By Ray Fisher
Published: Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2013, 9:00 p.m.
Thomas Jefferson (7-0, 6-0) has one more game on its Big Nine Conference slate before it's annual showdown with arch-rival West Mifflin.
The Jaguars, who posted their third shutout of the season via a 35-0 win over Belle Vernon last week, host Uniontown (2-5, 2-4) at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
The Jaguars, ranked No. 2 in Class AAA in the Trib Total Media football rankings, are seeking their 50th consecutive win at TJ Stadium, a streak dating back to 2004.
Uniontown rallied from a 17-7 halftime deficit to edge Trinity last week, 29-24.
The Red Raiders were sparked by senior quarterback Xavier Ellis, who hit on 8 of 13 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns; and senior running back Doug Lewis, who rushed for 166 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries.
Ellis has hit on 25 of 53 passes for 558 yards and six touchdowns this season. He has not thrown an interception.
His favorite target is junior wideout Lyric Ellis, with 12 receptions for 292 yards and four touchdowns.
Lewis has rushed for 803 yards and scored five times on 93 carries.
“They are athletic at the skill positions with excellent speed. They are very capable of breaking a big play at any moment,” Bill Cherpak, TJ's head coach, said. “They also have some size on their line. We need to play much better on defense than we did last week to avoid the big play.”
Five different players — Austin Kemp (3-yard run), Dalton Dietrich (20-yard pass), Russell Siess (49-yard pass), Chase Winovich (46-yard run) and Frankie Langan (9-yard pass) — scored touchdowns for the Jaguars against Belle Vernon.
Five players also combined for 220 yards on 25 rushing attempts — Kemp (5-35); sophomore RBs Ricky Daley (7-53), Braden Pahanish (4-45) and Ryan Scanlon (8-41); and Winovich (1-46).
Kemp, a 6-foot-1, 210-pound junior running back/linebacker, leads the Jaguars in rushing with 816 yards on 91 carries (8.97 ypc average) and 12 touchdowns.
Dietrich, a senior wideout/defensive back, had six receptions for 107 yards last week, boosting his season totals to 29 catches for 580 yards, and seven scores.
Senior QB Christian Breisinger connected on 7 of 10 tosses for 116 yards and two touchdowns for the Jaguars.
The TJ defensive unit was led by Winovich from his linebacking post. Winovich, the team's leading tackler on the year, was credited with seven tackles including one sack versus the Leopards.
Other defensive catalysts included senior linebacker Luke Deanovich, Kemp, senior lineman Mat Nagy, sophomore linebacker Dillon Finley and Dietrich, who had an interception.
Thomas Jefferson is averaging a Class AAA-best 43.4 ppg, while allowing 7.1 ppg. The Red Raiders are giving up 41.4 ppg.
“Their defense has given up a lot of points, but they do have some pretty good players,” Cherpak said.
TJ defeated Uniontown last season, 49-8.
High school football notebook: Home winning streak nears 50 games at TJ
By Chris Harlan
Published: Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2013, 8:00 p.m.
The stadium doesn't have the history of Woodland Hills' Wolvarena or The Pit in Aliquippa, but recent visitors to Thomas Jefferson's field haven't fared well.
A win Friday would be the 50th consecutive home victory by the Jaguars. TJ hasn't lost there since 2004.
“Our kids take a lot of pride in defending their own turf,” coach Bill Cherpak said. “The home crowd helps as well.”
Thomas Jefferson's most recent home loss was a 34-21 nonconference game against Gateway on Oct. 8, 2004. During the streak, the Jaguars' average winning score has been 40-7, which included 16 shutouts. This season, they've beaten Elizabeth Forward (42-0), Trinity (44-7) and Belle Vernon (35-0) at home. Uniontown (2-5, 2-4) visits Friday.
Among the memorable wins was a 3-0 victory over Chartiers Valley on Oct. 19, 2007. The Jaguars went undefeated that season and won the state title.
Last year's 28-14 victory over West Mifflin also stands out, Cherpak said, when both teams entered Week 9 unbeaten.
“That was exciting because of the huge crowd,” he said.
Two lengthy home winning streaks were snapped this season. North Allegheny had a 24-game streak at Newman Stadium end Week 6 with a 35-32 loss to Gateway. Clairton had won 38 straight at Neil C. Brown Stadium before its Week 4 loss to Monessen, 42-24.
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/hssports/football/4870327-74/class-season-football#ixzz2iGbCDCeU
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook
Thomas Jefferson 49, Uniontown 6
Ricky Daley rushed for 104 yards and five touchdowns on 20 carries, as the top-ranked Jaguars (8-0, 7-0) dominated the visiting Red Raiders (2-6, 2-5) in the Big Nine Conference. Daley scored on runs of 1, 1, 1, 6, and 2 yards, as the Jaguars built a 49-0 halftime lead. Braden Pahanish scored on runs of 7 and 22 yards for the Jaguars' other two touchdowns. Uniontown had only 102 yards in total offense.