Shenango is trying to make up for lost time.
This year is the first time the Wildcats have qualified for the WPIAL Class 1A playoffs in four years and they want to make a statement.
And no statement would be bigger than knocking off top-seeded defending champion Clairton and earning a spot in the finals for the first time in school history.
“They have a great tradition there and tremendous athletes go through their program,” Shenango coach Jimmy Graham said. “They’ve kind of established a culture of winning and you expect to win there and, obviously, it’s a tall task for us that we’ll accept with open arms. Yeah, it does give us an opportunity to see where we are going against a powerhouse like that”
Considering that Shenango was 1-9 in Graham’s first season in 2018, the turnaround has been incredible. The Wildcats failed to qualify for the postseason last year despite a 6-4 overall record because of a pair of late conference losses to New Brighton and Neshannock, but rebounded this season to earn a share of the Class 2A Midwestern Conference title.
This is the first year Shenango is playing in Class 1A since 2017.
“I think it’s a combination of developing the program and the move down because we’re really a Single-A team and, my first year, it was a little of the kids getting to know the new coaching staff and our conference was very good,” Graham said. “Last year, we had a couple of games that didn’t go our way, but we had the program going in the right direction.”
While Shenango is attempting to build a legacy, it’s almost ho-hum that Clairton is where it is. The Bears are in the semifinals for the 15th consecutive year and have won 10 titles in that time.
In addition, Clairton joined the 700-win club this season and is now fifth all time in WPIAL victories with 701.
Considering their relative dominance over the classification, it’s not entirely surprising that this season, since its season-opening win against Jeannette, the Bears have averaged 57.5 points per game and their lowest output was a 45-10 win against Springdale.
Part of the reason for that is the team’s ability to take what a defense gives it. Clairton has an outstanding quarterback in Jonte Sanders, who has thrown for nearly 1,000 yards and 15 touchdowns, while running back Dontae Sanders has more than 1,500 yards this year and 25 touchdowns.
It also helps that the Bears are strong up front. Clairton has traditionally had solid offensive lines, but rarely has the team had as dominant a blocker as it has in 6-foot-5, 310-pound Howard recruit Dametrius Weatherspoon.
“He’s the catalyst on that offensive line and he’s a pretty good leader and he takes care of his business,” Clairton coach Wayne Wade said. “Week in and week out, he’s not giving up any sacks, he’s pancaking guys, so it kind of goes as he goes, but we’ve got other guys on the line that do a great job for us as well.”
Surprisingly, Weatherspoon is an offensive specialist. Usually at smaller schools he would be forced to play on both sides of the ball, but this year, the Bears have enough depth that he has rarely had to step onto the field as a defensive lineman.
“We’ve had the pleasure where he’s not playing defense a ton so he’s fresh pretty much every series,” Wade said. “He’s not getting tired and it’s showing.”
Clairton may decide to use him a little on defense this week as a run-stopper if it is to contain Shenango running back Reis Watkins, who has more than 1,200 yards rushing this season. Watkins has been in and out of the lineup in recent weeks after sustaining an ankle injury in a late-season win against Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and only saw limited action in last week’s playoff win against California.
“Unfortunately, he took a helmet right on the injury [against California] that created a pain he could not push through,” Graham said. “He rested it and iced it and we’re optimistic that he can play and, if not, we go with what we’ve got. We have some capable guys that stepped up when he was out.”
If Watkins can’t go, the team will rely on CJ Miller, who scored two touchdowns against the Trojans, and possibly Aaron Martin and Hunter Lively. But the Wildcats are not one-dimensional as the team showed against California when quarterback Tino Campoli completed 10 of 18 for 148 yards and a touchdown to move them into the semifinals.
“We just need to play Bear football, to dominate and get to the ball and all 11 hats to the ball,” Wade said. “When a team is more of a run team, it kind of suits what we like to do because of the style of defense we play.”
Other semifinal
There have been a lot of good quarterbacks who have come through the Jeannette program over the years, but Brad Birch has done something none of them have accomplished.
He became the starter as a freshman.
“We’ve had some tremendous athletes as quarterbacks, Terrelle Pryor, Robert Kennedy and everything, but we’ve never had a freshman start at quarterback, which is a lot to say for our program,” Jeannette coach Roy Hall said. “When you start your career against the Clairton Bears, you expect to see some nerves or something, but he was ready to go from the opening kickoff.”
Birch has been a pleasant surprise as he has thrown for nearly 1,700 yards and 25 touchdowns this season. In his postseason debut last week, he completed 7 of 10 for 317 yards and five touchdowns in a 62-14 win against Avella.
Having a quarterback of that caliber has also aided the Jayhawks running game where Roberto Smith has 558 yards this season.
Conversely, Rochester is still an old-school 3-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust team that tries to establish dominance at the line of scrimmage, control the clock and play field position football. Denny Robinson leads a balanced Rams ground attack with Rashawn Reid and Sal Laure also are major contributors.
Reid carried the team past Springdale in their quarterfinal matchup with 205 yards and three touchdowns including a 66-yarder.
“We’ve got to be prepared and everybody has to do their assignments because they’re going to come at you,” Hall said. “They let you know that they’re coming at you and you have to stop them.”
THE MATCHUPS
Game 1
Who: Shenango (7-1) vs. Clairton (7-0)
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Where: Norwin Knights Stadium
The skinny: This will be the first time Shenango is in the WPIAL semifinals since 1987 when it lost, 27-7, to Monaca. … The last time the Wildcats and Bears faced off in the postseason was in 2014 when Clairton dominated in a 68-7 victory at Chartiers-Houston in Wayne Wade’s first year as head coach. … Dontae Sanders’ 428 rushing yards last week against Our Lady of the Sacred Heart was more yardage than the No. 2 and No. 3 rushers on Shenango have combined for the entire season. … Since their streak of semifinal appearances began in 2006, the Bears have compiled a record of 190-18, an average of 12.67 wins per season.
Game 2
Who: Jeannette (7-1) vs. Rochester (7-1)
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Where: Rochester Stadium
The skinny: This will be the fourth time in the past five years Jeannette and Rochester will face each other in the playoffs. Jeannette currently holds a 2-1 edge. … The Rams are seeking their 13th WPIAL finals appearance since 1991. They have not won the championship since they took their eighth crown in 2004. Like Clairton, Jeannette is one of only six teams in WPIAL history with at least 700 wins. .. The Jayhawks are seeking their 14th finals appearance and 10th title. … Both team defenses have been stingy this season as Jeannette has only allowed 12.0 ppg while Rochester has given up 11.6.
First Published: November 5, 2020, 11:45 a.m.
