Bradford Owls
Coach: Jeff Puglio (6th season, 23-27)
2013 overall record: 2-8
2013 region record: 1-5 (tied for sixth)
2013 playoff results: Lost to Clearfield 51-7 in the District 9 Class AAA championship.
Top players lost: Sean Siffrinn, Ryan McCammon
Top returning players: Justin Fishkin, Rob Rice, Kyle Langdon, Alex Colosimo
Assistant coaches: Steve Ackerman, Jerry Pattison, Tom Reid, Davis Redington, Pete Kervin
Outlook: Bradford is looking to improve in a big way after struggling in 2013 after plenty of injuries. The Owls started the season with two wins, a 21-6 win against Kennedy Catholic, which no longer exists, and a forfeit win over Oil City after losing 49-0. Bradford lost its final eight games, including a 51-7 loss to Clearfield in the District 9 championship. The Owls open the season with two tough home games against St. Marys and Oil City. Bradford gets DuBois and Conneaut at home as well with road trips to Meadville, Olean (N.Y.), Franklin and Brookville. Bradford will need a boost in its offense after scoring 80 points in 10 games, while allowing 436 points.
Bradford has several areas to address, including guard and linebacker. Coach Jeff Puglio is looking for more cohesiveness on the offensive line and more consistency by the offense as a whole. On defense, he is looking for more pressure on the quarterback and the defense could use valuable experience gained by the secondary to take a step up this season. The Owls will have to replace Sean Siffrinn and Ryan McCammon after both graduated in the spring. McCammon led Bradford with 93 tackles, while Siffrin filled in several roles on offense and defense. Bradford returns most of its offense, including quarterback Zach Bartlebaugh, who threw for 275 yards and two toucdowns as a junior. Alex Colosimo returns after a breakout sophmomore season in which he ran for 626 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Kyle Langdon was the Owls’ second-leading rusher with 492 yards and three touchdowns, and sophomore Tim Shuster had a big freshman season running the ball with 255 yards and two touchdowns on 79 carries. Langdon also had 12 catches for 19 yards to lead the Owls, while Siffrinn was second with five catches for 119 yards. His lost production could be filled in by tight end John Pantuso, who had four catches for 85 yards and one touchdown. A big boost could also be the return of senior Justin Fishkin, who missed most of 2013 with injury. Rob Rice, Kyle Whitmer and Steve McNinch are all back on the offesive and defensive lines as well. Whitmer was second with 49 tackles for the Owls, and Colosimo had 48. Bartlebaugh was a big part of Bradford’s secondary and returns to lead the way after pulling down five interceptions in 2013. The Owls were young last fall and with only six seniors and the experience they gained in rough situations could turn out to be a blessing this season.
Schedule
August
29 St. Marys 7
September
5 Oil City* 7
12 at Meadville* 7
20 at Olean (N.Y.) 7:30
26 Central Tech 7
October
3 at Franklin* 7
10 DuBois* 7
17 Conneaut* 7
24 at Brookville 7
31 Bye
Monday: Cambridge Springs
–Tom Reisenweber