Scouting report, Jake Sofran

Name: Jake Sofran
School: Beth-Center
Year: Junior
Position: Fullback/Linebacker
Height: 5-10
Weight: 210
By the numbers: To call Sofran a menace during his sophomore season at Beth-Center is being polite. Few players were as disruptive and productive.

A middle linebacker, Sofran was the leader of a Beth-Center defense that put up video-game numbers. In 11 games, Sofran had 129 tackles, including 11 for loss with two sacks. Sofran forced two fumbles and recovered four.

"That's something we expect, not only from Jake but the entire defense," Beth-Center coach Ed Woods said. "We run different drills all the time designed to create big plays on defense. We want eight or nine guys around the football on every play. Jake's usually there."

As a unit, Beth-Center's defense finished with 85 tackles for loss, 27 sacks, 18 forced fumbles, 13 interceptions and five kick blocks.

The scary thing is Beth-Center believes it can improve on those gaudy statistics.

"We had a good year last year on defense but most of us are back and we continue to work hard," Sofran said. "We can improve on those numbers. I know it's like PlayStation but the harder we work the more the chances are we increase those numbers."

Sofran led Beth-Center with 516 yards rushing and tied with DeShan Brown for the team lead with seven rushing touchdowns.

Continuing the tradition: Beth-Center surge in the WPIAL Class A standings began in 2003. Since that season, the Bulldogs have won 55 games and four postseason contests. During that span, the Bulldogs have produced a pair of outstanding middle linebackers.

Matt Stay was a first-team all-stater in 2005. A year later, Steve Hvizda made the Pennsylvania Football News Class A second-team.

"There's no question he's in the mold of Stay and Hvizda," Woods said. "He even reminds me of a kid we had named Shawn Rohrer in the early (1990s). They're all cut from the same mold."

Sofran knows Stay and Hvizda well. He watched the two tear up offenses while serving as a Beth-Center ballboy.

"This was my eighth football camp. I've been staying here since I was a little kid," Sofran said. "To see those guys like Matt Stay and Steve Hvizda, I always wanted to be like those guys. I always watched how they worked hard so when I got up here I always told everyone how hard we need to work so we can have seasons like they did."

Did you know?: Sofran isn't he biggest Bulldog but he's the strongest. Beth-center has a lifting test every six weeks for its players and Sofran can lift 1,100 combined between the squat, deadlift and bench press.