Sam Owoc, Kevin Daly, Jesse Rice, Logan Way, Jericho Hartle, Logan Johnson, Quenton Reed, Taylor Stamm are back to lead an experienced Oil City team. Rice was voted to the second team at wide receiver after catching 32 passes for 454 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore. Daly and Owoc are top returning rushers this season. Daly ran for 402 yards and five touchdowns on 88 carries, while Owoc had 61 carries for 319 yards and three touchdowns. Way is back to anchor the wide receivers after collecting 13 catches for 247 yards in 2011. The Oilers will have a quarterback competition in camp to replace Hadley. Seniors Taylor Stamm and Mitchell Eberle along with junior Trent Zdarko will be in the competition. Also, a wild card to earn the starting job could be Colton Cunningham. He started for A-C Valley as a sophomore and has varsity experience.

Oil City entered a co-op with Cranberry to boost its numbers. The Oilers have enough experience returning this season to bounce back in Region 5. Oil City opens the season against Corry before two tough road games at Bradford and General McLane. The Oilers’ toughest stretch comes in the middle of the season against DuBois, Warren and Meadville.

Schedule
August
31 Corry 7
September
7 at Bradford* 7
14 at General McLane 7
21 DuBois* 7
28 at Warren* 7
October
5 Meadville* 7
12 Titusville 7
19 at Karns City 7
26 Slippery Rock* 7
November
2 at Franklin* 7
*Region 5 games

Thursday: Reynolds

– Tom Reisenweber

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.

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

Blake Hadley will likely be called upon to start at quarterback this season, while sophomore Jesse Rice is looking to break out on the varsity level. The Oilers will be young and inexperienced this season, a drastic change from last year’s playoff team. Region 5 can be tough on teams that make mistakes, and with the growing pains Oil City could go through, it might be a down year for the Oilers. Oil City doesn’t have a brutal September schedule but still tough. The Oilers have to deal with a developing passing attack from DuBois and Corry along with a trap road game at rival Franklin. October will decide the Oilers’ season with back-to-back games against Grove City and Meadville.

Schedule
September
2 Iroquois 7
9 DuBois* 7
16 at Girard 7
23 Corry* 7
30 at Franklin* 7
October
7 Strong Vincent 7
14 Grove City* 7
21 at Meadville* 7
28 at Slippery Rock* 7
November
4 at Sharon 7

Look for the Kickoff magazine at a Country Fair near you beginning Aug. 15. The 112-page magazine previews the upcoming District 10 football season, including top returning players, schedules, stats and more.

Friday: Reynolds

– Tom Reisenweber

Remember, the winner of the poll in the upper right will be featured Friday on the new “spadea wrap” on the front of the sports section.

Here are some nominees. As always, let us know if we forgot someone, and we’ll add them to the poll. Players from Saturday’s games also are eligible.

Peter Jackson, Fairview: 36 rushes, 238 yards, TD runs of 60, 18 and 2 yards

Jimmy Bailey, North East: 22 rushes 115 yards, 3 TDs, including game-winner in overtime. Also had 68-yard punt return for TD.

Aaron Horton, Mercyhurst Prep: 17 rushes 241 yards, TD runs of 16, 56, 84 and 9 yards

Zach Greenawalt, McDowell: 4 rushes 89 yards, including 83-yard TD run; also went 2-for-2 passing for 54 yards, including 39-yard TD pass

Cory Lee, General McLane: 15 rushes, 125 yards, TD runs of 14 and 19 yards

Trevor Litwiler, Linesville: 12 rushes, 128 yards; 7-of-8 passing, 111 yards, TD

Jared Burger, Union City: 36 rushes, 182 yards, 2 TDs

Dallas Williams, Oil City: Game-winning 94-yard fumble return for TD on final play; also had 6 receptions for 75 yards, including a touchdown

From Thursday:

Kevin Green, Strong Vincent: 9 rushes, 100 yards, TD; also had 93-yard kickoff return for a touchdown

2008 record

Schedule
September
4 Meadville 7
11 at Slippery Rock* 7
17 at Sharon* 7
25 Wilmington* 7
October
2 at Titusville* 7
9 Greenville* 7
16 Franklin 7
23 at Eisenhower 7
31 at Hickory* 7
November
6 Reynolds* 7

* Region 3 games

Friday: Region 3: Reynolds

Did that record hurt Ben Koyack when it came to all-Region 3 voting? Maybe, given he was excluded from a berth despite monster receiving numbers at tight end.

But the Oilers’ record didn’t distract college football scouts. Koyack already has received more than 22 verbal scholarship offers according to scout.com.

The Web site also reported the junior-to-be visited Penn State last month.

Listed at 6 feet 5 inches and 220 pounds, Koyack benefited from Oil City’s pass-heavy offense during the 2008 season. He caught 47 passes for 792 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Koyack’s best game was Oct. 24 vs. Hickory, when he hauled in 11 balls for 193 yards and four TDs. Despite his effort, the Hornets scored twice in the fourth quarter for a 42-38 victory.

Oil City’s 2009 opener is scheduled Sept. 4 vs. Meadville.

– Mike Copper

Wilmington's Derrick Burns, one of the top running backs and linebackers in District 10, already has committed to the University of Pittsburgh.

Region 3 was the best Class AA region in 2008 with the best AA team in the state: Wilmington. The Greyhounds blew through the regular season schedule not losing on region game before making an impressive run to the PIAA championship. In fact, Wilmington’s only loss last year was a surprising 22-21 setback to Karns City in the final regular-season game. The Greyhounds return plenty of starters and should be a force once more in the region. Sharon is perenially a tough team but still fell short to the Greyhounds. Slippery Rock almost pulled off the upset of the year as the Rockets pushed Wilmington to overtime in the District 10 championship. Region 3 had three of the final four teams in the D-10 playoffs, including both teams in the title game. Here is a look at last year’s final standings:

Region 3
Region Overall
x-Wilmington 7-0 15-1
z-Sharon 6-1 10-2
z-Greenville 4-2 7-3
z-Slippery Rock 4-2 9-3
Titusville 2-5 4-6
Hickory 1-6 2-7
Oil City 2-4 3-6
Reynolds 0-6 0-9
x-region champion
z-qualified for playoff spot

Key 2009 games: Sept. 25 Slippery Rock at Sharon, Oct. 9 Wilmington at Sharon, Oct. 30 Slippery Rock at Wilmington
Predicted champion: Wilmington