Jump at the Chance
BUTLER TWP — Butler's varsity football team will visit Hempfield's house on Friday with hope of cleaning up its own.
The Golden Tornado (2-4, 2-3) play their second non-section game in as many weeks. Kickoff against the Spartans (3-3) is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
“For us, it's all about focus, composure and concentration right now,” Butler coach Clyde Conti said. “We're lacking in those areas.
“We counted 61 unforced errors last week (34-3 loss to Upper St. Clair). On our first drive of the game, our offense shifted the wrong way on each play. I'm at a loss over this.
“Challenge equals opportunity. And opportunities still exist for our football team,” Conti added.
Hempfield has dropped two straight games while the Golden Tornado have lost three in a row. Butler has been outscored 97-3 during its current slide.
Both teams are battling a bevy of injuries.
“Hempfield won the WPIAL championship in track and field last spring,” Conti said. “They've got a bunch of athletes over there. That's the difference.”
The Tornado will be without leading rusher Kolby Kriess for a second successive week. One starting cornerback, Reid Werth, has been out for a few games and the other starting corner, Pat Lokhaiser, is sidelined this week.
Jake Hays, Butler's second leading tackler, may be out of action Friday night as well.
“Our offensive line is so banged up it's like cheerleading tryouts at practice. ... We're auditioning,” Conti said. “I'm not sure who's going to be out there for us right now.
“The good news is that no one got hurt at the homecoming dance. That's just how it's been going.”
Butler's passing game had been somewhat efficient until last week, when the Tornado completed just 3-of-15 aerials. Leading receiver Canan Roskovski (16 catches, 253 yards) failed to catch a pass in a game for the first time all year.
“We saw on film that Upper St. Clair's corner (Pete Coughlin) bites on the bubble pass and we tried to catch him on that,” Conti said. “We faked a bubble screen and the kid bit on it. We throw a deep ball downfield, the play's there and we don't make the catch.
“You have to make plays when the opportunity is there to make them against quality teams.”
Conti said receivers were running the wrong routes and “we don't pass-block very well.”
Other than Shaler, the coach determined that Butler has not matched up athletically to any team it has played this year.
“When that's the case, focus and an understanding of what you want to do on the field has to be there,” Conti said. “The play (long touchdown pass) at the end of the first half last week was just ridiculous. I've never been around anything like that.
“Our focus is always there on Monday and by the end of the week, we know what we're doing. We get into a game and it's out the window. It doesn't fly. Kids we put into the game, who didn't expect to play go into the game clueless because they weren't paying attention. We can't have that stuff.”
On the positive side for Butler, quarterback Jordan Cratty has combined for 565 yards passing and running the football, Claude Clark is averaging just under 6 yards per carry on 43 attempts and Bob Vernick has 60 tackles, including 37 solo.
“This game is very important to us in terms of confidence,” Conti said. “We need to get back to our winning ways again.
“These kids still control their own destiny in terms of playing football beyond the regular season. They have to decide how badly they want it. We're going to find out.”
