Despite losing in the state championship to Bishop Guilfoyle, Port Allegany still has much to look back on and look forward to. A 14-1 season and their first state title appearance in program history say enough about just how special it was.
Senior linemen Carson Neely and Juuso Young led an offensive line that pushed opposing defenses around. Aiden Bliss was just the 11th player in Pennsylvania high school football history to reach 3,000 rushing yards in a season. Tristan Kiser also reached over 1,000 yards this year. The great thing is that they are both only juniors, watch out for these two next season.
“We loved every ounce of it,” Neely said, talking about the season after Thursday’s game. “Especially me being a senior. Those guys are my brothers.”
After losing last year to Redbank Valley in the district title, they blew out the Bulldogs twice this season to easily display their dominance over the rest of District 9.
Head Coach Justin Bienkowski built an identity into this team. They knew who they were and were willing to impose their will on other teams. They were capable in the passing game, but didn’t really have to throw a ton because they were so dominant at running the football.
Winning District 9 is a big accomplishment, but it is rare that a team from this area is able to hold up for multiple games against the best teams in the state. The Gators were able to pull away against Wilmington in the state quarterfinals, 38-20. The Greyhounds wanted to play the same style of physical football, but Port Allegany won that battle.
Next came the WPIAL champion Fort Cherry in the state semifinal. Most people from around the state saw WPIAL against District 9 and predicted a landslide for Fort Cherry.
Port Allegany proved the doubters wrong and straight up crushed the Rangers in a 46-8 win. They dominated by just simply doing what they did all season.
In 2025, the Gators have a chance to finish with a state title yet again.
Bliss and Kiser return. One can only imagine what next season’s rushing numbers could look like with another year of maturity for these two backs. Other key players like defensive backs Kellen Veilluex and Nick Wilfong return as well.
They do lose three key linemen including Neely and Young. Ethan Tarbox will be looked upon to lead the line in his senior season next year.
The experience of state playoff success will give them an edge over their 2025 competition. Reaching the state championship game and losing could motivate these players to reach new heights.
Port Allegany’s quest for a state title did not end after their loss to Bishop Guilfoyle Thursday, it is only just beginning.
The vegetarians vs. non-vegetarians debate? Old news. Recently, Jeff, a fruitarian from Bali, shared his daily routine of an all-fruit, uncooked diet, sparking debates across social media. His clip, captioned “What I Eat in a Day as a Fruitarian,” quickly went viral and has everyone talking. In the video, Jeff joked, “And I have not yet died of protein deficiency,” while walking viewers through his day, meal by meal. First up, breakfast: fresh coconut, cracked open and ready to go. Jeff shares, “Today’s breakfast is fresh coconut, mainly because of its super simple, crack-it-open record.” For anyone wondering, it’s as minimalist as it gets! Post-breakfast, he heads into a workout and follows up with his first “made meal” of the day – two huge red dragon fruits. “I live here in Bali, and these things are pretty much staples in the diet because they are absolutely amazing,” he adds. Lunch is a green juice made from celery, pineapple, ginger, and lime, which he preps like a pro. Jeff explains, “It was super good. I did one and a half periods, followed by a few squats,” as he chops and blends up his ingredients. For dinner around 5:30, Jeff goes all out with a massive salad loaded with avocado, peppers, and cucumber noodles. He smiles, saying, “This was holy delicious,” while holding up his bowl of colourful veggies. And Jeff’s caption? “Do I need meat? Leave a comment and let me know if you think I will wither away and die soon of a protein deficiency at some point. Because everyone loves telling people on the internet what to eat LOL.”
With over 5 million views, it’s fair to say people are invested in Jeff’s fruit-based diet and lifestyle. Some users weren’t holding back: “You can tell by his voice he’s about to pass out just for talking,” wrote one. Another quipped, “Who allowed you to take the fruits from the plants?” to which Jeff responded with “God.” But the commenter shot back, “God also allowed eating some animals, so don’t deprive yourself.” “He works out for a couple of hours and has no muscle at all,” one commenter remarked, while another asked, “How are u managing to function off 300 calories a day?” And then there’s the sceptic: “He [is] faking it for the (Insta)gram.” But not everyone was there to critique – Jeff had some support in the mix. “Don’t listen to what people say. Keep going,” encouraged one viewer. Another chimed in, “This man clearly loves his health, life, and body! I’m cheering you on.” So, what’s your take? Does Jeff’s fruitarian diet sound doable or are you team team ‘need more than just fruit’? Let us know in the comments!
La Salle-Peru coach Jose Medina said he thought freshman quarterback Marion Persich improved throughout the season.
Persich completed 100 of 189 passes for 1,398 yards and nine touchdowns with nine interceptions as the Cavaliers finished 3-6.
“I was pleased with his progression,” Medina said. “It was a little shaky at the beginning, but he won us some games this year with his arm and his legs. I saw a lot of growth out of him from the very beginning to our last game. I definitely look out for some big things from him in the future. I think the sky is the limit for him.”
Medina said he thought Persich improved in terms of understanding when pressure was coming and when he needed to take off running.
“He made some plays with his feet,” Medina said. “He did a good job keeping his head up and looking down the field as he was scrambling. That was a big thing for him. He made some plays by doing that.”
Medina said there are some areas where Persich can improve his game.
“The biggest thing I think he needs to work on is getting the ball out quickly when he needs to get the ball out quickly and just making the right choices and taking care of the football sometimes,” Medina said.
St. Bede’s Halden Hueneburg runs the ball down the field against Ottawa on Friday, Oct. 25, 2024 at St. Bede Academy. (Scott Anderson)
LIFE LESSONS
St. Bede had a tough season as the Bruins dealt with “a lot of adversity this year and a lot of it was nonfootball related with sicknesses and things that have happened to these kids,” St. Bede coach Jim Eustice said.
The Bruins went 2-7 but ended on a positive note with a 38-28 win over Ottawa, which has more than 1,000 more students than St. Bede, in the finale Friday.
“I’m so happy for these seniors,” Eustice said. “They’re a great group of young men. They’ve learned a lot about life this year. For them to persevere like they did and stay with it, they’ve got this for the rest of their lives. When things get tough, don’t quit, figure out how to keep going and find solutions. If you persevere and stay true, good things are going to happen, and good things happened for us tonight.
“Our seniors will have this when they talk years from now. Everything that happened, and they ended up winning a game like this to end it.”
STILL BUYING IN
Hall-Putnam County finished 2-7 in coach Logan Larson’s first season at the helm, but he was pleased with the way the Red Devils continued to work even after a playoff berth was off the table.
“We were a 2-6 team and the players showed up every day to go to the weight room at 6 a.m. all week,” Larson said. “That says a lot about the kids and where they’re at. It’s good to see they’re so bought in and believe in what we’re trying to do.”
Larson said he’s sees potential for the future after his first season.
“I set our standards really, really high. I think we’re cutting our kids short if we’re not setting our goals at the highest level. We want to be state champions,” Larson said. “The championships Hall has won in the past are on the scoreboard, and we see it every day. There are kids on the team who’s parents played on those championship teams.
“That’s still in the community. There hasn’t been the top accomplishment recently, but we have a group of guys who really want that. They’re bought in. I knew this year was going to be tough because we installed a new offense and defense, and from a physical standpoint with where we were at in our speed and strength. But I know we have the potential moving forward. They stayed positive all year.
GOING OUT WITH A BANG
Elijah Endress’ last football game of his career was not only his best, but one of the best ever for a Bureau Valley player.
The Storm senior running back rushed for 378 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Storm to a 47-34 win over Hamilton West Hancock in the 2024 season finale.
If that was not enough, he also made 15 tackles on the defensive side of the ball.
The 378 yards are the second-highest individual game in school history after Will Konneck’s 428-yard/six TD effort against Sherrard in 2015.
WATCHING THEM GROW
With his son, Andy, a senior on L-P this season, Medina has been around some members of the senior class for many years.
“I actually had the opportunity to coach some of these young men in the youth program,” Jose Medina said. “So I’ve seen them develop and grow into a tough unit. Injuries really affected them a lot this year. But throughout the season, they stayed together. They’re a tight-knit group. When they needed to get on each other, they got on each other. It’s funny listening to them at practice and how they kind of bicker at one another, but at the same time, they support each other, pick each other up and back each other up whenever they need to.
“This group of seniors really established that family, that closeness that we as coaches want to see the team buy into.”
FIRST CATCH WITH STYLE
Princeton senior Jace Stuckey didn’t just make his first career catch in the Tigers’ 61-14 win over Erie-Prophetstown. He made a spectacular, acrobatic 16-yard grab at the 9-yard line in the second quarter to set up a touchdown by Casey Etheridge on the next play.
“I told him, ‘Maybe next time don’t make it so acrobatic and put on a show. Just catch it and get down.’ He said, ‘Hey, I’m just in it for the fans,’” Princeton coach Ryan Pearson said with a laugh. “But he made the catch. Hat’s off to him. I think that’s his first catch of the year. That was big for him.”
FILLING THE SCHEDULE
With the Interstate 8 and Chicagoland Prairie conferences each losing multiple teams after the 2023 season, La Salle-Peru and St. Bede had several holes to fill on the schedule for the 2024 season.
The Cavaliers were forced to play conference foe Ottawa in a nonconference game in Week 3 before playing the Pirates again for the Interstate 8 matchup in Week 6. L-P also had to travel more than 220 miles and over three hours to play O’Fallon in Week 9.
Medina said there could be a few changes for next season, including the possibility of a new opponent in Week 2 to replace Metamora.
“We’re kind of scrambling right now to see who has open dates,” Medina said. “I gave [L-P athletic director] Steve Hanson a list of possible teams for Week 2. Week 3 we’ll probably play Ottawa again, but I’m not opposed to looking for another opponent.
“Our schedule is probably one of the tougher ones in the state. Year in and year out we play four or five teams that make the playoffs. I’m not saying I want to make the schedule easier, but at the same time I think we need to work on getting some teams that are going to be more at our level that we can compete against and try to get those five wins.”
As for St. Bede, to fill their five nonconference games, the Bruins had to resort to scheduling larger schools and top-notch programs.
The Bruins’ schedule included seven schools larger than St. Bede and six teams that qualified for the postseason with a combined record of 40-14.
Eustice looks to play more teams comparable in size next fall.
“Next year, we still have some openings on the schedule,” Eustice said. “We’ll see what we can fill those with. Hopefully, we won’t be going through some of the things we had to go through schedule-wise. We hope districts or something will get passed. I don’t think it’s going to happen, so it is what it is. We are constantly looking. We’re trying to find 1A and 2A opponents we can play as opposed to 3A, 4A and even 5A opponents that we had to play this year. But we competed and I’m proud of this group.”
NEW YORK — Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Monday suggested that migrants who are in the U.S. and have committed murder did so because “it’s in their genes.” There are, he added, “a lot of bad genes in our country right now.”
It’s the latest example of Trump alleging that immigrants are changing the hereditary makeup of the U.S. Last year, he evoked language once used by Adolf Hitler to argue that immigrants entering the U.S. illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country.”
Trump made the comments Monday in a radio interview with conservative host Hugh Hewitt. He was criticizing his Democratic opponent for the 2024 presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris, when he pivoted to immigration, citing statistics that the Department of Homeland Security says include cases from his administration.
“How about allowing people to come through an open border, 13,000 of which were murderers? Many of them murdered far more than one person,” Trump said. “And they’re now happily living in the United States. You know, now a murderer — I believe this: it’s in their genes. And we got a lot of bad genes in our country right now. Then you had 425,000 people come into our country that shouldn’t be here that are criminals.”
Trump’s campaign said his comments regarding genes were about murderers.
“He was clearly referring to murderers, not migrants. It’s pretty disgusting the media is always so quick to defend murderers, rapists, and illegal criminals if it means writing a bad headline about President Trump,” Karoline Leavitt, the Trump campaign’s national press secretary, said in a statement.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released immigration enforcement data to Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales last month about the people under its supervision, including those not in ICE custody. That included 13,099 people who were found guilty of homicide and 425,431 people who are convicted criminals.
But those numbers span decades, including during Trump’s administration. And those who are not in ICE custody may be detained by state or local law enforcement agencies, according to the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE.
The Harris campaign declined to comment.
Asked during her briefing with reporters on Monday about Trump’s “bad genes” comment, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “That type of language, it’s hateful, it’s disgusting, it’s inappropriate, it has no place in our country.”
The former president and Republican nominee has made illegal immigration a central part of his 2024 campaign, vowing to stage the largest deportation operation in U.S. history if elected. He has a long history of comments maligning immigrants, including referring to them as “animals” and “killers,” and saying that they spread diseases.
Last month, during his debate with Harris, Trump falsely claimed Haitian immigrants in Ohio were abducting and eating pets.
As president, he questioned why the U.S. was accepting immigrants from Haiti and Africa rather than Norway and told four congresswomen, all people of color and three of whom were born in the U.S., to “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came.”
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Associated Press writer Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.
“Tennis means a lot to me and I do my best to give back to this sport everything it has given me,” Novak Djokovic confessed after his Paris glory. To him, his career is “complete,” but his sole focus remains on playing for his nation and in grand slam events. Despite being unable to clinch a title this year, the Serbian, who fell to the No. 4 spot from No. 1, looks forward to “competing” and “improving” his game. And after a US Open upset, Djokovic is back in action in Shanghai, where he revealed about his future plans and what fuels his drive to success still now!
After fulfilling his lifelong dream of winning a gold medal, Novak Djokovic successfully completed the golden career slam record! Moreover, at 37 years of age, the Serb is the only ATP player to have a triple career grand slam and who has won all the Big Titles! Besides surpassing his on-court rivals, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, in terms of staying at the top spot in the sport, Djokovic has a grand slam count (24) more than his rivals. Therefore, now, the inevitable question is: does he still have the hunger for more?
Luckily, it turns out that he has! Before stepping into the tournament of the Shanghai Masters for the 10th time, Djokovic sat down for a pre-tournament press conference. There, one reporter asked him, “If you could describe how big your love for tennis still is?” To this, Djokovic, who played in the Davis Cup after his US Open third-round exit, said, “My love for tennis will never feed away. I have a lot of emotions when I am playing. And not particularly only in the tournament, but also in practice sessions. Sometimes it’s not always going your way, but I think my relationship with tennis goes much deeper than a tournament or a year or success or failure.”
Furthermore, Djokovic, who admitted that he ran “out of gas” in New York because of exhaustion after winning the Olympics, said, “It’s a sport that I fell in love with when I was very young. I still have a love for the sport. Even when I retire from professional tennis, I’m going to stay in tennis, stay involved in different roles because I feel like I owe this sport a lot for what it has been given to me.”
Djokovic, who embraced the sport at age four and turned pro in 2003, is experiencing a grand slam title drought for the first time since 2017. Nevertheless, the Serb, who had knee surgery this year, remains optimistic about playing the sport despite the setbacks. Displaying that same enthusiasm, Djokovic further revealed his love for playing in China, where he has won five titles in the past!
“I wanted to play in China,” says Novak Djokovic about his Shanghai Masters tournament!
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The last time fans saw Novak Djokovic play in China was against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the QFs in 2019, a match which he eventually lost. Currently, the Serb is coming back to the “quick” courts of Shanghai, which drive him to “serve” well and use it to his advantage. Moreover, per him, it is one of the “happiest places” that he has played in his career, where he has gathered many memories.
Sharing his love for the tournament during the pre-tournament press conference, he confessed, “I wanted to play in China… I said, ‘Okay, I need to play the tournament in Shanghai, it’s the biggest event in China and one of the great 1000 events we have on Tour’. I missed being in China.” Calling this as the “most spectacular” event and praising the stadium and people of the country, Djokovic wishes to earn a fifth title (after 2018’s victory). With his 34-5 W/L record in the event, Novak Djokovic aims to show his eternal love for his favorite sport once again!
Coldplay’s 10th studio album and the American Music Awards celebrating their 50th anniversary are some of the new television, films, music and games headed to a device near you.
Also among the streaming offerings worth your time as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: Sarah Paulson plays a woman in fear of a sinister presence in “Hold Your Breath,” EA Sports’ NHL 25 lands and Charlie Puth stars as himself in “The Charlie Puth Show,” a mockumentary series on Roku.
— As if being a mother in the 1930s Dust Bowl wasn’t stressful enough, Sarah Paulson and her children are living in fear of a sinister presence in “Hold Your Breath.” Coming to Hulu on Thursday, this psychological thriller from Karrie Crouse and Will Joines co-stars “The Bear’s” Ebon Moss-Bachrach as a mysterious character who arrives at their home amid worries over a murderous drifter at large. On top of all of this, her daughter becomes obsessed with a storybook fable about The Grey Man, who comes into people’s homes as if made of dust and, when breathed in, turns his victims into villains.
— Speaking of “The Bear,” the new Blumhouse film “House of Spoils” leans into the horror element of opening a restaurant (albeit on a remote estate with a haunting presence, two things Carmy has yet to deal with). Oscar-winning “West Side Story” actor Ariana DeBose plays the ambitious chef at the center of Bridget Savage Cole and Danielle Krudy’s film, which also features Barbie Ferreira (“Euphoria”) and Arian Moayed (“Succession”). “House of Spoils” arrives on Prime Video on Thursday.
— Writer-director Gary Dauberman adapts Stephen King’s “Salem’s Lot” in a new film coming to Max on Thursday. Lewis Pullman, of “Top Gun: Maverick,” stars as a man who comes back to his small Maine town to try to finish his book, but unfortunately that town is being terrorized by a vampire. It’s so far divided critics, some declaring it among the best King adaptations, others on the opposite end. But the author seems pleased. In February, King wrote on X that, “I’ve seen the new SALEM’S LOT and it’s quite good. Old-school horror filmmaking: slow build, big payoff.”
— Netflix also has the Sundance breakout “It’s What’s Inside” coming Friday, Oct. 4, in which a reunion between college friends turns into a nightmare with the arrival of a suitcase and a strange game. Jourdain Searles, in her IndieWire review, wrote, “It’s a loud, colorful, frantic, and pitch-black horror comedy about identity that mercilessly critiques modern anxiety about desirability and success. Scary!”
— There’s nothing worse than a self-serious pop star, and thankfully, Charlie Puth appears to know that more than most. In a new Roku channel mockumentary titled “The Charlie Puth Show,” the “See You Again” singer stars as a fictionalized version of, well, himself — a musician looking to maintain relevancy by starring in a reality show. Expect a few A-list cameos, too, for this parodic take on the current cultural zeitgeist. Talents like Will Ferrell, Dorinda Medley and Courteney Cox make an appearance.
— Coldplay’s expansive alt-contemporary rock fills stadiums around the world; on record, they turn a simple sing-along phrase into a soaring mantra. The repetitive “la la la” on “feelslikeimfallinginlove” is evidence enough, or the chorus on the stuffed “WE PRAY,” which features Little Simz, Burna Boy, Elyanna and TINI. Both appear on the band’s 10th studio album, “Moon Music.” They’ve cornered the market on Earth; where else would they head?
— Finneas, the second-youngest person to win two Oscars (he’s just behind his sister and principal collaborator, Billie Eilish) is gearing up to release his sophomore solo album, “For Cryin’ Out Loud!” Most are likely familiar with his production work, less so his own ambitious material — luckily, it’s not too late to dive into the dreamy pop-rock of “Cleats,” or the funky, frustrated title track, “For Cryin’ Out Loud!”
— The American Music Awards are celebrating their 50th anniversary on Sunday, Oct. 6, with a television special airing live on CBS and available to stream on Paramount+ at 8 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Pacific. Viewers can expect a few brand-new performances from Brad Paisley, Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, Green Day, Jennifer Hudson, Kane Brown, Mariah Carey, Raye and Stray Kids, as well as artist interviews and previously unreleased footage from AMAs past. Consider it appointment viewing for those who love award shows.
— The Netflix coming-of-age romance series “Heartstopper,” focused on teens Charlie and Nick, returns Thursday. In the new season, Annette Badland of “Outlander” and Jonathan Bailey of “Bridgerton” join the cast.
— Season 2 of NBC’s hit series “Found,” starring Shanola Hampton, kicks off Thursday. Hampton plays Gabi Mosely, a woman who survived kidnapping and a lengthy imprisonment as a teen. She now runs a firm that specializes in finding missing people — particularly Black and brown people who normally don’t get the media coverage that a missing white person receives. In the first season, Mosely harbored a big secret that she had taken her former kidnapper (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) captive and was keeping him in her basement. In this season, he’s escaped. Episodes also stream on Peacock.
— Movie and television studies love a franchise where they can make sequels and bank on dollars at the box office a la “Deadpool & Wolverine.” The new comedy series “The Franchise” follows the behind-the-scenes mayhem of filming a movie in an unpopular franchise. It stars Himesh Patel, Aya Cash, Billy Magnussen, Richard E. Grant and Daniel Brühl. The series premieres Sunday, Oct. 6, on HBO and streams on Max.
— It’s a special time of year for those of us who are fans of lousy baseball teams (ahem, Washington Nationals). The National Hockey League season is right around the corner, and EA Sports’ NHL 25 is coming with it. This year’s edition features ICE-Q, revamped artificial intelligence that’s intended to make your computer-controlled teammates more reliable and accurate. Franchise mode has been streamlined to make stat tracking, trades and contract negotiations easier. Perhaps you and a friend like to play over and over with the same teams? The new Grudge Match system keeps track of your head-to-head records, raising the stakes whenever you face off. The cover models know a little about sibling rivalries: They’re the Hughes brothers, Jack and Luke of the New Jersey Devils and Quinn of the Vancouver Canucks. The puck drops Friday, Oct. 4, on PlayStation 5 and Xbox X/S.
