South Western still undecided at quarterback

For a coach still trying to sort out who his quarterback is going to be, South Western's Don Seidenstricker sounded decidedly untroubled by the matter Thursday.

Then again, he has reason to be calm.

Last summer, Seidenstricker went into preseason camp not sure who would call the signals in his wing-T offense. He eventually settled on then-senior Ian Smith (above). All Smith did was throw for a school-record 1,477 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Not too shabby.

So Seidenstricker was nonchalant about the fact the team will once again head into camp with a competition at quarterback.

"Sitting here last year, we said the same thing," Seidenstricker said, smiling. "We didn't know."

For sure, the Mustangs coach has ideas.

Seidenstricker mentioned two candidates in particular: juniors Jesse Good and Zach Gross. Even senior outside linebacker Tyler Frederick could be in contention to take a few snaps.

None of the three threw a pass last season.

With Smith at the helm, the Mustangs passed the ball a bit more than they usually do. That seemed to open up the offense -- in 12 games South Western averaged 30.9 points.

We'll have to wait and see if whoever the new quarterback is can gain the same sort of confidence from Seidenstricker.

Other Division I signal callers

Of the six YAIAA Division I teams, South Western will be the only one breaking in a completely new quarterback. Here's a look at the other five projected QBs in Division I this season.

Brandon Baker, Central York: Baker started every game of his sophomore campaign, gradually earning his coaches' trust as the season went on. He completed 51 percent of his passes for 1,135 yards, 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Josh Luckenbaugh, Dallastown: The senior saw last year's campaign interrupted by an ankle injury that cost his three games. Outside of those absences, Luckenbaugh was mostly solid: He completed 53.6 percent of his passes and threw more touchdowns (eight) than picks (seven).

Tanner Klinefelter, Red Lion: The junior started the second half of last season for the Lions, following the departure of Chad Kelly from the team. In that span, Klinefelter had his ups (a 212-yard, three-touchdown performance against Dover) and downs (a four-interception nightmare against South Western).

Neal Grudi, Spring Grove: Grudi put up plenty of yards in his junior season last fall -- his 1,267 yards were fourth-most in the YAIAA. But the senior needs to improve on his efficiency and decision making. He completed just 42.5 percent of his passes and had five more interceptions (15) than touchdowns (10) last fall.

Kelvin Parker, William Penn: One of the most dynamic players in the area, Parker shined in five games before seeing his season cut short by a shoulder injury. Without their quarterback, the Bearcats went into a nosedive: They lost their final five games.