Sell, So – QB/LB – Luke Kane, So – WR/DB – Victor Schlosser, So – RB/DL – Jacob Hehn, So – TE/DL – Declan Coleman
Players Lost: QB/DB – Nate Gregoire, WR/DB – Steven Kostecky, OL/DL – Jacob Wasserleben, OL/DL – Parker Coleman, WR/LB Zander Coleman
Salisbury Township Falcons
Head Coach: Andy Cerco
Coaches Outlook:
Offensively, the Falcons will rely on rising Senior Nick Beck at Quarterback to operate the offense. Key playmakers will be rising Seniors Josh Brooks, Jacob Gibbons, and Lucas Graver. The Falcons will lean on the offensive line led by Toby Linn.
Defensively, the Falcons will look to take a step forward from the 2021 campaign with an experienced defensive unit led by Toby Linn at MLB, Josiah Day, Nick Beck, Josh Brooks, Jacob Gibbons, George Spann and Jacob Bucchin, all contributed during the 2021 season.
Special Teams, Lucas Graver has demonstrated growth in the kicking game and will continue to develop in that area.
PFN Outlook:
The Falcons are 5-13 over the last two seasons. Hopefully with all the new players coming in, and the returners, the Falcons can get things together and make a run. Wide Receiver Zach Bender Jr. will need to a major part in the offense for them to be successful. We’ll see how they do in the opener vs Panther Valley and go from there.
Returning Starters:
Offense: Sr – QB – Nick Beck, Sr – HB – Josh Brooks, Sr – G – Toby Linn, Sr – TE – Jacob Gibbons, Sr – WR – Zach Bender, Jr – HB – Jacob Bucchin, Jr – FB – George Spann,
Defense: Sr – DB – Nick Beck, Sr – DB – Josh Brooks, Sr – LB – Toby Linn, Sr – DB – Jacob Gibbons, Sr – DE – Josiah Day, Jr – FB – George Spann, Jr – DB – Jacob Bucchin,
Special Teams: Sr – K/P – Lucas Graver
Key Newcomers: Sr – WR/DB/K – Lucas Graver, Sr – OL/DL – Car Dyer, Sr – OL/DL – Ryan Ferrell, Sr – DB – Zach Bender, Sr – WR/DB – Shawn Donaldson, Jr – HB/DB – Zack Baab, Jr – WR/DB – Gavin Cerco, Jr – TE/LB – Jaydien Kennedy, Jr – OL/DL – Mander Leonard, Jr – WR/DB – Dominic Popovich, Jr – HB/LB – Tyler Williams, So – WR/DB – Andrew Lucas, So – HB/FB/LB – Jason St. Leger, So – FB/LB – Nate Tone, So – HB/LB – Derek Trinidad, So – HB/DB – Andy Wright, Fr – OL/DL – Sam Krauss
Players Lost: Sr – OL – Brandon Brotzman, Sr – OL – Ben Krauss, Sr – OL – Anthony Scarcia, Sr – OL – Paul Spann, Sr – Slot Receiver/HB – Chase Fenstermaker
@PFNDan570FB Division Prediction:
Top-3(in no particular order): Jim Thorpe, North Schuylkill, and Northern Lehigh
Team to Watch: NDGP
Sleeper: Tamaqua
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