NTL FOOTBALL: TROY CONTINUES STRING OF STRONG SEASONS IN 2022 (2022-11-28)

Northern Tier Sports Report
It was another strong year for Troy football, despite being an underclassman heavy squad. In 2022 the Trojans won their first eight games of the season, and once again reached the District IV, Class AA semifinals.

“I am proud of the season we had,” said coach Jim Smith. “Nine wins with another D4 semifinal appearance is a good season.”

At one point they were ranked top 10 in the state in Class AA.

“We had a tough schedule with a young group,” remarked Smith. “In the end we were beaten by one of the best teams in Class 1A in Canton, Class AA in Southern Columbia, and Class AAA in Loyalsock. There is no shame in that.”

The Trojans went 8-2 during the regular season to capture the second seed for districts.

They opened with a defensive led 20-9 win over Bald Eagle, their first in four tries over the last five years.

Their home opener was a 28-7 victory over Montoursville, which was followed by five straight league wins: NP-Mansfield (56-14), Wyalusing (44-12), Athens (32-7), Wellsboro (45-3), and Towanda (49-0).

A 35-13 road win over Northwest ran their record to 8-0.

Their first loss was to the Lancers in a crazy back and forth game. Troy appeared to get the tying touchdown, but opted for the win, and came up 1-yard short on the 2-point conversion, falling 36-35 to the state ranked team.

In the Old Shoe they gave Canton a battle, falling 28-14.

The Trojans opened the postseason with a 49-13 win over Towanda, before losing 48-12 to Southern Columbia.

Both Canton and SCA are in the state semifinals.

And they did this with just five seniors on the roster, three of whom that got regular playing time.

Mason Woodward, Kory Schucker, and Justice Chimics were key contributors this season, especially on the defensive end.

Woodward finished with 77 tackles from the defensive end position, and four sacks. Schucker had 71 tackles on the season, with Chimics getting three picks.

Chimics was also automatic on PAT’s, hitting 51-of-53, and going 2-for-3 on field goals.

Offensively, Chimics was the team’s leading receiver with 173 yards and three touchdowns.

Every other key player, though, is coming back in 20223.

Running back Clayton Smith finished the year with 1,308 yards and 19 touchdowns on 144 carries, while quarterback Evan Woodward had 572 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns on 72 carries.

He also had a .500-percent completion rating for 376 yards with five touchdowns, and four picks.

The Trojans had three other backs go over 200 yards on the season in Charles Oldroyd (257) and freshmen Mason Smith (243), and Kael Millard (219). The three combined for seven touchdowns.

After Chimics, Camryn Harwick was the next top receiver for Troy, with five catches for 79-yards and a touchdown.

Four of their five linemen will also be back.

Defensively, leading tackler Jackson Taylor (82) will be back to spearhead the defense, with Clayton Smith (51), Evan Woodward (54), and Jared Feldmeier (51) all getting over 50 tackles.

Taylor also had a team high five sacks, with Evan Woodward nabbing a team high five interceptions.

All those numbers add up to a high ceiling next season, especially with cross-town rivals Canton losing quite a bit to graduation.

After coming in second in the league to the Warriors the last three years, Troy may finally be able to get back on top.

“Troy football returns the majority of the team in 2023 with a lot of experience,” said Smith. “We have a bright future, and will return with the highest of expectations.”