TOWER CITY — Williams Valley’s 2014 season began with a loss at Marian.
It also ended with a loss at Marian, in the District 11 Class A semifinals.
Ten months later, the Vikings get a chance at redemption for those two 2014 defeats when they host the Colts tonight at Viking Stadium.
The crossover battle of Anthracite Football League vs. Tri-Valley League is the marquee matchup of a Week 1 that includes a bevy of non-conference games and four AFL contests.
Other games on the schedule tonight include: Wyomissing at Pottsville, Shenandoah Valley at Blue Mountain, Minersville at Jim Thorpe, Mahanoy Area at Lehighton, North Schuylkill at Tamaqua, Panther Valley at Schuylkill Haven, Millersburg at Tri-Valley, Pine Grove at Northern Lebanon, Upper Dauphin at Camp Hill, Morrisville at Nativity, ELCO at Hamburg, Mount Carmel at Loyalsock and Shamokin at Line Mountain.
The Colts and Vikings, meanwhile, are expected to contend for their respective conference titles. Tonight’s clash could also be another District 11 Class A playoff preview.
“We’ve watched the Week 1 film and the Week 11 film from last year throughout camp during our lunch breaks,” Williams Valley coach Tim Savage said. “We made a lot of simple mistakes and misalignments on defense the second time around. It was simple things like that ... we made things hard on ourselves.”
Marian won last year’s season opener 18-7 as K.J. Snerr rushed for 152 yards and scored on touchdown runs of 32 and 65 yards.
The Colts then prevailed 35-12 in the second meeting as Snerr rushed for 149 yards and a TD and Ethan Kuczynski threw for two touchdowns.
Snerr and Kuczynski return for Marian, which finished 8-4 and lost to Pius X in the District 11 Class A championship game. Snerr finished with 1,531 yards and 14 touchdowns rushing, while Kuczynski earned Republican-Herald Rookie of the Year honors after completing 73-of-130 passes for 1,321 yards and 15 scores.
“They had some graduation losses, but one thing is another year of Kuczynski and Snerr,” Savage said. “They should be getting better and better with their read-option and the things they do as a tandem.”
Senior quarterback Nick Rodichok returns for Williams Valley after throwing for 1,410 yards and 13 touchdowns last season. The Vikings are still trying to sort out who replaces Matt Miller, the area’s leading rusher with 1,719 yards a year ago, as the main ballcarrier in their offense, but Rodichok gives them a weapon capable of scoring on every play.
“I think he’s a very, very good quarterback,” Marian coach Stan Dakosty said. “He has great touch on the ball and he puts the ball where his receivers can get it. I’m very impressed with what I’ve seen on film. I think his touch has gotten better than last year.”
The Vikings and Colts have only played each other four times, and the last time Marian visited Williamstown was in the 2008 District 11 Class A playoffs.
Despite the two wins last year, Dakosty is expecting a tough battle.
“When you look at last year, you have to realize we have new people, they have new people,” Dakosty said.
“They’re always well coached, always tough, physical kids. We have a lot of respect for their program, and our kids are really focused on this ballgame.”
Here’s a look at the other games on tap for tonight:
Wyomissing at Pottsville
Players to watch: Wyomissing — FB/LB Brandon Workman; Pottsville — QB Eric Wapinsky
Storyline: Wapinsky takes over at QB for the Crimson Tide, who look to rebound from last year’s 0-10 campaign. Workman is one of
several key returnees for the state-ranked Spartans.
Last year: Wyomissing 41-0
Shenandoah Valley
at Blue Mountain
Players to watch: Shenandoah Valley — WR Joel San-
tana; Blue Mountain — QB Mason Freed
Storyline: QB Ian McCole and Santana headline a Devils’ offense that has drawn rave reviews this summer. Freed takes over at QB for Eagles, who must replace 20 seniors.
Last year: Blue Mountain 41-12
Minersville at Jim Thorpe
Players to watch: Minersville — QB Kei’dre Taylor; Jim Thorpe — RB Robert Heller
Storyline: Taylor showed glimpses of greatness at the end of last season. Heller returns after rushing for 1,128 yards a year ago.
Last year: Jim Thorpe 35-0
Mahanoy Area at Lehighton
Players to watch: Mahanoy Area — RB Lenny Dulsky; Lehighton — RB/LB Wyatt Clements
Storyline: Dulsky tops a talented Bears’ backfield. How they match up against Clements and the Indians will be a good test to see how far they’ve progressed.
Last year: Lehighton 47-12
North Schuylkill at Tamaqua
Players to watch: North Schuylkill — RB Pat Gownley; Tamaqua — QB Thad Zuber
Storyline: Gownley gets the first crack at replacing graduated RB John Rupinski. Zuber looks to rebound after injury-filled 2014 campaign.
Last year: North Schuylkill 35-6
Panther Valley at Schuylkill Haven
Players to watch: Panther Valley — QB Danny Gilberry; Schuylkill Haven — RB Nick Kerschner
Storyline: Gilberry tries to give the Panthers’ offense some stability under center. Kerschner is the top candidate to become the No. 1 tailback in Haven’s ground-oriented attack.
Last year: Schuylkill Haven 34-12
Millersburg at Tri-Valley
Players to watch: Millersburg — QB Christian Wingard; Tri-Valley — QB/DB Jaden Buchanan
Storyline: The Dawgs won both matchups with the Indians last season. Although this is a non-league game, both clubs expected to contend for Tri-Valley League honors.
Last year: Tri-Valley 31-14, regular season; Tri-Valley 38-7, Eastern Conference Class A championship
Pine Grove at Northern Lebanon
Players to watch: Pine Grove — QB/RB Austin Ney; Northern Lebanon — OL-DL Matt Vines
Storyline: Ney is one of several youngsters that will have to step up for the Cardinals in matchup of two teams decimated by graduation.
Last year: Northern Lebanon 24-14
Upper Dauphin at Camp Hill
Players to watch: Upper Dauphin — QB Aaron Cleveland; Camp Hill — QB Michael Shuster
Storyline: The Trojans will look to contain Shuster, who threw for 237 yards and four touchdowns in last year’s meeting. RB Bill Williams another reason Camp Hill is District 3 Class A favorite.
Last year: Camp Hill 50-27
Morrisville at Nativity
Players to watch: Morrsville — RB-LB Josh Smith; Nativity — RB Marcus Renninger
Storyline: Renninger is expected to become the Green Wave’s top ballcarrier. Smith is top returnee for Bulldogs, who were 0-10 last year.
Last year: Did not play
ELCO at Hamburg
Players to watch: ELCO — QB Jeff Martin; Hamburg — QB Nick Kuhn
Storyline: Kuhn threw for 1,372 yards a year ago. He’s got a long way to go to reach Martin, who has 5,027 career passing yards.
Last year: ELCO 46-12
Mount Carmel at Loyalsock
Players to watch: Mount Carmel — RB Kyle Karycki; Loyalsock — OL-DL Dan Harrison
Storyline: The John Darrah Era begins at Mount Carmel with a game against the Lancers, who eliminated the Red Tornadoes from last year’s District 4 AA playoffs.
Last year: Mount Carmel 25-22, regular season; Loyalsock 20-6, District 4 Class AA quarterfinals
Shamokin at Line Mountain
Players to watch: Shamokin — QB Nate Shurock; Line Mountain — RB Kenny Boyer
Storyline: Indians have several key holes to fill, one being at QB. Boyer gives the Eagles a solid rushing attack.
Last year: Shamokin 7-0