Teams practice in earnest for football season
Chartiers Valley players Daniel McGeough (left) and John Sexauer (right) take a water break during practice drills.
Paris Ford is one of the players to watch this football season. The Seton-La Salle junior already has over 25 Division I scholarship offers. He hauled in 34 passes for 529 yards and 13 touchdowns last season for the Rebels, who reached the WPIAL Class AA semifinals. Ford is also a standout in the SLS defensive secondary.
Austin Scott makes a catch during football training camp. Scott is battling Dom Palmosina for the starting quarterback job at Bishop Canevin. Both he and Palmosina were wide receivers last season for the Crusaders.
After a week of PIAA-mandated, “heat-acclimatization” practices, high school teams across the region trained in earnest for the 2015 football season. Two-a-day, even some three-a-day sessions, finally afforded clubs the opportunity to don total football attire in preparation for kickoff for the first games, set for Sept. 4.
For most, it already has been a long, hot summer. According to Mt. Lebanon head coach Mike Melnyk, the five extra practices just added another mandatory week of preparation. “We already work out several hours a day with our kids, so it is not necessarily helpful,” Melnyk said of the heat-acclimatization sessions. He noted that teams were already able to wear helmets and shoulder pads. “So that isn’t a big deal. Any coach who prepares his kids does not really need this mandate.”
Bishop Canevin head coach Darren Schoppe concurred. He saw little value in the extra practices, where players donned helmets and shoulder pads but wore shorts and were not allowed full contact.
“Heat acclimatization is a waste of time,” he said. “We’ve been in helmets and shoulder pads all summer. Most have done it.”
However, absence for any reason, even vacation, forced players to make up the missed session. Players had to attend the five consecutive practices that could range from three to five hours before they were allowed to participate in full-contact drills or scrimmages. The first date for scrimmages against an opposing school is Aug. 22. Most teams will have a second scrimmage, under the lights, Aug. 29. The season opens over the Labor Day weekend with some teams actually playing conference contests.
For example, Lebo opens Southeastern Conference action Sept. 10 at Canon-McMillan. Kick-off is at 7:30 p.m. at the newly-renovated Canonsburg Memorial Stadium. The Blue Devils return several key components from last year’s 5-5 playoff squad, including Eddie Jenkins, Paul Grattan and Nick Tommasi. All are seniors. Jenkins threw for 1,287 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also rushed for 614 yards and eight more scores. Tommasi leads a talented receiving corps. He had 47 receptions for 611 yards. He averaged 6.4 yards a carry and rushed for five scores. A Villanova recruit, Grattan anchors an experienced offensive and defensive line.
Meanwhile, the Big Macs are excited about both their new turf and new leader. While the new track continued to be installed, Canon-McMillan headed to California University of Pennsylvania for its heat sessions. Adamson Stadium is where Mike Evans used to prowl. The former Vulcan offensive line coach is in his first season at the helm for Canon-Mac. In preparation for its conference opener, he will determine many things, including who will start at quarterback: Domenic Eannace or Jordan Smith. Alonzo Lemus in the backfield and Ahmad Morris-Walker at wide out are two of the skill players worth watching as the Big Macs hope to improve upon last year’s 0-9 showing.
Week One’s opening games also feature Upper St. Clair hosting Penn Hills and Bethel Park hosting highly-regarded Central Catholic. Peters Township travels to Woodland Hills, which boasts Miles Sanders. Regarded as the No. 1 all-purpose running back in the country, Sanders committed to Penn State last summer. A starter since his freshman year, Sanders has 3,050 career rushing yards, including 1,248 in 2014.
While PT must replace quarterback Cory Owen and a plethora of other skilled players as well as its linemen, BP and USC return their signal callers and more. A starter since his freshman year, Levi Metheny controls the Hawks’ fate as a returning 1,000-yard passer and anchor of the linebacker corps. The Hawks also boast experience on the line with Joshua Sosnak, Mark Dunlap, Chris Pauley, James Gmiter and Jake Dixon and a speedy defensive secondary that features Theron Murphy, Charlie Davis, Johnny Delano and Zack Tyalor. Meanwhile, USC returns two skilled quarterbacks in Gunnar Lund and Jackson Geisler. Pitt recruit Brandon Ford anchors a talented line, which also includes Ryan Harkleroad. Doug Wagner is the team’s top receiving threat and Thomas Vissman returns as the leading rusher.
Sept. 4 also sees the kickoff of Black Hills Conference play but Bishop Canevin opens its season with two non-league competitions: at Riverside and at home against Union (Sept. 12) before visiting Northgate.
Century Conference action begins in earnest for rivals South Fayette and Seton-La Salle.
Riding a 32-game winning streak into the season, South Fayette opens at East Allegheny while Seton-La Salle visits South Park on Sept. 4. The Lions enter the post-Brumbaugh era. Brett Brumbaugh guided SF to back-to-back PIAA and WPIAL titles. He shattered all his brother’s (Christian) records when he took them to the state finals. Brumbaugh is the state’s all-time leading passer with 11,084 yards.
Heading into camp, the Lions look to answer the question as to who will be their new signal caller: sophomore Drew Saxton or junior Mike Speca. “When you lose Brett, you go into camp not knowing what you are going to get,” said SF head coach Joe Rossi, “but we are excited to see these two kids work.”
The Lions are thrilled to have an experienced runner returning to the backfield. Hunter Hayes averaged almost eight yards a carry last season as he rambled for 2,103 yards and 33 scores. Hayes is being recruited by Ivy Leagues such as Penn as well as Bucknell and Lafayette.
While Nick Dabrowski will pave a path for Hayes and anchor the line for the Lions’ young quarterback, Nick Ponikvar is a seasoned veteran. A versatile performer, excelling as a pivotal return man on special teams, Ponikvar caught 53 passes for 1,018 yards and 10 touchdowns last season.
Despite losing standouts such as Danzel McKinley-Lewis (Toledo) and Tyler Perone (Seton-Hill), Seton-La Salle has its eye on Week 8 of the season. That is when the Rebels visit South Fayette Oct. 23 for a 7 p.m. kick-off. This year’s SLS team boasts Paris Ford. The junior already has more than two dozen scholarship offers, including one from Notre Dame. Ford had 34 receptions for 529 yards last year. He also scored 10 touchdowns.
The Rebels, who were 10-2 last season and WPIAL semifinalists, also boast a veteran line on both sides of the ball as well as a talented tailback in Lionel Deanes and Liam Sweeney. A two-way starter, Sweeney is the son of former NFL and Pitt standout Jim Sweeney.
In Class AAA, expectations are high at Chartiers Valley but the Colts must compete in the challenging Parkway Conference, which produced last year’s WPIAL finalists. Central Valley defeated West Allegheny for the district championship and finished runner-up in the state. After visiting Hopewell on Sept. 4 to open conference action, the Colts host West Allegheny on Sept. 11. They visit Central Valley on Oct. 16.