Gateway’s Washington tests mettle against nation’s top long-snappers

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, August 2, 2018 | 10:51 PM

Bryce Washington was having a strong start to his junior football season at Gateway.

Through four games of the 2017 campaign, the defensive lineman and linebacker had made 16 tackles and recorded a sack. The Gators were off to an undefeated start, and Washington was right in the mix.

But his season came to a sudden end in the fifth week against Hampton at Antimarino Stadium. A torn ACL in the 40-14 victory over the Talbots forced him to watch the rest of the season from the sidelines. Gateway went on to claim the WPIAL Class 5A championship at Heinz Field and make it to the PIAA title game in Hershey.

“It was a bittersweet feeling,” Washington said. “I wanted to be out on the field with my teammates, but it also was great seeing everyone succeed. My teammates were constantly bringing me back up and letting me know they were looking forward to having me back on the field. They just wanted me to keep working hard. There were always good vibes, and it made me feel pretty good.”

Washington took those positive vibes and concentrated on his recovery. He stayed focused in the weight room while rehab got his knee back to full strength. He was cleared in June to begin full preparation for the 2018 season.

While he followed all the steps in his recovery, Washington, Gateway’s long snapper on special teams, also worked to improve his standing as one of the leaders at that position for his class in the country.

He was invited to test his mettle at the Kohl’s Kicking National Invitational Scholarship Camp on July 21 and 22 in Milwaukee, Wisc.

“Seeing all the competition from around the United States and what I am up against was very beneficial,” Washington said. “It showed me what I need to work on with speed and accuracy. For a lot of the top long snappers, placement is nearly perfect every time. Repetition is important.”

Ninety-one long snappers accepted the Kohl’s invitation, and Washington finished the camp ranked 22 ^nd for his class. He was evaluated on how he was able to snap to a set target and also his ability to get the ball back to a live kicker or punter.

The camp was a top evaluator in the process to set the Kohl’s and ESPN national rankings, and it also served to select the specialists for the Under Armour All-American Game and Semper Fi All-American Game at the end of the 2018 season.

Washington said while he gave his best effort, he was not selected for either all-star game.

“There were moments at the camp where (the long snappers) had to perform under high pressure,” said Mo Washington, Bryce’s father and a Gateway football assistant coach. “A lot of people were watching. You get to see which kids are able to handle that pressure like what they will face in game situations. There were kids who snapped better to a punter than they did to a target. I was proud of Bryce. He really held his ground.”

The elder Washington said the long snappers, like other positions on the football field, develop a feel of fraternity with each other.

“There were players at the camp from all over the country, including California, Florida and Texas. Bryce made a lot of good friends,” he said. “Once they meet up, they start running into each other multiple times at camps in different states. They really support each other and also coach each other up. If they see something going on, they will take the time to point stuff out.”

Bryce Washington shared the Kohl’s experience with Anthony Youngo, a junior at Penn-Trafford.

“We were able to help each other if we weren’t doing our best,” he said. “We watched each other closely and offered pointers on what we saw.”

While Washington makes the long-snapping camp circuit this summer – he attended a camp at Georgetown July 28 – he also is beginning to generate more college interest.

Case Western Reserve (Ohio), Rochester (N.Y.) and several other Division III schools are showing interest in the 5-foot-11, 230-pounder who also is Gateway’s starting center along the offensive line.

“I wasn’t able to get much film out last year because of the injury, but it will be great once I get a couple of games under my belt to get something out there for the coaches to see,” Bryce Washington said.

WPIAL preseason football practices begin Aug. 13, and Gateway opens its season with a Week Zero game at Class 6A Mt. Lebanon on Aug. 24.

Michael Love is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Michael at mlove@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MLove_Trib.