Two dominant signal callers in Caden Bellis and Tate Catanese are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Tioga Tigers will be staying on the road on Friday to face off against the Clymer Central/Sherman/Panama Wolfpack at 3:00 p.m. on November 24th. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
It can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Tioga had no problem doing just that on Friday. They took their matchup on the road with ease, bagging a 56-12 win over the Blue Devils. Given Tioga's advantage in MaxPreps' New York football rankings (they are ranked 20th, while Dolgeville is ranked 176th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Tioga's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Drew Macumber, who rushed for 47 yards and two touchdowns. Macumber is on a roll when it comes to rushing touchdowns, as he's now punched in two or more in the last four games he's played. Ousmane Duncanson also deserves a shout-out for his two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Clymer Central/Sherman/Panama put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Canisteo-Greenwood 50-16 on the road. With Clymer Central/Sherman/Panama ahead 43-0 at the half, the match was all but over already.
Catanese was his usual excellent self, throwing for 164 yards and three touchdowns while completing 75% of his passes, and also punching in a touchdown on the ground. The team also got some help courtesy of Bryce Posker, who rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown on only eight carries.
Tioga has yet to lose a game on the road this season, leaving them with a 12-0 record. As for Clymer Central/Sherman/Panama, their win bumped their record up to 11-0.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's match: Tioga has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 283.1 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Clymer Central/Sherman/Panama struggles in that department as they've been averaging 192.5 per game. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Tioga and Clymer Central/Sherman/Panama were neck-and-neck when the teams last played back in November of 2019, but Tioga came up empty-handed after a 28-27 defeat. Can Tioga avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
