York-Adams high school football Week 7 preview: Dallastown, South Western meet with first place on the line
No matter what happens anywhere else in York County on Friday night, the winner of Friday's Dallastown at South Western game will leave the Corral in sole possession of first place in YAIAA Division I.
Despite being shut out by Northeastern for the first three quarters last week, the Wildcats (6-0, 3-0) remain undefeated after scoring 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.
The Mustangs (5-1, 3-0), meanwhile, enter the game undefeated in division play after senior running back Robby Harbison returned from an ankle injury last week to help his team beat both Central York and Red Lion in a span of five days. South Western's only loss of the season came in Week 2 to District 3 powerhouse Cedar Cliff.
The winner of this game earns the opportunity to control its own path to the Division I crown. There will also be plenty on the line in terms of District 3 power rankings. The Wildcats and Mustangs enter the game ranked No. 7 and 8, respectively, in the Class AAAA rankings.
This game gets a prime-time start at 7:30 p.m. Click here to watch the game live at GameTimePA.com.
Friday's games
Bermudian Springs (2-4, 2-1 YAIAA Division III) at Delone Catholic (2-4, 1-2)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Bermudian Springs, 38-0
The skinny: The Eagles look to continue their winning streak, while the Squires look to get back on track. Click here to watch the game live through our partnership with DCBN.
Eagles must: Continue to lean heavily on their run game. Running backs Ashton West and Devon Hodgen ran for 111 and 92 yards, respectively, last week.
Squires must: Start faster. The Squires quickly fell behind 14-0 in last week's game at Biglerville, and that kind of slow start has been an issue in almost every game so far. Delone is 0-4 when trailing at halftime.
Hanover (6-0, 3-0 YAIAA Division III) at Littlestown (1-5, 1-2)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Littlestown, 49-20
The skinny: The undefeated Nighthawks hit the road for the first time this month.
Nighthawks must: Get the ball to Resean Williams. The junior has become a major big-play threat in recent weeks: He caught three passes for 156 yards and three touchdowns last week. He also added a 52-yard touchdown run in that win against Fairfield.
Thunderbolts must: Limit turnovers. The Bolts fumbled the ball away three times last week against York Catholic, and one of those turnovers swung the game when the Thunderbolts went from leading to trailing in the span of 93 seconds.
Kennard-Dale (1-5, 0-3 YAIAA Division II) at Gettysburg (1-5, 0-3)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Gettysburg, 85-12
The skinny: Both teams are looking to get out of the Division II cellar.
Rams must: Defend the running game better. Kennard-Dale didn't allow a completed pass in last week's loss to Dover, but the Rams were torched on the ground, allowing the Eagles to rush for 359 yards.
Warriors must: Get the passing game going. The Warriors completed just one pass for 19 yards in last week's loss to Eastern York.
Red Lion (3-3, 1-2 YAIAA Division I) at New Oxford (1-5, 0-3)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Red Lion, 21-7
The skinny: The Lions look to get back on track after two tough division losses.
Lions must: Limit turnovers. Last week Red Lion gave up the ball four times, a week after losing a game when it allowed a defensive and special teams touchdown.
Colonials must: Hold onto the ball. New Oxford fumbled 10 times in brutal weather conditions two weeks ago, then lost three fumbles in last week's lost to Central York.
Biglerville (4-2, 3-0 YAIAA Division III) at York Catholic (2-4, 2-1)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: York Catholic, 41-10
The skinny: The Canners will go on the road looking for win No. 5 in a row.
Canners must: Slow down Jakkar Kinard. The tailback has been torching opponents recently and is tied for second in the league with 568 rushing yards.
Irish must: Run the ball. Running for 329 yards in a win against Littlestown last week opened up the offense.
Reading (3-3, 1-2 Berks Section I) at Dover (4-2, 3-0 YAIAA Division II)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Reading, 27-20
The skinny: The Eagles take a week off from division play to host Reading.
Red Knights must: Get one on the road. Reading is 0-2 away from home this season.
Eagles must: Don't get caught looking ahead. The next two games are against rivals York Suburban and Dover, but Reading is too good a team to overlook.
Video: GameTimePA TV Week 7 preview show
Red Land (2-4, 0-3 Mid Penn Keystone) at Big Spring (3-3, 1-2 Mid Penn Colonial)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Red Land, 41-0
The skinny: Big Spring looks to avenge last season's embarrassing blowout loss.
Patriots must: Score. In the first three weeks of the season, Red Land averaged more than 35 points per game. But in the three weeks since then, the Patriots scored a combined 21 points.
Bulldogs must: Show the home fans a win. All three of Big Spring's losses have come at home.
Shippensburg (4-2, 1-1 Mid Penn Colonial) at Northern York (5-1, 3-0)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Northern York, 28-7
The skinny: Northern looks to keep its winning streak alive as it hosts the Greyhounds.
Greyhounds must: Score early. Shippensburg hasn't scored in the first quarter since Week 2.
Polar Bears must: Not let up. The defense hasn't given up more than 19 points in a game all season, and Northern has held opponents to a combined 17 points in the last three games.
Spring Grove (3-3, 2-1 YAIAA Division I) at Central York (2-4, 1-2)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Central York, 38-21
The skinny: Coming off a five-touchdown performance, Jake Messersmith leads the Rockets into Central.
Rockets must: Air it out. Messersmith had the best game of his career last week and heads into Central, which has the fourth-worst defense in the league.
Panthers must: Hold onto the ball. Spring Grove is top three in the league in turnover ratio and turnovers forced.
Susquehannock (2-4, 1-1 YAIAA Division II) at Eastern York (3-3, 1-2)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: Eastern York, 48-0
The skinny: Eastern looks to get back into the division race when it hosts Susquehannock.
Warriors must: Find a way to move the ball. Eastern has given up the fewest yards in the league.
Golden Knights must: Create opportunities. No team in the league has turned defense into offense like Eastern and its league-best plus-9 turnover ratio.
William Penn (0-5, 0-2 YAIAA Division I) at Northeastern (5-1, 2-1)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: William Penn, 20-17
The skinny: Can Northeastern celebrate its homecoming with a win over the Bearcats?
Bearcats must: Build on last week. It wasn't a win, but there were more positives last week than there were in any other game this season for William Penn.
Bobcats must: Finish. Northeastern let Dallastown storm back last week with 15 unanswered points.
York Suburban (4-2, 2-0 YAIAA Division II) at West York (2-4, 2-0)
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Last year: West York, 58-7
The skinny: The red-hot Trojans are on a mission to avenge last year's lopsided loss to their division rival.
Trojans must: Seize the opportunity. With a statement win Friday, the Trojans would be tied for first place heading into next week's showdown with Dover.
Bulldogs must: Keep the ball out of the Trojans' hands. York Suburban's offense has put up at least 29 points in four straight games.
Saturday's game
Fairfield (1-5, 0-3 YAIAA Division III) at York County Tech (1-5, 0-3)
Kickoff: 10 a.m.
Last year: Fairfield, 34-8
The skinny: The only two Division III teams without a division win square off in an early morning battle.
Green Knights must: Air it out. While the ground attack has been nonexistent, the aerial attack has improved from week to week.
Spartans must: Keep the ball off the ground. The Spartans fumbled the ball six times in last week's loss to Bermudian Springs.