Gateway senior captain Josephs sets sights on defending WPIAL championship

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, September 28, 2018 | 8:27 PM

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Jeremiah Josephs sprinted near midfield, saw a flash of football soar past his inside shoulder and stretched out his arms at the last possible moment to complete a pass.

The play drew brief praise from his teammates and coaches in Tuesday’s practice at Antimarino Stadium, not nearly as audible as the thunderous roar that would be expected on a Friday night.

That might be what made the catch all the more impressive — Josephs, a three-star recruit who committed to Miami (Ohio), plays at full speed regardless of who is watching. His elite athleticism combined with his contagious work ethic caught Don Holl’s attention in 2016 when he began coaching the Gators.

“You know the guys that stand out as potentially elite players,” Holl said. “He was just really young and really skinny. He earned himself a starting spot as sophomore and became a fixture throughout that season. He was a leader on defense and a little bit of offense his junior year, and now we count on him to do a lot of things.”

A senior captain, Josephs wants to make his mark as the “greatest DB to ever play at Gateway,” following in the footsteps of Gators greats like Montae Nicholson and Justin King. Josephs’ 13 career interceptions put him in the conversation, though he wants to further cement his legacy at the collegiate and NFL levels.

Josephs also has unfinished business at Gateway after winning the WPIAL Class 5A championship and losing in the state title game 49-14 last season. The undefeated Gators are on track for another deep run.

“We’ve got to go back-to-back (in WPIAL) just to show that we’re top dogs around here,” Josephs said. “Getting that state championship would mean a lot, not only to our team, but also our community. To get there is one thing, but to get there and lose like that doesn’t seem right. We want to bring it back home.”

The cast of players is largely the same from last season, including Derrick Davis who had nearly 1,000 yards from scrimmage as a freshman and Courtney Jackson who had nearly 2,000 receiving yards and committed to Syracuse.

Josephs might be the most vocal leader, Holl said, to keep everyone on the same page.

“We’ve got to make sure nothing from the outside can break up this team,” Josephs said. “We’re a family here.”

The most noticeable change from last season is the play at quarterback.

Brady Walker etched his name in WPIAL record books by throwing for 8,816 career passing yards, second most in WPIAL history. Brendan Mojocha didn’t replace Walker’s gaudy passing stats, but instead added more scrambling to the Gators offense.

“It helps as receivers, because we know when to start blocking downfield,” Josephs said. “When he scrambles around you forget the route and you just find a way to get open for him or block if he runs. He’s explosive, can get past you and take it to the house at any time.”

With so many offensive weapons, coaches and players understand there is a one-way ticket to get scoring opportunities.

“An everyday mantra for them is ‘If you don’t block, you’re not gonna get the rock,’ ” Holl said. “Your purchase price for getting the ball thrown to you is gonna be how hard you work at blocking. The second thing that has always been true is that linemen get us into the secondary and receivers get us into the end zone. When we get into the end zone it usually has something to do with a receiver also making touchdown blocks.”

The key to more success, according to Josephs, is to execute an assigned role on every down, especially when another teammate has the ball.

“Sometimes we’ll battle for the most yards or catches and things like that, but everyone eats enough around here, so we’re happy with whoever scores,” Josephs said. “At the end of the day, getting the win is the biggest thing to everyone here.”

Shawn Annarelli is a freelance writer.

Tags: Gateway