Westmoreland football notebook: GCC will take on different look in WPIAL playoffs

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Thursday, October 28, 2021 | 8:03 PM

Greensburg Central Catholic has clinched a spot in the WPIAL Class A football playoffs, but the team the Centurions roll out in the opener might be unrecognizable compared to the one fans have seen all season.

That is because the Centurions have to sit five transfers, all two-way starters, for the postseason because of WPIAL rules.

GCC transfers include seniors Taishaun Jamison (WR/DB) and Kiantae Robinson (WR/DB), and juniors Jaydin Canady (WR/DB), Ryan Kimmel (OL/DL/LB), and Brayen Hill (WR/DB).

Jamison, Canady and Kimmel came from Jeannette, Robinson from Monessen and Hill from Latrobe.

Robinson cannot play in the last regular-season game Friday because he was ejected last week at Jeannette.

To make matters worse for GCC, senior Danny Dlugos, a fullback and linebacker, is done for the season with a torn left ACL and MCL he sustained against Clairton.

Dlugos is the team’s leader in rushing yards (323) and all-purpose yards (437) and is second in tackles (40).

He will be sidelined for four to six months.

GCC’s coaching staff has been proactive with the writing on the wall.

“It will definitely be different, but I think we have done a good job over the last few weeks, rotating everyone in,” GCC coach Marko Thomas said. “Getting them more playing experience as the season has gone on (is important).

“We’re hoping that it won’t be too much of a shock for some as we enter the playoffs.”

Playoff teams

The local playoff field will be set after Friday night.

So far, Penn-Trafford (5A), Franklin Regional (5A), Belle Vernon (4A), Mt. Pleasant (3A) and Greensburg Central Catholic (A) have clinched postseason berths.

Greensburg Salem (4A), Southmoreland (3A), Ligonier Valley (2A) can clinch with wins Friday night.

The WPIAL will release playoff brackets Saturday night. The TribLive High School Sports Network will carry exclusive coverage of the pairings beginning at 6 p.m.

Norwin eliminated

WPIAL mathematics when it comes to tiebreakers can make your head spin and your blood-pressure rise, especially if you’re a team trying to get into the football playoffs.

Take Norwin.

The Knights (3-6, 1-5) put together one of their best games of the season, toppling No. 5-ranked Canon-McMillan, 16-7, for their first win in the Class 6A conference.

The Week 8 win broke a five-game losing streak. The Knights heard they were still alive in the playoff chase.

But then the news came in that Norwin, no matter what it did against Hempfield in the regular-season finale, could not make the playoffs.

That means Friday’s game at Hempfield won’t affect the standings, but don’t tell that to the teams.

“It was heartbreaking, really, because we played an excellent game and never quit,” Norwin senior running back Dom Barca said. “As far as going into this last game, there is nothing different. It is another opportunity to perform and have some fun against our rival.”

Even if the Knights finished tied with Canon-McMillan and Baldwin, they could not have overtaken them in tiebreaker points.

With -41, Norwin had no chance of catching either team to get fifth place in the eight-team conference. A forfeit due to covid issues hurt the Knights.

Hall’s last stand

Jeannette coach Roy Hall will work his final game for the Jayhawks on Friday night at Clairton, ending a 37-year career for the proud alum.

Hall has been the team’s head coach for 13 seasons. He has 116 wins with two WPIAL titles and a PIAA championship.

While Clairton remains an elite team and takes the No. 1 ranking into Week 9, Jeannette has fallen on hard times with the loss of numerous transfers, inexperience and low roster numbers.

Jeannette and Clairton have been two of the top programs in Class A and had formed a rivalry, with a number of playoff matchups.

The Jayhawks and Bears have met in three WPIAL title games since 2014, the year Jeannette dropped to single-A.

Clairton won two of them. Jeannette won last year, 45-14.

“He’s a great guy,” Clairton coach Wayne Wade said of Hall. “It’s sad to see him give it up, but he’s done a lot for that town, community, team, school and kids. He definitely will be missed. It’s hard to replace a guy like that.”

Wade, by the way, started as an assistant in 1997 until 2001, then came back in 2008. He became head coach in 2014.

Unlike Hall, Wade also coached basketball.

Jeannette honored Hall last week in his final home game. Friends even decorated his house in West Jeannette.

Derry situation

Derry has one game left in what has been a long, trying season. The Trojans (0-8, 0-4) visit top-ranked North Catholic (9-0, 5-0) in the Class 3A Allegheny Seven Conference finale Friday night.

But for the second week in a row, Derry’s coaching staff will look different. After the school relieved coach Vince Skillings of his duties for the remainder of the season, athletic director Brett Miller and associate principal Mike Arone joined the young staff to help see things to a finish.

Miller said an interim head coach has not been appointed.

After an undisclosed situation caused his departure, Skillings said Derry officials suspended him and said his position would be vacated, but also he was told he could reapply.

Derry coaches work on one-year contracts.

Miller said the matter has not yet reached the level where Derry would begin a search for a new head coach.

Yacamelli tops 1,000

Penn-Trafford senior running back Cade Yacamelli became the first 1,000-yard rusher from Westmoreland County this season.

The Wisconsin commit has 1,025 yards and 12 touchdowns on 108 carries.

He is the 12th player from Penn-Trafford to eclipse 1,000 yards in a season.

Bowen returns

Friday’s Norwin at Hempfield game will feature the return of former Hempfield coach Rich Bowen, who is an assistant for Norwin.

Bowen coached the Spartans for nine seasons. He went 30-55 with four WPIAL playoff trips and had a winning season in 2013.

His son, Sean, also is a Norwin assistant.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Clairton, Derry Area, Greensburg C.C., Jeannette, Mt. Pleasant, Norwin, Penn-Trafford, Southmoreland