Fast start key to Raiders' fortunes
JACKSON TWP — The PIAA's reclassification in football from four to six classes has affected each of the state's 12 districts.
While some rivalries were spared, others have been put on hold with some teams switching classes like musical chairs.
Dave Vestal's Seneca Valley squad doesn't have to look far to find familiar foes. The Raiders now reside in Class 6-A's Northern Seven Conference, along with Butler, Central Catholic, North Allegheny, Pine-Richland, Shaler and Penn Hills.
Penn Hills is the newcomer, while former conference opponents North Hills and Fox Chapel were bumped down to 5-A.
Vestal knows the top four teams in the Northern Seven will make the WPIAL postseason, but he also knows his team's schedule will be a gauntlet.
“Getting off to a fast start is very important, but so is staying healthy,” he said. “I want to see how this team responds to adversity. The first week of camp was good. We had our high points, low points and then it's just about pushing through.”
The Raiders return two starters at skill positions — senior quarterback Jack Cook and senior halfback Hank Royal.
Royal missed two games due to injury last year and ended the season with a team-leading 666 rushing yards and seven touchdowns to go with an impressive 6.1 yards-per-carry average. He showed his potential with 160 yards on the ground in a 31-10 win over North Hills.
“He got better as the season went on,” Vestal said. “He's more comfortable with the offense now and with running backs, the more you do it, the better you get at it. He's a big part of what we do and we have high expectations for him.”
Other than Royal, who caught 15 passes for 108 yards and a touchdown in 2015, senior receiver Payton Skalos (4-57-1) is Cook's top returning downfield threat.
According to Vestal, there is a lot more to Skalos than his slight 5-foot-6, 145-pound frame.
“Football is a game of smarts and Payton has them,” he said. “One of the things he brings to the table is he's very good at getting yards after the catch. Right now, we're working to get the timing down with him and Jack.”
Three starters on the offensive line return in center Evan Schillero (formerly a tackle), left tackle Eric Hudanick and right guard Shane Stadtfeld. A fourth would-be returning starter — Jake Rocco — is out indefinitely with an injury.
“We were able to do some pretty good things running the ball last year (157.2 yards per game),” Vestal said. “Any time you can control the line of scrimmage, it opens up so much for the offense. I'd say we are ahead of where we were at this time last year in both run and pass blocking.”
Returning starters on SV's 4-3 defense include tackle Stadtfeld, linebackers Jake Holl and Gabe Miller (a lineman last year) and defensive backs Will Briscoe, Brock Gresock and Cook. Holl is the team's top returning tackler, making 39 stops last season, including 2½ quarterback sacks.
“I want to see if we can stop the run,” said Vestal. “We're focusing on getting better every week.”
The Raiders are searching for a new kicker. Dylan Grubbs, who booted 27 extra points and three field goals as a junior last year, is not playing football this fall.
Vestal said several members of the school's boys soccer team are battling for the job.
