BUTLER TWP — The good news for Butler’s football team is that it returns home this week, where the winless Golden Tornado have fed off some energy early in games.

The bad news is Butler still plays in the Quad County Conference, which means another stellar opponent coming into Art Bernardi Stasdium.

Central Catholic (5-2, 3-2) opposes the Tornado (0-7, 0-5) at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

“That’s another team with a lot of history,” Butler coach Eric Christy said. “They haven’t been as dominant this year, but they’ve still been very good in our league.”

While Butler showed some progress in the passing game last week — Logan Donnel catching a couple of tosses for big yardage — Central has settled in on an explosive running back to anchor its offense.

Eddie Tillman, at 5-foot-7, 155 pounds, got loose for 331 yards in the Vikings’ 28-16 win over Norwin last week. He has rushed for more than 600 yards in Central’s last four games.

“We found ourselves a tailback and when we get the ball to him, that’s a good thing,” Central coach Terry Totten said. “Eddie sets up most of the things we do. When we throw the ball, it’s usually off play-action to him.”

Kyler Callihan will likely start at quarterback again for Butler this week. Callihan has rushed for 439 yards this season and his 134 carries are second-most in the county, trailing only Garrett Reinke of Mars.

Christy said Bryan Presco started at QB for the JV team “and played very well. He’s pushing for time.”

Chris Mertz and Darin Skidmore may figure more into the Tornado rushing attack this week as well.

“When our quarterback runs with the ball, it gives us an extra blocker,” Christy said. “We’ve been able to move the ball the past couple of games. We still have to finish.

“We’re continually working on our passing game. I’d love to see us throw for 100 yards in a game, break that barrier.”

Nate Cornibe and Trever Moore will both make snaps at center for Butler Friday night. They will shuffle between guard and center, as they did last week at North Allegheny.

Sam Enslen, a tackle, recently received an offer from Lake Erie College.

“Those three guys have been our most consistent linemen,” Christy said. “We like to run behind Nate as much as we can.

“Logan Donnel is a cheerleader we talked into coming out for the team and he’s making real progress now. It takes a few weeks for a new player to figure everything out.”

Byron Manchester, Butler’s promising sophomore tailback, had a setback in concussion protocol this week and is unlikely to return to the lineup Friday. He’s been out for about a month.

Totten’s Vikings have settled on junior Dom Pieto at quarterback, though he’s been inconsistent this season.

“We’ve been making young mistakes as an offense, turning the ball over too much,” Totten said. “It’s been a struggle.”

The Viking defense has limited four opponents to 16 or fewer points this season, led by 6-foot-3 defensive end Brian Dallas and middle linebacker Luke Harris. Other defensive standouts have been 6-foot-3, 310-pound lineman Rich Tillman and 215-pound tackle Eliot Morgan.

While the Tornado hold an 11-10 lead in the all-time series with Central, the Vikings have dominated in recent years. Since the teams began meeting each other annually in 2011, Central has won all six games by the composite score of 288-35.

Butler has been unable to avoid the mercy rule this season.

“I know the situation and I know their scores,” Totten said. “But they’ve settled into some basic football and they’ve been getting better.

“Their kids haven’t quit and that’s a credit to their coaches. Butler has been showing improvement and we can’t let them build momentum on us Friday night.”