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Week 3 football power rankings


What a week it was for Hanover-Adams area football teams. Canners Country celebrated a second win and Fairfield looked impressive again. Bermudian shut out a strong, non-league team and one could argue that Spring Grove is the best team in Division I.

Fun fact: Hanover-Adams area teams have gone a combined 3-7, 7-3 and 5-5 in three weeks, so 15-15 as a group through week three.

The top of our weekly power rankings stayed mostly the same but there was some movement in the middle of the pack.

The best

1. Bermudian Springs (Last week: 1) The Eagles shut out Shippensburg, 21-0, and ran for 307 yards. Three turnovers were a concern for head coach Jon Defoe, but holding Ship to 123 total yards was an impressive statement by the Eagles’ defense. Colton Dull and Briton Shelton have combined for 10 touchdowns and have each eclipsed 100 rushing yards in every game. Next up is a trip to Hanover.

2. Gettysburg (LW:2) Coming into the season it seemed that the Warriors’ biggest question mark was at the quarterback position. But Jake Myers has excelled, tossing six touchdowns, including three on Friday, and one interception.

The Warriors blew out Waynesboro and scored 40-plus points for the third-consecutive week. The offense is for real and the defense is solid. Next up for Gettysburg is an away game against injury-riddled Dover.

3. Spring Grove (LW: 3) There’s a lot of confidence in Spring Grove and for good reason. Even without starting quarterback Nick Erickson, the Rockets cruised to a 56-20 win over York Suburban. Shay Feulmer scored five times and Brandon Tasker snagged two interceptions. Coach Russ Stoner believes the division race comes through Papermakers Stadium and with a win against Dallastown this week, he could be right.

The rest

4. Fairfield (LW: 6) Fairfield jumps two more spots this week after a 49-20 win over Carson Long Institute. The Green Knights scored 30 points in the first quarter and Mason Flickinger has the offense rolling. They get the edge over Biglerville because they’ve been more convincing in their wins than the Canners, but the two teams meet this week in Fairfield. A win could be go a long way for either team.

5. Biglerville (LW: 8) How about those Canners? A two-game win streak after a ten-game losing streak? While the stats in the box scores haven’t looked favorable for Biglerville, the final scores have and Coach Ramos has the team believing they can play with any team. A win over Fairfield would thrust the Canners into second place in the division.

In his last two games, quarterback Ben Hurda has thrown 14-19 for 161 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

6. Delone Catholic (LW: 4) After jumping three spots last week, the Squires fall back two spots this week. A loss to a very good St. Paul’s team from Maryland is no embarrassment. They outgained St. Paul’s and their offense has proven themselves, but the Squires will need to bounce back against York Catholic this week to avoid a 1-3 start.

Brian Shermeyer has been a pleasant surprise after replacing injured-quarterback Jake Wiles. Shermeyer has thrown for 476 yards and five touchdowns in three games.

7. Hanover (LW: 7) Along with Littlestown and Delone, the Nighthawks also sit at 1-2 after a blowout loss at Eastern York. Delone has looked stronger overall, but Littlestown is in free-fall mode, so Hanover slides in right between the two.

What the Nighthawks have going for them is a clear identity. They throw the ball to Colton Ehrhart or Dylan Krieger and hand it off to Jordan Laughman. Hanover fans are hoping the loss was a minor hiccup after their week two win, but perennial division-powerhouse Bermudian Springs comes to town this week.

8. Littlestown (LW: 5) Two straight blowout losses for the Bolts? Coach Lippy has a situation on his hands down in Littlestown. The Bolts knew they had a young team coming into the season, but turnovers, injuries and shaky quarterback play have added to their troubles. The Bolts are in the midst of playing four out of five games on the road and visit York County Tech this week. Littlestown could use a win before the season starts to slip away.

9. South Western (LW: 10) Sophomore Andrew Hartlaub only scored two touchdowns this week as opposed to three in each of his first two games (we joke). The sophomore has looked great so far this season and the Mustangs have had a lead in each of their games but still sit at 0-3. The schedule has been tough and now the Mustangs have to make sure they don’t give up as divisional play starts. This week’s matchup is against New Oxford (0-3) so someone is going to get their first win.

10. New Oxford (LW: 9) Speaking of New Oxford…the losses are starting to pile up there as well. The Colonials’ loss to Biglerville was one of the big surprises of the week around the league. The bad news: New Oxford has scored 28 points in three games, has been outscored 49-9 in the first half, has given up 734 rushing yards and has yet to throw for a touchdown yet this season. The good news: South Western (0-3) is next on the schedule.