JACKSON TWP — The Seneca Valley football team is slamming on the brakes.

Whether or not the Raiders avoid going over the cliff remains to be seen.

Just like last season, the Raiders appeared to be a team primed to make a playoff run.

But a lopsided 43-13 loss at North Allegheny last week, one in which the Raiders trailed 36-0 in the second quarter, must have more than a few Raiders fans thinking back to 2006, when the squad lost all five of its Northern Five Conference games.

The Raiders have a decent shot of making the WPIAL Quad A playoffs if they can manage two conference wins, but they will carry a 26-game conference losing streak into their home contest against North Hills at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

The Indians (2-3, 0-1) have been very inconsistent, alternating wins and losses through the first five weeks.

They are coming off a 17-0 home loss to Shaler and their only victories have come against a one-win Connellsville team (49-0) and a winless Penn-Trafford squad (14-0).

"Individually, they may not be as talented as some of their teams in the past," SV coach Ron Butschle said. "But as a team, they still look like the same North Hills. When you play them, you're playing a program with a lot of tradition."

North Hills has a first-year starting quarterback in junior Justin Heinauer, who has thrown for 540 yards with one touchdown and four interceptions.

"He's progressing," said veteran Indians coach Jack McCurry. "He's not where we want him to be, but he will get better as he gets more experience."

Among Heinauer's favorite targets are sophomore Max Creighan (five receptions for 159 yards) and junior Brennan Prokopec (five receptions for 130 yards).

Senior running back Ed Reith leads the Indians with 416 yards.

"We've had a problem with turning the ball over," said McCurry. "The game against McKeesport, we just got blown out. But in the other two losses (to Penn Hills and Shaler), turnovers have really hurt us."

The Raiders (2-3, 0-1) will certainly have the advantage when it comes to passing.

Junior quarterback C.J. Brown has thrown for 817 yards and six touchdowns, and junior wide receiver Matt Plautz leads Butler County with 23 catches for 350 yards and four touchdowns.

That's the good news for the Raiders' offense. The bad news is their running game has been anemic, rushing the ball 156 times for 428 yards, an average of 2.7 yards per attempt.

Senior tailback James Daniels, who has been hampered by ankle and shoulder injuries, has gained 160 yards on 54 carries.

"The running game is a concern right now," said Butschle. "But over the last two games, our game plan has been dictated by circumstance. In both cases, we fell behind early and when that happens, you have a tendency to move away from running the football."

McCurry said his team did focus on defending the run this week in practice, even though the Raiders have been leaning on their passing attack.

"We're certainly concerned about their passing game," he said. "But (Daniels) has been slowed by injuries and that's why they've struggled. If he's in there and healthy, he can be effective."

North Hills leads the all-time series 22-5-2. Seneca Valley last defeated the Indians in 1997.