Five things we learned from Saturday’s WPIAL football championships

By: HSSN Staff
Sunday, November 18, 2018 | 9:45 PM

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South Fayette sophomore Charley Rossi and OLSH senior Tyler Bradley already owned a little WPIAL championship experience before Saturday’s celebrations at Heinz Field.

As youngsters, the two together were South Fayette ball boys when the Lions won a WPIAL title in 2010. Rossi’s father, Joe, was South Fayette’s coach and Tyler’s father, Dan, was an assistant.

Eight years later, the father-son duos coach and play for separate teams, but they all celebrated at Heinz Field again.

Dan Bradley coaches Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, and his son, Tyler, is a senior for the Chargers who defeated Rochester, 28-6, in the WPIAL Class A championship. Charley Rossi is a sophomore wide receiver on coach Joe Rossi’s South Fayette squad that defeated Thomas Jefferson, 31-24, in the WPIAL Class 4A final.

They added to a WPIAL championship father/son, coach/player history that includes the Palkos at West Allegheny, the Novaks at Woodland Hills, the Matsooks at Rochester and others.

“It’s just a special moment,” Dan Bradley said. “It’s very enjoyable for all the kids (to win a championship), but when you do separate the two (roles of father and coach), it’s probably something that most coaches and fathers would dream to have. We were fortunate enough to experience it.”

Making the moment larger was that both sons were keys in Saturday’s wins.

As OLSH’s starting quarterback, Tyler Bradley passed for 169 yards and three touchdowns. Charley Rossi caught the winning touchdown, a sure-handed 14-yarder late in the third quarter to break a 24-24 tie.

“It was a good coach/dad moment,” Joe Rossi said. “You just kind of take it all in. I was joking with him (Saturday morning), asking whether he’d be OK or was this game too big for him? He just kind of looked at me, and that was it. Those were kind of the only words we spoke all day. He came up big. We were proud of him.”

Rossi admits finding the right coach/father and player/son balance can be tricky. He appreciates South Fayette assistant coach Tanner Garry has talked with Charley about his experiences playing for his father Tim at Fort Cherry.

“It’s one of the hardest things to do, play for your dad,” Joe Rossi said. “Tanner’s been a great mentor without me even asking.”

Tyler Bradley entered this season entrenched as OLSH’s starting quarterback. The senior has more than 8,000 career passing yards and ranks fourth all-time among WPIAL passers.

Charley Rossi’s role was less defined entering the season, but he had a breakout performance in Week Zero. He ranks second on the team with 35 receptions for 593 yards and nine touchdowns.

He had three catches for 70 yards Saturday.

“My wife that morning asked (before the season opener): ‘Is he going to play against St. Clair?’ ” Joe Rossi said. “I said he might play a couple of plays if we can’t run the football. He had like eight receptions for a buck sixty and two touchdowns. You just don’t know.”

Aliquippa’s Gipson celebrates this time

Nobody experienced a greater Heinz Field turnaround than Aliquippa’s Will Gipson. A year after throwing three championship game interceptions, the star senior shifted to wide receiver and scored three times in Saturday’s 42-19 victory over Derry.

“It’s ironic,” said Gipson, a Ball State commit. “I threw three picks last year, and now I have three touchdowns and an interception (on defense). That was just all surreal.”

Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield made the preseason position switch not because Gipson couldn’t play quarterback, but because he’s a threat at wideout with senior Eli Kosanovich behind center.

“One thing about Will is that when he’s at quarterback, he gets cheated because he can’t throw it to himself,” Warfield said. “He just an athlete, and I want to put the best 11 on the field. He gives us the best chance to win on the outside because he’s so dynamic.”

Gipson had seven receptions for 165 yards and touchdown catches that covererd 15, 42 and 20 yards.

“He could have told me to play tackle, and I would have said, ‘OK, that’s fine,’ ” Gipson said. “Whatever it takes to win.”

A kick start for South Fayette

There were times Saturday that special teams were truly special.

The kicking game helped South Fayette, in large part because the Lions have Temple recruit Ryan Coe as their kicker and punter. Coe kicked off six times and all six produced touchbacks, challenging Thomas Jefferson’s offense to march 80 yards each time.

Coe also made a 39-yard field goal with 1:47 left before half. South Fayette entered halftime trailing 21-10, but the kick provided an emotional boost for the eventual second-half comeback, coach Joe Rossi said.

“A couple of offensive guys on the staff wanted to go for (a first down),” Rossi said. “I said, guys, we’ve got to get points here. We can’t go into half down 21-7. Just mentally, it was a good thing, knowing we were getting the ball to start the second half. Special teams for us were really the different in the game.”

Champion Rams feeling defensive

Pine-Richland is known for its offense, but the team’s defense showed Saturday it’s championship worthy.

The Rams forced five turnovers and held Seneca Valley scoreless into the fourth quarter of their 34-7 victory in the WPIAL Class 6A championship. But the most impressive stat was Pine-Richland’s ability to stop the run.

Seneca Valley managed only 48 yards on 31 carries. That’s a 1.5 yard per carry average.

OLSH, Aliquippa take a break

Pine-Richland and South Fayette start their state playoff runs this week at sites, dates and times to be determined, but OLSH and Aliquippa draw a bye. It’s a quirk in the schedule the WPIAL created by reducing both classifications to an eight-team playoff bracket.

This is the first year for the Class A bye. The WPIAL Class 3A champion also had a bye the past two seasons, and Beaver Falls and Quaker Valley went on to win the state title.

Chris Harlan is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Chris at charlan@tribweb.com or via Twitter @CHarlan_Trib.