Familiar foes: Belle Vernon, EF know their semifinal opponents well
Holly Tonini
Belle Vernon无毛视频檚 Devin Whitlock (1) looks for a running lane during Friday无毛视频檚 WPIAL Class AAAA quarterfinal playoff game against New Castle at Belle Vernon. The Leopards take on Thomas Jefferson at West Mifflin in the semifinals tonight with a trip to the final at Heinz Field on the line.
Jim Downey | 无毛视频-Standard
Elizabeth Forward running back DaVontay Brownfield (9) looks a seam behind teammate Jace Brown (60) in the first quarter of a WPIAL Class AAA quarterfinal playoff game against Freeport on Nov. 12. Brownfield ran for 154 yards in the Warriors无毛视频� 14-6 win. Elizabeth Forward meets Central Valley at West Allegheny in the semifinals tonight with a trip to the final at Heinz Field on the line.
Belle Vernon and Elizabeth Forward are one step away from playing for a WPIAL football championship at Heinz Field.
A familiar foe stands in each team无毛视频檚 path tonight.
The top-seeded Leopards (9-0) take on No. 5 Thomas Jefferson (8-2) in a Class 4A semifinal at West Mifflin High School. Fourth-seeded EF (9-2) meets No. 1 Central Valley (11-0) in a Class 3A semifinal battle of Warriors at West Allegheny High School.
Belle Vernon defeated the visiting Jaguars on Sept. 24, 28-21, in a Big Eight Conference showdown thanks to two late, long touchdown runs by spectacular quarterback Devin Whitlock.
The Leopards defeating TJ in the regular season has not been uncommon under coach Matt Humbert. Coach Bill Cherpak无毛视频檚 Jaguars have lost only six conference games since 2015 and half of those have been to Belle Vernon.
The postseason has been a different story. Thomas Jefferson is 2-0 against Humbert无毛视频檚 squad in the WPIAL playoffs, defeating the Leopards 27-0 in the 2017 semifinals and 41-7 in the 2019 championship game.
Humbert was well aware of that fact after Belle Vernon无毛视频檚 earlier win over TJ this year.
无毛视频淚t is bittersweet because there is so much football left,无毛视频� Humbert said at the time. 无毛视频淭he irony is we have been through this story before where we get them in the regular season and then the postseason is a different animal.
无毛视频淚 think we need to hone in on what we are doing and get better each week because we know the real season begins in November.无毛视频�
Since that game, Belle Vernon has won by an average score of 46.2-12.4. After receiving a first-round bye, the Leopards romped over No. 8 New Castle in last week无毛视频檚 quarterfinals, 45-20.
Thomas Jefferson finished third in the Big Eight after suffering a second conference loss, 42-28 at McKeesport, on Oct. 22. The Jaguars have won their two playoff games handily, 41-0 over Indiana and 42-14 over previously undefeated and fourth-seeded Hampton, 42-14.
Belle Vernon hopes to have star running back Quinton Martin for a full game this time. In the first meeting with TJ, Martin suffered a knee injury and missed almost the entire second half.
The winner faces either No. 3 McKeesport or No. 2 Aliquippa who face off in the other semifinal. The Tigers beat Armstrong, 41-7, in the quarterfinals while the Quips gradually pulled away for a 36-0 win over Laurel Highlands.
无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 going to be tough,无毛视频� Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield said of facing the Tigers. 无毛视频淲e got to see a little bit of them. That wing-T is tough to stop. They无毛视频檙e good at it. They come out of there flying. We无毛视频檙e going to really have to be disciplined.无毛视频�
The Class 4A championship game is scheduled to be played at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 27 at Heinz Field.
A year ago, Elizabeth Forward rolled to an unbeaten regular season and was 8-0 after two playoff wins before falling to Central Valley in the WPIAL final, 35-0. Central Valley went on to win the PIAA championship and finished 12-0.
The CV Warriors (11-0) are riding an impressive 23-game winning streak with their last loss coming against Wyoming Area, 21-14, in the 2019 state final.
无毛视频淭hey无毛视频檝e been No. 1 in the state for two or three years and they are very talented,无毛视频� EF coach Mike Collodi said. 无毛视频淚 really don无毛视频檛 talk much about Central Valley to be honest. We无毛视频檙e just focusing on ourselves and what we need to do. Last year we were coming out of a battle with North Catholic (17-0 win in the semifinals) and a couple of our key players were injured going into Central Valley. That无毛视频檚 no excuse and they无毛视频檙e obviously a great team.
无毛视频淲e无毛视频檙e healthy now. We just need to play at our best and do all the little things, fundamentals, and don无毛视频檛 let the stage be too big. They know what无毛视频檚 at stake, a trip to Heinz Field. We just want to do what we do, which is play fast and play physical. That无毛视频檚 what we preach.无毛视频�
Elizabeth Forward (9-2) opened the season 1-2 but since then has reeled off eight wins in a row, including a 14-6 victory over Freeport in last week无毛视频檚 quarterfinals.
无毛视频淲e无毛视频檙e a completely different team than we were the first couple weeks of the season,无毛视频� Collodi said. 无毛视频淚njuries and inexperience hurt us early on. We were missing four two-way starters in one of those losses. We无毛视频檙e a young team but, overall, we无毛视频檝e matured tremendously since then.
无毛视频淲e definitely got on a roll. We无毛视频檙e humming pretty good and the kids are believing.无毛视频�
Time of possession will be a key factor in the game, according to Collodi.
无毛视频淲e want to control the ball and keep their high-powered offense off the field. No turnovers is a key. Against Freeport we turned the ball over three times. We can无毛视频檛 accord to do that in this game.
无毛视频淲e want to have sustained drives and come up with points every time we touch the ball, whether it be a touchdown or field goal. That无毛视频檚 what we have to do on offense.
无毛视频淥n defense, we无毛视频檝e got to tackle. Last year we didn无毛视频檛 tackle well. They have probably the best running back in Western Pennsylvania (Landon Alexander) and he runs hard, he无毛视频檚 fast and has great vision. We无毛视频檝e got gang tackle him because he never goes down on first contact. We无毛视频檙e really preaching flying to the ball and trying to create turnovers as well.无毛视频�
EF无毛视频檚 top offensive players are quarterback Zion White, running backs DaVontay Brownfield and Kyle Flournoy and wide receiver Zach Boyd.
无毛视频淲e have a lot of weapons,无毛视频� Collodi said. 无毛视频淲e have two strong runners that we try to give equal touches. Zion is a heck of a quarterback. He无毛视频檚 big, has a strong arm and is very cerebral. We ask him to do a lot of different things. Zach has scored a bunch of touchdowns in different ways.无毛视频�
One talented player Elizabeth Forward will be without is two-way starter Johnny DiNapoli, a junior transfer from East Allegheny who has been ruled ineligible for the postseason by the WPIAL.
无毛视频淛ohnny is one heck of a player,无毛视频滳ollodi said. 无毛视频淨uite frankly, I don无毛视频檛 understand the ruling behind it. It无毛视频檚 unfortunate. But it无毛视频檚 our next-man-up mentality. We know we don无毛视频檛 have him so the next man has to step up.无毛视频�
The winner will play either No. 2 North Catholic or No. 3 Avonworth in the Class 3A final, scheduled for noon on Saturday, Nov. 27 at Heinz Field.