Teachers in the Seneca Valley School District could go on strike today, but it won't stop Ron Butschle from coaching the high school's football team.

Butschle said the teachers' union has asked him not to coach if there is a strike. But he said he will cross a picket line if he must. Butschle is a 10th-grade English teacher at Seneca Valley.

"I couldn't look myself in the mirror if I didn't coach," Butschle said. "One of the things we talk about constantly with the team is the idea of commitment, and being dedicated to one another. It's kind of like being a family. I feel like I'd be turning my back on those kids if I didn't coach.

"I know this [crossing a picket line] is not going to sit real well with a lot of people. But I'm just going to have to deal with it. I'd rather deal with that, than knowing I was being disloyal to these kids, because I've asked for a lot of loyalty from them."

Seneca Valley has a 4-3 record and is in good shape to qualify for the WPIAL Class AAAA playoffs for the first time in Butschle's four years as coach. The Raiders are in third place in the Northern Five Conference. The top four teams are guaranteed a postseason spot.

Butschle has two assistants who are teachers. He said one has decided not to coach if there is a strike, but the other will continue coaching.

Playoff bound again

Jeannette has clinched a spot in the WPIAL Class AA playoffs for the 14th consecutive year, the longest current streak in the league.

The Jayhawks are 7-0 and averaging 56.3 points a game.

Upheaval in the City

Having the City League playoffs without Perry would seem strange, but it's a definite possibility. The Commodores are tied with Oliver for fifth place at 2-3, while Carrick is in fourth place at 3-2. Only the top four teams make the playoffs.

Since the City League instituted a four-team playoff field in 1986, Perry has qualified for the postseason every year.

On the other hand, Carrick has never qualified for the playoffs under the four-team format. The most recent postseason game for Carrick was 1983 when the Raiders beat Langley, 13-6, in the City League championship game.

Close to 400

Valley's Tracy Booker came close to becoming only the ninth running back in WPIAL history to rush for 400 yards in a game. Booker rushed for 389 in a 20-8 victory against Carrick Friday.

The previous time a WPIAL runner rushed for 400 yards was 2002, when Quaker Valley's James Rockymore had 411 and Mars' Brad Mueller 403.

The WPIAL record for most rushing yards in a game is 455, by Connellsville's Marcus Furman in 2000.

Elsewhere

Central Catholic tight end/defensive end Quentin Williams, one of the top uncommitted college prospects in the WPIAL, made a visit to Stanford this weekend.

He also plans to visit Boston College and Rutgers in the next month or so.

Standout player Dion Jordan of Chandler, Ariz., recently suffered third-degree burns on 40 percent of his body when he and a few teammates were trying to siphon gas from a teammate's car using a vacuum cleaner. According to the Arizona Republic, a spark from the vacuum caused an explosion.

Jordan (6 feet 6, 215 pounds) is ranked the No. 11 tight end in the country by rivals.com.

The Florida High School Athletic Association recently suspended 58 players from Miramar and Flanagan high schools because of their part in a brawl Sept. 28. Twenty-nine players from both teams were suspended, and the suspensions range anywhere from one week to six weeks.