Oct 20, 2015 4 min read

There were plenty of reasons for the hype at Ringgold before a football was snapped this fall. The Rams returned two prolific running backs and an experienced defense from last season’s team, which reached the WPIAL semifinals.

Expectations were raised after victories over Thomas Jefferson and West Mifflin, but the Rams’ weakness has been the very thing that had fans thinking about a WPIAL championship – the offense.

It isn’t a lack of talent. Senior running back Chacar Berry, an Observer-Reporter Elite 11 selection last fall, and sophomore Brenden Small have combined for 1,347 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns. Junior quarterback George Martin was pivotal in wins over West Mifflin and Laurel Highlands, but it is inexperience that has separated Ringgold from a spotless regular season.

That was apparent last Friday, when the Rams committed nine penalties and Berry was ejected for a personal foul, but they were able to overcome the mental errors with a 32-21 win.

The victory improved the Rams’ record to 6-1 in the Big 10 Conference and they are two wins away from their best record since 2010, which ended with a conference championship and a first-round playoff loss. While Ringgold has already clinched a playoff spot and could still win the conference title, head coach Nick Milchovich’s eyebrows are raised.

“You can live with physical penalties,” Milchovich said. “But the mental mistakes are the ones that drive you crazy as a coach – not being able to stay onside or late hits. I just can’t take talking after the play. Do your talking through your actions between the whistles.”

It’s been a consistent issue for the Rams, who have to play without Berry Friday against Elizabeth Forward. In its Oct. 9 loss to Belle Vernon (13-12), a holding penalty and a sack backed Ringgold up to its own 16-yard line. The Leopards took advantage by blocking a punt. Three plays later, they scored the game-winning touchdown.

In Ringgold’s season-opening win over perennial power Thomas Jefferson, the Rams committed 14 penalties, including three personal fouls and seven illegal procedures, for 110 yards. They were called for two personal fouls against West Mifflin and had 10 penalties for 80 yards in the loss to Belle Vernon.

After a season-ending injury to senior center Dante Todaro, the Rams have just two seniors on offense and the majority of the other nine starters are receiving extended playing time for the first time in their careers.

Though Ringgold is averaging 32 points per game, that lack of experience is showing in more ways than one.

“We’ve been excellent on defense. We held Belle Vernon to almost 150 total yards,” Milchovich said. “We’ve got experience on that side, but we’re young on offense. We’ll only play with one senior Friday and that’s where some of these mental mistakes are coming from. Guys are still learning.”

Through seven games last season, the Rams scored 272 points in six wins. This season, they have six wins and 224 points, but Milchovich is not concerned with scoring more points. In Ringgold’s two playoff wins last season, it averaged just over 22 points per game, leaning heavily on its defense. Before it tries to surpass its WPIAL semifinal appearance last fall, Ringgold will face Elizabeth Forward and Trinity to conclude the regular season.

After the loss to Belle Vernon and close calls in other games, Ringgold’s players know that a plethora of weapons on offense and the potential to play at Heinz Field won’t mean anything if the penalties and errors continue.

“We have to cut down on those mistakes and we can’t beat ourselves,” Milchovich said. “You can’t get frustrated by good teams making plays. We have to be able to overcome that and keep playing hard. What separates teams in the playoffs are the mistakes – cutting down on turnovers, not committing those penalties and playing well in the three phases.”

South Fayette senior Hunter Hayes continues to garner attention from college football programs across the country. The 6-1, 195-pound running back and safety picked up offers from Air Force and Army – his first from Football Bowl Subdivision programs.

Hayes, who ran for 2,103 yards last fall, also has offers from Bucknell, Lafayette, Penn, Cornell, Colgate, Robert Morris, Holy Cross and St. Francis (Pa.).

This fall, Hayes has 759 yards on only 76 carries with 12 touchdowns for the Lions (7-0, 7-0), who carry a 39-game winning streak into Friday night against Seton-La Salle.

A Southeastern Conference game between Canon-McMillan (0-6, 1-6) and Baldwin (0-5, 1-6) Friday at 7 p.m. is the Comcast Xfinity High School Sports Game of the Week. Comcast TV subscribers can watch the game On Demand beginning Saturday afternoon.