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Austin Griffith

Griffith put together a solid performance for the Huskies in a 24-19 come-from-behind win against Girard.

The 6-foot 1-inch, 152-pound senior completed 9-of-19 passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns, including a 16-yard strike to Jake Newara in the fourth quarter to put the Huskies ahead for good.

Griffith is 16-of-26 this season for 223 yards and three touchdowns, while also rushing for one touchdown.

He is a big reason why the Huskies have started 2-0 this season.

Click below for poll results:

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Each year, Erie Times-News staff members spend much of the summer gathering information on District 10 football teams for the Summer Huddle series, Kickoff magazine and print previews.

Despite all of the research, it’s inevitable that talented players on some teams will not catch our attention. Then, on opening night – bam! – a few players burst onto the scene with huge performances. It happened Friday. Here are a few players who slipped under our radar that we’ll be watching now:

DeShawn Coleman, Hickory: The 6-foot 1-inch, 175-pound junior ran for more than 150 yards in the first quarter alone against West Middlesex. He finished with 295 yards on 18 carries, including TD runs of 80 and 55 yards.

Corey Henry, Strong Vincent: In the preseason, we talked about Vincent quarterback Denzel Jones and running back Michael Neavins, but Henry’s emergence could make the Colonels a force. The hulking 6-foot 2-inch, 217-pound fullback gives Vincent an inside power game. He rushed 15 times for 115 yards Friday in a 42-28 victory over General McLane. Jones also looked sensational.

Nathan McLaurin, Cathedral Prep: With a top-notch quarterback like Damion Terry, all Prep needs to do is get the line to protect him and find some sure-handed receivers. The Ramblers found at least one premier receiver in McLaurin, a 5-foot 9-inch 153-pound senior. He had nine receptions for 122 yards, including TD catches of 36 and 7 yards, in a 25-20 loss to McDowell. McLaurin gives Prep three deep threats, along with Kimani Smith and Delton Williams.

Khyre Drayer, McDowell: Yes, Greg Garmon is an all-state running back who garnered much of our attention in the preseason. But Drayer is a nice change-of-pace runner who piled up 130 yards on 14 carries against Prep. The junior scored on runs of 6 and 71 yards. At 5 feet 10 inches and 225 pounds, Drayer is a nightmare to tackle if he has a head of steam.

Fred Epps, Meadville: Artrel Foster and Terence Goodrum entered the season as the Bulldogs’ two vaunted speed backs. Epps, however, gives the team an effective change-up inside. He rushed 22 times for 187 yards in the Bulldogs’ 33-14 win over Fairview.

Here are a few others who emerged Friday: Lakeview’s Blake Reddick (13 rushes, 120 yards, 53-yard TD run), Harbor Creek’s Austin Griffith (7-of-7 passing, 78 yards, TD and 6-yard TD run), Linesville’s Elijah Anderson (10 rushes, 157 yards, 59-yard TD run), Oil City’s Sam Owoc (10 rushes, 109 yards, 2 TDs) and Wilmington’s Ryan Crawford (5 rushes, 85 yards, 3 TDs).

We’re sure more players will break out in the weeks ahead.

The Erie Times-News and GoErie.com are continuing District 10 football preview coverage this week, leading up to Friday’s season openers. Starting Sunday, the preview coverage included Region 6, McDowell and Region 4. The coverage will continue through Thursday. Included in each preview are complete rosters for each team.

Earlier, the Times-News published the 112-page Kickoff preseason guide and posted the online Summer Huddle series on the Varsity blog.

Check out the links to the Times-News team previews:
Sunday: McDowell preview
Sunday: Region 6
Monday: Region 4
Tuesday: Region 5
Wednesday: Region 2
Thursday: Region 3
Thursday: Region 1

Harbor Creek Huskies

Budziszewski

Coach (season, record): Dan Budziszewski (30th season, 156-125-3)
2010 overall record: 4-6
2010 region record (place): 2-4 (fifth)
2010 playoff results: Did not qualify for the District 10 playoffs.
Top players lost: D.J. Cartney, Tim Schwenk, Cody Bootes, Andy Swindlehurst, Adam Weismiller, Mike Beskid, Tom Schauble
Top returning players: Drew Barko, Austin Griffith, Preston Meade, Chris Merritt, Lucas Morton, Jake Newara, Brandon Phillips, Mitch Schauble, Paris Warner, Tyler Bretz, Anthony Concilla, Mark Fachetti, Adam Renshaw, Jon Ward, Josh Kita, Jake Pound, Aaron Reese, Spencer Zeyfang
Assistant coaches: John Ballard, Mark Brooks, Jake Wilczynski, Marty Dale, Andy Grove
Outlook: Head coach Dan Budziszewski mentioned right away that Harbor Creek must get off to a better start this year. The Huskies started 2010 with five straight losses and came one upset of Fairview short of making the playoffs. Harbor Creek can’t afford that kind of start in a brutal Region 4. The Huskies first must replace several standouts, including Tim Schwenk and D.J. Cartney. Schwenk was an all-region defensive back and Cartney made all-region on the offensive line. Also gone to graduation are starting quarterback Cody Bootes, Andy Swindlehurst, Adam Weismiller, Mike Beskid and Tom Schauble.

Harbor Creek does have some experience in backfield returning this fall. Tyler Bretz led the Huskies in rushing last season with 721 yards and eight touchdowns. He will likely be joined by Austin Griffith at quarterback. Griffith’s top target could be Lucas Morton, who led the Huskies in receiving last fall. Brandon Phillips, Mitch Scahuble, Preston Meade and Paris Warner are back to anchor the line, which must give Harbor Creek time to find holes to run through of find open receivers.

Adam Renshaw returns after a stellar sophomore season. He was the Huskies’ second-leading tackler in 2010 and could be an impact player as a linebacker. Another shot in the arm for Harbor Creek could be Sean Kuzilla. Kuzilla was a solid running back for Fort LeBoeuf last fall before transferring. The Huskies have 12 starters returning this season and if they develop some of the underclassmen, they could surprise a few teams.

Kuzilla will immediately head back to Waterford with the Huskies to open the season before Harbor Creek plays an important game at Girard. The YellowJackets are perennially a playoff team and the Huskies will likely need to beat them to get in this year. It doesn’t get any easier for Harbor Creek after that with home games against General McLane and North East. If the Huskies can finish September with even two wins, they should be in the race for a playoff spot at the end of the year.

Schedule
September
2 at Fort LeBoeuf 7
9 at Girard* 7
16 General McLane* 7
23 North East* 7
30 at Warren 7
October
7 Titusville 7
14 Seneca* 7
21 at Northwestern* 7
28 at Fairview* 7
November
4 Central Tech 7

Saturday: Hickory

– Tom Reisenweber

Harbor Creek is coming off a 2-8 season, but veteran coach Dan Budziszewski and the Huskies are hoping for better results in 2010. Harbor Creek has a decent core of players returning and are hoping they can lead the team through a tough schedule: Here’s a look:

After reviewing the statistics and overall performances, here are our nominees for the Breakout Player of the Week.  In an oddity, receivers dominate this weekend’s poll.

Vote in the poll at upper right. We’ve added one player from Friday and several players from Saturday.

The winner will be announced Tuesday on the Varsity blog and will be featured in Friday’s sports edition.

Josh Niswonger, General McLane: 4 receptions, 49 yards; TD catches of 10, 18 and 5 yards, including the game-winner in the closing seconds.

Courtney Harden-Pullium, Strong Vincent: 4 receptions, 170 yards, including a 64-yard TD catch

Josh Rzepecki, Harbor Creek: 9 receptions, 125 yards; TD catches of 3, 3, 13 and 7 yards.

Braidy Westfall, Corry: 3 receptions, 132 yards, including TD catches of 80 and 49 yards. Also caught a two-point conversion pass.

Justin Wiley, Cathedral Prep: 8 carries, 91 yards; TD runs of 6 and 49 yards, 12-yard TD receptions — all in the first half Saturday

Ryan Myers, Union City: 80-yard TD reception, 74-yard kickoff return for a TD, 8-for-12 passing for 106 yards, 2-point conversion pass

Dan Odem, Farrell: 20-yard interception return for TD, 5-of-8 passing for 85 yards and and four touchdowns, 11-yard TD run

Chris Kurzik, Mercyhurst Prep: 18 rushes for 122 yards and a TD.

Matt Stapleford, Warren: 16-of-24 passing for 227 yards and 2 TDs, two-point conversion pass, TD runs of 3 and 10 yards

Note: North East’s Jimmy Bailey and Mercyhurst Prep’s Aaron Horton were previous winners and were not eligible to win this week.

The Erie Times-News Football Preview featured lists of District 10 career leaders in rushing, passing, receiving and scoring.

When we published the lists, we conceded that there was no way to get the statistics of every player from every era. Newspapers rarely printed statistics before 1970, and many schools have no record of their teams’ stats.

As a result, we asked readers to supply the names and numbers we might have missed. Readers have responded, and we promised them that we would print the revised lists on a future date and post the updates on the Varsity blog.

Here are the latest additions (the year listed is the player’s final season):

Matt Palloto

PASSING

Matt Palloto, Harbor Creek,  1979             2,249 yards

RUSHING

Tyler Perry, Fairview, 2006     3,235 yards (1,799 in 2004)

SCORING

Tyler Perry, Fairview, 2006     52 TDs, 312 points

Tyler Sargent, Fairview, 2007  42 TDs, 252 points

Here were earlier additions:

RUSHING:

Dale Gregory, Fairview, 1992      2,440 yards (2,099 in 1992)
Nick Miller, North East, 1997        2,267 yards
D.J. Hough,  Northwestern, 1993      2,191 yards ( 1,529 in 1993)

RECEIVING:

Todd Baker, Girard, 1987                     100 receptions, 1,488 yards

SCORING:

Geoff Heyl, McDowell, 1997        227 points (25 field goals, 152 extra points)
Dale Gregory, Fairview, 1992        198 points
D.J. Hough,  Northwestern, 1993      186 points (30 TDs, 3 2-pointers, 23 TDs in 1993)

ERIE COUNTY COACHING WINS:

Gus Anderson, McDowell                          127-48-15

Welcome to this season’s first Saturday Morning Quarterback blog.

About five years ago, the Erie Times-News released its City of Erie All-Time Football Team and its Erie County All-Time Football Team. It took a lot of research, countless phone calls and plenty of opinions before we were able to pick what we thought was a representative team filled with the best players in area history.

Big-name stars like Fred Biletnikoff, Bob Sanders, Mike McCoy, Tony Sanfilippo, Bob Ferrando and Brian Milne highlighted the teams. Players were selected from 100 years of city football and about 50 years of county football.

Five years after the teams were announced, it’s time to take a lot back and see which players from the past decade might have made the all-time teams.

I’d like to suggest six names. Each might have made the first or second team, but with that in mind, I’m not saying they would replace anyone in particular on the teams.

Click below for the six players:

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Josh Rzepecki, TE, 34 receptions for 438 yards in 2008

Harbor Creek Huskies

Dan Budziszewski

Coach: Dan Budziszewski
2008 overall record: 2-8
2008 region record (place): 1-7 (tied for seventh in Region 4)
Playoff results: Did not qualify for the District 10 Class AA tournament.
Top players lost: OL/DL Jon Gredler, OL/LB Tom Brooks, RB/DB Brian Capozziello, RB/DB Chris Carpin, RB/DB Kevin Forish, WR/DB Mike Mishik, OL/DL Mike Paradise, RB/DB Tim Schwenk.
Top underclassmen: TE/LB Josh Rzepecki, QB/DB Cody Bootes, WR/DB Michael Beskid, OL/LB Scot Stephenson, OL/DL Josh Bundy, OL/DL Caitlin Lowes.
Key games: Sept. 18 North East, Sept. 25 General McLane, Oct. 16 at Seneca.
Outlook: Graduation severely depleted a Harbor Creek team that went 12-1 and reached the 2007 District 10 Class AA championship game. The Huskies beat Warren 19-14 in their 2008 season opener, then didn’t win again until they topped Maplewood 21-14 in their season finale. … The upside from 2008 is that the 2009 Huskies return plenty of underclassmen expected back at the skill positions. Highlighting those players is tight end Josh Rzepecki, who was voted an all-region tight end. Last year, Rzepecki led Harbor Creek in receptions with 34, two less than the team’s remaining receivers combined. Rzepecki totaled 438 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Also back for the Huskies is wide receiver Michael Beskid, who caught eight balls for 140 yards. … Rzepecki and Beskid caught most of their passes from Cody Bootes, who should return at quarterback. As a sophomore, Bootes completed 62-of-158 attempts for 795 yards. He threw five TDs, but was intercepted 11 times. … Tim  Schwenk averaged more than five yards per carry in 2008 while rushing for 321 yards and six TDs. However, he transferred to Mercyhurst Prep, so the Huskies need a running back to emerge. … Coach Dan Budziszewski (150-111-3) returns for his 28th season as Harbor Creek’s head coach. Only Terry Verrelli, back for his 31st season at defending PIAA AA titlist Wilmington, has a longer tenure with his current team in District 10.

Schedule
September
4 at Warren 7
11 at Girard* 7
18 North East* 7
25 General McLane* 7
October
3 Franklin 7
9 Northwestern* 7
16 at Seneca* 7
23 Fairview* 7
30 at Fort LeBoeuf* 7
November
6 at Maplewood* 7

*Region 4 games

Fairview's Jared Lane is the top returning rusher from Region 4 after piling up 1,153 yards in 10 games last season.

When Region 4 was created, District 10 almost recreated the Erie County League. The only stranger was Maplewood and the only teams missing were Corry and Iroquois. North East surprised a few people and played its way to the region championship over former Class AAA team General McLane.  North East’s only problem last year was running into a hot, underrated Slippery Rock team in the D-10 playoffs. McLane, on the other hand, was the only Region 4 team to advance past the first round of the D-10 playoffs. The Lancers knocked off a tough Greenville team but couldn’t handle eventual PIAA champion Wilmington. McLane will have to replace all-around athlete Kellen O’Neill to run the offense. Fairview and Girard were right in the thick of the region race for most of the year but ran into injury problems late. With the ‘Pickers and Lancers losing important starters to graduation, Region 4 is up for grabs this season: Here is a look at last year’s standings:

Region 4
Region Overall
x-North East 8-0 9-2
z-General McLane 7-1 9-3
z-Fairview 6-2 7-3
z-Girard 5-3 7-4
Fort LeBoeuf 4-4 4-6
Seneca 2-6 3-7
Northwestern 2-6 3-7
Maplewood 1-7 3-7
Harbor Creek 1-7 2-8
x-region champion
z-qualified for playoff spot

Key 2009 games: Sept. 11 General McLane at North East, Oct. 9 Fairview at North East, Oct. 30 Girard at Fairview, Nov. 6 General McLane at Fairview, Girard at North East
Predicted champion: North East