Cross-river rivals set for showdown
By JOSE NEGRON
jnegron@yourmvi.com
A pair of area teams will clash tonight to begin the new WPIAL football season.
Class 3A Elizabeth Forward will travel across the river to face off against Class 4A Ringgold 7 p.m. at Joe Montana Stadium.
“The guys are really excited and are chomping at the bit to get out there and play on Friday nights under the lights,” said Elizabeth Forward head coach Mike Collodi, who helped lead the Warriors to their first appearance in the WPIAL championship game last season.
“We’re focused on Ringgold, which is a much improved team. They’re a bigger team, they’re in a bigger classification and they’re good. We watched them in their scrimmage against McGuffey and they did really well, so it’ll be a tough game.”
Considering he does have a young group featuring players who haven’t started a varsity game before, Collodi values the opportunity his team is faced with to start the season.
“I’m hoping they stay focused, we limit mistakes and don’t give up big plays,” Collodi said. “I know the gameday jitters are going to happen, it’s just a part of the game. I’m just hoping they go out there and play sound football.”
Some of the players might be young, but EF does still have a talented defense, a big offensive line and a plethora of game-changing athletes to rely on.
DaVontay Brownfield and Kyle Flournoy are among the talented running backs EF has in its arsenal, while Zach Boyd, Keilly Rush and Charlie Nigut make up the main contributors in the wide receiving corps.
As for the quarterback position, there has been a bit of competition between Zion White and transfer Johnny DiNapoli. Collodi said he expects both players to see time under center against the Rams.
“They are both very good players and they both are similar type of guys,” Collodi said. “They’re both big, strong players with great arms and they are both mobile. We’re very fortunate to have both of those kids playing for us.”
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