Battle at the top
ADAMS TWP — Through just three weeks of play, the Greater Allegheny football conference looks to be pretty clear-cut.
Indiana, Knoch and Mars are all tied for first place after victories last week and the three teams have a combined record of 8-1.
The three teams at the bottom of the standings — Hampton, Valley and Kittanning — are a combined 0-9.
In a pivotal meeting, Mars hosts Indiana at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
While both teams like to run the football, the Planets and Indians (3-0 overall) have also found success through the air.
Mars senior signal caller Eric Guzak has completed 13 passes, four of them going for touchdowns.
In last week's 40-7 victory over Highlands, Indiana quarterback Kyle Edgar completed just three passes, but they were good for 138 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
The triumph also featured scoring runs from four different players — Kyle Edgar, Zach Edgar, Kyle Decker and Kwaku Asamoah.
Indiana has outscored its first three opponents, which also included Apollo-Ridge and Uniontown, by a combined score of 121-34.
"We run the flexbone," said ninth-year Indians' coach Mark Zilinskas. "We have a lot of kids who get carries, but we're also doing well with play-action."
"We have to limit the number of opportunities their offense gets," said Mars coach Scott Heinauer. "We have to keep the football. If we don't, we'll be in trouble.
"Their quarterback can throw, but they also have a good ground game," he added. "Preparing for them is difficult."
Mars' defensive line will have a say in how long Indiana's offense remains on the field.
The group includes Dylan Bear, Shane Cress, Cameron Cress and Austin Bitzer.
That foursome averages 6-feet-2 and 232 pounds.
Like any coach preparing for Mars, Zilinskas is concerned about Planets' fullback Austin Miele, who is averaging 152 yards rushing per game.
"He's a great player," Zilinskas said of Miele. "He runs hard and is tough to tackle.
"Last year, I thought we did a good job against him and he still ran for (121) yards."
Indiana was just 1-9 last year, including a 17-14 loss to the Planets.
"Despite the record, we improved as the year went on," said Zilinskas. "We've carried that over into this season. We're taking it one game at a time, but making the playoffs is always a goal."
