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Game of the Week: Mifflin Co. at Shippensburg


If you're unsure of what to expect on Friday night when Shippensburg hosts Mifflin County in a Mid Penn Colonial Division football game, you're not alone.

"We're in the same boat; we just don't know," Greyhound coach Eric Foust said. "We think we'll be OK, but they're big. They look like they're athletic, so I really don't know. This is a tricky one. I think if we play good football, we'll win, but this is about as stressful as the season is going to get for us."

Here's the thing about Mifflin County: The Huskies were winless for a long time - but they were winless in the harsh Mid Penn Commonwealth Division.

So far, the Huskies (2-3, 2-0 MPC) are undefeated in the Colonial Division. But they've also beaten a pair of teams with a combined one win. It's simply hard to judge exactly where they'll stack up against the undefeated Greyhounds (5-0, 2-0 MPC).

"Until now, we didn't know how to act because we hadn't played anybody before," Mifflin County coach Brent Hartman said. "We got through JB, then we weren't really sure about Greencastle, and we got through that one. We just take one week at a time. Last week gave us a better view of where we're at, but this week is our test to see where we stand in this whole thing."

Mifflin County is going to be no slouch. The Huskies boast a strong passing game, led by senior quarterback Drew Williams. Although he has just a 48.8 completion percentage, he has tossed 636 yards and four touchdowns so far this season. Malik Sechler leads the team with 217 receiving yards on 10 catches.

Averaging just over 100 yards on the ground, the Huskies' top running back is Cole Baker, who has 172 yards on 18 carries.

But the biggest thing the Greyhounds will be up against is Mifflin County's size up front.

"They're huge, really big in the middle, so we gotta be careful running the ball," Foust said. "The unknown is crazy here. The good news is, this is the first time we've been healthy since Chambersburg really. Phil (Torres) is healthy again, and Adam Houser gets better every week. As he progresses, we'll progress."

Torres and Houser are the team's leading RBs, but the Greyhounds will rely on quarterback Carter Van Scyoc to have a strong game throwing the ball. Ship also will look to control the turnovers; the Hounds have done that successfully for much of the season but had three miscues in Week 4 against Waynesboro.

"Carter has to be on," Foust said. "Defensively, (Brandon) Wheeler is our most consistent defensive back. With Cody (Gustafson) and Adam, we're equipped to cover the pass. We're going to throw at them, too, so this could be a very long game."

But at the end of the night, both teams will know a lot more about themselves.

Huskies-Greyhounds at a glance

Game data: Mifflin County Huskies at Shippensburg Greyhounds ... Friday, 7 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadium ... Mid Penn Colonial Division game.

Media: Follow @liziarbogast and @LindseySquints on Twitter, and GameTimePA.com on Snapchat for updates from the game ...  Webcast will be available on www.sesportsnet.com ... Radio broadcast on WIOO (1480 AM, 93.9 FM). 

Teams: Mifflin County (2-3, 2-0 MPC) is coming off a pair of victories to start its Colonial Division play ... The Greyhounds (5-0, 2-0 MPC) remain undefeated after a 66-0 thrashing of James Buchanan.

P.O. pick: Shippensburg by 10.