BUTLER TWP — The good news for Butler is football coaching legend Jack McCurry is no longer at the helm of North Hills.

The bad news is new Indians head coach Pat Carey is still running the defense.

Carey was defensive coordinator under McCurry for 15 years before succeeding him as head coach this season. Butler has managed only one touchdown against the Indians in their last six meetings and has been shut out by North Hills in their last three games.

Butler has not defeated North Hills in 13 years.

The Indians (2-1, 1-1) travel to Butler (1-2. 1-2) for a Northern Eight match-up at 7:30 p.m. Friday night.

“There’s still a lot of similarities in what they do,” Golden Tornado coach Clyde Conti said. “And why not? It’s been working for them.

“The names change, but the tradition and mind-set are still there. North Hills has hard-nosed, tough kids. They’re gonna hit you.”

Butler suffered a 14-0 loss to the Indians at Martorelli Stadium last year, losing a fumble at the Indians’ 1-yard line early in that contest. North Hills shut the Tornado out by scores of 38-0 and 34-0 the previous two years.

The Tornado have found a ground game the past two weeks, rushing for 338 yards against Shaler and 294 against Pine-Richland.

“Running for 294 yards in a game, that I’ll take,” Conti said. “But we have to stay focused on what we’re doing and cut down on mistakes.

“We’ve been making a lot of mental mistakes and that’s what we have to clean up.”

Butler has lost nine fumbles in its first three games.

Quarterback Tom Jendesky rushed for 117 yards in last week’s 49-19 loss at Pine-Richland. He became the fourth Butler back in two weeks to reach the 100-yard rushing mark in a game. Robert Burdine, Lucas Dubyak and Matt Christy rushed for 100 or more against Shaler. Burdine had 98 yards on the ground last week.

“Jendesky had a good game, but we’re looking for more consistency out of him, just like we are everybody else,” Conti said.

Butler attempted only three passes last week, failing to complete one.

Jeremy Hanford, Dubyak and Jake Hays have combined for 52 solo tackles and 70 stops overall through three games.

Hays led the Tornado defensively last week.

“Jake is a good football player, a dependable player,” Conti said. “But we’re not a one-man gang. This is a team game.

“North Hills has a number of over-sized water bugs in their backfield. They make you miss and they don’t go down easily. We have to play disciplined defense against them.

“Our kids have been dedicated from the start. I trust in these kids and I care about them,” Conti added.

Conti pointed out that every remaining team on Butler’s schedule is ranked highly in the WPIAL except for Fox Chapel “and they have a few Division I athletes.”

It’s all part of the educational process, says the Butler coach.

“It’s a good teaching tool,” Conti said. “Challenges are always going to be there in life. Our schedule is what it is. We’ll prepare for it and give it our best each week.

“As a program, it’s about maximizing potential. That’s what North Hills does every year. They get the most out of their kids and I have a lot of respect and admiration for that.”