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Jeannette High School's Gio Vonne Sanders and the Jayhawks are 5-0.
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Defense sets the tone as Jeannette football rolls along in Class 1A

Pam Panchak/Post-Gazette

Defense sets the tone as Jeannette football rolls along in Class 1A

A bad taste was left in the mouth of the Jean­nette foot­ball team with its 40-0 de­feat to Clair­ton in the WPIAL Class A cham­pi­on­ship a year ago.

It es­pe­cially didn’t sit well with the de­fen­sive unit, which seems to be tak­ing it out on each op­po­nent it has faced so far in 2016.

Through five games, the Jay­hawks (5-0, 3-0) have al­lowed 4.8 points per game and have recorded back-to-back shut­outs against Riverview and Imani Chris­tian.

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“We put that in the past and move on but I’m sure some of the guys think about it,” coach Roy Hall said about last year’s de­feat. “It can cause a dis­trac­tion if we think about it.

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“The play­ers put stick­ers on their hel­mets for shut­outs. We have forced 19 turn­overs. I am very pleased about that. We have four of those re­turned for touch­downs.”

A big part of the suc­cess on de­fense is because of the lead­er­ship of de­fen­sive co­or­di­na­tor Jer­emy Binakon­sky. Binakon­sky is in his eighth year as de­fen­sive co­or­di­na­tor and a for­mer player un­der Hall at Jean­nette. Binakon­sky also played col­lege ball at More­head State.

“It is a whole coaching staff,” Hall said. “We strive on shutting a team down, not just one player. The guys know if they don’t do their job then they get pulled out. They try to play harder so they stay in.”

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Offensively, the Jayhawks have been just as impressive, averaging 48.6 points per game.

Unlike most squads, the Jayhawks have any number of players who can hurt the opponents in more than one way.

At quarterback, senior Gio Vonne Sanders has yet to turn the ball over, throwing nine touchdowns and passing for 609 yards which is third in Class 1A.

“Gio Vonne has taken care of the ball,” Hall said. “He plays outside linebacker. He is backup safety. He is a captain and very good leader. He benches over 300 pounds and weighs 160 pounds.”

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Senior running back Kareem Hall is fifth in Class 1A with 362 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. Kareem is one of two nephews on the team of the head coach. Senior lineman Eric Hall is also on the team.

“I am kind of harder on them,” Hall said. “I have coached about 10 to 12 of my nephews. I have cherished that. I have three daughters who have been water girls for us.”

Also making key contributions for the Jayhawks are Robert Kennedy and Ryan Swinton with six touchdowns apiece.

In recent years, Jeannette and Clairton have been the top two teams competing for the Class A title. While that still may be the case, they have more company than usual in the new Class 1A realignment. Through three weeks, there are still six teams undefeated.

“I definitely feel like there is more parity,” Hall said. “You have to give respect to Clairton but you can’t overlook anybody. There are a handful of teams in the classification that can win it. It should be fun.”

The No. 2 Jayhawks’ toughest test will come tonight when they travel to No. 5 Bishop Canevin (3-1, 2-1).

“I got to see them play this week on Saturday,” Hall said. “They are a solid team. They run a nice balanced attack. It will be our biggest test thus far.”

First Published: September 30, 2016, 4:00 a.m.

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Jeannette High School's Gio Vonne Sanders and the Jayhawks are 5-0.  (Pam Panchak/Post-Gazette)
Pam Panchak/Post-Gazette
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