With rivalry aside, Burrell, Valley players join forces for Foothills Football Classic

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, June 14, 2018 | 10:48 PM

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Jacob Robertson experienced up close the intensity of the Burrell-Valley on Friday night football rivalry.

He and his Bucs teammates were on the short end of an 18-13 decision to the Vikings in 2017.

But on Friday night, Burrell and Valley will join forces for a common winning goal.

Robertson and Burrell teammate Seth Tatrn, along with Valley's Shawn Demharter and Darius Johnson, will wear their own helmets but share the same colored jersey for the Red squad in the Foothills Football Classic all-star game at Hempfield High School.

Kickoff between the teams, featuring players from the 19 Westmoreland County schools which sponsor football, is set for 7 p.m.

“Those (conference) games between us and Valley were battles no one wanted to lose,” said Robertson, who hopes to walk on at Coastal Carolina, a Football Championship Subdivision school.

“We (Valley and Burrell players) have gotten to be good friends, but when we're on the same team, we're like brothers. We have the same mindset to go as hard as we can when we're on the field and make each other and the team better. It didn't take long for the guys on this team to form a bond.”

The Westmoreland County Coaches Association brought back the Foothills Classic last year after a nine-year hiatus.

In last year's matchup, the Red beat the Blue, 21-0, at Norwin High School.

“It's football, and there is a lot of respect for the other guys, no doubt,” said Demharter, a Slippery Rock football recruit who played just one season with Valley.

“It also will be fun to see how the guys from the smaller schools stack up with and against the guys from the bigger schools like Penn-Trafford, Norwin, Hempfield and Franklin Regional.”

Hempfield quarterback Justin Sliwoski will be a preferred walk-on at Pitt in August.

Jesap Wilson and Kadin Harden will represent Kiski Area on the Red team as the players from the WPIAL Class 5A Cavaliers will line up on the same side as their Alle-Kiski Valley compadres from Valley and Burrell.

“This is pretty special,” said Harden, a defensive lineman who will play at Geneva in the Division III Presidents' Athletic Conference. “There is so much talent on both teams. You never know who is going to step up and have a great game.”

Harden said it will be fun to play in college on Saturday afternoons, but he added it doesn't compare to the excitement of playing under the lights on a Friday night.

In addition to Burrell, Valley and Kiski Area, the Red squad, under Derry coach Tim Sweeney, will have players from Derry, Greensburg Central Catholic, Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Latrobe, Ligonier Valley and Mt. Pleasant.

Players from Belle Vernon, Franklin Regional, Kiski School, Jeannette, Norwin, Penn-Trafford and Yough will fuel the Blue team for coach Roy Hall, also the coach at PIAA Class A champion Jeannette.

“This is a new one for me, putting the pads back on at this time of the year,” said Johnson, an IUP football recruit who won the WPIAL and PIAA Class AA high jump championships last month.

“I've been working to get back into the pace of the game. I am ready to strap it up and go on the field and do what I do. It's going to be a lot of fun.”

For some players in Friday's game, this is it for organized football. It will be one final chance to shine under the Friday night lights.

Wilson, a running back, received an offer from D-III Buffalo State, and fellow D-III Allegheny and Waynesburg also showed interest, but, he said, he is unsure if his future plans football.

“I am pretty sure I am going to work with my dad after this,” said Wilson, who said he's dealt with his fair share of injuries over the years.

No matter what comes in the future, Wilson said he's savored every moment of his all-star experience so far and is ready to take the field Friday.

“Putting the pads back on at least one more time is a pretty big deal to me,” Wilson said. “This is a good time to meet new people, enjoy playing the game and work for one more win.”

Putting all of the talented pieces together in a quest for victory has been a fun and challenging task for the coaching staffs this week. Some players might see action at different positions from the ones they played during the fall regular season. Others could see time on both sides of the ball.

“We, as coaches, have gotten to know these guys and what they're all about throughout the week,” said Sweeney, who coached in the game as an assistant last year. “They are all-stars for a reason. A lot of it was the way they performed on Friday nights. But also, they are all-stars off the field. All of the communities throughout Westmoreland County are happy these players are representing them.”

Michael Love is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at mlove@tribweb.com or via Twitter @Mlove_Trib.

Tags: Burrell, Kiski School, Valley