Week 1 football preview: New-look WVC ready to kick off Friday night

Aug. 26—The Wyoming Valley Conference football season kicks off Friday and it's not the same as in the past.

There are new conference division. There is a new District 2 playoff format. There are some new coaches. And there will be a new stadium, albeit maybe not as polished as hoped.

Let's tackle the newness one step at a time.

NEW DIVISION

Gone is the WVC divisional setup based on PIAA classification that's been used for over a decade. Instead, the WVC will have two seven-team divisions, and divisional champions will be decided by divisional games. In the past, either the PIAA points system — which has been phased out throughout the state — or the mathematically challenging power rankings determined divisional champs.

Division 1 will consist of Berwick, Crestwood, Dallas, Hazleton Area, Wilkes-Barre Area, Williamsport and Wyoming Valley West. Division 2 will have Hanover Area, Holy Redeemer, Lake-Lehman, Nanticoke Area, Pittston Area, Tunkhannock and Wyoming Area. All divisional teams will play each other, something that didn't always happen in the past.

Dallas and Hazleton Area appear the front runners in Division 1. Division 2 is a little more tricky. Wyoming Area looks solid despite graduation losses. Pittston Area was hit hard by injuries last season. Tunkhannock could also make some noise.

NEW DISTRICT FORMAT

District 2 had 12 teams change PIAA classifications for the next two-year cycle, which includes the 2022 and 2023 seasons. That meant a change in the district playoffs where spots will once again be decided by power rankings.

Class 6A: District 2 has just two teams — Hazleton Area and Wilkes-Barre Area. Delaware Valley and Scranton dropped to 5A. Under the previous system, all four D2 teams made the postseason.

District 4 Williamsport is back after being slotted with District 6 for two years. The biggest change is now District 2 plus Williamsport, a WVC member in football only, will be battling District 11 teams for eight spots in a D2/4-11 Class 6A subregional.

Class 5A: District 2 had just two 5A programs the past two seasons — Abington Heights and Wyoming Valley West. They were involved in a subregional tournament with District 11.

However, District 2 is now up to six 5A teams and four will make districts. Delaware Valley and Scranton dropped down from 6A, while Pittston Area and West Scranton moved up from 4A. District 11 is no longer involved.

Class 4A: District 2 went from 11 to 10 teams in the classification. Montrose dropped to 3A, while Pittston Area and West Scranton bumped up to 5A. Nanticoke Area and Wyoming Area moved up from 3A.

Eight teams will make districts. Berwick, Crestwood, Dallas, Honesdale, North Pocono, Tunkhannock, Valley View and Wallenpaupack are the holdovers.

Class 3A: There are now six instead of 10 District 2 Class 3A programs. Nanticoke and Wyoming Area were reclassified at 4A, while Holy Redeemer, Lakeland and Mid Valley shifted to 2A.

Montrose, which was 4A the past two years, is now 3A along with Carbondale, Hanover Area, Lake-Lehman, Scranton Prep and Western Wayne. Four will make districts.

Class 2A: District 2 now has seven teams instead of four. Four will make the district playoffs.

Dunmore, Riverside and Susquehanna are the holdovers. Holy Cross moved up to 2A. Holy Redeemer, Lakeland and Mid Valley slide down from 3A. Lackawanna Trail departed for Class A.

Class A: Old Forge will be joined by Lackawanna Trail as the only District 2 Class A teams. They will play Week 11 for the title, with the winner playing the District 1 champion the next week.

NEW COACHES

The WVC will have three new head coaches, with two of them making their debuts.

—Mike Bennett takes over at his alma mater Berwick. He won two state championships there as a player and has been an educator in the school district. He is currently Dean of Students.

—Jason Majiros is the new guy in charge at Hanover Area. He was an assistant there from 2015-18 and has also been an assistant at Coughlin, Crestwood, Pittston Area and Wilkes University.

—Mike Pearson is the new Williamsport coach, but he's not new to running a program. He was the head coach at Yucca Valley in California for two years and spent three years running the South Williamsport program. He was also the first coach of the sprint football program at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia and served as an assistant at Lycoming College.

NEW STADIUM

Wilkes-Barre Area has a new school on Maffett Street in Plains. It also has a new stadium across from the school's parking lot. The final touches probably won't be finished in time for the Wolfpack's home opener currently scheduled for Week 3, but it's better than what the programs endured in its first three years on existence.

WBA used antiquated Wilkes-Barre Memorial — previously the home of all three city schools plus Holy Redeemer — for its first two seasons. The stadium was unusable in 2021 because of a sale of Meyers High School, which included the property. So the Wolfpack traveled to the other side of the Susquehanna River to use the stadium of rival Wyoming Valley West.

WEEK 1 AT A GLANCE

Abington Heights at Dallas

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Abington Heights Joe Repshis (107-76), 17th year; Rich Mannello (53-28), 8th year

Last Meeting: Dallas 56-14 in 2019

First Meeting: Abington 35-6 in 2009

All-Time Series: Abington 3-1

Scouting Abington: Since posting consecutive 10-win seasons in 2012 and 2013, Abington Heights has faded. The Comets are 8-35 over the past four seasons (the school canceled 2020 because of the pandemic). The offense showed little during a 2-8 record last season. The defense did post two shutouts.

Scouting Dallas: Aside from inexperience at quarterback, the Mountaineers bring back a group that should be able to contend for the District 2 Class 4A title. The defense played well down the stretch in 2021 except for a rough first quarter against North Pocono in the district semifinals.

Bottom Line: Dallas by a few touchdowns it looks like.

Hazleton Area at Pittston Area

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Dennis Buchman (12-7), 3rd year; Nick Barbieri (17-32), 6th year

Last Meeting: Hazleton Area 21-14 in 2021

First Meeting: Hazleton Area 31-0 in 1992

All-Time Series: Hazleton Area 17-9

Scouting Hazleton Area: The Cougars have been building towards this year. Much of the lineup has two or three years of starting experience. They were on the cusp of knocking Delaware Valley from its D2-6A championship perch last year, but a shaky third quarter and four turnovers were too much to overcome.

Scouting Pittston Area: Early-season injuries in 2021 forced Pittston Area to shuffle things on the fly. The negative was a 3-8 record and an offense that stalled against above-average defenses. The positive was some guys who would otherwise not see much time received on-the-job training.

Bottom Line: Hazleton Area has lost three consecutive season opener, but there's a good chance that changes.

Holy Cross at Hanover Area

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Holy Cross' Joe Giglio (4-7), 2nd year; Hanover Area's Jason Majiros (0-0), 1st year

Last Meeting: Holy Cross 22-14 in 2021

First Meeting: Holy Cross 22-14 in 2021

All-Time Series: Holy Cross 1-0

Scouting Holy Cross: Holy Cross shuttered the program two years ago because of the lack of players. The Crusaders, though, enjoyed their best season in a long time by finishing 4-7. The schedule isn't taxing, so they could improve on that mark this season. The running game looks solid.

Scouting Hanover Area: Majiros takes over a program which has had seven consecutive losing seasons. Offense was held to seven points or less five times. A bulk of the Hawkeyes' 116 total points were scored in a wild game with Holy Redeemer. Plenty of work is on the horizon.

Bottom Line: Tough call, but Holy Cross' running game could be the difference.

Lake-Lehman at Western Wayne

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Jerry Gilsky (82-51) 13th year; Western Wayne's Randy Wolff (37-26), 7th year

Last Meeting: Western Wayne 33-7 in 2019

First Meeting: Lehman 27-26 OT in 2017

All-Time Series: Western Wayne 2-1

Scouting Lehman: The Black Knights suffered their first losing season since 2009 last year. The backslide to 4-6 was probably because of heavy graduation losses. The usually potent run-pass offense never found its footing although a brutal stretch of Wyoming Area followed by North Pocono and Scranton Prep didn't help matters.

Scouting Western Wayne: The Wildcats were 4-7 last year, but the schedule was dotted with a lot of heavy hitters in the Lackawanna Conference. The lineup features several returning players, so there's a solid chance of finishing above .500. A spot in the District 2 Class 3A playoffs seems very likely.

Bottom Line: Western Wayne appears a bit ahead of the curve right now than Lehman.

Nanticoke Area at Carbondale Area

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Ron Bruza (48-74), 13th year; Jeff Arthur (5-6), 2nd year

Last Meeting: never played

First Meeting: never played

All-Time Series: never played

Scouting Nanticoke Area: The Trojans finished 5-6 and won the Eastern Conference 3A title after bypassing the district tournament. Many of the guys were getting their first significant taste of varsity football and will be on the field this year. A bump up to 4A might mean a return to the Eastern Conference playoffs once again.

Scouting Carbondale Area: The Chargers were 5-6 last season, not bad considering their 2020 campaign was nixed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They scored 42 or more points in five games last season, but the offense sputtered against better competition. The defense did as well for the most part.

Bottom Line: Tough one to figure out. Looks like it could go either way.

Southern Columbia at Berwick

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Southern's Jim Roth (471-63-2), 39th year; Mike Bennett (0-0), 1st year

Last Meeting: Southern 43-0 in 2021

First Meeting: Berwick 34-13 in 1965

All-Time Series: Tied 1-1

Scouting Southern: The Tigers had their 65-game winning streak snapped last year by Wyomissing, but went on to win the PIAA Class 2A state title. The names change but the results are the same. Roth has built a production line of football talent that's the envy of the state. Good chance Southern is back in Hershey again.

Scouting Berwick: Bennett won two state titles as a player at Berwick and now wants to get the program back to the glory years. It won't be simple. Berwick never found an identity on offense in recent seasons. The defense was fine, but couldn't overcome the shortcomings on the other side of the ball.

Bottom Line: Tough way for Bennett to get introduced to head coaching.

Tunkhannock at Wyoming Area

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Mike Marabell (15-25), 5th year; Randy Spencer (89-55) 14th year

Last Meeting: Wyoming Area 25-6 in 2020

First Meeting: Wyoming Area 6-0 in 1967

All-Time Series: Wyoming Area 23-4

Scouting Tunkhannock: After a 2-1 start in 2021, the Tigers lost five in a row including three games by five points or less. The passing game should be fine this season. However, Tunkhannock wants more balance and needs to find a workhorse in the backfield.

Scouting Wyoming Area: A dropoff was expected after Wyoming Area graduated plenty of talent from the PIAA Class 3A state championship team. Instead, the Warriors won 10 in a row last season before running into Scranton Prep's stone wall. Graduation losses were steep again, so let's see what happens.

Bottom Line: Wyoming Area might have a few glitches tonight, but should be able to overcome them.

Valley View at Crestwood

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Valley View's George Howanitz (106-65), 16th year; Ryan Arcangeli (18-14), 4th year

Last Meeting: Valley View 38-7 in 2021

First Meeting: Valley View 49-13 in 1996

All-Time Series: Valley View 6-0

Scouting Valley View: Howanitz has said this is his final season coaching and he's not the type of person to ride the gravy train into retirement. No doubt the Cougars will be well prepared to take on all challengers. Valley View is a team which has been sound on both sides of the ball and rarely beats itself.

Scouting Crestwood: The Comets finished 3-8 last year, their first losing season under Arcangeli. The coach mentioned that everyone wasn't pulling in the same direction in 2021. He also added that has changed. Crestwood returns a solid group, but the schedule is loaded with quality opponents.

Bottom Line: Part of a brutal schedule for Crestwood.

Wilkes-Barre Area at Scranton

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Ciro Cinti (85-88), 17th year; Scranton's Steve Shumbres (13-25), 5th year

Last Meeting: WBA 35-13 in 2021

First Meeting: WBA 37-28 in 2019

All-Time Series: WBA 3-0

Scouting WBA: A three-game winning streak last season was overshadowed by a four-game slide to end the campaign. The Wolfpack had issues finding the end zone in the losing streak, scoring just 27 total points. The team was young overall in 2021, so there is a good chance to improve on the 4-7 record.

Scouting Scranton: The Knights are seeking their first winning season since 2019. Last year's woes could be traced to an offense which was shut out three times and scored seven points in two other games. Their four wins came against opponents who were a combined 10-32.

Bottom Line: WBA's offense seems ahead of Scranton's and that could be the deciding factor.

Williamsport at State College

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Mike Pearson (21-30), 6th year; State College's Matt Lintal (70-29), 9th year

Last Meeting: State College 17-14 in 2021

First Meeting: State College 15-6 in 1911

All-Time Series: Williamsport 22-15

Scouting Williamsport: Pearson takes over a program loaded with talented skill players but thin on experience in the trenches. The Millionaires had issues moving the ball in their scrimmage with Harrisburg, but gut feeling is a lot of teams will have the same problem with Harrisburg this season.

Scouting State College: State College was a win away from playing for the PIAA Class 6A state title last season. The Little Lions lost their top-two receivers and leading rusher to graduation, but Lintal has seven consecutive winning seasons so he's good at reloading.

Bottom Line: Certainly not an easy coaching debut for Pearson at Williamsport.

Wyo. Valley West at North Pocono

7 p.m. Friday

The Coaches: Jack Baranski (8-20), 4th year; Greg Dolhon (51-54), 11th year

Last Meeting: never played

First Meeting: never played

All-Time Series: never played

Scouting Valley West: The Spartans played a lot of close games in 2021. They lost three games by three points or less and coupled with the defense running into some problems late they finished 3-8. No doubt Valley West will run the ball like last year. But balance will be necessary for sure.

Scouting North Pocono: The Trojans had a very strong defense last year, posting five shutouts and holding three opponent to seven or less points. The season ended with a 42-7 loss to Valley View in the District 2 Class 4A title game. There is enough experience back to have another solid season.

Bottom Line: Kind of a tough game to figure out.

Susquehanna vs. Holy Redeemer

at King's College

7 p.m. Saturday

The Coaches: Susquehanna's Kyle Cook (38-54), 10th year; Tyson Kelley (3-21), 4th year

Last Meeting: Susquehanna 39-26 in 2021

First Meeting: Susquehanna 48-7 in 2010

All-Time Series: Susquehanna 7-0

Scouting Susquehanna: The Sabers might look similar to Redeemer offensively this year. They'll probably be able to throw the ball, but running it could be a concern. Susquehanna lost a pair of one-point games and another by three points in finishing 3-8.

Scouting Redeemer: The Royals of 2021 were similar to past teams. They could throw the ball all over the place, yet couldn't muster a consistent ground attack. And the defense gave up points by the bushel, allowing nearly 40 per game. Expect a lot of points on the scoreboard once again.

Bottom Line: Look for a high-scoring game like last season.