2024 Trib HSSN Preseason Football All-Star Team: Latrobe’s John Wetzel

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Monday, July 29, 2024 | 10:21 AM

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A team that didn’t have a playoff win for 54 years has two in the past two seasons, and John Wetzel has a lot to do with it.

Latrobe’s quarterback and three-star safety has developed into of the WPIAL’s top dual threats. Last year, he passed for 1,289 yards and rushed for 1,117, accounting for 33 touchdowns, 34 if you count the one he caught on a trick play.

Extending plays with his legs and laying in passes over the top were a nice assortment last season, so look for more of it in his senior year.

Wetzel is a disruptive safety, the position he was recruited to play at Marshall, which he committed to last month. The Thundering Herd won out over more than a dozen Division I scholarship offers.

Wetzel, a jarring hitter like his teammate and classmate, linebacker and Penn State commit Alex Tatsch, made 73 tackles and had three interceptions last season.

“I remember when he was in eighth grade, and I asked him if he was going to play football,” Latrobe coach Ron Prady said of Wetzel. “He said he wasn’t sure, that he might concentrate on basketball. Latrobe is thankful he decided to play. With John, you see that growth. He’s made some incredible runs.”

One such run came in a WPIAL 4A first-round playoff game two years ago at Highlands — Latrobe’s first playoff win since 1968.

“It was third-and-17, and we were down,” Prady said. “John breaks loose, leaps over one kid, then runs over another. That kept the drive alive. He then threw a touchdown pass, and we tied it.”

Latrobe won in overtime 28-21 to validate its return to prominence.

Last season, the Wildcats dumped West Allegheny in the first round 39-7 and pulled to within 31-29 of Aliquippa before falling in the quarterfinals 37-29.

Wetzel didn’t want the mighty Quips to blow out his team, so he did something about it.

“John has the ability to take over a game,” Prady said. “He is the ultimate competitor and a leader.”

Wetzel would play defense full time if permitted, but he knows how valuable his role is on offense.

“I love playing safety,” he said. “But I want to be the most winning quarterback to play here. If I can get to 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards passing, that’s great. But I want to win.”

Latrobe will move from Class 4A to 5A for the next two-year enrollment period.

Wetzel was disappointed to see the Quips stay in 4A after much-maligned hearings and appeals tethered to the PIAA’s competitive balance system.

“That was a big motivation, to see them again,” Wetzel said. “We were upset when they weren’t in 5A. They were up, and then they weren’t.”

John Wetzel

Latrobe

Senior

6-0/195

QB/S

Stars: 3

Committed to: Marshall

Other Division I offers: West Virginia, Boston College, Temple, Louisville, Monmouth, Akron, Old Dominion, Delaware, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Lehigh, Robert Morris.

2023 statistics: Wetzel completed 71 of 126 passes for 1,289 yards with 17 touchdowns and four interceptions and also had 159 carries for 1,117 yards and 16 TDs. On defense, he made 73 tackles with three interceptions.

Highlights: hudl

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Latrobe