Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane stopped and pondered the quarterback matchup for tonight's game.
"When I think of it, I don't think I've ever coached in a game like this with two quarterbacks," he said.
But this rare quarterback showdown goes well beyond Ruane's personal coaching account.
Although no records are available for this type of thing, you will be hard-pressed to find many -- if any -- WPIAL games over the years that match two quarterbacks who have both passed for 2,000 yards heading into a semifinal game. But that is the case for tonight's Class AAAA semifinal between Penn-Trafford (11-0) and Pine-Richland (10-1), who meet at 7:30 at Penn Hills. The game can be seen on Root Sports.
• PG Interactive: Quick facts about the remaining teams:
Two standout quarterbacks go head-to-head in what is sort of the veteran vs. rookie clash. Penn-Trafford's Brett Laffoon is the seasoned one, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound senior, a three-year starter who has thrown for 2,011 yards (108 of 155) this season. Pine-Richland's Phil Jurkovec is sort of the rookie who has burst onto the scene after playing ninth-grade football last season. Jurkovec is a 6-4½ sophomore who has thrown for 2,368 yards (164 of 246).
"It is kind of a unique matchup," said Ruane. "But what I think also is unique is that probably both teams still run more than they throw. It's not like this is two run-and-shoot teams."
Both teams have successful running games as well, but Pine-Richland's running attack also centers around Jurkovec. He leads the team in rushing with 1,172 yards on 119 carries and is only the second quarterback in WPIAL history to rush for 1,000 and throw for 2,000 in a season.
Pine-Richland also has Jim Graf, who has 909 running yards on 127 attempts. Penn-Trafford's leading rusher is Jonah Lisbon (1,102 yards on 140 carries), but Laffoon also is a threat, running for 402 yards on 42 carries.
Penn-Trafford also features a game-breaker at receiver in Tim Vecchio. "He's the guy we have to stop," said Pine-Richland coach Eric Kasperowicz.
But this game more than likely will come down to the two quarterbacks, whose statistics are similar in many ways. Laffoon has thrown only two interceptions all season and Jurkovec three. Laffoon completes 70 percent of his passes and Jurkovec 67 percent. Penn-Trafford averages 47.4 points a game and Pine-Richland 45.8.
The two also are similar in the rave reviews they get from the opposing coach.
"The Jurkovec kid is fantastic," said Ruane. "He can do everything. But it's not just him. They're sound everywhere."
Kasperowicz said, "[Laffoon] is probably the best quarterback we've seen, just because of what he's been able to do throwing the ball, running and just commanding the offense."
Laffoon has thrown for 5,428 career yards and needs only 72 yards to become the 18th quarterback in WPIAL history to throw for 5,500 yards. And here's one for the great coincidence department: The player right in front of Laffoon on the WPIAL all-time list is Kasperowicz, who threw for exactly 5,500 yards at North Hills from 1990-93.
"It's amazing -- not how times have changed -- but how many yards people are throwing for nowadays. Another 10 years, I'll probably be down around 35 on that list," Kasperowicz said with a laugh.
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Penn-Trafford has lost in the semifinals to Central Catholic the past two seasons. A victory would put the Warriors in a title game for only the second time in school history. The other was 1997, when they lost to Upper St. Clair.
Pine-Richland is trying to make the title game for the second consecutive season.
Woodland Hills coach George Novak likes the way his team is playing, "but now we have to play the 'Monsters of the Midway,' " he said.
He was referring to Central Catholic, a team loaded with major-college recruits. Woodland Hills (11-0) and Central Catholic (10-1) meet at 7:30 p.m. at Fox Chapel.
These two had some great games when they played in the Quad East and Big East Conferences, but they haven't played in the same conference since 2011.
Woodland Hills is trying to make it to the title game for the 11th time under Novak, who has been at the helm since the school opened in 1987. Woodland Hills has won five championships.
Central Catholic is trying to make a WPIAL title game for the third consecutive season and the eighth time since joining the league in the mid 1970s. Central Catholic and Woodland Hills have split two championship meetings, Woodland Hills winning in 2001 and Central Catholic in 2013.
First Published: November 20, 2015, 5:00 a.m.
