Prep Redzone PA’s Week Nine Games to Watch

Believe it or not, the regular season is almost at its conclusion. Week nine marks the penultimate week of the 2021 regular season before we finish it up next weekend in week 10. With that being said, across the state, many conferences have yet to be decided which should make it an exciting finish of the regular season across the Keystone State. <strong>1. La Salle (6-1) vs Father Judge (6-2)</strong> This is a fantastic Philadelphia Catholic League matchup with plenty of talent to watch on both sides of the ball. The top names to watch in this one are [player_tooltip player_id="27556" first="Abdul" last="Carter"] and [player_tooltip player_id="27560" first="Samuel" last="Brown"]. Carter is our second-ranked linebacker and a Penn State commitment while Brown is our second-ranked running back and is committed to Rutgers. On Father Judge’s side, linebacker [player_tooltip player_id="178646" first="Mike" last="Conway"] is one to keep an eye on as well as athlete [player_tooltip player_id="140866" first="Jordan" last="Rhinehart"] and defensive back [player_tooltip player_id="140865" first="Billy" last="Whiteley"]. On the field, La Salle will look to bounce back from their first loss of the season to Roman Catholic, two weeks ago while Father Judge looks for their second-straight win after knocking off Roman Catholic last weekend. <strong>2. Seneca Valley (6-2) vs Mt. Lebanon (8-0)</strong> This should be a fun one on the western side of the state as the Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils look to stay perfect on the season while Seneca Valley looks for a massive win. The Blue Devils have completely dominated opposing teams this season, allowing less than 10-points per game while offensively averaging just under 40-points per contest. Mt. Lebanon has been a hot starting team all season so Seneca Valley not falling behind early in this one will be the biggest challenge for the Raiders. Players to watch here include Mt. Lebanon quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="87823" first="Joey" last="Daniels"] and Seneca Valley wide receiver, [player_tooltip player_id="156293" first="Brandon" last="Ross"]. <strong>3. Thomas Jefferson (5-1) vs McKeesport (7-1)</strong> Another Western Pennsylvania matchup pits two highly similar teams against each other in what should be one of the best games all weekend and the winner will be in the driver seat of the WPIAL AAAA Big Eight with one week to go in the regular season. Look for McKeesport’s [player_tooltip player_id="92780" first="Kanye" last="Thompson"] in this one as well as Thomas Jefferson’s offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id="155796" first="Nick" last="Bryan"] as players to watch. <strong>4. Bishop Shanahan (6-2) vs Coatesville (7-1)</strong> Bishop Shanahan has been a surprisingly strong team this season at 6-2 but at 1-2 in conference play is looking for a much-needed win over Coatesville on Friday night. The Red Raiders sit at 7-1 on the season and 2-0 in conference play with one of the Ches-Mont’s best offenses, averaging 38.4 points per game. Bishop Shanahan, on the other hand, not only has a good offense, averaging 30+ points per game but also a very good defense that is only allowing 10.6 points per contest this season, half of Coatesville’s 20.1 points allowed per game this season. if Bishop Shanahan’s defense can keep Coatesville’s offense at bay for most of the game, the Eagles will have a terrific chance to win this one. <strong>5. Central Dauphin East (6-2) vs Central Dauphin (5-1)</strong> A fun rivalry game is in store in Harrisburg tonight between the Central Dauphin East Panthers and the Central Dauphin Rams. A fun rivalry game is in store in Harrisburg tonight as Central Dauphin takes on Central Dauphin East. Both teams are looking to stay in the No.2 spot in the Mid-Penn Conference just behind Harrisburg. The name to watch in this game of course is Central Dauphin East quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="27670" first="Max" last="Mosey"] who has 21 total touchdowns on the season. The likely FCS-bound quarterback has had a quality senior season and is positioning Central Dauphin to be a tough out in this year’s state playoffs. <strong>6. Central Valley (8-0) vs Avonworth (7-1)</strong> We go back out west for a WPIAL AAA Northwestern Six conference showdown with the winner taking control of the conference heading into the final week of the season. Central Valley enters this week on top of the conference with an 8-0 record including 3-0 in conference play and outscoring opponents 390 to 64. Avonworth isn’t far behind the Warriors with a 7-1 record and 3-0 in conference play. Their offense isn’t nearly as explosive as Central Valley’s but their defense is even better which should make this a fascinating matchup. Both teams feature strong offenses and some of the state’s top defenses. Something will have to give in this one and we can’t wait to see what does. Avonworth’s [player_tooltip player_id="92144" first="Ian" last="Syam"] has been their best offensive weapon all season, racking up 621 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground this season, if the Antelopes hope to hand Central Valley their first loss, he’ll need a big performance. On Central Valley’s side, look for [player_tooltip player_id="69211" first="Landon" last="Alexander"] to continue his terrific season, he’s averaging 138.9 yards per game this season and has 18 touchdowns. Of course, you can’t forget defensive tackle [player_tooltip player_id="27564" first="Sean" last="FitzSimmons"], a dangerous force in the front seven who is capable of making a big play, every play. <strong>7. Cathedral Prep (6-1) vs Meadville (6-2)</strong> Up in the northwestern part of the state, Cathedral Prep travels to Meadville to take on the Bulldogs. Cathedral Prep this year has run through most of their schedule outscoring their opponents 42.1 to 13.1 and their only loss coming to Erie powerhouse McDowell. Meadville, lost twice in their first three games this season but has won their last five leading into Friday night’s matchup against Cathedral Prep. The Bulldogs defense has pitched four straight shutouts while the offense has put up 40+ in each of their five games including back-to-back games of 70+ points. This is going to be an incredible game to say the least. <strong>8. Steelton-Highspire (8-0) vs Big Spring (6-2)</strong> This game will feature one of the state’s top quarterbacks in [player_tooltip player_id="64022" first="Alex" last="Erby"] who is having one of the best single seasons we’ve seen out of a quarterback in a long time. Erby this season is closing on on 3,500 total yards and has 31 total touchdowns on the season as he looks to continue to lead Steelton-Highspire to a second-straight state championship. Big Spring has been solid this season with their only losses to Shippensburg and Boiling Springs. <strong>9. Central Bucks East (6-2) vs North Penn (8-0)</strong> North Penn has been one of the most dominant teams in the entire state this season and came away with a big win last weekend against Central Bucks West. This week, they look to take down Central Bucks East who struggled last week against Pennridge in a 17-7 loss. A win on Friday night would clinch the Knights winning the Suburban One conference. <strong>10. Muncy (7-1) vs Homer Center (7-1)</strong> Our final game to watch this weekend heads back to the north-central part of the state for Muncy vs Homer Center in a late-season non-conference matchup. Both teams sit at 7-1 on the season and sit near the top of their conference standings. With their playoff chances both seemingly locked up, this will be a great postseason warmup game for both programs as we head into the final week of the season next week.