If 2004 was a trial season for the newly aligned Mountain Athletic Conference and its classification-based divisions, the new system passed the test.
The small school Nittany Division had balance and depth – so much so that three teams ultimately tied for the division crown – even after most figured mighty Tyrone a lock to win the section in a landslide.
The big school Seven Mountains Division placed three teams in District playoffs, including undefeated Clearfield, which fielded one of the top offensive teams and top offensive players in Western Pennsylvania.
It was a respectable debut, indeed. The following is a list of the season’s best from the Nittany Division.
Player of the Year
One choice, two honorable mentions: Running backs like Tyrone’s Brice Mertiff don’t come along everyday. Proof positive is this: in a program that has turned out 12 different 1,000-yard rushers, Mertiff stands out as one of only three to accomplish the feat twice in his career.
In doing so, he placed his name alongside two others that are mentioned with reverence when speaking of football in the John Franco era – 4,000-yard rusher Marcus Owens and Tyrone’s all-time leading rusher Jesse Jones.
In a conference built of teams that pride themselves on running the football, Mertiff easily outdistanced his peers. In nine regular season games, he had 1,377 yards and scored 20 touchdowns. That’s an average of 153 yards and more than two touchdowns per game, which speaks volumes of Mertiff’s consistency. After gaining 94 yards in the season-opener, he gained over 100 yards seven times in the eight games that followed.
But Mertiff was not the only player who posted steady numbers from week-to-week. On the basis of consistency alone, Philipsburg-Osceola quarterback Jeff Winters was as solid as they come.
The 5-11 senior passed for 1,076 yards and eight touchdowns, completing 54 of 100 passes. He threw for over 100 yards six times and was the leader of a resurgent P-O offense that averaged 26 points per game.
His teammate and top target Lou Lafuria also is a legitimate candidate for top player consideration. His speed and big-play ability were factors in every defensive coordinator’s game plan for P-O this season, and he always found ways to get into the endzone.
In a game that was P-O’s biggest 50 years, his 41-yard touchdown catch against Tyrone in the first quarter was the game winner. In Week 7 against Bald Eagle Area, he scored twice on running plays. The following week, he returned a punt for a touchdown.
In all, he caught 21 passes for 614 yards and scored 99 points.
Game of the Year
Even Tyrone fans, who have seen the Eagles play in more big games during Franco’s tenure than most small schools see over the course of generations, had to marvel at the spectacle that played out at Memorial Field in Philipsburg on October 1.
Tyrone was unbeaten and ranked among the top six Class AA schools in Pennsylvania by both major ranking systems. The Mounties were unbeaten and seeking a measure of respect.
What resulted was the stuff that high school football in Pennsylvania is made of. In front of a record crowd reported at over 7,000, the teams engaged in a knockdown game where both sides refused to relent. P-O used a bomb on its first possession to take a 7-0 lead, while Tyrone, with the top offense in the region, moved the ball at will without finding the endzone.
The Eagles finally scored with 2:58 remaining to pull within 7-6, but Ben Gummo’s PAT was blocked by Ryan Mostyn, keeping the Mounties’ lead intact.
Tyrone got the ball back one more time, and moved the ball to the P-O 25 where they were forced to settle for a long field goal attempt as time expired. Gummo just missed from 42 yards out, and bedlam broke lose in Philipsburg.
Fans stormed the field. Parents and boosters stayed at the stadium for hours. Cars paraded through town honking their horns and basking in the school’s first win over Tyrone since 1994.
Upset of the Year
The party in Philipsburg was intense, but it had little life. Just a week after its biggest win in more than a generation, P-O went down at home to Bellwood-Antis 6-3 in a game that sent shockwaves throughout the division.
In the aftermath of the victory over Tyrone, three starters were suspended for underage drinking, and the Mounties found themselves in a dogfight with the Class A Blue Devils from the word go. The game quickly turned into a defensive struggle that could not be decided in regulation.
With the score tied 0-0, the Mounties kicked a field goal on their first possession in overtime, and turned the ball over to B-A with a 3-0 lead and the win resting squarely on the shoulders of its D. Blue Devil coach John Hayes went with a gut feeling and called a sweep to sophomore Josh Kleinfelter on first down from the 10.
Kleinfelter took the toss, got to the outside, and dove into the endzone for a touchdown that brought P-O back down to earth.
For B-A, it was their first win over an undefeated team this season, and was to be followed by another win over unbeaten Chestnut Ridge a week later. The Devils ended the season 8-1.
Play of the Year
Tie: For fans who attended the Philipsburg-Tyrone game, it would be hard to imagine a more deafening scene than when Mostyn squeezed through the Tyrone line to block Gummo’s attempt at a game-tying extra-point. In terms of clutch plays, few come close. It was one instance in a chaotic game when a single play stole the momentum Tyrone had been battling to seize for the better part of four quarters.
Without it, there’s every reason to believe Tyrone – which had moved the ball at will – would score a touchdown in overtime.
However, Kleinfelter’s game-winning dash merits consideration as well. In one play, the B-A sophomore ended the Mounties’ hopes at an unbeaten season, proved the legitimacy of a young Blue Devil squad, and created a log-jam at the top of the MAC that would remain throughout the rest of the season.
Rookie of the Year
Kleinfelter scored a touchdown in mop-up duty in a lopsided loss to Tyrone in the season-opener, but he spent the rest of the season proving that he was more than a second-teamer.
In his first season of varsity football, Kleinfelter became the focal point of B-A’s offense. He was a solid pass catcher out of the backfield and a prototypical Blue Devil rusher. He ended the season with 956 yards on 147 carries and had 91 more yards on seven pass receptions.
From the Other side
It was a very good year for the Clearfield Bison, the 2003 District 9-AAA runners-up who in their first MAC season captured the Seven Mountains championship and simply dominated from Week 1 through Week 9.
Clearfield also showcased the Seven Mountains top two offensive players in senior running back Josh Harbold and senior quarterback Tanner Kelly.
Harbold ended the season with 1,645 yards on 145 carries to go along with 20 touchdowns. Kelly completed 49 of 90 passes for 940 yards and nine touchdowns with only two picks.
