Inside LVC football 2012

http://www.mcall.com/sports/mc-inside-lvc-football-20120825,0,5627087,full.story FROM THE MORNING CALL Inside the LVC - Five Players to Watch K.J. Williams WR, Liberty He managed to stand out in the Hurricanes' run-happy offense as a sophomore, turning 11 of his 31 receptions into touchdowns and averaging 19.9 yards per catch. The junior already has scholarship offers from Pittsburgh and Rutgers. Austin Brown RB/LB, Easton The Red Rovers again figure to have a stingy defense with this senior delivering hits as an inside linebacker. He also can be a force near the goal line; he scored 14 touchdowns last season. Villanova, Temple, Towson and Richmond are among the programs tracking Brown. Alex Tonnies WR, Nazareth No returning player in the LVC had more catches than the 43 he registered last season. His role in the offense should grow with the Bridgeforth twins having graduated. Nick Shafnisky QB, Whitehall The Lehigh recruit threw 15 touchdowns and just one interception as a junior. He also can hurt teams on the ground; he ran for 537 yards and seven touchdowns last season. Jarel Elder RB/WR, Parkland The senior is a threat to score every time he touches the ball. He averaged 8.3 yards per carry as a 1,000-yard rusher last season but figures to see more time at receiver this season with Parkland moving full-time to a spread offense. LOOK WHO'S NEW Boise Ross WR, Liberty A standout at Pius X last season, he will have a chance to test his skills against the biggest schools in the area as a senior. Liberty coach Dave Brown has praised Ross' leadership skills and drive. Anthony Beck QB, Central Catholic He has the impossible task of following District 11 record-setter Brendan Nosovitch. Vikings coach John Cupples said Beck knows to just be himself. Zack Berman and T.J. Bray WR, Nazareth The Blue Eagles graduated three of their top four receivers from last year's record-setting group. Berman and Bray are seniors looking to fill those spots and keep Nazareth's offense productive. Ryan Bonshak RB, Whitehall The junior played varsity last season but is set to take on a more prominent role in Whitehall's backfield to help replace Andrew Harris' production. Bonshak only had 12 carries last year but averaged 6.2 yards on them. Abu Shaw DE, Bethlehem Catholic Another player who departed Pius X after last season, Shaw tallied a team-best 14.5 sacks for the Royals in 2011. He is shifting from linebacker to defensive end with the Golden Hawks. MARK YOUR CALENDAR Easton at Parkland Friday, Sept. 7 The two teams most-often mentioned as LVC title threats open their league schedule against one another. Parkland drilled Easton 24-0 last season in a game that featured eight fumbles and just 16 combined first downs. Whitehall at Nazareth Friday, Sept. 21 Nazareth clinched a share of its first LVC title by beating the Zephyrs 21-20 in Week 9 last season. Whitehall certainly figures to remember the performance of Blue Eagles running back Jordan Gray that night; he ran 35 times for 245 yards against it. Parkland at Whitehall Friday, Sept. 28 Parkland is another team that dealt Whitehall a bitter loss last season, beating the Zephyrs 22-13 in the regular-season finale and helping to keep them out of districts. This year's matchup figures to play a part in determining the LVC champion. Liberty at Easton Friday, Oct. 19 These two teams have combined to win seven of the last nine District 11 Class 4A championships. Easton took last year's meeting 21-14 in the middle of a nine-game winning streak that landed the Red Rovers in the District 11 4A final. Liberty at Freedom Saturday, Nov. 2 Freedom's 45-42 win in last year's rivarly matchup put it in the Districts 2-4-11 4A subregional playoffs and relegated Liberty to the Eastern Conference 4A playoffs. This year's matchup could carry similar stakes.   STEPHEN MILLER'S 2012 PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH 1. Easton 2. Parkland 3. Whitehall 4. Freedom 5. Nazareth 6. Liberty 7. Emmaus 8. Central Catholic 9. Bethlehem Catholic 10. Northampton 2011 STANDINGS School, Overall, League, PF, PA *Nazareth, 12-2, 8-1, 560, 373 Easton, 11-3, 7-2, 399, 220 Parkland, 9-3, 7-2, 451, 243 Freedom, 8-3, 7-2, 404, 162 Whitehall, 8-4, 6-3, 457, 186 Liberty, 8-4, 5-4, 423, 322 Central Catholic, 9-6, 5-4, 608, 413 Emmaus, 5-5, 4-5, 289, 195 Bethlehem Catholic, 3-7, 2-7, 193, 361 Northampton, 3-9, 2-7, 176, 363 Allen, 1-9, 1-8, 89, 484 Dieruff, 0-10, 0-9, 69, 484 * LVC champion   RETURNING STATISTICAL LEADERS Rushing Player, School, Att, Yds, Avg, TDw Jordan Gray, Nazareth, 267, 1663, 6.2, 20 Colin McDermott, Central, 276, 1513, 5.5, 27 Jarel Elder, Parkland, 134, 1116, 8.3, 12 Nick Shafnisky, Whitehall, 116, 537, 4.6, 7 Passing Player, School, Comp, Att, Int, Yds, TD Brian Uliana, Freedom, 70, 136, 7, 1288, 14 Nick Shafnisky, Whitehall, 86, 160, 1, 1183, 15 Andrew Kerson, Emmaus, 70, 148, 7, 1117, 9 Tim Baranek, Parkland, 60, 106, 4, 795, 6 Receiving Player, School, Rec, Yds, Avg, TD Alex Tonnies, Nazareth, 43, 674, 15.7, 7 Shane Simpson, Easton, 36, 679, 18.9, 3 K.J. Williams, Liberty, 31, 617, 19.9, 11 Scoring Player, School, TD, 2P, PAT, FG, TP Colin McDermott, Central, 27, 0, 0, 0, 162 Jordan Gray, Nazareth, 22, 0, 0, 0, 132 Jarel Elder, Parkland, 16, 0, 0, 0, 96 Austin Brown, Easton, 14, 1, 0, 0, 86