Andrew Foltz looked out a doorway leading to Lancaster Catholic's locker room Wednesday night, saw the rain glistening on the deep purple helmets of kids roughly half his age, saw their white uniforms caked with mud, and grinned.

The Crusaders' senior guard had once been where those kids are now.

And those future Crusaders are no doubt dreaming of one day getting to where Foltz and his teammates will be tonight at 7:

Hosting Manheim Central in a game of statewide interest, a matchup of two of the top-ranked teams in Pennsylvania.

"We beat them last year (21-8 in Manheim) when a lot of people didn't give us a chance and it was a big win for us," said Foltz. "I'm sure they're going to want to come out and show they're better than us."

Foltz will be one of those in the center of the storm. Skill position players like Catholic's Kyle Smith, Tyler Purvis and Quinn Houser; Central's Justin Gorman, Joe Gruber and Dan Trafford get the headlines, but both coaches agree this game will be won down in the dirt of Rossmere Stadium.

"Absolutely," Baron boss Mike Williams said. "We told our linemen they'll make or break us."

Catholic's Bruce Harbach sounded a similar message.

"Controlling the line of scrimmage," he said, "will be a big part of this game."

Pennsylvania Cable Network will broadcast the game statewide. Consider it a showcase for two teams that began the season with enormous hype. Pennsylvania Football News listed Central second in the state in Class AAA and Catholic second in AA in its preseason rankings.

Both are unbeaten after two weeks and have won impressively. MaxPreps.com ranks Catholic third overall in the state.

The Barons are in the midst of a grueling three-game grind — Wilson, Catholic and Cocalico. Gruber, an old-school bruiser, welcomes the gauntlet.

"I'm glad for that," he said. "It will show us what kind of team we have."

Other games of note tonight include Elizabethtown at Manheim Township and McCaskey at Coatesville. The latter finds the Red Tornado facing two of their former coaches, Matt Ortega and Scott Feldman.

Game To Watch

Manheim Central at Lancaster Catholic: That tonight's game marks the last time Catholic and Central will share the same field for the foreseeable future adds another layer of intrigue.

"We'd like to get them back on our schedule," Williams said. "Lancaster Catholic has great history, great tradition."

So, too, do the Barons. That's one reason why they're anxious to avenge last year's loss, a game in which Central was shut out on its home turf until the final minute.

"We played like crap," Gruber said.

The Crusaders have fonder memories.

"For me, it meant a lot to play a team like that," said offensive lineman-linebacker Andrew Heise.

Smith agreed, then added, "It definitely set a tone for our season."

Both teams return 90 percent of last year's championship squads. Being senior-laden, their lineups are now bigger, stronger, faster, more experienced and better than a year ago.

Smith and Gorman, senior quarterbacks both, lead their respective spread offenses.

Smith is closing in on two of the state's most impressive high school records: career touchdown passes and passing yardage. The southpaw has accounted for 9 TDs already this season.

Williams, who has game planned for Division I talents Jake Kelchner and Ron Powlus, Jordan Steffy and Zach Frazer, calls Smith one of the best QBs he's coached against.

The Crusaders, meanwhile, know all about Gorman. "Everyone's hyped up about their quarterback," Purvis said.

For good reason. Gorman totaled three scores in Saturday's comeback win over Wilson, and he credits the fast start — his own and his team's — to the seasoned Barons having settled into their roles.

"It's about experience," Gorman said. "Last year, we had 11, 12 juniors starting. This year, we're more settled down."

Gruber leads the Baron ground game; Quinn Houser and the re-instated Rhys McCall and Jordan Stewart headline the Crusader running attack.

"Our offensive line has done a great job," said Houser, a hard runner who gouged out 97 yards last week at Ephrata. "They're opening up big holes."

And it's along the line of scrimmage where this game will be decided. It's the guys in the trenches — guys like Central's Dakota Royer and Gruber; Catholic's Ross Hall, Heise and Foltz — who control tempo and dictate momentum.

"Central looks good, they have a lot of athletes," Foltz said. "We have to play our best or we're going to have a tough time."

"It's a big challenge, a test of our will and skill," said Gruber. "We'll have to play with heart."

Players of the Week

Following are the L-L Players of the Week, named by the league's Quarterback Club:

Section One Back: Penn Manor FB/LB Andy Olson registered 15 tackles, including 8 solo and 1 for loss, in a win over Lampeter-Strasburg. He also had a forced fumble.

Section One Lineman: Hempfield center Chuck Pease owned a 95-percent blocking grade and 2 knockdown blocks in a win over Garden Spot.

Section Two Back: Solanco RB/DB B.J. Enck rushed for 138 yards and 1 TD on 9 carries against Kennard-Dale. Enck also caught 6 passes for 63 yards and a score. He added a 32-yard interception return and returned two kicks for 52 yards.

Section Two Lineman: Elizabethtown G/LB David Kennedy had 17 tackles, including 13 solo and 3 for loss, against Muhlenberg. He added a forced fumble and fumble recovery.

Section Three Back: Elco QB/DB Aaron Achey threw for 256 yards and four TDs in a victory over Pine Grove. He added 55 yards rushing on 12 carries. Defensively, he had 10 tackles, 4 solo, and 1 forced fumble.

Section Three Lineman: Lineman Kevin Bryan of Elco recorded 13 tackles, 6 solo. He was credited with a consistent effort on offense.

E-mail: egruver@lnpnews.com