UPPER ST. CLAIR — The drive was one of Butler’s most impressive performances of 2012.

The Golden Tornado controlled the ball for 24 plays on one possession, marching 72 yards and eating nine minutes, 48 seconds off the clock against Upper St. Clair last season at Art Bernardi Stadium.

That possession came against a Panther defense that wound up allowing 10 points per game, second fewest in WPIAL Class AAAA.

“I hadn’t seen anything like that in a long, long time,” USC coach Jim Render said of the possession. “I remember that very well.”

Upper St. Clair football followers haven’t seen anyone but Render running the Panther program in a long, long time.

The coach, now in his 35th season at USC, will seek career win No. 371 when his undefeated team hosts Butler (1-4) at 7:30 p.m. He ranks among the top three prep coaches in all-time wins in Pennsylvania.

The Golden Tornado have had nine head coaches during Render’s tenure at USC.

“We have good kids who work hard,” Render said of why he’s stayed at USC all this time. “I taught here and stayed on after I retired. The kids keep me young and I’ve had a fantastic coaching staff.

“Had the coaches gone off in different directions, I might not have stayed.”

Offensive line coach Terry Coleman has been with Render for 30 years.

Upper St. Clair finished 10-2 and reached the WPIAL semifinals with a lot of underclassmen in the starting lineup last year. Now the Panthers have a senior-laden team.

“We’re going up against a lot of familiar faces from last year,” Butler coach Clyde Conti said.

The Tornado dropped a 34-3 decision to USC last season, their lone points coming on a 30-yard Devin Fitz field goal that concluded that long drive.

This year’s edition of the Panthers have not allowed a point since Week 1, a 16-10 triumph over Woodland Hills. USC has since shut out Canon McMillan 47-0, Peters Township 41-0, Penn Hills 35-0 and Baldwin 44-0.

Inside linebacker Kyle Page leads the defense with 36 tackles. Ben Huss, at 6-foot-3, 275 pounds, has 30 tackles and four quarterback sacks. Defensive end Rori Blair, at 6-3, 225, also has four sacks.

“Experience and senior leadership are why that unit has done so well,” Render said.

Blair, also the Panthers’ tight end, is a Pitt recruit and returned to football this season after missing the entire 2012 campaign. He suffered a stroke.

Offensively, Trevor Morrow rushed for 161 yards and two touchdowns in last week’s win over Baldwin. Mac Pope added three touchdowns on the ground. For the year, Morrow has 75 carries for 439 yards and six TDs, Pope 33 carries for 239 yards and eight scores.

First-year starting quarterback Joe Repishak has completed 29 of 53 passes for 498 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions. He’s also rushed for 121 yards and four scores.

Morgan Lee, a first cousin to Dallas Cowboy linebacker Sean Lee, leads the Panthers’ receiving corps with seven receptions for 118 yards. He has 26 tackles defensively.

Place-kicker Max Herold has driven 17 of 29 kickoffs into the end zone so far this season.

“I have a lot of respect for Butler’s head coach,” Render said. “That is a well-coached team, I saw that last year.

“They may be experiencing some hard times this year, but it’s not because of coaching or a lack of effort by the players. I respect the Butler program.”