Karns City and Moniteau may be atop the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference standings, but Gremlins' coach Ed Conto finds himself very concerned about Clarion.

The Bobcats, who were considered the pre-season favorite, are tied for fourth with Keystone. The Gremlins will travel to Clarion for a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday.

"The strength of Clarion is their offensive and defensive lines," said Conto. "They've lost two games, but I still think they are the most talented team out there.

"In their losses, it's been penalty after penalty. They had five turnovers in one game and three turnovers in another,"Conto added.

The Bobcats lost 14-7 to Keystone in Week 2 and 35-20 to Redbank Valley in Week 4. Last week, they routed Union 55-6 while the Gremlins downed previously unbeaten Redbank 23-7.

Brad Rapp, who rushed for 88 yards and three touchdowns, led Clarion (3-2, 2-2). Jake Fleeger and Larry Stout, who each rushed for one score and caught another from quarterback Adam Bevevino, also helped the Bobcats' cause.

Rapp has rushed for 592 yards on 79 carries and scored seven touchdowns while Bevevino has completed 32-of-74 passes for 496 yards, six touchdowns and one interception.

His top two targets have been Tyler Schwab (12 catches, 133 yards) and James Seidle (six receptions, 172 yards). Each have scored twice.

"They move the ball downfield every night," said Conto. "They're big up front and have power backs. They're for real. They shouldn't have lost."

While their running game is strong, Bevevino could be the wild card in this contest.

"(Bevevino) throws well, but he's an outstanding runner," said Conto. "In the three tapes I've seen, he's had at least a 60-yard play in each tape. I hope he won't run as much as I've seen."

The Gremlins (5-0, 3-0) used a 110-yard passing performance by quarterback Matt Endlish and a 133-yard rushing game from Roy Beham to lift the offense over the Bulldogs (4-1, 3-1) last week.

The defensive charge was led by Justin Switzer, who returned a fumble for a touchdown to open the scoring, and a bend-but-don't-break effort against one of District 9's top runners in sophomore Alex Bladel.

Bladel rushed for 147 yards on 20 carries. His touchdown with 5:40 left in the game closed out the scoring.

"We were a little excited. The kids played a better game," said Conto. "We gave them a 50-yard play. We were making personnel changes. One guy didn't hear the play and their guy picked up a 50-yard run."

Matt Endlish has completed 35-of-67 passes for 477 yards, two scores and seven interceptions this season for the Gremlins. He has completed passes to 11 different receivers, led by Josh Callender (eight catches, 140 yards and two scores).

Roy Beham has rushed for 439 yards on 68 carries and scored seven times to led the Gremlins on the ground.

Clarion coach Larry Wiser could not be reached for comment.

Note: Due to the Autumn Leaf Festival in Clarion, football fans attending the game are urged to avoid Main Street. Take I-80 to the Shippenville exit, then take Route 66 North to Route 322 East to Clarion University's Memorial Stadium.