Slippery Rock eager to rebound after loss

September 25, 2008 Last Updated: September 25, 2008 01:36 PM High School

SLIPPERY ROCK — There is no instant replay in high school football.

If there were, Slippery Rock High coach Clyde Conti would have shown off his flag-throwing skills.

Upon further review, namely Conti's game tape, it appeared quarterback Jono Powell let go of his penalty-negated 35-yard touchdown pass to Derrick Orloski as time ran out in the first half againstSharon before he crossed the line of scrimmage.

It was ruled Powell released the pass after he crossed the scrimmage line.

The play turned out to be huge as the scoring strike would have tied the score at 17 at the half. As it was, Slippery Rock entered the locker room down 17-10, which was the final score.

"I think it took away from a very athletic play," Conti said. "When you see it (on tape), it was obvious he threw it behind the line of scrimmage."

"But that game is done and over with," Conti added. "I'm anxious to see how the kids respond."

He will get that chance Friday when the Rockets face Reynolds in Greenville at 7 p.m.

The Raiders are in the midst of a poor season, to say the least.

Reynolds (0-4) has been outscored 124-12 in its first four game, and is averaging 2.5 yards per rush.

But Conti isn't buying into the paltry numbers. He said the Rockets will not get a sense of overconfidence from the stat sheet.

"Forget the record," Conti said. "That means nothing to me."

What does mean something to Conti is seeing more energy out of his team.

For weeks, the coach has lamented the lack of fire and enthusiasm from his players and he said he felt that hurt them againstSharonSaturday night.

Reynolds, Conti said, is by no means short on enthusiasm.

"We have some people who have to do some soul searching," Conti said after the game Saturday. "They're great kids, but you have to turn up some energy and some juice on this football field and we're not cut that way."

Still, there were enough positives fromSaturday that had Conti feeling optimistic.

"As you get a couple of days perspective, you see some good things that we did," Conti said. "I thought we responded a couple of times after they scored — after watching the tape, three times."

Reynolds has gotten more than a few people involved in its offense. None, though, have made an impact.

Tailback Dalton Farina is averaging just 2.2 yards per attempt. Quarterback Jeremy Fowler has completed a mere 33 percent of his passes for only 76 yards.

Charlie Murray leads the team with a 3.4 yards per carry average.

Conti, though, is entering the game with a simple approach passed down to him.

"If you get a winning streak stopped, you just try to start another one up," Conti said.

• Last year's score: Moniteau 48, Union 12• Coaches: Moniteau:Jeff Campbell, 2nd year, 10-6; Union:Jeremy Lipps:1st year, 0-4• Game notes: The Golden Knights dropped a 36-30 decision in overtime to Keystone last week, scoring 30 points in a game for the first time since 2000, a season-opening 30-21 win over Moniteau. ... Union QBMatt Gagliano threw for 116 yards, including a critical 9-yard completion to Zach Traister on fourth-and-8 to keep the game-tying drive alive late in fourth quarter. ... RBColby Davis had 121 yards rushing and 3 TDs. ... Last week, Moniteau QBTyler Armagost became seventh District 9 quarterback to reach 4,000 career passing yards. Mike DeFilippi of Smethport holds the district record of 6,638 yards. ... WRTony Campbell has six touchdown catches in last two games. ... Moniteau is 17-30 all-time vs. Union, but has won the last seven meetings. ... Moniteau outside lineback Jake Boy is second in the state with 12 quarterback sacks in four games.

• Last year's score: Karns City 42, Keystone 14• Coaches: Karns City: Ed Conto; Keystone: Jason Nellis• Game notes: The Panthers are coming off a 36-30 overtime victory over Union last Friday, as Zach Smith scored a pair of rushing touchdowns and Brent Zuck caught two scoring passes from Dan Reed to pave the way. ... Keystone had been shut out in two consecutive games, 49-0 by Redbank Valley and 41-0 by Clarion. ... The Gremlins continued to roll in a decisive 54-12 triumph over Clarion-Limestone. ... Karns City rolled up 439 yards rushing and all eight touchdowns on 33 carries. Anthony Stimac and Josh Callender had two scores each. ... Karns City has outscored its opponents 179-32 in four games, including 158 points in the past three games.

• Last year's score: Did not play• Coaches: Punxsutawney: Blake Moilan, fourth season; A-C Valley: Gary Pinkerton, second season• Game notes: After dropping their first three games of the season to Karns City, DuBois Area and Moniteau by a combined score of 105-12, the Chucks lost a tight game at home to Clarion last week, 30-27 ... In the defeat, freshman quarterback Logan Weaver passed for 119 yards and a touchdown and also ran for 47 yards and another score ... A-C Valley lost to Moniteau last week, 40-0 ... Falcons' quarterback Michael Orrvick has thrown for 206 yards with one touchdown and one interception ... Luke Walker and Dillon Montgomery have both caught nine passes this season, with Walker tallying 98 yards and Montgomery 94 yards.

• Last year's score: Ford City 18, Freeport 0• Coaches: Ford City: John Bartolovic; Freeport: John Gaillot• Game notes: The Sabers, who sit atop the Allegheny Conference standings with Shady Side Academy, came away with a 42-7 win over Summit Academy last week. Sean Kriley rushed for 153 yards on 14 carries and five touchdowns, including four in the first half. ... The win marked Ford City's 19th consecutive conference victory. ... Freeport broke a 14-all tie in the fourth quarter when Alex Isenberg scored on a 1-yard run with 4:48 remaining in a 21-14 victory. ... Austin Shockey rushed for 110 yards to help the Yellowjackets' offensive charge. Tom Blythe also rushed for a score and Derek Durand caught a 74-yard pass from Isenberg.

• Last year's score: Grove City 35, Greenville 6• Coaches: Grove City, Jeff Bell; Greenville, Brian Herrick• Game notes: Greenville, once known as a power running program, has joined the 21st century of offense with some shotgun formations. ... Grove City, with freshman quarterback Tyler Dagres running the show, attempted just five passes in a 40-14 win over Franklin. ... Eagles senior Dwayne Martin has played six different positions this season: halfback, fullback and wide receiver on offense and cornerback, safety and middle linebacker on defense. ... Grove City senior quarterback Mike Burk is at least one week away from returning to the field after foot surgery. ... The Trojans are led by running back Dylan Zuschlag, who has gained 293 yards on 32 carries. His sidekick, Nico Zahniser, is averaging 18.1 yards per rushing attempt.

• Last year's score: Did not play• Coaches: Summit Academy: Steve Sherer; Valley: Troy Hill• Game notes: The Vikings blanked Deer Lakes 27-0 on fourth 1-yard touchdowns runs, including two by Brad Marzullo. Lebren O'Neal also scored and rushed for 102 yards on 21 carries. ... The Knights' lone score was a Darnell Jenkins 1-yard run. Jenkins finished the game with 94 yards rushing. ... The Knights have been limited to one touchdown each of the past three weeks and have been outscored 149-22 this season.