Expect plenty of big plays from local football standouts in Big 30 game
There will be no shortage of firepower for Team Pennsylvania in the Don Raabe Big 30 Charities Classic on Saturday, and plenty of it will be coming from Warren County.
Eisenhower coach Jim Penley and his staff will lean heavily on their local contingent, which consists of a plethora of skill players, to make big plays.
They certainly will have plenty of options to choose from.
Warren’s Ryan Shattuck and Kyle Kulka, Eisenhower’s Logan Bellardo and Jarrett Johnson, Sheffiled’s Adam Higby and Youngsville’s Sam Bubbenmoyer and Jon Uplinger are all used to having the ball in their hands. Whether it’s on offense or defense, this group of athletes were counted on heavily by their high school teams to produce.
They proved it week in and week out during their high school careers and will get the chance to show off their skills against some of the best New York state has to offer.
The wide receiver-running back duo of Shattuck and Kulka at Warren produced some impressive offensive numbers in 2014.
Shattuck had 50 catches for 636 yards and seven TDs, while Kulka rushed for 1,167 yards and 13 touchdowns while averaging 7.6 yards per carry.
Shattuck also showed off his versatility on defense and in the kicking game, with 58 tackles and a team-high five interceptions while going 5-for-8 on field goal attempts, including a 22-yarder to beat Corry in overtime one week after a school-record 49-yarder against Meadville.
Bellardo may be one of the most versatile player on the Pennsylvania roster. He rushed for 246 yards, accounted for 420 more receiving and also had a team-high 77 tackles during his senior season. His teammate Johnson, meanwhile, had 54 receptions for 961 yards (an average of nearly 18 yards per catch) and eight touchdowns.
Higby was a do-it-all quarterback for Sheffield throwing for 1,500 yards and 14 touchdowns while also adding a pair of INTs on defense.
Going further south, Kane will have a pair of standouts who’s names you will here called a lot on Saturday as well John English and Jamie Lingenfelter.
English rushed for 1,454 yards and 20 touchdowns, while Lingenfelter had 177 tackles, including nine for loss, as well as a pair of interceptions for a Kane defense that was dominant in helping them to the District 9 Class A championship.
Lingenfelter was a first-team all-state selection by the Pa. Football Writers as well as Big 30 Defensive Player of the Year.
Higby will be one of two Pa. quarterbacks, along with Ridgway’s Ben MacDonald, a first-team all-state defensive back who will play baseball at St. Bonaventure next season.
Shattuck, Kulka, Johnson, Bubbenmoyer, Uplinger and English will figure heavily into the spread offense that Penley has implemented for the Pa. squad, while Bellardo and Lingenfelter will be on the defensive side of the ball, as will Eisenhower’s Chris Sanders and Sheffield’s Steve Gregerson.
Warren’s Mitch Labesky and Sheffield’s Slater Traister will be counted on to provide protection on the offensive line.
The spread offense, which, among other things, can be very entertaining and fun to watch by nature, will allow the talented Pa. skill guys to show off their talents one more time at the high school level.
Expect plenty of fireworks.