Southmoreland to face Elizabeth Forward with elusive conference title on the line

By: Paul Schofield
Wednesday, October 16, 2024 | 7:43 PM

Previous Next

Since Southmoreland was formed by a merger of Scottdale and East Huntingdon in 1964, you could count on one hand the number of times the football team played in a game to decide the conference title.

But since Tim Bukowski became coach in 2022, Southmoreland has played in more meaningful games than ever before, and the third-year coach hopes that trend continues. He was an assistant at Southmoreland for four seasons before becoming the head coach.

Friday’s game at Elizabeth Forward is the biggest battle since the 1985 season, when the Scotties faced Greensburg Salem and Derry with the Keystone Conference crown on the line. Southmoreland’s only conference title came in 1979 under John Bacha.

The Scotties and Warriors did tangle last year for second place in the Interstate Conference behind Belle Vernon. The Warriors won 31-24.

Both teams are 3-0 in the conference and are on the verge of qualifying for the WPIAL playoffs. They also feature high-scoring offenses. The fifth-ranked Scotties average 38.3 points and the Warriors 39.7.

“I’m looking forward to this game and many more,” Bukowski said. “For the past seven years, we’ve steadily improved and we’ve been leading up to this game.

“The first step was to qualify for the playoffs, and we’ve done that four of the past five seasons. Now we’d like to change the banner in the gymnasium.”

Southmoreland is led by dynamic freshman quarterback Anthony Smith, who continues to put up big numbers.

He has completed 98 of 173 passes for 1,775 yards and a school-record 21 touchdowns. He completed 16 of 28 passes for 284 yards and three touchdowns last week in a 28-7 win over Mt. Pleasant.

His main targets are Elliott Premus (43 catches for 801 yards and eight touchdowns), Jackson Mickens (23 for 349 yards and six touchdowns) and Makel Darnell (17 catches for 311 yards and four scores).

Cam Phillips (609 yards and six touchdowns) and Evan Shawley (377 yards and six touchdowns) lead the ground attack.

Elizabeth Forward also has a dynamic quarterback in senior Ryan Messina, who has completed 92 of 131 passes for 1,513 yards and 20 touchdowns.

His main target is also the team’s leading rusher, Charlie Nigut. The senior has rushed for 838 yards and has 22 catches for 398 yards. He has scored 19 touchdowns.

Messina has scored nine touchdowns and rushed for 359 yards.

A.J. Grese has 21 catches for 302 yards and two touchdowns, and Connor Stokes has 15 catches for 396 yards and six scores.

“Offensively, we have a lot of weapons, and so does Elizabeth Forward,” Bukowski said. “We can score quickly. We scored 32 points in the fourth quarter against Yough, and we scored 21 points in a in a five-minute span against Derry.

“But if you compare scores, they haven’t been threatened. They’ve taken care of business. I felt we played our best defensive game against Mt. Pleasant, and if we want to win this game, we must make stops.”

Bukowski said he will rely on Shawley, Premus and the defensive line to control Messina and Nigut.

Messina can beat opponents with his arm and legs. Nigut is a diminutive player and is explosive.

Last year, Elizabeth Forward rallied in the fourth quarter to pull out the win, and Nigut played a big role with a kickoff return.

“We played well in that game,” Bukowski said. “We just have to play error free and limit foolish penalties.”

Elizabeth Forward coach John DeMarco coached at Southmoreland with Bukowski in 2022. He’s very familiar with the Southmoreland juniors and seniors.

“Tim and I are very good friends,” said DeMarco, a 1980 Elizabeth Forward graduate. “We also coached at Clairton under Tom Nola. It’s kind of bittersweet when we play.

“Tim is doing an excellent job. They have turned it around, and no disrespect to the other teams in the conference, this game is for the conference title.”

Elizabeth Forward started the season with close losses to West Mifflin (one point) and Highlands (overtime) then fell to Class 5A South Fayette.

But once the Warriors got into conference play, they’ve dominated.

“We probably should have won the first two games,” DeMarco said. “I liked how we played in the first half against South Fayette. We handled ourselves in that game, but there is a difference between the depth in Class 5A and 3A.

“This game is going to come down to turnovers and making plays. Ryan makes things go. He rarely makes a poor throw. He’s also developed a connection with Anthony (St. Angelo). We are firing on all cylinders.”

St. Angelo, a junior, has missed the past four games. He has 12 catches for 104 yards and a touchdown.

While DeMarco, who coached quarterbacks at Southmoreland, never got to work with Smith, he said the freshman has the tools.

“He can make all the throws,” DeMarco said. “He’s not playing like a freshman. He has some great receivers.

“Their defense has some playmakers. The middle linebacker (Shawley) plays old-school football, and Premus will line up as a defensive end and then safety. I am looking forward to a battle. It should be fun.”

The series

EF leads, 11-4

1992: Southmoreland, 23-0

1993: Southmoreland, 24-13

1994: Elizabeth Forward, 36-17

1995: Southmoreland, 13-10

1996: Elizabeth Forward, 28-16

1997: Elizabeth Forward, 35-0

1998: Elizabeth Forward, 28-0

1999: Elizabeth Forward, 47-14

2011: Southmoreland 45-44

2016: Elizabeth Forward 39-0

2017: Elizabeth Forward, 47-3

2020: Elizabeth Forward, 35-19

2021: Elizabeth Forward, 56-13

2022: Elizabeth Forward, 42-6

2023: Elizabeth Forward, 31-24

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Elizabeth Forward, Southmoreland