It's week two of high school football in Mercer County, and this Friday I will be at Tiger Stadium in Sharon for the rivalry matchup between the visiting Hickory Hornets and the homestanding Sharon Tigers.
Both teams are coming off humiliating losses in week one. Sharon is coming off a 42-12 loss at the hands of Wilmington at home to give Wilmington head coach Brandon Phillian his first win; and Hickory is coming off a 17-6 loss to Sharpsville to give Sharpsville coach Paul Piccirilli his 200th win. Both teams will seek to take their frustrations out on each other this Friday night in Sharon.
Jim Wildman, the head coach at Sharon, said after the loss that last year they started with two losses and ended up one win short of a trip to Hershey. Tigers fans should not be pushing the panic button if Sharon loses again on Friday night, because it could be a harbinger of things to come for the remainder of the season.
Hickory head coach Bill Brest should take a hard look at himself in the mirror following the first loss for the Hornets in a home opener since 2002. I suggest he read Joe Paterno's autobiography Paterno: By the Book and learn how the legend of JoePa emerged at Penn State in the late 1960s. What I suggest that he do on Friday night is put in a different sophomore player for each play on both offense and defense. JoePa did the same at Miami in 1967 and Penn State pulled an upset victory over the Hurricanes. After they nearly upset UCLA the following game, that talented class of sophomores would not lose another game for the remainder of their playing careers; thus the emergence of the legend of one Joseph Vincent Paterno. If coach Brest is reading this entry, he should take my suggestion to heart and do what JoePa did back in 1967. It could help restore the pride of Hickory football and lead to state championships, something that the city of Hermitage has not celebrated since 1989 when they defeated Montoursville.
The game will be broadcast on News/Talk 790 WPIC on Friday night. I will be on hand at Tiger Stadium armed with my iPad, game program and rosters so that I can jot down my game notes.
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