by Mike Kilroy
BROCKWAY, Pa. (EYT/D9) — For nearly a decade, the Frank Varischetti All-Star Football Game has featured loaded rosters and intriguing storylines.
This year is no different for the ninth-annual game, which will kick off at 7 p.m. on Friday in Brockway.
The North, which features 2024 grid graduates from Bradford, Brockway, Bucktail, Cameron County, Elk County Catholic, Kane, Otto-Eldred, Port Allegany, Ridgway, Sheffield, Smethport and St. Marys will take on the South, which has players from Brookville, Central Clarion, DuBois, Karns City, Keystone, Moniteau, Punxsutawney, Redbank Valley and Union/A-C Valley.
This game will be particularly interesting for the South, which will take the field without a true quarterback.
Brookville grad Charlie Krug was the lone QB on the roster, but was not cleared to play.
That leaves Keystone coach Todd Smith and his staff for the South opting to put Redbank Valley grad Owen Clouse under center.
“He’s done a great job and all the guys have rallied around him,” Smith said. “It’s been nice talking to him and working with him and getting the team ready to go out and do the best we can.”
Clouse will have plenty of weapons, including his twin brother, Mason.
Mason Clouse actually started a playoff game for Redbank Valley this past fall. Owen isn’t a complete stranger to the position, either; he completed several 2-point conversion passes during his time as a kicker for the Bulldogs.
Owen Clouse will have a loaded receiving core with Redbank’s Ashton Kahle also playing in the game. Kahle and Mason Clouse were the first two Bulldogs in school history to surpass 1,000 receiving yards in a season. Mason Clouse left as the career leader in TD receptions.
Brookville grad Jack Pete, who played just one year of football, is also a big, physical and fast threat on the outside.
The South will also feature a formidable line on both sides of the ball with Keystone’s trio of Josh Beal, Brock Champluvier and Elijah Will and Union/A-C Valley’s Kaiden McNany and Zander Laughlin, to name just a few.
The North also has a talented roster.
Cameron County grad Maddox Baughman and Ridgway grad Cam Larkin will likely split the quarterback duties. Matthew Davis of St. Marys and versatile Peyton Stiles from Port Allegany will be dangerous weapons behind a big line.
The North leads the series, 5-3, but the South snagged a 44-34 win last year.
The game has been more about the experience, though, rather than the outcome on the field.
“The nice thing is getting to know kids from different teams and working with them,” Smith said. “I’ve really enjoyed that all week. The kids get to know each other and build relationships that they typically don’t get to make or experience. I don’t have enough good things to say about it. That’s the point. Nine years in and it’s a well-oiled machine.”
Perhaps the most important aspect of the game is the $1,000 scholarships, donated by sponsors, that are handed out to the players.
Twenty of them will be distributed, based on essays written by the participants.
n the eight years, $121,000 in scholarship money has been doled out.
“What they do for these kids is special,” Smith said. “I appreciate being a part of it.”
NORTH ROSTER
Bradford: Jake Franz, Ian Degolier, Matt Perry; Bucktail: Braylon Fantaski, Danier Gavlock, Johnny Green; Brockway: Jendy Cuello, Isaac Crawford, Reese Yahner; Cameron County: Jesop Farabaugh, Maddox Baughman, Lathan Reed; Elk County Catholic: Noah Cherry, Alex Gahr; Kane: Dane Anderson; Otto-Eldred: Braxton Caldwell, Abram Austin, Tyler McElhattan; Port Allegany: Miska Young, Peyton Stiles, Braylon Button, Kole Kisko, Austin Freer; Ridgway: Cameron Larkin, Alex Merritt, Brady Heindl, Jackson Kilpeck, Nick Myers; Sheffield: Dylan Hardwick; Smethport: Ryan Mason, Cole Szuba; St. Marys: Tristan Dilley, Matthew Davis, Mason Sheeley, Lucas Bauer.
SOUTH ROSTER
Brookville: Jack Knapp, Daniel Drake, Charlie Krug, Jack Pete, Logan Loy; Central Clarion: Brady Quinn, Coleman Slater, Tommy Smith, Colby Wright, Jake Smith; DuBois: Landon Schrock, Garret Nissel, Zachary Gallagher; Karns City: Zach Kelly, Bobby Rodgers, Jake Taylor, Mason Martin; Keystone: Josh Beal, Brock Champluvier, Elijah Will; Moniteau: Logan Campbell, Jayden Keene; Punxsutawney: Matthew Grusky, Landon Martz, Zach Presloid, Anthony Gould, Nick Wisnesky; Redbank Valley: Mason Clouse, Owen Clouse, Caden Adams, Brandon Ross, Ashton Kahle, Christian Clinger; Union/A-C Valley: Kaiden McNany, Zander Laughlin, Trey Fleming, Luke Wilson