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There’s a catch phrase in the investment world — past performance is no guarantee of future results.
That’s what Dallas (11-1) and Valley View (12-0) need to keep in mind when they meet for the District 2 Class 4A football championship at 7 p.m. Saturday at Valley View. The game was moved from Friday due to the nasty weather, which made a mess of the first week of playoffs and postponed last Friday’s games.
When the teams met on Oct. 12, Valley View posted its second shutout of the season with a 33-0 victory on the Mountaineers’ home turf.
Now for the future results caveat.
Valley View led just 6-0 at halftime and could have been trailing except for a couple issues Dallas had on the ensuing drive. The Mountaineers moved from their 20-yard line to the Valley View 3. But an offside penalty on first-and-goal seemed to derail Dallas’ momentum. Then a bad snap on a 25-yard field goal attempt resulted in a kick into the line.
“I don’t think the score of the first game is indicative of how the game went,” Valley View coach George Howanitz said. “It was 6-0 at halftime and we went on a little mini-run to start the second half. I think at that point Dallas kind of got out of their element a little bit and tried to make plays.
“I don’t think the score of the first game tells how close the game really was. It was a hard-fought battle. They’re pretty physical and we expect the same thing.”
The Cougars scored two touchdowns 21 seconds apart in the third quarter to take a 19-0 lead. The first TD came on a fourth-and-6 pass from the Dallas 16. And that came after Valley View cut a big chunk off a third-and-29 situation with another throw. Then on Dallas’ first play after the kickoff, Valley View’s Zach Kovalchik returned an interception 24 yards for a touchdown.
And, yes, Dallas did get out of its element afterward. Running back Lenny Kelley had a respectable 59 yards on nine carries in the first half. He carried just three times the rest of the game.
The Mountaineers did nothing offensively in the final two quarters, finishing with minus-4 yards in the second half.
“The positive (of the loss) was it wasn’t that long ago,” Dallas coach Rich Mannello said. “These teams, and you see it, in five, six, seven weeks they can change completely. But because we just played them, we’re at a point where everybody is doing what they do. The personnel is what it is. It’s equal to both teams that we didn’t play that long ago.
“And the kids, as they always do, when they study film can we learn and move on. That question will be answered.”
Dallas will be out of its element at kickoff Saturday.
Quarterback Michael Starbuck, the Wyoming Valley Conference’s highest-rated passer, will miss his second consecutive game with a knee injury. Junior Mike Lukasavage, third on the depth chart with backup RJ Wren also injured, ran the offense in the 3-0 overtime victory against Berwick in the semifinals.
Lukasavage’s statline wasn’t impressive — 4-of-18 for 90 yards — but he had at least four drops, had a TD pass negated by a holding penalty and had to battle a ferocious wind that played havoc with both teams’ passing games. Kelley pounded out 65 yards on 32 carries, and took several direct snaps that didn’t faze the Berwick defense.
Defensively, Dallas must do a better job against Valley View running back Mason Kordish. Listed at 165 pounds and a suspicious 5-foot-10, Kordish has incredible balance and if the first hit isn’t solid it won’t stop him. And getting that first hit is difficult because of his incredible vision. He rushed 23 times for 201 yards in the first meeting.
Quarterback Janaasah Boone was also a pain for Dallas the first time around. He hit on 9-of-11 passes for 125 yards and gained 64 more with his legs.