Before Ryan Linn arrived in Moon in 2017, you could say the Tigers’ football program was a bit of an afterthought.
With only two previous trips to the WPIAL semifinals in 85 years, few could have ever envisioned Moon making trips to the Final Four in Class 5A a near-annual occurrence — especially with the Tigers having to navigate the notoriously grueling Allegheny Six Conference just to get into the postseason.
And yet, for the third time in the past five seasons, here they are.
“We’re the fifth team in Moon history to make it this far. … No one expects us still to be here,” Linn said. “You could see the kids are still kids. … You could see when it starts to snow, their spirits went up immediately. It’s snowing, and you’re still playing football. It’s a pretty cool thing to be involved in.”
After avenging a 25-24 defeat against No. 4 Penn-Trafford from earlier this season by going into enemy territory and escaping with a 20-13 win at Warrior Stadium last week, No. 5 Moon (9-3) is now set up for the ultimate challenge at 7 p.m. Friday, when the Tigers take on defending WPIAL champion Pine-Richland (11-1) at Chartiers Valley. The top-seeded Rams average a whopping 48.9 ppg, and many are already picking them as the team to beat in both the WPIAL and PIAA title chase.
Linn and his bunch wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Everyone expects Pine to be here. They’re the top team,” Linn said. “But for us, we’ve never backed down from anybody.”
Although a Moon victory would be one of the biggest upsets in years, don’t think for a second these Tigers are just a bunch of scrappy no-names. A team littered with high-level athletes and big-time playmakers, Moon’s biggest strength lies in its depth and versatility across the board.
Senior quarterback Andrew Cross is a Penn State baseball recruit who has passed for 970 yards and 12 touchdowns while also leading the team with 470 yards rushing. Not far behind him is Antione Arnett with 460 yards on the ground, while heralded Kent State linebacker recruit Daiveon Taylor didn’t run the ball much during the regular season, but he racked up 104 yards and two TDs in a first-round win over Armstrong.
“I think it’s a situational thing,” Linn said about using Taylor on offense. “He’s kind of the hammer. Short-yardage guy. If we’ve got an advantage, let’s get him in here.”
Elsewhere, senior Braeden Stuart leads the team with 28 receptions for 286 yards and five TDs, while junior Savario Vandetti has 25 catches for a team-high 377 yards and six scores. And senior Jayden Revis, son of Pro Football Hall of Famer and Aliquippa grad Darrelle Revis, has 14 receptions for 272 yards and five TDs.
“We’ve kind of always been that way for five or six years,” Linn said about his team’s balanced receiving corps. “We have six or seven dudes, then you have a kid like Paul Bronaugh who can be a wild card on Friday night. It makes us difficult to plan for, because you don’t know who is getting the ball.”
Of course, just like his dad, Revis shines brightest on the defensive side of the ball as a shutdown corner alongside standout senior Myles Turner. Together, they allow the Tigers to play fast and physical while constantly blitzing and playing man coverage on the outside.
On paper, that seems like the only recipe for success to stop a team like Pine-Richland, with two of the top receiving weapons in the WPIAL in Khalil Taylor and Jay Timmons along with star quarterback Oobi Strader. All that’s left to do is find out on Friday night.
“I’ll take these dudes that I have in this locker room against anybody,” Linn said. “Because you’re going to get our best shot, and if you’re not ready for it, it’s going to be a long night for you. … If it’s a one-score game late in that third or early in that fourth quarter, I like our chances.”
The other Class 5A semifinal features a rematch of arguably the most anticipated game of the regular season, which saw No. 2 Peters Township outlast No. 3 Upper St. Clair for a thrilling 24-20 victory back in late September. That clash wound up deciding the Allegheny Six Conference champion, as many expected, but this one will have much more on the line when these two bitter rivals meet again at 7 p.m. Friday at Canon-McMillan.
Astute observers — like Indians coach T.J. Plack — will remember that these teams found themselves in almost the exact same scenario at this point last season, only with the roles reversed.
“It’s always hard to beat a team twice,” Plack said. “All week, we’re just taking our kids back to last year. What they thought about last year, how they felt last year when the shoe was on the other foot.
“We have to keep that edge.”
Plack is looking to guide Peters Township (11-0) into the WPIAL championship game for the third year in a row, something that would have been truly unthinkable before he took the job in 2016. Similar to what Linn has done at Moon, Plack has engineered one of the most remarkable turnarounds of any coach in recent WPIAL history over the past decade, guiding the Indians to their first WPIAL title in school history in 2023 along with their first PIAA championship appearance.
This team, though, could be their best ever.
With senior quarterback Nolan DiLucia continuing his climb up the all-time WPIAL passing leaderboard, plus a 1,000-yard rusher with 22 TDs in Cole Neupaver and a stable of solid wideouts to spread the ball around to, Peters Township has a handful of different ways to beat you on offense.
“It’s just going to come down to execution, effort and having our guys ready to play,” Plack said. “We’re going to have to play simple, fast and let our guys enjoy the moment.”
That being said, the Indians’ bread and butter is still their suffocating defense, with Pitt recruit Reston Lehman and Stanford recruit Lucas Shanafelt wreaking havoc as two of the top edge rushers in the state. On the season, Peters Township is outscoring its foes by an average score of 35 to 7 while boasting the No. 1 scoring defense in Class 5A.
On the other side, Upper St. Clair (10-2) has the second-leading passer in the area in senior quarterback Ethan Hellmann, who has completed 155 of 227 attempts for 2,480 yards with 32 TDs and only five interceptions. Hellmann has been nothing short of spectacular all season, but the Panthers will need him to be saving his best for last in order to get past the Indians on Friday.
“We understand where their mindset is. We were in that same position last year,” Plack said. “They were the undefeated team last year, and we had a sour taste in our mouth after losing at their place last year. It’s going to come down to not making mistakes. We turned the ball over four times last time. We’re not going to win if we turn the ball over four times again.”
Class 3A
The Class 3A semifinals might not have quite as much suspense on one side, where many fans are already penciling defending champion Avonworth into the title game going into its rematch against North Catholic. But the showdown between No. 2 Imani Christian (11-0) and No. 3 Central Valley (7-4) at 7 p.m. Friday at Montour does offer plenty of intriguing storylines to examine.
On one side, you have the unbeaten Saints, who are back in the Class 3A semifinals for the second year in a row after completing their second consecutive undefeated regular season. They are coached by LaRoi Johnson, the former head coach at Sto-Rox, who has coached in two previous WPIAL championship games but is still seeking his first title.
On the other side, you have the Warriors, who are now one win away from advancing to the WPIAL championship game for the sixth time in the past seven years. They are coached by Mark Lyons, winner of five WPIAL titles and two state titles.
“I’m a competitor by nature,” Johnson said. “For my sake, I always want to have the opportunity to get into the [chess] match with somebody. Obviously, coach Lyons is an extremely great coach and has won a lot. … It will be my first time going against him. I look forward to it.”
Leading the way for Imani Christian’s explosive offense, which ranks tops in Class 3A with an average of 48.6 ppg, is the terrific tandem of Gabe Jenkins and David Davis. Both blue-chip recruits who were originally committed to Penn State before reopening their recruitment after the firing of James Franklin, Jenkins is a junior who converted to quarterback this season while Davis, a senior, is a do-it-all playmaker.
On the season, Jenkins has passed for 1,603 yards and ran for 1,211 yards with 28 passing TDs and 13 rushing TDs. One of four players on the team with more than 400 yards rushing, Davis has 29 carries for 416 yards (14.3 yards per rush) along with 19 receptions for 515 yards (27.1 yards per catch) for 15 total TDs.
“Last year, they might have felt a little bit fresh to it,” Johnson said. “They’re playing for legacy. They’re playing to ultimately prove who they are, who we are, who this program is. They understand that.”
As for Central Valley, junior quarterback Braddock Ambrose has passed for 1,371 yards and 13 TDs with eight interceptions, while Aaron Lawson leads the team with 30 catches for 524 yards. But the Warriors’ main offensive weapon is senior Ethan Shearer, who has rushed for 876 yards and 18 scores.
“Pressure is a privilege in this game,” Johnson said. “If you feel pressure in this game, then you’re privileged, because you’re playing in big games.”
Finally, No. 1 Avonworth (11-0) will take on No. 5 North Catholic (9-3) for the second time this season, this time at 7 p.m. Friday at North Allegheny. The Western Hills Conference foes met less than one month ago on the Trojans’ home field, with the Antelopes emerging victorious in a lopsided affair by a score of 42-10.
Many believe Avonworth has been one of the most impressive teams in the area all season, regardless of classification — and that is certainly saying something for a Class 3A team. The Antelopes are beating their opponents by an average score of 41.2 to 8.1, and it’s not like they’ve been doing it against cupcakes, either. They own top-notch victories against the likes of Aliquippa, Thomas Jefferson and Central Valley — and they beat both the Quips and Warriors on the road.
Avonworth is as well-rounded as any team you’ll find, with senior quarterback Carson Bellinger passing for 1,768 yards and 25 TDs to only one interception on the season. Meanwhile, senior Luca Neal has 38 catches for 760 yards to go with 320 yards rushing and 16 TDs, and Dimitri Velisaris has 1,324 yards rushing and 21 TDs. Plus, Navy recruit Peter Bonnet anchors a stout offensive line that lays the foundation for the Lopes’ success.
In order for North Catholic to have any hopes of pulling off a major upset, quarterback Joey Felitsky will need to turn in a game for the ages after leading the Trojans past No. 4 Elizabeth Forward in the semifinal round with a 55-32 win. Felitsky comes into the game as the WPIAL’s leading passer with 3,128 yards and 44 TDs, and he has four receivers with more than 30 catches on the year.
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
