Mooney's outlook much brighter

Struthers, with 10 starters back on offense, could be the MAC's surprise team.
& lt;a href=mailto:scalzo@vindy.com & gt;By JOE SCALZO & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- If you were sitting in the stands at YSU's Stambaugh Stadium on Tuesday, you couldn't help but notice some awfully familiar things about this year's Mooney High football team.
The defense looked good.
A kid named Stoops was running the show.
The Cardinals ran some plays from the shotgun.
(OK, so not everything was familiar.)
Still, for the first time since 1999, Mooney fans are talking openly about the playoffs. And that's certainly familiar.
"That's obviously a team goal," fourth-year coach P.J. Fecko said of making the playoffs. "But it's too early to tell. Our main focus is on game one. If we play well this season, the playoffs will kind of take care of themselves."
High hopes
The Cardinals, who haven't had a winning season since they made it to the Division IV state semifinals under Don Bucci in 1999, have 66 players out this season -- the highest in years.
That's good for any program, but especially good for a Div. IV team.
"That certainly gives us some luxuries that other schools our size don't have," Fecko, who is 11-19 over three seasons, said. "We only have three two-way players.
"That shows you that we have a lot of unselfish players. A lot of guys might want to go both ways, but they're doing what's beneficial for the team."
Mooney, which "won" Tuesday's scrimmage against Struthers, returns senior Ron Stoops at quarterback on a team that has back seven starters on both offense and defense from last year's 5-5 team.
Senior center Dan Young will lead an improved offensive line, while linebackers Anthony Childs and Bob McCabe will pair with free safety Frank Cassese to lead the defense.
"The seniors last year did a great job picking us up and these guys have just kept the ball rolling," Fecko said. "Our goal is to just keep improving."
Looking to improve
Struthers, meanwhile, returns 10 starters on offense and six on defense from last year's 4-6 team. The Wildcats, led by senior tight end Jed Hill (a Penn State recruit) and senior lineman Justin Decker, could be the surprise team in the Metro Athletic Conference.
"We really believe we have a chance to be a good football team," coach Gary Zetts said. "The biggest thing is that last year we entered this scrimmage with a few injuries, and this year we're healthy."
After struggling against Mooney last year, Zetts said he was happier with Tuesday's scrimmage.
"The talk from other coaches is that Mooney is back where they used to be," Zetts said. "If that's the case, I know we'll be OK."
Still, the Wildcats have just 39 varsity players, which is one of the downsides of being the league's smallest team.
"Obviously that hurts depth-wise," Zetts said. "But we think our starters are strong. We hope to have a very good year."
& lt;a href=mailto:scalzok@vindy.com & gt;scalzo@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;