Oct 10, 2014 4 min read

At the midpoint of the local college football season, the three area teams have one thing in common: a playoff berth still within reach.

If the five week’s worth of games have shown anything, it is – with all due respect to Yogi Berra – it’s not over till it’s over.

California University, Washington & Jefferson College and Waynesburg University are hovering near the top of their respective conferences, mostly because of consistent play, especially on offense. The following is an accounting of what happened and what needs to happen for a celebratory ending to the season.

Where they’ve been: Cal entered the season with a new starting quarterback from last year’s opener and questions surrounding its running game. The Vulcans emerged from a grueling first three games with a 2-1 record. They knocked off Virginia State, a 9-1 team last season, at home, but lost an overtime game to then-No. 19 Bloomsburg. Cal pounded Shippensburg by 22 points in a key road victory. Maybe the key statistic from the game was the 232 combined rushing yards from sophomore Nick Grissom and senior Terrell Roberson. Those two, and Ringgold graduate Derrick Fiore, appear to have the running game moving in the right direction. Quarterback James Harris has played well, ranking fourth in the conference in passing, and the defense ranks in the middle of the pack in most categories, which is fine if the offense remains strong.

Where they are: The next two weeks are crucial to Cal, which has back-to-back home games against undefeated Slippery Rock (4-0, 5-0) and rival Indiana (3-1, 4-1). Those games will impact the West Division. Gannon (3-1, 4-1) also is a home game Nov. 1.

Where they are headed: The next two games will decide that. The feeling here is even a split will get the Vulcans into the NCAA Division II playoffs.

Where they’ve been: At the Presidents’ Athletic Conference media day, coach Mike Sirianni said he was not thinking about how good the Presidents could be in 2015. He felt they could be good now. He was right. The Presidents have one of the most dynamic offenses in the conference, are at the top of just about every offensive category and have the best quarterback in the PAC in sophomore Pete Coughlin. The 51-28 rout of Thomas More was not only shocking but also showed this Presidents team is ready to win now. Coughlin is completing 70 percent of his passes, has 13 touchdowns, just one interception and produced 21 touchdowns in 27 trips to the red zone. Thomas More and Waynesburg are the only other PAC teams that reached the red zone more than 20 times. Ryan Ruffing is a scoring machine with 14 touchdowns and is on pace to gain 1,580 rushing yards.

Where they are: The Presidents have a few breathers in the schedule. They travel to winless Grove City tonight (7 p.m. kickoff), then have a big game at Bethany (3-0, 4-1). As usual, Waynesburg waits at the end of the regular season.

Where they are going: It’s hard to imagine any PAC team beating W&J if it plays the way it did against Thomas More. Division III quarterfinalist.

Where they’ve been: The Yellow Jackets can score points. But the defense surrenders points almost as quickly: 24 to Saint Vincent, 38 to Geneva and 33 to Bethany. The latter total resulted in the only loss of the season. Waynesburg’s defense is ranked highly in the PAC but that is misleading because of the shutouts of Muskingum in the opener and winless Grove City last week. Quarterback Carter Hill is having another outstanding season and Jake Forsythe was steady in the backfield with 556 yards and seven touchdowns.

Where they are: Waynesburg has three winnable games coming up against Case Western Reserve, Westminster and Thiel. The final two games of the regular season – home games against Thomas More and W&J – will decide their season.

Where they are going: A leaky defense will take its toll against Thomas More and W&J. Another ECAC Bowl game in sight.

Assistant sports editor Joe Tuscano can be reached at jtuscano@observer-reporter.com.