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at DuBOIS (0-1)
When and where: 7 p.m. Friday at E.J. Mansell Stadium, DuBois
About Punxsutawney: The Chucks opened with a 48-21 loss to Hollidaysburg, allowing the Tigers to score 42 unanswered points. The game was a Mountain Athletic Conference event and it is Punxsy's last season in the conference before moving to the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference next year.
Once again, running back Mike Smiley was the main weapon for the Chucks. Smiley, who was a one-man gang in beating DuBois in 2006, picked off a pass, caught a 15-yard TD pass, a 60-yard TD pass on a screen and had more than 100 yards receiving.
QB Zach Smith threw for nearly 200 yards, but had two interceptions returned for touchdowns against an unrelenting Hollidaysburg pass rush.
Punxsy head coach Blake Moilan said afterward his teams' focus would be on improving the play of the offensive line.
About DuBois: Despite an opening-week loss to Central Mountain, head coach Jason Shilala hasn't lost an upbeat approach as the Beavers prepare for their long-time rival in their home-opener on the new artificial turf at Mansell Stadium.
Running back Garrett Malmgren will be back after missing the first game with a sprained ankle. Malmgren brings a degree of power and speed to the position and he flashed those abilities in a three-game span last fall in rushing for 234 yards on 42 carries with eight catches for 102 yards while scoring twice against St. Marys, Clearfield and Bradford.
A back injury slowed him the last two weeks, but nevertheless, a healthy Malmgren makes DuBois better. Another junior, Les Miller, will also get more work on offense this week. Miller, who didn't play extensively last week on offense as he nursed a minor injury, still ran three times for 32 yards and caught a 35-yard TD pass from junior QB Danny Henry.
Senior lineman Zack Beers is also back, which Shilala hopes will strengthen the offensive attack.
Defensively, DuBois knows it needs to stop the deep passing game, which ultimately cost it the game last week.
Last meeting: Punxsy beat DuBois, 21-20 last year.
Looking ahead: Punxsutawney travels to Bradford on Friday, while DuBois travels to Brookville.
BROOKVILLE (0-1)
at CLEARFIELD (1-0)
When and where: 7 p.m. Friday at Bisons Sports Complex, Hyde
About Brookville: If the Raiders don't turn the ball over, they should be tough to beat. They had six turnovers against Philipsburg-Osceola and lost by just nine points.
Brookville moved the ball, gaining 349 yards, including 188 on the ground, but senior QB Shane Heschke's four picks, and two more fumbles, were the difference.
Three of the picks went to all-state defensive back J.D. Mason, who had a monster game. Mason caught six passes for 188 yards, including a 66-yard TD.
Alex Kerr had a big game for the Raiders, catching six balls for 136 yards, including a 64-yard TD. Joe Galbraith ran for 102 yards, caught two passes for 25 yards and scored two TDs.
About Clearfield: Special teams made a huge difference for the Bisons in their 20-14 win over Bald Eagle Area last week.
Two good punt returns set up short, less than 50-yard scoring drives, and the Bisons also blocked a punt that was returned for a score as the Bisons took a 20-0 lead in the first 12:06 of the game.
It was not the Bisons offense of old, though, as they managed just 162 yards on 52 plays and eight first downs. Isiah Morgan did most of the heavy lifting for the Bisons with 95 yards on 20 carries and a 14-yard TD run. Junior QB Jarrin Campman hit four of 13 pass attempts for 30 yards and ran for 17 more on nine carries. But the Bisons did not turn the ball over while BEA had two.
Last meeting: Clearfield beat Brookville, 39-35 last year.
Looking ahead: Brookville hosts DuBois on Friday, while Clearfield hosts Hollidaysburg.
at ST. MARYS (0-1)
When and where: 7 p.m. Friday at Dutch Country Stadium, St. Marys
About Moniteau: The Warriors had an impressive offensive debut to the 2007 season racking up 402 yards in a 39-6 win over Clarion-Limestone.
Using a no-huddle, spread offense that is so popular at the collegiate level, junior quarterback Tyler Armagost earned D9Sports.com District 9 Player of the Week honors by completing 13 of 35 passes for 233 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. He also added 49 yards running.
Armagost spread the ball around as well with five different receivers catching passes with four different targets finding the end zone. Clayton Casper led the way with three grabs for 74 yards and two scores, while Josh Loos had four for 67 yards and a touchdown. Mitch Czech added three for 52 and one touchdown.
On the ground, the Warriors racked up 169 yards on 34 carries, 4.97 per touch, led by sophomore James Shope's 12 carries for 70 yards and a score.
On the other side of the ball, Moniteau limited C-L to 30 yards rushing but seemed susceptible through the air with the Lions passing for 182 yards.
About St. Marys: The Dutch are coming off a heartbreaking loss to Karns City in which they held two different fourth-quarter leads only to watch the Gremlins rally from behind to get a 23-13 win.
James Swanson looked solid in his quarterbacking debut going 5-for-9 for 100 yards while running for a touchdown and throwing for a score. He was also picked off once.
But St. Marys' running game was nearly non-existent with the Dutch gaining 60 yards on 31 carries. Brian Tamburlin, who ranked 10th in District 9 in rushing last season with 933 yards, was held to 23 yards rushing on 12 carries. Todd Schatz added 19 yards rushing and 58 yards receiving with a receiving score.
Anthony Stimac lit up the Dutch secondary for 188 yards passing, as Karns City had nearly 300 yards in the game.
Last meeting: Moniteau beat St. Marys, 12-7, last year.
Looking ahead: St. Marys is at Clarion Friday; Moniteau is at A-C Valley Friday.
