Columbia vs. Black River tonight

I will be covering high school football tonight from the sidelines of Black River High School as the Pirates host the Columbia Raiders in the Patriot Athletic Conference opener for both teams. You can tune in to 1320 AM or listen online (replay will be available online as well). I'll be working with play-by-play announcer Bob Karlovec and color commentator Darryl Maynard.

For visiting Columbia (2-1), they are off to their best start since 2006 when they won their first three games of the season. After a 30-22 setback in week 1 against Cleveland Central Catholic, the Raiders have defeated South Central 41-14 and Newbury by a score of 47-14.

Columbia has an experienced team.

• Four seniors on their offensive line
• Junior QB John Banyasz who has started 21 games in his varsity career
• Junior RB Brandon Heidinger who has been a starter since he was a freshman; rushed for 1000 yards in 2009 and rushed for 110 yards and 2 TDs in the win over Newbury.
• Returning 10 starters on both sides of the ball.

Black River has an 0-3 record for the sixth straight season. All 18 losses came against Western Reserve (34-7 in 2010), Northwestern (18-15), and Manchester (21-3).

The Pirates have some experience as well:

• Both senior running backs Jake O’Connor and Matt Joppek return. Joppek is coming off of two straight 1,000 yard seasons.
• LB John Sas returns this year after receiving 2nd-team all-Ohio honors in 2009.

Despite starting 0-3, the Pirates have rebounded each of the last five years to have a winning record in Patriot Athletic Conference play.

Last year, Black River was victorious at Columbia 53-20.