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Athens PPG--38.0, PPA--12.7; YPG--310.3, YPA--163.7
Athens notes: Athens (2-1) opened a nine-win season a year ago by defeating South, 47-27. Quarterback Connor Davidson is one of the district's top dual-threat quarterbacks and generated 338 yards with five touchdowns in last year's victory. Davidson threw four touchdowns and ran for 98 yards in last week's win against Cowanesque Valley. He also returned a punt 51 yards for a touchdown against Wyalusing and has three interceptions. Gage Marmor is a big-play threat who caught a 43-yard touchdown against South a year ago and who leads Athens in catches, yards and scores. Kade Rowe also has caught three touchdowns. The Wildcats cut a 21-point deficit to seven late against Troy two weeks ago before losing, 31-21. Troy is the only team to defeat Athens the last two regular seasons. The Wildcats have forced 11 turnovers the past two games and Devin Maxfield recovered a fumble for a touchdown against Troy. Athens intercepted four passes against CV. The Wildcats moved from 4A to 3A this season and are sixth in the standings. The top eight advance to playoffs.
Athens player to watch--Brendan Cooke: When Davidson is not carrying the ball, Cooke likely is. The senior ran for 91 yards and a touchdown in an opening-night win against Wyalusing and also scored a week ago. He ran for four scores last season and also is a big part of the defense's success.
South PPG--36.3, PPA--4.0; YPG--357.7,YPA--86.7
South notes: South (2-1) pushed defending NTL-II champion Montgomery to the limit on its home field last Saturday, outgaining it in a 12-6 loss. It was a strong showing by a team which moved the ball better than anyone has against Montgomery this season and which did not allow a second-half point. The defense has flourished thus far and surrendered just two touchdowns. Dominik Goode has three sacks and an interception, while Garrett Lorson and Kamdyn Bubb also have picked off passes. Taylor Naugle, coming off an impressive freshman season, recovered a fumble to snuff out an early Montgomery drive last Saturday. The offense possesses a lot of weapons and balance. Running backs Eli White, Cade Lusk and Garrett Lorson all can carry heavy loads and all went over 400 yards last year. Quarterback Cole Gerber played well in wet conditions at Montgomery and set the single-season South passing record last fall, while Levi Butler broke the single-season reception mark. Butler also joined Dylan Scheller as the only South receivers in the 2000s to catch 70 career passes. Samir Moy and Caleb Johnson have hauled in scores this year and play vital roles in the secondary, too. South is fifth in the District 4 Class AA playoff standings. The top eight advance and top four host first-round games.
South player to watch--Neeko Bowen: It's not that Bowen catches passes which stand out, but when he does so. The junior tight end came up big twice on two long third-down plays a week ago and his five-yard catch late in the third quarter put the ball at the 2-yard line. With Butler and Moy commanding attention on the outside, Bowen does a nice job finding the open spot in the middle of the field and has become one of the area's top tight ends.
Outlook: Both teams have a lot of firepower, but also feature good defenses. Still, a higher scoring game is the call here, just a closer one than a year ago.