Sheffey, 37 Unanswered Power State College Past Altoona
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Noah Radio | August 29, 2025
State College’s first road trip of the year started ominously, but 37 unanswered points and 194 yards from senior running back D’Antae Sheffey propelled the Little Lions to a 37-7 victory.
Altoona jumped out to a 7-0 lead less than two minutes into the game with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Julian Hazlewood to Cody Chathams. One play earlier, Hazlewood set Mansion Park on fire with a 64-yard completion to put the Mountain Lions in scoring position.
That was the loudest the 10,400-seat stadium got the entire night. State College struck back with a methodical touchdown drive orchestrated by sophomore quarterback Connor Kulka, capped off with a two-yard touchdown by Sheffey.
Sheffey was the star for State High all night. In his second consecutive game tallying just shy of 200 yards, Sheffey added two touchdowns on offense and combined with fellow senior Luke Milito on the defensive end for a key third down stop to slam the door late.
Kulka appreciates having such a prolific running back in the backfield with him, and also complimented his offensive line.
“He’s amazing, especially with that broken up a little bit o-line, CJ [Clemons] stepping in for Ant [Sheffey], hopefully we’ll have Ant back next week, but it’s great to have young guys step in like that,” Kulka said.
Kulka had a great first varsity start himself, throwing for two touchdowns, the first of which was a beautiful 32-yarder over the middle to Daimear Coad. Kulka and Sheffey were both aided by another great game from the State College offensive line.
“I’m thrilled with where our kids are at. We’ve had six different guys really play significant time up front, and I feel really good with all six of them,” Head Coach Matt Lintal said.
The game briefly turned into a turnover-fest early in the second quarter, interrupting what was otherwise a well-flowing game. First, junior Kellen Williams picked off Hazlewood, which turned into the Kulka-Coad connection for six. Hazlewood was then picked off again, this time by junior Cooper Ingold, but before the Little Lions could mount a drive, Kulka gave it right back by throwing his first varsity interception to Jahrell Baker. However, no harm was done as senior Hank Lustig forced a fumble and fellow senior Danny Brennan recovered to cap off the stretch of four turnovers in as many minutes and give State College the ball back.
3 turnovers in as many minutes… Danny Brennan recovers the @AltoonaAthletic fumble forced by @henry_lustig and @statehighfball takes over at its own 35@PaFootballNews pic.twitter.com/5z7JV2pds2
— Noah Radio (@noahradio_state) August 29, 2025
Kulka’s second touchdown, this one a 13-yarder to senior Jake Lukac, put State College up 21-7 going into the half. Sheffey’s second score came on the first drive of the second half, and State College iced the game from there.
A fourth quarter field goal from junior Shane Markowski and a rushing touchdown by junior Keen Furmanek capped off the scoring and sealed the 30-point blowout.
The Little Lions now shift their focus to the biggest game of the season thus far, next week’s matchup with Harrisburg. It’s an important game for so many reasons. First, the Cougars supplied State College’s only loss last season, a 7-6 defeat on a blocked field goal. Harrisburg is a top-five team in the state yet again, and the type of team that State High will have to play up to in its quest for a state championship.
It’s also an interesting game for Sheffey as he is playing his former team. Sheffey spent last season with Harrisburg, but transferred back to his hometown for his senior year.
“It’s not really gonna be about ‘how are you feeling,’ it’s just staying focused throughout practice, having the best week of practice possible, being prepared throughout practice, and then putting it all out on the field,” Sheffey said.
Lintal had his own thoughts on the Sept. 5 showdown.
“They’re a great team, obviously they have three elite-level players, and a whole bunch more that are really, really talented as well, and certainly they’re one of the top teams in the state and one of the teams to beat,” Lintal said. “That being said, these kids have been around, they love the game, they love each other, and they want to keep playing for one another.”
While State College prepares for a top-10 clash, Altoona looks to bounce back from its 0-2 start with a road game against Cumberland Valley on Sept. 5 at 7:00.
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