Breaking down the PIAA District 5 Playoffs
Tagged under: District 5, Gameday Hub, News
Phil Myers | November 4, 2021
Class 1A (seeds in parenthesis)
(2) Tussey Mountain (3-6) vs. (1) Northern Bedford (7-3) @ Hollidaysburg – The No. Bedford Black Panthers beat Tussey Mountain 34-7 two weeks ago. Their record may be deceiving as they lost to three 2A schools, #4 ranked Windber (9-0), Bellwood-Antis (9-1), and Cambria Heights (9-1). Bellwood and Heights are HM according to PFN. The Panthers also beat #9 ranked Juniata Valley who is a 1A school. They run the ball twice as much as throw, but they have a good young quarterback in sophomore Eion Snider. Defensively, they give up 16 points a game and have a freshman, Aaron Bowers, who leads the team with 4 interceptions. The Titans like to run and run by committee as they have four players with 4 rushing TDs. They also have a young QB who does a good job in Landon Myers. Tussey Mountain will have to control the clock, get some turnovers, and make a few big plays in order to win this game.
Class 2A (seeds in parenthesis)
(4) Chestnut Ridge (6-4) vs. (1) Westinghouse (8-1) @ Cupples Stadium in Pittsburgh – The Lions average 32 points a game and are led offensively by sophomore quarterback Nate Whysong. He has thrown for 1,399 yards and 13 TDs plus rushed for another 7 scores. Here is another case where records may be deceiving as the Ridge has lost games to three 3A schools in #4 ranked Central Martinsburg (10-0), #6 ranked Richland (8-2), and #8 ranked Bedford (9-1). The Bulldogs were ranked until losing in the City League Championship 14-0 to Allderdice, a team they had clobbered a few weeks ago. The House averages 34 points a game and allows only 8.
(3) Berlin Brothersvalley (8-2) @ (2) Windber (9-0) – Windber defeated Berlin on October 8th by a score of 20-6 in a game where both defenses shined. Windber is ranked 4th in the latest PFN rankings and Berlin is a team to watch. John Shuster heads up the Rambler attack with 1,186 yards rushing and 19 TDs. Windber is third in the state averaging 50.7 points per game, 6th in points scored with 457. So, that says something about the Berlin defense holding them to 20 points the first time they met. The Ramblers also have the 15th best defense in PA as far as points allowed giving up only 62. Windber has also picked off 16 opponent passes to date. Berlin averages 26 points a game and gives up an average of 15. The Mountaineers are led by sophomore quarterback Pace Prosser and his 1,595 yards passing with 16 TDs. His favorite target is Ryan Blubaugh with 50 catches for 688 yards and 8 TDs. The Berlin defense has 29 sacks, 15 interceptions, and 10 fumble recoveries. Windber just needs to keep a steady ship, not turn the ball over, and not get a lot of penalties to bring home the victory. Berlin’s defense needs to play the same way they did the first game and the offense has to solve Windber’s defense to have a shot at upsetting the Ramblers.
Class 3A
Bedford (9-1) has a bye week and will play either Clearfield (10-0) or St. Marys (8-2) out of District 9 next week. Bedford’s all-state quarterback, Mercury Swaim, is the key to the Bisons’ offense. Stay tuned for what should be a great game next week no matter who their opponent is.
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