LHAC Rankings after the 1st half of season

[coachcarter]

Here are my rankings after an exciting first half to the season:

1.) McCort - I place them here because they have beaten two good teams on the road (BG, Richland) and until they lose, a reigning champion deserves to stay number one. Their only real remaining test is Johnstown (I think PC and CC are overrated, but I'll talk about that later done the list). I look for them to run the table the rest of the way. They will most likely be the 6A champs (sorry Portage fans, but you won't get past any of the LHAC teams you might meet in the playoffs).

2.) Forest Hills - Now, before you Ranger fans get in an uproar, please let me explain my rational. Your only dominating win so far has been over BG at home. The Rangers did beat Johnstown in overtime (at home), but Johnstown was not the team that they are now. You have to admit, they have had a fairly easy schedule (CH, Somerset, Bedford) the first half, but I still see them winning their section (which is the weaker of the 2)and maybe being undefeated when all is said and done. They will probably be co-champs with McCort. As far as the D6 AA playoffs, they will most likely play Tyrone for the championship.

3.) Johnstown - They have a good record (3-2), beat Richland on the road, and I put them here because they took the Rangers to overtime in Sidman. There other loss was to Westy in a tsunami and in a game that in all honesty I discount because of the terrible conditions. They have a tough road ahead, facing McCort and BC, and PC matches up well with them. I think a .500 season may be on the horizon. They loss in the 1st round of the AAA playoffs.

4.) this position is a tie: BG - They are 3-2 and have lost to 2 very good teams (McCort and FH). I look for them to loss only one more (I think they play BC) and they go into the 6A playoffs as a semi-finalist favorite. They are scrappy, pretty balanced on offense, and athletic. Being in the LHAC will prepare them well for the playoffs.

Richland - I know what your thinking!How can a 2-3 team be ranked so high CoachCarter? Here is my logic: They had the toughest 1st half schedule (PC,CC,BC,Johnstown,McCort)in the conference and came out healthy (except for Nate Adam, who I hear is back in two weeks). They gave the game away to CC (botched hold on short field goal attempt) and gave McCort all they could handle in what may turn out to be the game of the year. Their only "bad" loss was to J-town, where a trojan coach told me the Rams didn't play well. Look at their two wins- They dominated PC (up by 34 pts. at halftime) and beat a good BC team at Loretto. They have Somerset, Westy, Bedford, FH, and CH the rest of the way. They SHOULD be at least 6-4 at the end, and maybe 7-3 if they can somehow slow the Rangers run game down and score a bunch of points in Sidman (this is probably unlikely). I look for them to be a semi-finalist in the D6 AA playoffs and a finalist if they somehow get Central in the semi game.

Sorry, I ran out of time- i will post my 6 thru 12 positions later!

[Crimson09Crazy]

1.Bishop McCort- Defending champs. Lowry Wadley and Seidel are virtually unstopable. Run Defense is looking good and despite a shaky secondary they managed to beat the 2 best passing attacks on the road.
2.Forest Hills-Offense has been rolling right along. I think they'll be the Co-Champs as well. Glessner Mehall and Rosenberger will be tough for anyone in this district to stop.
3.Bishop Guilfole-They have 2 losses....to the two teams mentioned above. Chris Brown is as good as any QB in the league. Will be a tough out for anyone in "A"
4.Richland-They have had some head scratching losses(scoring only 6 against Jtown)...But Ramieres and that offense will be able to score on anyone from here on in. I think they can make some noise in "AA"
5.Johnstown-quietly the Trojans have put up some impressive games. Quadir Christian is the fastest player in the confrence and the D has been pretty good to this point.
6.Penn Cambria-They were coasting through their schedule until Saturday. Newton has proven he is a workhorse that they can depend on for big game after big game.
7.Bishop Carroll-Julock exploded this past weekend on Westy. Ready for a big showdown with Johnstown this weekend. This team has some good players but had a rough 2 game strech with Richland and McCort.
8.Central Cambria-The loss of Wasilewski hurt this team but people like O'Saben have stepped up to the plate. They need to show me more but they can be a team that can climb these rankings.
Tie 9. Westmont Somerset Cambria Heights.
Well Westy beat a good Jtown team but lost to Somerset who in turn lost to Cambria Heights. All teams with only 1 win. I think Westmont is the biggest dissapointment of the 3 to this point. Somerset has a good one with Dykstra but it looks like last year was a one hit wonder. And Heights....Well self explanitory.
12. Bedford-well they are here because they dont have a win. This team shouldn't be hanging in the basement like they have been the past 2 years, Big questions down in Bedford I'd say.

[AmusedChatter]

Forest Hills 1
McCort 2

Other then that everythingis spot on.

[S Cube]

Carter i would have to disagree with disagree with the Portage statement. I think the only team in the LHAC in 6-A that could beat Portage is BM. Guilfoyle and Portage would be a good game and most likely the two would meet in Portage, not Mansion, so i would give Portage the advantage on the grass. Carroll is very overrated this year IMO.

[kingdomofcrush07]

Portage is the real deal this yr, but mccort will continue to get better and run on anyone this side of steelton.

[football-is-life]

in my opinion a westpac team cannot compete with the laurel highlands...now maybe in playoffs i will be proven wrong

[Dfense wins games]

Good post Coach, but after the scare Richland put in BM, I have them at #4.
(Dont remember the last time 3 of the top 4 teams in the LHAC were from Johnstown?)

1. FH Because their defense has allowed 20 less points than anyone else.
2. BM
3. Johnstown
4. Richland
5. BG
6. BC
7. PC
8. CC
9-11. Westy, Som, CH
12. Bedford

WH is a crying shame. BG and BC will be a force in the playoffs.

What are the AA playoffs looking like? Can Richland make it?

[lhacbigfan]

CURRENT D6 AA STANDINGS TOP 8 MAKE PLAYOFFS
1. 630 Central 5 0
2. 580 Forest Hills 5 0
3. 530 Tyrone 4 1
4. 340 Penn Cambria 3 2
5. 330 CentralCambria 3 2
6. 240 Richland 2 3
7. 230 Huntingdon 2 3
8. 220 Bald Eagle Area 2 3
9. 180 Ligonier Valley 2 3
10. 150 Westmont 1 4
11. 110 C. Heights 1 4
11. 110 Somerset 1 4
13. 100 Penns Valley 1 4
13. 100 Philipsburg 1 4
15. 0 Lewistown 0 5

By looking at the schedules the top 6 right now should be in. However the 7 and 8 spots will limp into the playoffs as Huntingdon, Bald Eagle, and Westmont all have tough remaining schedules. A team with a losing record will probably get the 8 spot. I'm thinking even Ligonier Valley could sneak in because of playing in a weaker conference. I'm gonna go with an early prediction and pick this finish... 1. Forest Hills 2. Tyrone 3. Central 4. Richland 5. Central Cambria 6. Penn Cambria 7. Huntingdon 8. Ligonier Valley This is shaping up to be a nice field here....

[Dfense wins games]

PC playing at Central would be a good test to see how good the Dragons really are. Rematch of CC and Richland!

[coachcarter]

S Cube, after further pondering on my statement about Portage, I may have to agree with you BG would struggle with the Mustangs because of Portage's strong run game (the FH game is evidence of this). Beyond that, I do stick with my thoughts that BC and McCort are too much for the Westpac. BC can run the ball and are big up front. They won't get pushed around by Portage. nor will McCort. Mccort is big, runs all over people, and simply have more athletes then any other team in D6A. Okay, enough said on that subject, back to my rankings:

6.) BC - Drop to #6 because of their poor performance against McCort. They can't protect the football, and that costs teams games. They have an easier end to the season than they had in the beginning, but big games against J-town and I think BG awaits. They have yet to prove that they can beat a top notch team, and they need to win one or both of these to gain confidence heading into the playoffs.

7.) PC - They haven't beaten anyone that is exceptional. CC is mediocre, and they won in a rain storm. They struggle against teams that can throw, and do not have the offense to come from behind if down by a couple touches. They have a tough schedule coming up, with FH and McCort on it, and will end up 6-4 or 5-5. They will make the playoffs but will go on the road and lose. They had better hope they don't pull Richland in the 1st round.

8.) CC - Again, they haven't beaten anyone. They were given the Richland game and have beaten CH and Bedford. They too have to play FH, BG, and McCort and they end up 5-5 or 4-6. They will slide into the playoffs through the back door, but will probably have to go to FH or Tyrone, and will make an early exit from the playoffs.

9.) Somerset - Here by default because they beat Westy. I don't see them beating anyone else and may not win another game. Their best chance is this weekend against the Rams at home. If Richland has a hangover from the tough lose to McCort, they may win, but I don't see that happening. No playoffs this year.

10.) Westmont - Not sure of their schedule for weeks 8,9, and 10, but I assume they could win a couple more, especially if they include Bedford and Heights. They could just make the playoffs at 4-6 with a little luck, but this is highly unlikely. I think they have underachieved once again, and the future looks pretty dim as all their JR. High teams have not been very good the last few years. The school board may be getting their Help Wanted ads ready once again (if the parents have anything to say about it).

11 and 12.) Toss up! The winner of the Heights and Bedford game comes in 11th place, with the loser at #12. Right now, both teams are bad, and I don't see them getting any better. Not much to talk about other than I think Heights has a better future than Bedford. Heights has the younger and more energetic coach, and that is what the youngsters need.