YORK COUNTY, Pa. — The 2021 high school football season gets underway Friday night!
The FOX43 High School Football Frenzy Game of the Week is a big one, as two-time defending YAIAA Division III champion Delone Catholic travels to Trinity to take on the new-look Shamrocks, who are marking the coaching debut of former Steelton-Highspire and Penn State star Jordan Hill.
The Frenzy Team will be live to preview all the action from Camp Hill Friday night.
But that's far from the only big game on this week's docket. Here's the Frenzy Five -- the games we'll be keeping an eye on this week.
Delone Catholic at Trinity
The Squires captured their second straight YAIAA Division III championship last year, and are hoping for a three-peat. They'll need to replace departed star Tate Neiderer, who was the YAIAA Offensive Player and Co-Defensive Player of the Year in Division III after a huge season on both sides of the ball. His loss will hurt, but Delone brings back an experienced line that will anchor both the offense and defensive units.
Trinity is coming off a winless campaign last year, but Hill inherits an experienced group led by wideout Max Schlager, and freshman receiver Santana Young is a potential star in the making.
These Shamrocks are through being pushovers.
Cumberland Valley at Manheim Central
Two of the most storied and successful programs in District 3 open the season with a non-league clash in Manheim. Both are coming off surprisingly disappointing seasons last year.
The Barons suffered through their losing season since 1971 after going 3-5. The sub-.500 record also broke their streak of 29 straight District 3 playoff appearances, so you know they'll be itching to erase the remnants of 2020 right off the bat. With a veteran line back in the fold to protect the tandem of QB Judd Novak and WR Owen Sensenig, Central appears poised for a return to prominence.
Cumberland Valley also went 3-5 last season, which is something of an anomaly for the perennial Mid-Penn Commonwealth contenders. But they bring back their starting quarterback (Isaac Sines), a veteran line anchored by Braylon Stair, and one of the state's most versatile players in tight end/safety/defensive end Troy Collard, who will play college football at the Air Force Academy while studying to become a fighter pilot.
Lampeter-Strasburg at Warwick
The Pioneers captured their second straight District 3 Class 4A title last year, but their season came to an abrupt end when a COVID-19 outbreak forced them to forfeit their PIAA semifinal game against Jersey Shore. And L-S will have a completely new look this season; longtime coach John Manion stepped down after 23 years at the helm. Most of the Pioneers' top players from last year are gone as well, leaving new coach Victor Ridenour with a lot of holes to fill. It will be interesting to see how the new guys react to a stiff test with Warwick right out the gate.
The Warriors' 2020 season was also upended by COVID-19; after an 8-1 campaign in the regular season, they had to forfeit the District 3 Class 5A title game to Governor Mifflin due to an outbreak. Veteran coach Bob Locker will have to replace several key cogs from last year, including QB Joey McCracken, all-star lineman Nolan Rucci, and 15 other full-time starters. But there's a good nucleus returning, and this is far from Locker's first rodeo.
Central York at Exeter
What can Central York do for an encore? Last year, the Panthers went 10-1, became the first York-Adams team to win a District 3 Class 6A championship, and made it all the way to the PIAA title game before falling to national powerhouse St. Joseph's Prep. This year's team appears loaded for another potential playoff run, led by all-star quarterback and Penn State recruit Beau Pribula, who is entering his second season as the pilot of coach Gerry Yonchiuk's Air Raid offense. Central is ranked No. 13 in the High School Football America East preseason Top 25, joined by fellow District 3 programs Harrisburg (No. 7) and Governor Mifflin (No. 22).
Exeter, which plays out of the Berks League, could give Central York a test in the opener. The Eagles, who went 6-2 last year, have Berks Section 1 Receiver of the Year Joey Schaffler back in the fold, along with running back Eric Nangle. Schaffler had 19 catches for 444 yards and five touchdowns as a sophomore last year, while Nangle was the Berks League's third-leading rusher, with 782 yards and six scores on 124 attempts.
Steel-High at Morrisville Boro
Friday night will be our first glimpse of the new-look Rollers, who are coming of a 12-0 campaign that culminated in the third state championship in program history, a 32-20 victory over Jeannette. Several big names from last year's squad graduated. And earlier this year, the top star from last year's squad, wideout Mekhi Flowers, announced his transfer to Central Dauphin East, where he'll play his senior season before moving on to Penn State. Those losses will hurt, but the Rollers are far from decimated. They'll bring back an offense paced by QB Alex Erby, a 2,700-yard passer as a freshman last year, and a defense anchored by imposing lineman Andrew Erby Jr. Expect another postseason run for the Rollers.
Morrisville, which plays out of the Bicentennial League in District 1, was unable to defend the district title it won in 2019 after its entire season was canceled by the COVID-19 outbreak last year. The Bulldogs are entering their third season under coach Steve Schweiker.
