QUICK HIT: Just minutes after Steel-High discovered that District 6 champion Homer-Center was a tad vulnerable outside the tackles, QB James Warren and high-stepping Rollers got busy Saturday afternoon at Hersheypark Stadium. Warren accounted for more than 200 yards and five touchdowns, and Steel-High's relentless defense also intervened, as the District 3 champs ran away from the Wildcats 40-7 in a PIAA Class A quarterfinal. The Rollers, now scheduled for a semifinal tilt against District 2 kingpin Old Forge next week, ran up 336 rushing yards in all. Warren scored on runs of 2, 16, 8 and 7 yards to lead Steel-High to 40 unanswered points.
TURNING POINT: We'll target Steel-High's second possession after Homer-Center QB Aaron Berezansky cashed in from the Rollers 2 with 4:21 left in the first quarter. Heavy doses of RB Shaheim Moody-Williams and FB Zedaah Moffitt, coupled with Warren's 27-yard draw, put Steel-High (12-1) on the Wildcats front porch. Warren eventually snaked through from the 2 and the Rollers were even. That aforementioned Rollers' D only allowed 1 more first down before the break as Steel-High stretched ahead 20-0. While Homer-Center's pair of 1,000-yard rushers, Ean Lee and Mike Newhouse, were effective in the early stages, the middle was off limits down the stretch.
TELL-TALE STATS: Lee and Newhouse combined for just 132 rushing yards on 27 carries, well below their season averages. Steel-High's frontline, manned by DTs Bruce Carter and Broderick Settles, was to blame. LB Twynique Chisholm-Wilkerson also stood out as the Wildcats were limited to 102 total yards, all on the ground. … Warren manipulated the outside for 182 rushing yards on 14 attempts. He chipped in a pair of completions, including a 29-yard scoring strike to Logan Davis midway through the fourth. Davis added a 46-yard punt return to set of Moffitt's 4-yard plunge to end the scoring binge with 5:14 to play. … With the action getting a touch heated down the stretch, the teams combined for 26 penalties for 241 yards. That total was a Class A record.
THE BIG PICTURE: The Rollers, no stranger to the final few weeks of the football season, will likely be headed for Shamokin or Blue Mountain, although PIAA officials have yet to make an announcement. A victory over Old Forge would earn Steel-High a chance for its third Class A title since 2007.
WHAT THEY SAID: ““It feels great. We knew we were going to do it and we did do it. It definitely wasn't about the size, it was about the heart. The game plan coming in was to stop the run and get them out of their comfort zone.” – Steel-High CB Sy'heed Johnson
“We knew they had an aggressive defense. The plan was to come out and come right at them. We couldn't stop them, to be honest with you. We had some success the first or second time they had the ball, but they have a couple of athletes and if you don't breakdown and fight off blocks they make you pay. You've got to give them credit. We let it get away from us.” – Homer-Center head coach Greg Page
“We tell our kids when the game gets a little chippy you have to remain smart and just continue to play football. For the most part we did that.” – Steel-High coach Tom Hailey
Epler on Twitter: @threejacker