Shady Side Academy may be one of the smallest Class AA football teams size-wise, but Freeport coach Bill Dillen knows that could be a bit deceiving.

"They have more kids this year, close to 40, and even though they have a lot of (sophomores), they have a lot of experience," said Dillen. "They're well-loaded."

The Indians, coming off a 3-6 season, have 20 lettermen returning, including 12 starters.

Junior quarterback Dan Rooney, son of Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney, Jr., passed for 669 yards and seven scores last year and senior receiver J.T. Taylor caught 32 passes for 368 yards.

"I'm sure (Rooney's) judgment is good. He's a very intelligent young man," said Dillen. "He's a very good quarterback. We have to contain him and keep him in the pocket.

"They'll run the ball, but they do a good job with the play-action pass,"Dillen added.

Meridian resident Jordan Foley also returns for the Indians. He led the squad in tackles with 90 as a defensive back last season.

Freeport will be led offensively by senior quarterback Brian Zimmerman (1,498 yards passing, 13 touchdowns, four INT) and receiver Josh Schrecengost (22 catches, 498 yards, eight TDs).

The Yellowjackets return nine starters on defense and should be a much-improved unit this year. The team enters the regular season, for the most part, unscathed.

"We had two good scrimmages and other than a minor injury, everyone's pretty healthy," said Dillen.

Clarion at A-C Valley, Friday, 7 p.m. — The Falcons couldn't ask for a stiffer test in their opening game.The Bobcats finished 6-1 in the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference last year, sharing the league title with Clarion-Limestone and Karns City.Clarion was one step from a PIAA Class A playoff appearance, but dropped the District 9 championship game to Coudersport, 31-7.Running back Chris McSwain, who rushed for 315 yards and two scores in a district semifinal win over C-L in 2005, was lost to graduation. But coach Larry Wiser is confident tailback Brad Rapp and fullback Eric Grejda can join forces to fill the void.They combined for 643 yards and five touchdowns last year."We do a lot of one-back sets," said Wiser. "But the hot runner will get the ball."Clarion is picked by many to again reach the district title game in November. But the long road begins Friday against the Falcons."Our focus has been A-C Valley," said Wiser.

Union atCambridge Springs, Friday, 7 p.m. — Tom Kidder doesn't like to think about the 30-game losing streak his Golden Knights are suffering through."We talk about the streak a little bit," said Kidder, in his third year trying to turn the fortunes of the program around.But they haven't dwelled on it in preparation for Cambridge Springs, a team with four of its five linemen back in support of a solid running game.Cambridge Springs scrimmaged againstHickory, a school twice its size, and held its own, particularly on offense."They moved the ball against Hickory," Kidder said. "So I told the guys they will try to move the ball on us."Optimism is the work inRimersburg these days. The Knights are a small team, but they have a strong core of players who have been through the growing pains over the last two years.Kidder said he believes they are ready to reap some of the rewards from their struggles."We expect to do well," Kidder said. "If you win that first game, it's a great building block of the rest of the season."Last year, the Union junior varsity team went 3-1. Kidder is hoping that translates to his varsity team this season."We saw it last year onSaturdays," Kidder said. "We want to see it onFriday nights now."

Summit Academy at Union-New Castle, Friday, 7:30 p.m. — Summit Academy returns only four letterwinners from last year's team, which missed a shot at the playoffs with a season-finale loss to Riverside.The Knights had won three consecutive games after a 1-4 start to put them in a prime position for their first playoff berth ever.One of those wins came against Union in Week 7, a 48-0 blanking. The Scotties closed out the season by being shut out six consecutive times.