Class 1A Semifinal Preview: Fort Cherry vs. Port Allegany
Tagged under: District 7, District 9, News, pfn, Playoffs
Phil Myers | November 29, 2024
Fort Cherry vs. Port Allegany at PennWest Clarion – Friday November 29 @ 7:00 P.M.
Fort Cherry Rangers (14-0)
Fort Cherry, ranked 2nd in the state, is coached by Tanner Garry. He has been the head coach since the 2020 season and has compiled a record of 45-14. But he is 29-1 over the past two seasons with the only loss being to Steelton-Highspire in the state championship last year. Even with their dynamic quarterback, the Rangers are really a run team as they only pass about one out of every four plays. Having said that though, their pass game is difficult to stop.
The Ranger offense averages 40 points a game and centers around Penn State commit, quarterback Matt Sieg. Earlier this year, he became the first QB to throw for 4,000 yards and run for 6,000 in a career in the history of D7 football. And Sieg is only a junior. For 2024 he has 1,285 yards passing with 20 TDs plus he’s run for 1,804 yards and 32 TDs. Ryan Huey has gained 700 yards rushing and scored 13 touchdowns. Sieg’s favorite targets are Shane Cornali and Brayden Cook. Cornali has grabbed 37 passes for 675 yards and 10 touchdowns. Cook has 29 catches for 359 yards. Nick Massey has successfully booted 57 PATs out of 61 attenmpts.
The Ranger defense gets the job done as they’ve only allowed an average of 10.3 points a game. Tyler Wolfe is the top tackler for the Rangers with Blake Sweder second on the team in taking down opponent ball carriers. Sweder and Sieg both have 4 interceptions to lead the team in that category. Last week they held one of the top offenses in the state, Clairton, to 20 points which enabled Fort Cherry to score late and win.
Port Allegany Gators (13-0)
Port Allegany is ranked 3rd by PFN and is coached by Justin Bienkowski, who is in his ninth year of coaching. He sports a 55-40 overall record, but in the past three seasons his teams are 25-5. His Gators lost a close one in the state semis to the two years ago to the Union Area Scotties. This is the third time in the school’s football history that Port has made the state semifinal round. The 2024 version of Port Allegany is a run heavy team, but can pass a little if they want to. On the ground, as a team, the Gators average over 10 yards each time they touch the ball.
Aiden Bliss is the main offensive cog for the Gators. He leads the state in touchdowns (52) and points scored. He has juked around people or bulled his way through them for 2,880 yards and 48 touchdowns. He averages 11 yards every time he runs the ball. On top of that, Blis has been successful on 34 two-point conversions! His sidekick, Tristan Kiser, is no slouch either running the ball. He averages 13 yards a carry. Kiser has 1,226 yards running and has scored 26 touchdowns. Quarterback Brennan Fillhart has 713 yards passing the ball with 9 touchdowns. Kiser is the leading receiver. The Gators are third in the state in scoring offense, averaging 52.3 points a game.
The Port Allegany defense has 30 quarterback sacks so far this season. D-linemen Carson Neely and Juuso Young have 7 and 6 recorded sacks respectively. Port has intercepted 26 opposition passes with Nick Wilfong having 6 of those and Bliss having 4. Bliss, Kiser, and Gavin Moses lead the team in tackles. The Gators have given up an average of 18.6 points a game.
The Outlook
It should be an entertaining game and may come down to this, can one of the defenses step up and stop the other guy’s offense? Whomever can do that will win the game. For Fort Cherry to win, they must survive the pounding running attack of Port Allegany, force a couple turnovers, and rely on Sieg to give the offense the boost to get ahead in the game making the Gators get out of their comfort zone. For Port Allegany to be victorious, it comes down to doing what Steelton did in the state title game last year and that is blanketing Matt Sieg, not allowing him any big runs and throws. That is a tall task, but if they can do that, control the time of possession, and score when they get the opportunity, they will have a very good chance of winning.
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