Entering the season, Burrell coach Tom Henderson had a lot of rebuilding to do.

It just hasn't taken as long as expected.

The Bucs' coach had to replace eight defensive and 10 offensive starters from last year's team, but the squad has jumped out to a 2-1 start, the only blemish a 55-14 loss to Keystone Oaks in Week 2.

"We're a young team ... but we're getting better," said Henderson.

The two teams will meet for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff Friday at Swartz Field.

Freeport coach John Gaillot has been impressed with the Bucs, even in that loss to the Eagles.

"That's the one (game film) I looked at because they had all their starters in that one," said Gaillot. "Keystone Oaks made some big plays to score. Keystone Oaks is a powerful team. You take away those big plays and it's a ballgame.

"Burrell is real aggressive ... They are very well-coached and there's the rivalry there (with Freeport). It should be a very physical game," Gaillot added.

Burrell is coming off a 48-7 blowout over West Shamokin, a game which some starters missed because of injuries.

In the first two games this season, Bucs' starting quarterback Zach Middleby had completed 20-of-30 passes for 372 yards and two scores.

But the banged-up Middleby was replaced by James Liput, who completed 14-of-16 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns.

"I don't know if Zach will be back for this week," said Henderson. "James, for a sophomore to come on and make his first varsity start and his first time with playing time and practicing, he did very well."

Dave Yakopec returns as receiver, joined by Cole Bush, the Bucs top target with 15 catches for 281 yards.

"David is as good as any receiver in the WPIAL, in my estimation," said Henderson. "He came back last week and Cole Bush is just a sophomore and complements him well. Dan Domanski (four rushing TD) is our running back and if Zach comes back, he can run the ball as well."

The Yellowjackets, who defeated the Bucs 20-17 last season, are coming off a hard-fought 13-10 victory over Shady Side Academy in the Allegheny Conference opener despite 10 penalties for 105 yards.

"We're still making mistakes and penalties," said Gaillot. "I'm happy with the effort, but we need to keep our emotions in check. We moved the ball but we shot ourselves in the foot. We need to play smarter."

<B>The coaches: </B>Knoch, Mike King; Fox Chapel, Bryan Deal<B>Last week:</B> Knoch defeated Valley 62-0; Fox Chapel edged Altoona 16-10<B>The numbers: </B>Knoch is averaging 10.6 yards per carry this season. ... Knights QB Ky Kenyon has attempted just eight passes this season, completing four for 94 total yards. ... Fox Chapel RB Montay Green has 507 yards on 84 carries, including 37 carries for 234 yards last week.<B>Notes:</B> Knoch has outscored Brashear, Albert Gallatin and Valley by a combined margin of 170-7. ... Fox Chapel has made the WPIAL playoffs only once since 2002. ... Foxes' linemen Matt Sasson (6-foot-2, 275 pounds) and Adam Biznowaty (6-6, 280) are considered major college prospects.

<B>The coaches: </B>Redbank Valley, Frank Fabian; Moniteau, Jeff Campbell<B>Last week:</B> Redbank Valley defeated A-C Valley 20-0; Moniteau lost to Brookville, 19-14<B>The numbers: </B>Bulldogs QB Brandon Bain has thrown for approximately 300 yards. ... Redbank RB Caleb Delp has more than 200 yards receiving and WR Keaton Delp has three TD catches. ... Moniteau QB Kyle Armagost has completed only 19 of 55 passes, but has 715 total yards rushing and receiving. ... TE Zach Sloan caught five passes last week before suffering an ankle injury.<B>Notes:</B> Moniteau has scored 54 points and allowed 53 so far this season. ... The Warriors have defeated Redbank Valley 49-21 and 34-14 the past two years. ... Former Bulldogs head coach Ed Wasilowski is an assistant under Fabian this year.

<B>The coaches:</B> Karns City, Ed Conto; Keystone, Jason Nellis<B>Last week:</B> Karns City fell to Wilmington 50-7; Keystone routed Clarion-Limestone 51-6<B>The numbers:</B> The Gremlins' offense has sputtered at times this season with an average of only 131 rushing yards per game. ... Karns City QB Dylan Hipple has felt the pressure of the lackluster running attack. The senior has already thrown five interceptions after tossing a mere seven last season in 13 games. ... Keystone QB Mitchell Rearick passed for two touchdowns and rushed for two more in the rout of C-L. ... Rearick also leads the Panthers in rushing this season<B>Notes:</B> The Gremlins beat Keystone 60-35 last season. ... The Panthers have lost the last six meetings against Karns City by an average score of 41-17.Slippery Rock (0-3) at Meadville (0-3) 7 p.m., Friday<B>The coaches:</B> Slippery Rock, Brendan Hathaway; Meadville, Ken Achenbach<B>Last week:</B> Slippery Rock lost to DuBois 28-19; Meadville fell to Corry 17-14<B>The numbers:</B> Slippery Rock QB Ryan Currie and RB John McAvoy continue to impress for the Rockets. Currie threw for 134 yards last week and McAvoy rushed for 175 in the loss to DuBois. ... Meadville has run the ball well this season with backs Terrence Goodrum, Artel Foster and Zack Towers. ... As a team, the Bulldogs are averaging 6 yards per carry.<B>Notes:</B> Meadville beat Slippery Rock 42-6 last season. ... The Rockets had won the previous three meetings against the Bulldogs.

<B>The coaches:</B> Grove City, Jeff Bell; Greenville, Brian Herrick<B>Last week:</B> Grove City beat Franklin 91-12; Greenville beat Titusville 34-6<B>The numbers:</B> The 91 points scored by Grove City jumps out, 47 of them were scored in the second quarter. "To be honest with you, I looked up and it was 24-6 at the end of the first quarter, and I looked up again and it was 71-6. I said, 'Holy mackerel. What happened?'" ... Nine different players scored a touchdown for the Eagles.<B>Notes:</B> Greenville routed Grove City 38-7 last season. ... Bell said Tuesday he had a difficult chore this week because of the lopsided score against Franklin. "We had a bad practice (Tuesday), one of the worst we've ever had. I'm just glad that game is over."

<B>The coaches: </B>Summit Academy, Steve Sherer; West Shamokin, Josh Gilliland<B>Last week:</B> Summit Academy defeated Apollo-Ridge 40-0; West Shamokin lost to Burrell, 48-7<B>The numbers: </B>Summit Academy QB Andre Williams has completed 26 of 38 passes for 396 yards, seven touchdowns and one interception this season. ... West Shamokin RB Jared Hollibaugh scored on a 35-yard run to open the scoring last week.<B>Notes:</B> Summit Academy defeated the Wolves 37-0 last season. ... West Shamokin has been outscored 140-28 in its three games. They scored only 17 points last season.Union (0-3) at Maplewood (3-0), 7 p.m., Friday<B>The coaches: </B>Union, Dave Louder (first year, 0-3); Maplewood, Matt Crocker (fifth year, 13-29)<B>Last week:</B> Union lost to Clarion, 26-8; Maplewood edged Youngsville, 12-10<B>The numbers:</B> Union QB Trent Corle threw for 68 yards and rushed for 51 more last week. He now has thrown for 281 yards this season. ... Maplewood's Jacob Snyder and Cody Covine rushed for fourth-quarter touchdowns to key the Tigers' win.<B>Notes:</B> This is Maplewood's first season in Class A.

<B>The coaches: </B>A-C Valley, Chris McNany; Brookville, Chris Dworek<B>Last week:</B> A-C Valley lost to Redbank Valley 20-0 while Brookville outlasted Moniteau 19-14.<B>The numbers:</B> Brookville junior RB Ryan Kerr has gained 442 yards on the ground and added five touchdowns while averaging 6.6 yards per carry. ... Senior LB Jared Heschke leads Brookville with 42 tackles (14 per game).<B>Notes:</B> A-C Valley has not scored a point since a 32-19 loss to Clarion-Limestone in Week 1.