Nov 6, 2009 By The 5 min read

Football’s second season kicks off tonight for 64 high school teams in the WPIAL playoffs. Six local teams join the party in five games, with Uniontown hosting Belle Vernon in a Class AAA game at Bill Power Stadium, Laurel Highlands heading to Thomas Jefferson in another Class AAA contest, Beth-Center hosting Serra Catholic in Class A and fellow Tri-County South Conference teams Jefferson-Morgan and Carmichaels hitting the road at North Catholic and Rochester, respectively. Following is a capsule look at each of the five games involving area teams:

Belle Vernon at Uniontown

Records: BVA (5-4), Uniontown (6-3)

Seed/Conference: Belle Vernon is seeded 11th in Class AAA and finished third in the Big Seven. Uniontown is seeded sixth and finished second in the Keystone.

Common opponents: Both lost at Thomas Jefferson, Belle Vernon 26-20 in a Big Seven game, Uniontown 34-19 in an exhibition. Both teams lost to Greensburg Salem, Uniontown on the road (18-0) and Belle Vernon at home (20-19). Both teams lost to West Mifflin, Uniontown losing 31-17 in an exhibition at home and Belle Vernon dropping a 14-13 game at home. Both teams beat Laurel Highlands and Southmoreland, Uniontown in conference games and Belle Vernon in exhibitions.

Ground attack: BVA’s Matt Green has gained 1,122 yards on 167 carries and has scored 12 total touchdowns. Uniontown’s Arnold Walker has gained 929 yards on 176 carries and scored a total of 16 touchdowns. Green ranks 17th in the WPIAL, Walker ranks 30th.

Offensive/defensive averages: Belle Vernon averages 27.3 points per game and gives up 16.2. Uniontown averages 25.8 points per game and yields 18.2

Keystone connection: Belle Vernon played in the Keystone Conference until two seasons ago, when the Leopards moved to the Big Seven. Uniontown remains in the Keystone. A Keystone Conference hasn’t won a playoff game since 2000, when Belle Vernon and Greensburg Salem both won first round games and BVA advanced to the semifinals. Since then, the conference is 0-32 in playoff games.

Laurel Highlands at Thomas Jefferson

Records: LH (3-6), TJ (9-0)

Seed/Conference: The Mustangs, seeded 16th, finished fourth in the Keystone Conference. Thomas Jefferson is top-seeded after winning the Big Seven Conference championship. The Jaguars are two-time defending WPIAL and PIAA Class AAA champs.

Common opponents: Thomas Jefferson won 55-0 at LH in a mid-season exhibition game. The Jaguars also have beaten Uniontown, Belle Vernon and Elizabeth Forward. The Mustangs lost to all three of those teams.

Air it out: Thomas Jefferson has the fifth highest rated passer in the WPIAL in quarterback Sam Johnston and the third-ranked receiving threat in Jim Giansante, who has caught 44 passes for 1,041 yards and 12 touchdowns. Johnston has thrown for 1,580 yards and 19 touchdowns. + Laurel Highlands’ leading scorer is running back Dylan Clifford, who has scored seven touchdowns and one two-point conversion for 44 points.

Offensive/defensive averages: Laurel Highlands 15.8 points per game and yields 29.0. Thomas Jefferson averages 37.7 points per game and gives up 5.9. The Jaguars have five shutouts on the season, including four in their last five games.

Serra Catholic at Beth-Center

Records: Serra (7-2), Beth-Center (7-2)

Seed/Conference: Serra Catholic is seeded 10th in Class A after finishing third in the Black Hills Conference. Beth-Center is seeded seventh after finishing second in the Tri-County South Conference.

Black Hills connection: Beth-Center played against Serra Catholic in the Black Hills Conference until last season, when the Bulldogs were moved into the Tri-County South Conference.

The Eagles won the WPIAL Class A title in Beth-Center’s last season in the Black Hills. A year earlier (2006), Beth-Center won the Black Hills title.

Common opponents: Serra and Beth-Center each played California and Burgettstown. Serra won back-to-back games over California (45-13) and Burgettstown (35-6), while Beth-Center lost to Burgettstown by a point (7-6) and beat California by three (3-0).

Ground attack: Beth-Center has three players who have scored at least seven touchdowns, including Deshan Brown (11), Chuck Bowser (7), Jake Sofran (7) and a fourth (Jordan Kinder) who has scored three touchdowns.

Offensive/defensive averages: Serra Catholic scores 28.2 points per game and gives up 14.1. Beth-Center averages 30.7 points per game and yields 6.7 points per game.

Jefferson-Morgan at North Catholic

Records: JM (7-2), NC (7-2)

Seed/Conference: The Rockets are seeded 13th in Class A after finishing third in the Tri-County South Conference. North Catholic is seeded fourth after winning the Eastern Conference title.

Common opponents: Both teams beat Leechburg. Jefferson-Morgan opened its season with a 34-14 road win at Leechburg. North Catholic beat Leechburg 43-6 at North Park at midseason in a conference game.

Depth pays off: JM’s Hans Lubich was near the lead in the Herald-Standard Touchdown Club race when he went down and out with a broken leg. In stepped Ryan Knight, who with 18 touchdowns shares the TD Club lead.

Offensive/defensive averages: Jefferson-Morgan produces 30.3 points per game and allows 18.8 points per game. North Catholic scores 28.0 points per game and yields 13.7 points per game.

Carmichaels at Rochester

Records: Carmichaels (4-5), Rochester (9-0)

Seed/Conference: Carmichaels is seeded 16th in Class A after their fourth-place finish in the Tri-County South Conference. Rochester is top-seeded after winning the Big Seven Conference.

Coaching pals: Carmichaels coach John Menhart and Rochester’s Eugene Matsook became friends during Menhart’s first stint as Carmichaels coach. In fact, the teams met (Rochester won) in Menhart’s last game on the Mikes’ sidelines seven years ago.

Scoring machines: Carmichaels’ Anthonie Farrar has scored 17 touchdowns and three two-point conversions this season for 108 points. Rochester’s Trey Johnson has scored 22 touchdowns and three two-pointers for 138 points. Johnson is fourth in the WPIAL in scoring and Farrar is tied for 11th.

Common opponents: Rochester beat Monessen, 21-0, to open its season. The Greyhounds topped Carmichaels, 41-7, during Tri-County South play.

Offensive/defensive averages: Carmichaels averages 23.4 points per game and gives up 22.0 points per game. Rochester averages 35.8 points per game, but yields only 3.7 points per contest. Rochester ranks third in the WPIAL and second in Class A in yards allowed.