Farrell outlasts Richland and advances to PIAA 2A Semifinals
Tagged under: District 10, District 6, pfn, Playoffs, Scores
Stone Manges | November 22, 2025
On a foggy night in Kittanning, perfect weather for some playoff football, the Farrell Steelers took down the Richland Rams 32-14 and advanced to the next round of the PIAA 2A state playoffs.
While the rain held off during the game, the Farrell offense did not. After a fumble recovery from Jason Marshall III, the Steelers jumped out to an early 6-0 lead courtesy of Juju Johnson’s first of a remarkable five touchdowns on the night. Richland had a slow start which affected them later on in the game. A quick three and out from the Rams gave Farrell the football back around their own forty yard line. A clutch forth down conversion and a luck tip drill catch for the Steelers to end the first quarter of play set them up inside the red zone. Johnson tacked on his second score and a successful two point conversion forty-three seconds into the next frame to increase the lead by eight.
The Rams moved the ball over mid field on the next drive, but after an offensive pass interference penalty and a huge loss on a sack from Farrell’s Rhashaud Dunbar they were forced to punt the ball away. Johnson returned the punt from Richland deep into enemy territory at the twenty-four and later scored his third touchdown of the half.
Richland desperately needed a score on their next drive to stay within striking distance. The Rams put together a long, methodical drive that featured four first downs and a clutch forth down conversion to set up shop first and goal with time ticking down on the first half. Junior running back Grayson Mahla punched it into the endzone with sixteen second left in the quarter to get Richland on the board.
Coming out of the half with the football and down 20-7, Richland looked to capitalize off the momentum built by the sustained touchdown drive to end the half. The Rams did just that. Arnold Mugerwa and Jackson Feichtel both had huge receptions to extend the Richland drive and push them farther into Farrell territory. Mahla capped off the drive with his second score of the night and pulled the Rams within a touchdown, bringing the score to 20-14. Farrell turned the ball over on downs on their next offensive drive, and everyone in Armstrong felt as though the tide had shifted entirely for Richland. That thought did not last long.
The Steelers forced another fumble off of Regan and fell on the football in plus territory to end the wave of momentum for the Rams with just over four minutes left in the third. Farrell moved the ball down field looking to find the endzone to extend the lead, but were met with a crucial third and long after a holding penalty negated a first down gain. Johnson slipped out of the backfield, was left all alone on the right side, and caught a fifty yard touchdown pass to put the Steelers up 26-14.
Richland again needed to find points to stay in the game as the fourth quarter began. Facing a fourth down Regan tried to find Mugerwa for a quick pass, but Dey’mar Cain had done all game he had lockdown coverage and swatted the ball away for a turnover on downs. Johnson led the Steelers down the field again and once more found the endzone to soften the cushion a bit more, making it 32-14 with time trickling away for Richland. Dunbar slipped past the Ram offensive line for another sack on the night forcing a punt and giving the Steelers the ball with little time left in the game. Farrell ran out the remaining time on the clock and secured the victory as the rain began to slowly fall.
With the 32-14 victory, the Farrell Steelers will match up with the winner of the WPIAL 2A champion next week in the state semifinals just one win from a trip to the championship.
Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews
