Avella at West Greene (Thursday – 7 p.m.):

Avella (2-0, 2-0):

Avella is on the upswing, at least for now. The Eagles are 2-0 for the first time since 2013 and in that season they finished with a 6-4 record before being bounced from the first round of the WPIAL playoffs by Sto-Rox.

The air attack has been a key part of the Eagles success so far this season, as last week K.J. Rush threw for 196 yards and two touchdowns. Rush added a rushing touchdown as well in a 26-8 win over Jefferson Morgan last week. Passing production is a key part for the Eagles to continue to soar through the rest of the season. 

West Greene (1-0, 1-0):

West Greene welcomes a hot Avella team to town this week, and in interesting fashion. This game will be played on Thursday night instead of the traditional Friday.

Last week, West Greene’s game against California was canceled due to COVID-19 complication, and that game has since been rescheduled to a later date. The last game that West Greene played was Sept. 11, in which they won 43-8 over Mapletown.

They haven’t played in a week and they also haven’t practiced in over a week and a half. Athletics resumed Tuesday at West Greene, which means the Pioneers will only get to have two days of practice to prepare for Avella. This could be a potential trap game for West Greene due to the lack of practice. 

Keys to the Game:

• Balanced rushing and passing attack of Avella against West Greene’s strong defense
• Lack of practice could put West Greene in a tough situation against a hot team

 

Carmichaels at Bentworth:

Carmichaels (2-0, 2-0):

Last year, at this time, Carmichaels was 1-3 in Class 2A. This year they are back in 1A and it feels like the Mikes never left. In the first two weeks of the season, Carmichaels put up 40+ points, a big difference from last year. This year the offense has had a pretty balanced attack, but they are throwing the ball much more than they have in the past.

Senior Quarterback Trenton Carter completed 6 of 9 passes for 138 yards, and three scores. He also added one on the ground. Senior running back Bailey Jones rushed for 119 yards on just 16 carries, adding two touchdowns in last week’s win over Mapletown.

The side of Carmichaels that has been quiet, but effective the last two games is the defense. Led by senior middle linebacker Hunter Voithofer, the Mikes defense has only allowed 14 points over the last two games. 

Bentworth (1-1, 1-1):

Last week, Bentworth won a hard-fought game against Monessen,14-6. In Week 1, they lost to conference foe California 27-7. The hype going into the season was Bentworth’s high octane offense, but over the last two weeks it hasn’t been the case.

The Bearcats have only scored 21 total points this season in two games. On a positive note, Bentworth’s victory over Monessen is their first one against the Greyhounds since 2001. 

Keys To The Game:

• The Bentworth defensive backs against Carmichael’s passing attack
• Carmichaels run game against Bentworth’s strong linebacking core 

 

California at Mapletown:

California (1-0, 1-0):

It’s been over a week since the Trojans have played a game. Last time out was on Sept. 11, where they won on the road against Bentworth, 27-7.

The reason why they didn’t play last week was due to West Greene’s COVID-19 complications. With this lay off, the team might be cold,but not as cold as the Pioneers, because California has been able to practice during this one-week layoff. This team will come out firing on all cylinders on the road. 

Mapletown (0-2, 0-2):

The slippery slope continues for the Maples. Coming into this season the team had a very positive outlook because of the infusion of youth that is on the roster. However, it seems in terms of taking big steps forward, the team is just not quite ready yet.

The last two games the Maples have dropped, with both opponents scoring over 40 points, while the Maples offense has only scored two touchdowns all year. The last time Mapletown beat California was in 2015.

Keys To The Game:

• California getting out of the gate early
• Mapletown’s clock management and using the run game against California’s defensive line  

 

Waynesburg at Charleroi:

Waynesburg (0-2, 0-2):

Coming into this week’s game against Charleroi, the Raiders have a few questions to address. In last week’s 55-0 loss to Washington, senior quarterback Darnell Johnson went out with an injury on Waynesburg’s first offensive possession of the game.

Will he be ready this week or will Waynesburg Central have to look at backup options for this week’s game? The Raiders offense rolls through Johnson, this is a player that they are in dire need of being available this week. 

Charleroi (0-2, 0-2):

A team over the past few years that has averaged over five or more wins, the Cougars have dropped both of their opening games this year. A 34-0 loss to Frazier and a 40-6 McGuffey could be the result of a young Charleroi squad with a new head coach and a new system.

Keys To The Game:

• Will Waynesburg’s Darnell Johnson be available?
• Can a young Charleroi team take advantage of a beat-up Waynesburg team? 

 

Yellow Jacket Newspaper Game of The Week: Monessen vs. Jefferson Morgan at John F. Wiley Stadium

Monessen (0-2, 0-2):

The Greyhounds are going through some growing pains right now due to inexperience. A relatively young team, Monessen has been having issues stringing together and sustaining drives in each of their first two games.

They’ve been in both games so far until mid-way through the third quarter, but penalties have seemed to be an issue week in and week out. This team is young, and the more experience this team gets, the better they will be. Last year, Monessen beat Jefferson Morgan in a tight game, 28-21. 

Jefferson Morgan (0-2, 0-2):

This team was looked to be a possible dark horse in the 1A Tri-County South Conference at the beginning of the season, now that doesn’t seem to be the case. Jefferson Morgan lost its first two games of the season: week one at Carmichaels, 41-6, and then they were upset by Avella, 26-8.

Losing to Avella was a shock to many, but in that game the Rockets starting quarterback Cole Jones went down with an injury. Having him back would help the Rockets attack the youth in the Monessen secondary. 

Keys To The Game:

• Can Monessen stop the bleeding, cutting down the number of penalties that they have been getting? 
• Will Cole Jones be ready for the game this week?