BROOKVILLE — The Clearfield Bisons enter week two trying to rebound from
one of their worst season-opening losses ever.
The Bisons (0-1) fell to Bradford, 56-35, last Friday at the Bisons
Sports Complex. In that contest, the Bisons allowed plenty of big
plays as the Owls rolled up over 400 rushing yards in the contest.
Clearfield will have its hands full this week with a Brookville squad
coming off a 13-12 win over Philipsburg-Osceola. In that contest, the
Blue Raiders (1-0) hung on for the close victory.
The Raiders rolled off a pair of big runs in the game. Running back
Max Kutz scored on a 65-yard run and Joe Galbraith scored on a 73-yard
scamper. Kutz led the Raiders with 126 yards on 12 carries. Galbraith
finished the night with eight carries for 93 yards.
Two big backs making big runs?
That may not bode well for the Bisons, who allowed several big runs in
the loss to the Owls.
The tackling was a problem, and Bison head coach Tim Janocko has
addressed that this week.
\”We worked on tackling all through camp and we worked on it again all
this week,\” he said. \”We\’ll just keep working on it. We\’ve worked on
defense and we\’ve worked hard with the younger kids. We have to wait
for some of these younger kids to mature. It\’s going to take time.\”
Janocko pointed out that in addition to the plethora of sophomores and
juniors littered throughout the Bison lineup, senior linemen like Mike
McDermott and Joe Hinchcliffe are getting their first taste of
starting varsity.
\”Those guys are sophomores, really,\” Janocko said.
Brookville likes to run the football, so the Bisons will have to keep
an eye on Kutz and Galbraith. There\’s just one quarterback on the
Brookville roster — junior Shane Heschke. His favorite target is
senior wideout Tyler Ross, although the Raiders will more than likely
keep the ball on the ground.
\”We have to play better. If we execute and tackle, we can keep the
game close. If we don\’t, then it\’s going to be another long night,\”
Janocko said.
Clearfield fell behind early against the Owls and the early deficit
was simply too much to overcome. Even a solid effort from senior
quarterback Andrew Janocko — who completed 14-of-26 passes for 248
yards and four touchdowns — didn\’t help.
\”One of the bright spots was that we threw the ball well. We had some
drops, but I thought our offense played well,\” coach Janocko said.
The biggest problem was that the Bisons found themselves in an early
hole and were forced to play catch up.
The Bisons will have to contend with Brookville lineman Eli Morres,
who causes havoc on both sides of the football. At 6-foot-6, 275
pounds, Morres is a force to be reckoned with.
Brookville\’s defense did an excellent job against the Mounties last
week. Seven times P-O got to the red zone, but only came away with 12
points.
The Bisons had little luck last week, too. Perhaps a road trip is just
what the doctor ordered.
\”We didn\’t get many bounces,\” Janocko said. \”(Bradford) fumbles it,
and a lineman picks it up and runs for 30 yards. That doesn\’t help.\”
So the Bisons head into Friday trying to change their luck.
Janocko said that\’s the only thing he wants to change.
\”Our kids have a great attitude,\” he said.
There will be few, if any lineup changes for the Bisons.
\”A couple of minor ones,\” he said. \”But that\’s about it.\”
Friday\’s kickoff in Brookville is set for 7 p.m.