It’s hard to believe that the 2024 high school football season is already at the midway point. But when the teams hit the gridiron Friday night, it will be Week 6 … five games down, five games to go.

With that being said, it’s time to assess where our local teams stand at midseason and grade them on their performance so far. A staple at my former employer, the Midseason Report Card makes its debut here at T102SportsNow.com with a breakdown of our 16 local teams and a forecast of what’s to come over the next five weeks and beyond.

We won’t hand out specific letter grades here, but rather go with Outstanding, Satisfactory and Needs Improvement categories.

Here we go:

OUTSTANDING

Tamaqua (5-0)

The Blue Raiders shocked the prognosticators with a Week 2 upset of North Schuylkill and have built momentum from there, surviving a scare Week 3 at Pottsville to stay unscathed so far. Sam Bonner’s senior-laden squad has been stout on both sides of the ball, with QB Luke Kane, RB Bradley Whalen and RB/WR Victor Schlosser continuously making big plays on offense and linebackers Luke Frohnheiser and Tyler Koch leading a stingy defense.

Tamaqua’s biggest tests await, as the Raiders visit Southern Lehigh on Oct. 4 before closing the regular season with home games against unbeaten Northwestern Lehigh and Blue Mountain. Tamaqua’s strong start has put it in a good position to earn one of the four District 11 Class 3A playoff berths.

Final prediction: 7-3, District 11 Class 3A qualifier

Williams Valley (5-0)

Alex who? The Vikings lost three-time All-State running back Alex Achenbach to graduation but haven’t missed a beat, as QB Brady Shomper, freshman tailback Fletcher Thompson, speedy wideout Kian Krzyzanowski and sophomore linebacker Trevon Bair have had breakout performances so far. The Vikings’ play up front has been key, especially in close wins over Nativity and Minersville. And Evan Achenbach’s interception against Minersville is one of the season’s biggest individual plays.

The Vikings visit Schuylkill Haven on Friday in a battle for first place in the Schuylkill/Colonial Blue Division. After that, Williams Valley will be heavily favored to win its final four games and return to the postseason for the 17th straight season.

Final prediction: 9-1, District 11 Class 2A home game

Blue Mountain (4-1)

Tom Gallagher’s squad has been a relative surprise so far, opening the season with comeback wins over Schuylkill Haven (4-1) and Southern Lehigh (4-1) before suffering its only defeat to unbeaten Northwestern Lehigh. The play of QB Brady Strause, running back Tyler Stahley, wide receiver Gaige Guers and tight end Bradley Renninger has helped Blue Mountain overcome a bevy of graduation losses at the skill positions, and talented youngsters have stepped up in the trenches after senior center Nick Beckfield was lost to injury in the preseason.

Blue Mountain will be heavily favored to win its next two games before closing with a three-game gauntlet against local clubs North Schuylkill, Pottsville and Tamaqua. A District 11 Class 4A playoff berth is virtually a lock; getting a home game is a major goal.

Final prediction: 9-1, District 11 Class 4A home game

Schuylkill Haven (4-1)

The Hurricanes were expected to be an offensive juggernaut and have been since a season-opening loss to Blue Mountain. Behind the running of Niko Carestia, Colton Reber and Niko Castillo and the play of its offensive line, Haven has outscored its last four opponents 260-60, including a wild 72-52 win at Minersville last Thursday.

Haven still struggles to pass the ball and its pass defense wasn’t good against the Miners. Big tests with Williams Valley and Nativity remain, both at home. Friday’s game with Vikes will be a good indicator of just how good Hurricanes really are.

Final prediction: 9-1, District 11 Class 2A home game

Nativity (4-1)

The senior-laden Green Wave are 20 seconds and one fake punt away from being unbeaten, their only loss coming in the waning moments to Williams Valley. Pat Mason earned his 100^th career victory in Week 2, and Nativity’s talented offense is averaging 46 points per game. Sam Spolski and Noah Dolbin get a lot of ink there, but RB Sam Walborn and QB Ben Kreitzer have played really well and Nativity’s line has been solid. Still waiting for Mike Stank’s breakout game.

Nativity will be heavily favored to win its next two games before visiting Minersville and Schuylkill Haven in back-to-back weeks and closing with Marian. Four of the six teams in the District 2/11 Class A subregional make the playoffs … Nativity will be one of them.

Final prediction: 8-2, District 2/11 Class A qualifier

SATISFACTORY

North Schuylkill (3-2)

If there’s one word to describe the Spartans through five weeks, it’s inconsistent. North Schuylkill has looked like one of the top teams in the area at times, beating Mount Carmel and Notre Dame-Green Pond, but can’t string strong performances back-to-back. RB Luke Miller has emerged as the Spartans’ big playmaker, and QB Caden Mengel has played well. Another major contributor on offense needs to emerge and a defense that has allowed 29 or more points four times needs to get better.

A tough game with unbeaten Northwestern Lehigh is on tap for Friday in Fountain Springs, where the Spartans are 2-0. After that, the schedule is much more favorable than the first half of the season but does include tests with Blue Mountain and Pottsville. At 6-4, Spartans get in District 11 Class 3A field. Drop to 5-5, however, that might not be the case.

Final prediction: 6-4, District 11 Class 3A qualifier

Minersville (3-2)

The rest of the Miners’ season depends on the health of QB Dante Carr, who was injured in Thursday’s loss to Schuylkill Haven. Sources say he’s going to be just fine, which is good news for a Minersville team that has dropped its last two games after a 3-0 start.

Carr and explosive wide receivers Paiten LaPoint, Logan Hutsko and Jake Kavanaugh give Minersville big-strike capability at any moment. That was evident in the loss to Haven. The Miners, outside of Carr’s scrambling, have really struggled to run the ball between the tackles and were outplayed up front in their losses to Williams Valley and Haven. That is an area Minersville can improve upon in the second half.

The Miners have a favorable schedule in the second half of the season, with a big test coming Oct. 11 against Nativity. Keeping Carr healthy is critical. A strong close to the season could land Minersville a Class 2A quarterfinal home game.

Final prediction: 7-3, District 11 Class 2A qualifier

Pottsville (2-3)

Ask those within the Pottsville program how the season has gone so far, and you’ll get positive answers. The Tide have looked strong in wins over outmatched Jim Thorpe and Bangor and have been competitive in losses to Shamokin, Tamaqua and Southern Lehigh, three teams with a combined record of 14-1.

The maturity of quarterback Andrew Allen and RB JuJu Bainbridge, along with steady play from wide receiver Tsirell Curry and a strong effort up front have been big keys in Mike Brennan’s first year at the helm. It’s a young team, and they’ve gotten better and better each week.

How much will the Tide improve by the final two weeks is the ultimate question. Pottsville will be favored in games with Lehighton and Wilson and a considerable underdog to unbeaten Northwestern Lehigh on Oct. 4. But the Tide close with road games against Blue Mountain and North Schuylkill. How good will Pottsville be by then? Definitely the toughest final prediction to make in this column. Don’t be surprised if I’m wrong.

Final prediction: 4-6, District 11 Class 4A playoff qualifier

Tri-Valley (3-2)

Dawgs got off to a good start with three straight wins before suffering tough defeats to Nativity and Williams Valley. RB/LB Cole Gemberling has had a strong season, but Tri-Valley’s passing game hasn’t been as potent as expected and Dawgs’ defense has had trouble stuffing the run.

Tri-Valley is in the middle of the clogged District 2/11 Class A subregional playoff race with Lackawanna Trail, Nativity, Old Forge, Marian and Holy Cross, so every win will be important. Dawgs will be favored in next three outings before finishing with tough games against Minersville and Schuylkill Haven.

Final prediction: 6-4, District 2/11 Class A qualifier

Marian (3-2)

The Colts, in my opinion, have been a bit of a disappointment so far as I expected them to still be unbeaten at this point. Running back Rory Dixon has been a force, blossoming into one of the area’s top backs, but replacing graduated QB Bruce Hopeck has been tougher than anticipated for first-year coach Billy O’Gurek and his staff. Opposing teams have focused on stopping Buffalo-bound tight end Michael Gelatko, and so far it’s worked.

Marian’s schedule in the second half might be the toughest in the Blue Division, with games against Minersville, Schuylkill Haven and Williams Valley in back-to-back-to-back weeks before a Week 10 date with Nativity. To make the District 2/11 Class A subregional field, the Colts are going to have to win two of those tough tests. Hard task.

Final prediction: 4-6, Eastern Conference playoffs.

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

Mahanoy Area (1-4)

The Golden Bears are only here because they’re 1-4. Honestly, that 1-4 mark is where I expected them to be at this point, having faced three of the toughest Blue Division teams so far in Williams Valley, Minersville and Haven. The Bears, however, have the potential to make the biggest improvement between now and Week 11.

Saturday’s win over Marian is a great springboard for this team moving forward. A very favorable schedule lies ahead, although Nativity and Tri-Valley will be big tests. With QB Levi Terry and running backs Kyler Quick and Michael Oblas, Dave Holman’s squad has the athletes to be very productive on offense. Excellent chance of making District 11 Class AA playoff field.

Final prediction: 4-6, District 11 Class 2A qualifier

Lehighton (2-3)

Outside of a Week 1 come-from-ahead loss to Northern Lehigh, the Indians’ season has pretty much gone as expected. Lehighton beat the teams it was expected to (Bangor, Palmerton) and lost to the teams it was expected to (Southern Lehigh, NW Lehigh).

The second half of the schedule is interesting as Lehighton plays four straight Schuylkill League teams before closing with its Route 209 Rivalry game against Jim Thorpe. Indians have the talent to pull an upset or two, but can they stay consistent enough to do so? Should be able to make eight-team District 11 Class 4A playoffs.

Final prediction: 3-7, District 11 Class 4A qualifier

Jim Thorpe (1-4)

The Olympians opened the season strong with a win over Palmerton but have hit the skids since, losing four straight games by a combined score of 195-21. An injury to talented quarterback Cole Lazorick has hurt, but the lack of a running game and a struggling defense have hampered success.

Red Division heavyweights Southern Lehigh and Northwestern Lehigh await in the second half of the schedule, but the other three games (Catasauqua, Bangor, Lehighton) are winnable. Eight of 10 teams in District 11 Class 4A get into the postseason. Olympians should gain one of the final berths.

Final prediction: 3-7, District 11 Class 4A qualifier

Panther Valley (1-4)

The Panthers have some promising pieces, led by quarterback Brody Breiner and wide receiver Brady Jones. Injuries to Breiner and running back Brennan Kunkel have hampered Panther Valley’s offense, however, and the Panthers have scored just 27 points in five games.

Finding some rhythm offensively is a goal for the second half of the season. Will be interested to see how Panthers fare Friday at Tri-Valley, and games with Shenandoah Valley and Mahanoy Area are interesting matchups.

Final prediction: 2-8

Pine Grove (1-4)

Like Panther Valley, Pine Grove has struggled to score points with just 48 so far. The Cards tallied 28 of them in Saturday night’s win over Shenandoah Valley as running back Logan Troup rushed for 150 yards and two scores. Dave Shiffer’s squad controlled the action in the trenches and got two of its better athletes, Wyatt Snyder and Teagan Schneck-Haines, involved in the offense. Those things have to continue moving forward.

Cardinals have interesting second-half matchups with Mahanoy Area and Marian but have tough tests with Minersville, Schuylkill Haven and Williams Valley. Will be interesting to see how much Cards improve.

Final prediction: 1-9

Shenandoah Valley (0-5)

I really liked what I saw Saturday night out of Dave Bench’s squad in its loss at Pine Grove. Freshman QB Ethan Bench got his first varsity start and made some mistakes, but he showed some promise, too. Great potential there. Speedsters Joel Nunez and Jonnuel Reyes give Devils some weapons, but an undersized line makes moving the ball difficult.

Numbers are a problem at Shenandoah Valley. The goal for the second half is to foster Ethan Bench’s development, adding positive thing to positive thing as the season progresses, and build some interest in the program. Getting more players out next season will help fuel improvement.

Final prediction: 0-10