On Friday, Nov. 17, the State High football team made the trip up to Erie to take on Erie McDowell in the first round of the PIAA State Playoffs. After getting down early, the Little Lions could never close the gap and lost 47-20.
State High had won eight of its nine most recent matchups with McDowell, but the Trojans prevailed in this season’s matchup behind 536 yards of total offense. McDowell’s senior running back Dominic Berarducci ran through the State High front seven all night while racking up 229 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
Coming out of halftime, State College was down just 10 points, and with a stop and a score, could cut the McDowell lead to three. Berarducci quickly put those hopes to bed, breaking off a 58-yard run that brought McDowell inside the State High five-yard line.
State High Head Coach Matt Lintal mentioned the momentum swing that comes from a big play at the beginning of a half.
“That was kind of a killer, we were hoping to come out, kick it deep, get a stop, get a touchdown, and make it a three point game,” Lintal said, “The momentum certainly shifted when they drove down the field on that long run and were able to put the ball in the end zone.”
Junior quarterback Eddie Corkery put together a quality effort on the offensive side of the ball with 230 yards and three touchdowns, two of which went to junior Cooper Brushwood. State College was forced to rely on the passing game with star running back D’Antae Sheffey sidelined with an injury.
Brushwood offered congratulations to McDowell after the game, as well as saying, “I hate looking at this [score], I mean, none of these guys deserve it, they worked their tails off. It just wasn’t the outcome we were looking for.”
This loss marked the end of an up and down 2023 season for the State High football program. It finished with a 7-4 record, but was 6-2 in the highly competitive Mid-Penn Conference. The Little Lions unquestionably had a good football season, but after tasting the success of two straight state semifinal appearances, the community was left wanting more.
The Little Lions lost senior quarterback Owen Yerka in the preseason to a broken wrist, and were forced to break in a new body at the most important position, junior Eddie Corkery. Corkery had an exceptional season, earning Second-Team All-Mid-Penn honors, but opposing defenses did not respect him enough to stop keying in on Sheffey.
In 2022, Sheffey came out of nowhere and found himself racking up 123 rushing yards per game and 25 total touchdowns, outpacing quarterback Finn Furmanek by 17. After his campaign in which he earned Freshman All-American honors, the secret was out to State High’s Mid-Penn opponents. Teams built their game plans around him, and successfully dropped him down to 52 rushing yards per game.
The State High defense was regarded as one of the best in the Mid-Penn this season, holding its opponents to 20 points or fewer in all but two games. While it was exposed in the final game of the year, Lintal couldn’t have asked for much more from that side of the ball.
Special teams was never a concern for the Little Lions in 2023, with senior John Zipf holding down both the punter and kicker positions. Zipf missed just one field goal all season, a fifty-yard attempt against Downingtown East, and was near-perfect on extra points.
Lintal expressed pride in his players and didn’t harp on the wins and losses following the season-ending loss.
“These kids all walked off understanding that they were part of something bigger than themselves, and understanding that it’s not all about football when you put these pads on and become a part of this program,” he said.
While the wins and losses didn’t meet the goals of the program, the Little Lions still had a successful season and will return many of its impact players. It is safe to say that State High football is on an upward trajectory for 2024.
