Ruby Review: Troy 17, Wellsboro 0; Wyoming Valley West 38, Dallas 14

Tagged under: District 11, District 2, District 4

Joe Ruby | October 7, 2014

This past weekend, I made my longest trip of the year (119 miles each way to Wellsboro) and my shortest trip of the year (9 miles each way to Dallas). Indeed, the Wellsboro trip was a milestone in many ways; not only was it my longest trip of the year, and not only was it the first time I had ever been to Wellsboro, but during the return trip I passed 1,000 miles logged on the way to and from high school football games this year. I can only hope to someday pass 1,000 hot dogs eaten at high school football games. But I digress….

Troy 17, Wellsboro 0

The 119-mile drive out to Tioga County was a gorgeous one, as Route 15 leading to Wellsboro wove through valleys cut out from hills speckled with red, green, yellow, and brown. Last week was the first official week of autumn, but this was the first week that it really felt like fall was here. Truly, we’d all been spoiled by the fantastic weather; even though I knew we couldn’t have an entire season of 72 and sunny, I was still a little surprised when the rain that had been called for actually materialized about an hour before game time. Although I wasn’t necessarily thrilled about having to sit outside as a stiff wind blew a cold rain into my face, my football senses tingled all the same: there’s just something tougher, grittier, more… more authentic about football played in the wind and the rain and the mud (I’m sure that, eventually, we’ll get to the snow; no need to rush things).

Wellsboro’s stadium was different from any I’d been to. It wouldn’t be accurate to say that it was distinctive for a particular feature it had, in the same way that it wouldn’t be accurate to say that the Sphinx’s face is distinctive for any particular feature it has. What I mean to say is that Wellsboro didn’t have any stands. The field had a track and a fence around it, and people crowded three deep around the perimeter to see the action. The stadium was set into the side of a hill, so the few hundred fans who wanted to get a more vertical perspective on the game set up blankets and lawn chairs on the slopes to the west and south of the field. Unfortunately, the set-up didn’t provide many good vantage points; I ultimately found the best spot view to be from field-level at the slightly-elevated east corner of the field. Although Wellsboro’s football field gave me the less-than-ideal choice of standing crowded around the fence or plopping my butt down on a wet, grassy slope, it’s the kind of thing I’m going to remember for the rest of my life, and in this age, where schools are ditching their grass for turf and their wood bleachers for steel, Wellsboro will always stand at the other side of the spectrum for me.

Geeze, that was a long intro. ONTO THE ACTUAL GAME. Wellsboro came into this game 5-0 and ranked #3 in single-A; second-year Head Coach Matt Hildebrand was 15-0 in regular season games (which is amazing, because in the three years before he got there Wellsboro went 10-20). Troy was also 5-0, an Honorable Mention in AA. The teams’ styles were diametrically opposed: the Wellsboro Hornets came into the game amassing 250 yards through the air per contest, while the Troy Trojans ran to the tune of 420 yards per game. With the wind blowing and the ground slippery, the initial advantage had to go to Troy.

And, although it took them a little while to get going, the Trojans pressed that advantage. Wellsboro put together a 75-yard drive to start the game, but was stopped and goal from the 1. That was literally their only chance: for a number of reasons I’ll soon get into, the Hornets actually netted -1 yards from scrimmage for the rest of the game. Troy, however, kept the offense going consistently throughout, making the score 6-0 with 54 seconds left in the first half, 9-0 by the end of the third quarter, and 17-0 midway through the fourth.

The game really changed midway through the second quarter, in that really unfortunate way games often change: the injury. Wellsboro’s vaunted passing attack hadn’t really been able to generate much except for one big play on the game’s first drive; talented Senior QB Mike Pietropola was 2 for 10 for 55 yards, and the Hornets were finding it very difficult to complete passes against an athletic secondary. Indeed, when your passing game is founded on the deep ball, your best weapon turns into a 50/50 proposition if the opposing CBs can keep up with the wideouts. However, Pietropola was doing enough to keep the Hornets in the game, as he was also their leading rusher with 6 carries for 43 yards. But with a few minutes left before halftime, with the score still 0-0, Pietropola was injured and, despite his best efforts to hide what seemed to be a great amount of pain when trying to warm up on the sidelines, he was ultimately unable to return.

After that, Wellsboro couldn’t do anything but go backwards. Sophomore QB Brandon Lamphier was thrust into a very difficult situation and did the best he could, completing 3 of 6 passes for 7 yards. However, with Wellsboro unable to offer a legitimate running threat, Troy’s defense keyed in on the pass, getting to Lamphier consistently and ultimately burying him for -44 yards on 6 carries.

On the other side of the ball, Troy’s rushing attack came as advertised. Against a very stout Wellsboro defense (that had allowed only 6 points the entire season), the middle of the Trojans’ offensive managed to gain a huge amount of space consistently. Maybe Troy’s most impressive player was Senior Center Dylan Brennan, who basically turned the O-Line into a wedge that split the defense in two.

Also making matters easier for Troy was the fact that Wellsboro seemed to be taking out its frustrations in the form of penalties. This included one particularly memorable series that put the game squarely out of reach. Troy, up 9-0, drove to the red zone in the fourth looking to ice things up, where they found themselves facing a 4th-and-14. Although the pass fell incomplete, Wellsboro was called for roughing the passer, giving the Trojans a fresh set of downs on the 9 yard line. Before the next snap, Wellsboro jumped offside, moving the ball inside the 5. Troy punched it in on the next play to make it 15-0. Looking to make it a three possession game, Troy lined up for the two-point conversion. They were denied on their initial attempt, but Wellsboro was called for a personal foul. After three defensive penalties over the course of three snaps, Troy snagged the conversion on their second try, making the score 17-0.

Wyoming Valley West 38, Dallas 14

After my lengthy excursion on Friday night, it was nice to be able to hop on 309 North and go the short distance to Dallas for the Mountaineers’ matchup against the visiting Wyoming Valley West Spartans. Although Dallas had already played two “home games,” neither of these had actually taken place at Mountaineer Stadium, which was receiving some beautiful new turf (with powder-blue trim around the edges!). With both teams 4-1, Dallas was hoping they could slow Valley West’s stable of weapons while displaying their own aerial attack for the home fans.

It didn’t quite go that way, though.

The Spartans, who, due to the tight nature of the AAAA playoff race, absolutely couldn’t afford a loss, took a 21-0 lead into halftime and pushed it to 28-0, coasting to a straightforward victory in their last tune-up before their mega-match against Crestwood next week. Valley West was methodical and explosive in turns, utilizing all of their weapons in both the pass and run game. Four different Spartan players caught TD passes, made possible by Senior QB Brady Davison’s accuracy and extremely sharp eye for separation.

If I haven’t made it clear enough, let me say it explicitly: Valley West’s offense simply has too many moving parts to key in on. Let me illustrate with an anecdote:

On the first drive of the game, RB Eric Acosta ran for a first down and caught a TD. On their second scoring drive, the Davison completed passes to each of his Tight Ends, LJ Wesneski and Chris Reese, the latter for a score. WR Devon Weidman figured prominently in the offensive scheme. WR JerMichael Bunch caught a pass to go along with his interception (unfortunately, he left with an injury in the second quarter). That’s five legitimate threats to score for Valley West, not counting Davison, who can scramble quite well.

And yet, Valley West’s wild card hadn’t touched the ball.

If you’ve been following Valley West this year, you know there’s a name missing: Sean Judge. Either by plan or by circumstance, the electric, athletic, Sophomore wunderkind couldn’t get his hands on the ball.

That is, he couldn’t get his hands on the ball… until he did. And then he did again. And again. With just over three minutes left in the first half, the Spartans found themselves on their own 35. Three plays later – a 14-yard catch by Judge, a 24-yard catch by Judge, and a 27-yard TD catch by Judge – they were up 21-0 and could go into halftime comfortably.

DISTRICT 2 NOTES

If you read last week’s Ruby Review Mid-Season Mega-Post and thought “this guy doesn’t seem to be on board with Honesdale,” well, you were right. Dunmore (5-1, AA HM) proved they’re still on top of the LVC II, beating the Hornets (4-2) 55-13… Hanover’s (4-2) offense (the troubles of which were well-documented by the Ruby Review) got back on track, 37-21 over Meyers (3-3)… Old Forge’s (6-0, A #7) last three games: 33-0, 35-0, 35-0. They play Lackawanna Trail (5-1) this week, and if the Lions don’t score on them, they might run the table with 7 straight shutouts… Abington Heights (4-2) beat Valley View (2-4) 26-15 on PNC Field. Yes, that PNC Field….

DISTRICT 4 NOTES

Aside from Troy, as noted above, District 4’s remaining unbeatens are Jersey Shore, North Penn (A HM), and Southern Columbia (AA #3). North Penn plays at Troy this week… South Williamsport (5-1, AA #8) moves back into the rankings where they belong. Since their 2-point loss to Montoursville to start the year, they’ve been beating their opponents by 30 per game… My Selinsgrove Seals (5-1) got back on track after their one-point loss to Berwick by beating Mifflinburg (1-5) to the tune of 42-7. Selinsgrove and Jersey Shore play for AAA supremacy in Week 8. As I happen to be attending a wedding (not my own, thank goodness) in Selinsgrove that weekend, I’ll be there in person!

DISTRICT 11 NOTES

The two undefeated Bethlehem schools stayed that way: Catholic (AAA #7) took care of East Stroudsburg North (2-4), and Freedom (6-0) smacked Dieruff (2-4) in anticipation of their matchup with Whitehall… Speaking of Whitehall, the Zephyrs (5-1, AAAA HM) suffered their first defeat of the season, 63-49 to Easton (6-0, AAAA #10)… Easton plays Parkland (5-1, AAAA HM) this week. If you haven’t figured it out by now, D11 AAAA is very strong….

WEEK 7: THE BIG ONE

I tried to talk myself out of it all week, all month. “I’ve already seen Crestwood once… I’ve already seen Wyoming Valley West twice… There are better games in District 11….” I was, of course, just being ridiculous. I’m based in Wilkes-Barre, after all, a mere 5 miles or so from Spartan Stadium. I told you after Week 1 that Crestwood was a very good team, and they’ve since elevated their play to “elite” level. I just finished telling you that Wyoming Valley West is transcendentally exciting. A chat with my buddy Eddie Walker (seriously, folks, listen to the Helmet Head Radio Show on Saturday mornings from 9 to 11) may just have pushed me over the edge.

So, I’ll be there for Crestwood (6-0, AAA #9) @ Wyoming Valley West (5-1) on Friday night. The game has huge implications for Wyoming Valley West; if they lose, they’ll absolutely need Delaware Valley (5-1, AAAA HM) to take care of business against Scranton (5-1), as only two of those three teams can make the playoffs. Crestwood has sealed their playoff fate, but now they’re playing for seeding and – especially – pride. The team exorcised their demons with their 28-20 win over Berwick in Week 1, but now they face something of a glass ceiling on a statewide level; despite their consistent dominating wins, it’s hard for them to jump the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh teams regardless of how badly they beat Pittston or Wyoming or Hazleton, who, with all respect, don’t stand up well against the schedules of, say, Imhotep (District 12) or Thomas Jefferson (District 7) in the eyes of the big city reporters. A convincing win over Wyoming Valley West would go a long way towards showing the pundits that the Comets can make a big push to, say, the PIAA Quarterfinals (or further).

As previously stated, I’ll head up north for Scranton Prep (5-1, AAA HM) @ Abington Heights (4-2) on Saturday. Prep is in a good place, and just about clinches a playoff spot with a win over the (other) Comets this weekend. Abington Heights’ playoff hopes, on the other hand, are in the balance (they will likely be competing with Dallas for the fourth and final D2 AAA playoff berth), and a loss to Prep would likely force them to run the table – a task which would necessitate winning their Week 10 matchup at Scranton (5-1) – to even have a chance.

As always, hit me up in the comments or on Twitter (@JoeRuby1009).

Past Ruby Reviews:

Ruby Review: Introduction
Ruby Review: Crestwood 28, Berwick 20
Ruby Review: Delaware Valley 43, Wyoming Valley West 35
Ruby Review: Old Forge 16, Hanover 13; Parkland 35, Allentown Central Catholic 7
Ruby Review: Mid-Season Mega-Post!