Exeter Twp and Penn-Trafford will square off for rights to first state title game @ExeterTwpFB @ptwarriorfb

Tagged under: District 3, District 7, Gameday Hub, News

Billy Splain | December 3, 2021

One thing we know for sure about tonight’s matchup between Penn-Trafford and Exeter Township, the winner will be making their first trip to a State Championship game. And that alone is amazing given that, just several weeks ago neither team was in the top ten in the PAFootballnews.com rankings.  But here we are, with the Eagles and Warriors facing off at Alumni Stadium in Wingate for that coveted chance to win the PIAA Class 5A title.

It hasn’t been an easy trip for either team, both stumbling several times along the way, but it’s got to be said that Exeter pulled off the upset of the entire playoffs last week by taking down #1 Governor Mifflin after losing to them 54-21 back in the first week of August. The Eagle defense shut down Penn State recruit Nicholas Singleton on their way to a hard fought 31-28 win. Eric Nangle outrushed the PSU recruit running for 225 yards and the go-ahead fourth quarter score.  Exeter also has losses to Central York and Hempfield by a total of 10 points.

For Penn-Trafford, their 11-2 record includes blemishes to Peters Twp and Belle Vernon, both of which came early in the season. The Warriors are coming off a close 24-21 win over Moon Twp.  They’re led by Wisconsin commit Cade Yacamelli, who is a force on both sides of the ball. Cade has rolled up 1,634 yards and scored 20 TDs, and he’s also a threat to catch the ball.

For Exeter, they’ll have to do what they did against the Mustangs, control the clock and keep the ball away from an offense that has scored over 35 points seven times this season.  They’ll need a big game from QB Colin Payne who has thrown for over 2,000 yards and 22 tds.  He’ll be looking to hook up with PSU Commit (TE) Joey Schlaffer.

If the Warriors want that trip to Hershey, it’s no secret. Get the ball to Yacamelli as often as they can while using the arm and legs of quarterback Carter Green who’s accounted for over 2,200 yards and 25 scores.

This is definitely one of the more intriguing matchups of the weekend and we’re looking forward to giving full coverage on twitter tonight. Follow us on twitter for updates at https://twitter.com/PaFootballNews

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