To hear head coach Clyde Conti talk, the Slippery Rock High School football team is doomed.

"There are an awful lot of question marks on our team," Conti said. "It's not meant to be critical of our team, but there's a lot of elements on both side of the football.

"We're not real big - we're tiny. We're not real fast and we're not real strong."

Ah, but they can win, as they did in the season opener, a 28-9 triumph over Fairview.

And winning is the most pervasive thing of all.

First-year Reynolds coach Tim Scarvel has seen what a winning attitude can get a team. He sees that in Slippery Rock.

He hopes not to see too much of it when the Raiders host Slippery Rock at 7 p.m. Friday.

"The biggest thing is they know how to win," said Scarvel, who had been an assistant at Reynolds for seven seasons before taking over as the head football coach this season. "And they expect to win. That's a tough team to play."

But Reynolds might have the defensive formula at least to slow down Slippery Rock's potent offense. The Raiders showed off their elixir last season, holding the Rockets to just 14 points.

Many of the defensive players who were a part of that effort return this season for Reynolds, and Scarvel has been intently studying the film from that game.

But Slippery Rock's offense has changed a subtly.

"They're not the same," Scarvel said. "Last year, they pounded (Travis) Sarver at you, then used (Sean) Ray and (Trevor) Gallo off the wing. This year, their offense seems to revolve around Ray."

Ray rushed for 122 yards on 16 carries against Fairview. Gallo, now at fullback, gained a team-high 139 yards on 17 carries.

"I have been a big fan of Trevor for a long time," Conti said. "He's done a great job for us."

Reynolds is coming off a disheartening 21-0 loss to Kennedy Catholic in a game in which it had more first downs and outgained its foe, but it turned the ball over six times.

The Raiders are led by running back Jake McBride, who gained 52 yards on 17 carries against Kennedy Catholic.

Reynolds also has an experienced quarterback in Cory Shaffer, and the junior has two solid targets in Richie Burnworth, a converted running back, and Andy Combine.

"The score of that game wasn't indicative of how they played," Conti said. "They are a very good football team. They played the best defense of everyone we faced all last year, except for Aliquippa and Brockway."

Even in the loss to Kennedy Catholic, Reynolds' defense was staunch.

"I thought we played well on that side of the ball," Scarvel said. "We just couldn't hang on to the ball."

Scarvel said he is hopeful his team got all of its turnovers out of its system.

If not, it could be a long Friday night for the Raiders.

"When you turn the ball over that many times, you aren't going to beat anybody," Scarvel said. "You are definitely not going to beat a team like Slippery Rock."

Slippery Rock at Reynolds

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Friday, 7 p.m.

Statistic: Slippery Rock rushing tandem Sean Ray and Trevor Gallo combined for 261 yards and all four Rockets' touchdowns against Fairview.

Streak: The Rockets have won two straight against Reynolds.

Strategy: Reynolds will try to recreate its defensive performance from a season ago against Slippery Rock, when it held the Rockets to just 14 points.

Speaking: "They (run the wing-T) as well as anyone. It is precise and their timing is always on." - Reynolds coach Tim Scarvel.