The 2025 football season opens up across the state this week, and for the second consecutive year, the Golden Eagles will open on the road with a strong week one opponent.
Last year Tyrone traveled to Clearfield for the opener, and this season, they go to Bellefonte.
The Golden Eagles have scrimmaged the Red Raiders the last two seasons, but have not faced them in the regular season since 2022, when the Eagles dominated the Red Raiders 37-7. Tyrone leads the all-time series 43-22-9.
The Bellefonte Red Raiders are coming off a district championship season, going 7-5, and making it to the state playoffs.
Some key returners for the Red Raiders are Logan Rarick, who was named a first-team All-Conference defensive end, Isaac Gall, who tallied over 300 receiving yards last season, and Ka’ven Smith-Kirk, who rushed for over 400 yards last season.
The Golden Eagles had some key losses coming to graduation after last season. It will be hard to replace a four-year starter and multiple record holding quarterback Ashton Walk. However, Senior Eli Woomer is showing a lot of promise, and the amount of hard work and senior leadership Woomer brings to the team is unmatched.
Tyrone will also have to replace standout wide receiver Trent Adams, who accounted for 14 touchdowns in the 2024 season. Junior Mason Emigh is rising throughout the ranks. Emigh got a solid amount of playing time last season, but was outshone by Adams and Woomer. Emigh is projected to have a breakout season this year as the Golden Eagles starting wide receiver.
The Golden Eagles have struggled in recent years to have a dominant offensive line, however, this season the Golden Eagles return all five of their starting linemen.
Senior John Stanton will return this season after missing his junior year rehabbing a torn ACL and meniscus. This will be a huge gain for the Eagles to have Stanton back after starting his freshman and sophomore years, but sitting out the entirety of his junior season.
Caden Harris also missed half the season with a knee injury, but he rehabbed hard and is set to have his breakout season playing both offense and defense. Owen Oakes also suffered an injury in his junior season, but is back to 100 percent and hopes to have a massive impact on both sides of the ball.
Bellefonte will likely challenge the Golden Eagles by running various sweeps, powers, and traps to create gaps for their running back Kevin Smith-Kirk.
The key for Tyrone to emerge victorious is to win the battle in the trenches on the offensive and defensive lines, getting 11 guys to the ball on defense, and for the skill position guys to get open and make plays.
Kickoff is at 7 pm in Bellefonte.
