PIAA FOOTBALL Manheim Central down, but not out

The Barons will be without their standout running back in tonight's game.
Associated Press
Jeremiha Hunter's value to Manheim Central's offense is obvious. Barons coach Mike Williams worries that Hunter's absence from the PIAA Class AAA football championship game might be felt more on defense.
Hunter rushed for 1,022 yards on 161 carries in helping the defending champion Barons (13-1) return to the state final, but a broken arm will keep him out of tonight's game against Thomas Jefferson (13-2).
Hunter, a junior, was injured during Manheim Central's 16-13 victory over Berwick in the semifinals. He also started at linebacker and his quickness and ability to run down opposing ball carriers will be missed.
Thomas Jefferson doesn't have a 1,000-yard rusher, but senior Brad Dawson has completed 122-of-239 passes for 2,175 yards and 20 touchdowns and has rushed for 314 yards and nine scores.
"He can scramble out for the yards that hurt you," Williams said. "Jeremiha played outstanding linebacker for us and, to be honest, is the one guy we have who can run down a guy like Dawson and keep the damage to a minimum."
Return trip
Williams never thought his team would return to Hershey after edging Pine-Richland 39-38 during a snowstorm last year to win the AAA title.
"We don't have nearly the talent we had last year," he said. "We aren't big and we aren't fast. But we are disciplined and we play with a lot of heart and, in high school football, those two things can still take you a long way."
Nate Mast is Manheim Central's leading rusher with 134 carries for 829 yards. Graham Zug has caught 42 passes for 612 yards and Ryan Huber has 21 receptions for 584 yards.
Thomas Jefferson is coming off a 21-20 victory against Erie Strong Vincent -- the fourth time it has rallied from a second-half deficit during the playoffs.
"The Strong Vincent game was more back and forth," Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak said.
"Against Selinsgrove we were behind 14-0 and we were down 17-7 to Blackhawk. Being able to come back and win those goes back to our losses to Gateway and Blackhawk during the regular season. We learned some things in those defeats."
Nate Nix is Thomas Jefferson's leading rusher with 838 yards on 161 carries, while Josh Pauley has 581 yards on 108 attempts and Dan Giegerich has 580 yards on 132 attempts.
In Class A, Rochester (12-3) and Southern Columbia (14-0) will meet today for the fifth time in seven years in what has become the most-played cross-state rivalry since the PIAA playoffs began.
Rochester defeated the Tigers for titles in 1998, 2000 and 2001. Southern Columbia defeated Rochester in 2002 and is a two-time defending PIAA champion after beating Bishop Carroll 49-20 in last year's final.
Southern Columbia is trying to join Central Bucks West (AAAA) and Berwick (AAA) as the only schools to win three consecutive PIAA titles.