After turnaround season, West Greene looks to leaders to keep team on track

By: Josh Rowntree
Tuesday, August 20, 2024 | 6:01 AM

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West Greene experienced quite a turnaround in 2023. Six more wins, 20 fewer points per game allowed on average and a trip to the WPIAL postseason — all in their young head coach’s first season at the helm.

But now the challenge for the Pioneers is how to continue to improve as it replaces key members of that impressive reversal.

“We knew going into last year that we had a big and good senior class,” said coach Beau Jackson. “It was nice to have the success, but we were kind of expecting that.

“My biggest takeaway from last year was that leadership takes teams one way. That leadership really brought the team together. Those guys embraced their roles and got the most out of everything. Hard work is rewarded.”

West Greene, following a two-win season in 2022, went 8-3 last year, falling to Greensburg Central Catholic, 41-22, in the WPIAL Class A first round.

“Going into the playoffs, we had two key injuries and a kid who transferred and wasn’t eligible to play,” said Jackson. “Losing those three starters hurt us going into that playoff game. We’ve been trying to recruit the hallways just so we have more depth.”

West Greene now has 28 players this season, slightly above average compared to recent years. Nine freshmen coming out have bolstered the roster nicely.

Those young players could be forced into some important roles sooner than later. West Greene lost a pair of 1,000-yard rushers in Billy Whitlatch and Colin Brady. The tandem racked up over 2,500 yards and 31 touchdowns in 2023.

“That’s what we’re testing out during camp,” Jackson said of the replacement effort. “Our plan is to rotate Patrick Durbin and Jackson Grimes there. Durbin got a lot of time for us last year on defense at outside linebacker and got time at wide receiver. He’s a good athlete.

“For Grimes, it’s just his second year playing football ever. Last year, he had to do a lot of learning, but he’s had a good camp and we’re looking forward to seeing what he can showcase.”

Lane Allison returns at quarterback for the Pioneers following a junior season in which he passed for 984 yards and 16 touchdowns.

“I can talk a lot about Lane,” said Jackson. “He has the demeanor you want in a quarterback. He’s got ice in his veins. The moment is never too big for him, and when we need him, he plays his best.

“He’s a very skilled quarterback, but he’s also very intelligent. I don’t know if a lot of quarterbacks are interested in the pass protection scheme in front of him, but he’s dialed into that.”

Parker Burns will return at tight end after scoring three touchdowns in 2023. Jacob Orndoff is in his first season playing high school football, but will likely start at receiver. Mathew Wassil, a 6-foot-8 center on the West Greene basketball team, is in his second year playing wideout.

“Last year, he was learning a lot,” Jackson said of Wassil. “This year, we’re going to throw him in and see what he can do. He’s a tall kid. He hasn’t played a lot, but we’re going to see when the games get going if we can get some matchups and take advantage of it.”

The offensive line returns four starters, giving the Pioneers some nice continuity with Allison.

“You get positives and negatives with anything,” said Jackson. “The negative is that we’re losing all of our backs. But the positive is that just about the whole offensive line and our quarterback are back. We’ll use Lane’s talents to get the ball in the air, but will also lean on those guys to move the ball on the ground. We consider them a strength.”

On defense, inside linebacker Colin Whyte is back after leading the team with 98 tackles last season.

“He was our nose guard last year and we’re going to move him to inside linebacker this year,” said Jackson. “Colin’s a good athlete and 4.0 (GPA) student. And he’s tough. If anybody can make that change, it’s him.”

For Jackson, just 27 years old and a former standout player at West Greene, building the roster to a point where it can sustain injuries is important. But, in order to do that, he’s also bringing in a number of players with little experience in the sport.

“I have a very, very good coaching staff,” said Jackson, who uses a “spoon-feeding” method to bring along those players. “My offensive coordinator is John Coss, who has been a head coach multiple times. The defensive coordinator is my dad, Brian Jackson, who has head coaching experience. Along with the rest of the guys on staff, we have a good handle on how to teach things.”

If West Greene is able to develop that talent and stay healthy through a challenging nonconference slate, it could find itself again in the Class A Tri-County South mix. And potentially back in the postseason.

“If we’re healthy, we feel like we can compete with quite a few teams in Class A,” said Jackson. “We’re really hoping that we can go into our conference battle tested, when those games matter towards playoff berths.”

West Greene

Coach: Beau Jackson

2023 record: 8-3, 6-1 in Class A Tri-County South Conference

All-time record: 222-419-10

SCHEDULE

Date, Opponent, Time

8.23 Waynesburg, 7

8.30 at Monessen, 7

9.6 Fort Cherry, 7

9.13 Avella*, 7

9.20 at Mapletown*, 7

9.27 at Jefferson-Morgan*, 7

10.4 Bentworth*, 7

10.11 California*, 7

10.18 at Carmichaels*, 7

10.25 at Beth-Center*, 7

* Conference game

STATISTICAL LEADERS

Passing: Lane Allison

55-115, 984 yards, 16 TDs

Rushing: Billy Whitlatch*

153-1,412 yards, 16 TDs

Receiving: Seth Burns*

12-245 yards, 2 TDs

* Graduated

FAST FACTS

• Colin Brady rushed for over 5,200 yards in his career.

• Coach Beau Jackson played offensive line at Waynesburg University.

• Two of West Greene’s losses in 2023 were to Greensburg Central Catholic, which also defeated the Pioneers in Week 2, 48-30. Its other loss was to Tri-County South champion California.

• The Pioneers play a challenging nonconference schedule against three playoff teams from 2023 in Waynesburg Central, Monessen and Fort Cherry.

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