Don't expend Upper St. Clair football coach Jim Render to be intimidated about playing in the Quad North.

It may be the other way around, in fact.

Now in his 26th year at Upper St. Clair, Render has guided the Panthers to 16 conference titles. He carries a 227-65-1 record at USC into Friday's 7:30 p.m. kickoff against Butler.

Upper St. Clair carries an 11-game regular season winning streak into its Quad North debut.

"We're excited about being in this league," Render said. "Our fans and our kids are playing against the schools they want to play.

"We're excited about the challenge. We're ready for the challenge."

The Panthers are back in the same league as Bethel Park and Mt. Lebanon, their traditional rivals in the South Hills.

But for now, they're dealing with the Golden Tornado.

"They're a pretty good football team for being 0-2," Render said. "They've got good size and they hit hard."

Butler will be trying to hit senior running back Sean Lee, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound runner who has keyed wins over Canon-McMillan (14-12) and Baldwin (35-20) so far.

Lee had 22 carries for 147 yards and two touchdowns against Baldwin. He had 120 yards rushing and two TDs - including a 67-yard burst - against Canon-McMillan.

Duke, Iowa and West Virginia are among Division I college programs interested in Lee.

"Sean's been starting for us on defense since he was a sophomore," Render said. "He's been a big contributor to everything we've done here over the past couple of years.

"He's been a wide receiver, flanker, tailback, plays on special teams and has been starting at free safety."

USC is coming off a 12-1 season that carried it to the WPIAL Class AAAA championship game, where a 42-10 loss to Central Catholic ended its season.

The Panthers achieved that despite losing quarterback Josh Helmrich to a torn ACL during Week 5. Helmrich completed 33 of 59 passes for 442 yards and five touchdowns last season.

He threw for 119 yards and two TDs - both to senior receiver Danny Cafaro - against Baldwin. The scoring passes covered 26 and 59 yards.

"He's an intelligent leader who knows our offense inside and out," Render said of Helmrich. "We're very comfortable with what he does."

Helmrich was USC's starting quarterback as a sophomore and threw for 689 yards and 10 touchdowns that year.

The Panthers only return five starters combined on both sides of the ball. The team graduated 27 seniors.

"We graduated a lot of kids last year, but that's nothing new for us," Render said. "We're in the process of building a new team and that's where we're usually at by this time of year."

The Panthers' offensive line took a hit when two-time all-conference selection Rob Rankin decided to leave the program this year. Rankin won the PIAA Class AAA shot put title last spring.

Jake Serdy, a 300-pound senior right tackle, anchors USC's line.

"We lost too many kids to be really good right now," Render said. "But we had a lot of quality underclassmen working under them and now they have their chance. I think we'll be fine."

Butler at Upper St. Clair

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Friday, 7:30 p.m.

Statistic: Upper St. Clair senior running back Sean Lee has rushed for 267 yards and four touchdowns.

Streak: The Panthers have won 11 consecutive regular season games, dating back to a loss against McKeesport in 2002.

Strategy: With just five returning starters combined offensively and defensively, USC hopes to rely on a solid ground game and execution early in the year.

Speaking: "We're excited about being in a new conference. We're playing against the teams our kids want to play against. It's a new challenge for us." - Upper St. Clair coach Jim Render

Directions: Take Interstate 79 South to Kirwan Heights exit. Turn right on Route 50 and pick up the Orange Belt. Follow Orange Belt to Upper St. Clair High School.