LANCASTER — L-L League football camps open bright and early Monday morning.
What are the five biggest pressing questions heading into the season openers?
Here’s a section-by-section breakdown, continuing with Section 2 …
1 — CAN MANHEIM CENTRAL HIT A MAJOR MILESTONE? The Barons are sitting on 493 victories in program history. Not too shabby. Manheim Central is poised to become just the second L-L League program to hit the 500-win mark, joining McCaskey, which has 537 victories since 1890. The state record: A whopping 813 wins by Mount Carmel since 1893. With an undefeated start, the Barons could reach 500 as early as October 11 at home vs. Lampeter-Strasburg in a Week 7 Section 2 showdown.
Here’s where Manheim Central stacks up against District 3 programs:
Mechanicsburg — 548 wins since 1919
McCaskey — 537 wins since 1890
Carlisle — 528 wins since 1900
Gettysburg — 527 wins since 1914
Middletown — 525 wins since 1921
Hershey — 508 wins since 1915
2 — CAN COCALICO REPEAT? The short answer is yes, although a very angry pack of Manheim Central Barons might have something to say about that. Cocalico vs. Manheim Central is Week 6 in Denver. Said this before and I’ll say it again: That might be the most anticipated L-L League game this season. First, because this has become a feisty rivalry between two of the top Class AAA programs in the district. Second, because Cocalico slips to Section 3 in 2014, so this is the last time the Eagles and Barons will clash in a league game for the time being. And third, because Manheim Central hasn’t won anything since 2009 and they’re a tad on the itchy side to hoist a gold trophy of some sort. The Eagles currently have it, and they waxed the Barons in Manheim last year. Plenty to like in Cocalico’s camp, particularly the backfield duo of QB Jhett Janis — firmly entrenched behind center now after lining up all over the last two years — and scatback Spencer Moser, who makes people miss for a living. Tack on the Mitch’s — Shober and Deering — line anchors Casey Kerschner, John Fry and Zach Eberly, plus spark-plug LB Dalton Kern, and the Eagles have plenty of fancy pieces. Week 3 non-league tester at Governor Mifflin will prep Cocalico for Section 2. For me, it’ll all come down to Manheim Central in Week 6.
COCALICO COUNTDOWN TO CAMP PREVIEW
3 — CAN MANHEIM CENTRAL RECLAIM SECTION AND/OR DISTRICT GLORY? Hard to believe the Barons haven’t won anything since 2009. No Section 2 banners. No District 3 Class AAA championships. This is a program that has produced 20 Section 2 titles (since the inception of the league in 1972) and a staggering 16 District 3 Class AAA crowns since 1989, including those lights-out 10 championships in a row from 1992-2001. But nothing new in the trophy case for Manheim Central since 2009, when the Barons won Section 2 and District 3 before falling to Selinsgrove in the PIAA title game. Lampeter-Strasburg and Cocalico have stolen the Barons’ Section 2 thunder in recent years, while Bishop McDevitt has captured the last District 3 Class AAA crowns in a row. All that should provide plenty of motivation for this crew, a crew spearheaded by dual-threat QB Colin Fry, who might have had one of the most underrated 2,000-passing yard/300-rushing yard/36-total TD seasons ever last fall. He’ll have plenty of weapons at his disposal, like RBs Ian Hanselman and Marc Royer — who combined for 1,600 yards and 17 TD last season — and 1,000-yard receiver Taylor Geib, a blue-chip recruit. If the Barons are going to break out of this four-year funk — for them — the talent is certainly here to do it. See ya October 4 at Cocalico. Save me a seat.
MANHEIM CENTRAL COUNTDOWN TO CAMP PREVIEW
MANHEIM CENTRAL PRESEASON VIDEO INTERVIEWS
4 — WHO WILL CHALLENGE THE EAGLES AND BARONS? Lampeter-Strasburg for sure. The Pioneers won back-to-back Section 2 titles in 2010 and 2011 in their first two years up from Section 3. That was a neat trick — and proved once and for all that L-S was a major player and has a legit program, capable with competing against anybody in the L-L and District 3. That’s why the Pioneers can’t be overlooked in this race, even though Cocalico and Manheim Central will grab a majority of the headlines. L-S lost some major talent — Jeff Pickel and Jason Lindsley will be awfully tough to replace on the o-line and especially at LB — but has some experienced trench kids (Michael Warfel, Jared Horn and Cory Clites, to name a few), a defensive ringleader in LB Jordan Spahr, and — perhaps most importantly — soph QB Collin Shank has a year under his belt. Key stretch for L-S: Week 7 at Manheim Central and Week 8 vs. Cocalico. There’s your shot. … I think Elizabethtown will also remain on the rise. One year after a winless campaign, da Bears went 4-3 in the section last fall and had everyone’s attention back front and center. Like that E-town has three starters back in the trenches — guards Austin Brinser and Francisco Guzman and tackle Bryce Grohol — and Tyler Cottle should have the QB duties all to himself this time around, which should lead to some good cohesion in the huddle. Don’t sleep on the Bears. … A lot of eyes on Witmer to see how Mark Pieters handles his first year on the job with Conestoga Valley. He’s installed a “Wing-T” scheme, which the Buckskins have been breaking in during summer drills. We’ll see if the new playbook can help CV break out of the middle of the pack and back to the front of the Section 2 race. Also anxious to see if the Bucks will play with extra chips on their shoulders; they're heading up to Section 1 in 2014 for the first time since 1980. … Year 2 of the Scott Shelley Era in Ephrata is underway. Block by block. Day by day. Practice by practice. Game by game. That’s his mantra. The Mounts took some baby steps with a pair of wins last fall, and I’d expect more of the same this time around. It’s easy to overlook Ephrata in this race, but don’t forget about the Mounts. They’d like to make life miserable for everyone. … Solanco and Lebanon both flat-out struggled offensively last year; the Golden Mules scored 70 points and the Cedars scored 100 points. That’s it. And they both turned the ball over way too many times. Have a feeling they’ll both be battling to stay out of the basement again. But there’s too much pride — and talent in place — to overlook either team. Fast starts in the non-league would do wonders for the Mules and the Cedars moving forward.
PODCAST: JASON LINDSLEY INTERVIEW
5 — WHO IS THE BEST ALL-AROUND PLAYER IN SECTION 2? He’s not the biggest dude around, but Cocalico multi-purpose threat Spencer Moser gets the nod. The reigning Section 2 first-team all-star RB and DB has already piled up plenty of impressive numbers in his Eagles’ days (remember when he started at QB back in his freshman season?). And he’s primed for a big senior campaign. Moser rushed for 1,100 yards and 16 TD last fall, helping Cocalico win the Section 2 crown with a 7-0 mark. With some major thumpers due back in the trenches, he should get plenty of touches in the Eagles’ vaunted “Veer” scheme. And when it comes to cover guys, he’s been one of the best in Section 2 for a couple of years running, now. Moser is also a basketball and track and field standout, who you’ll be hearing plenty about this coming school year — especially for his football prowess.