Lehigh making recruiting inroads to Westmoreland County
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Sunday, February 21, 2021 | 2:38 PM
Penn-Trafford’s Cade Yacamelli (5) rushes the ball during their game against Woodland Hills on Oct. 2, 2020.
Lehigh is making its rounds in the WPIAL as it looks for future football talent.
The Patriot League program located about 300 miles east of Pittsburgh, in Bethlehem, is particularly eyeing Westmoreland County.
Lehigh this weekend extended scholarship offers to a pair of local juniors in Greensburg Salem lineman Billy McChesney, and Penn-Trafford running back/defensive back Cade Yacamelli.
The Mountain Hawks recently secured a commitment from Latrobe senior tight end/linebacker Tucker Knupp.
When a school out of Western Pennsylvania hones in on the WPIAL, there usually is a local connection on its coaching staff. That is the case at Lehigh, where Alex DiMichele, a former WPIAL standout at Sto-Rox, is the Mountain Hawks’ recruiting coordinator and also serves as a running backs and special teams coach.
DiMichele’s primary target areas for recruits are Western Pennsylvania (Districts 7, 8, 10), Northeast Ohio and Northern New Jersey.
McChesney (6-foot-2, 265 pounds) is an offensive guard and defensive tackle for the Golden Lions.
Yacamelli (6-0, 200) also announced an offer from Army. He has Ivy League offers from Penn, Harvard, Brown and Columbia.
Knupp will join another local product at Lehigh. Freshman defensive lineman Christian Jablonski is a Ligonier Valley graduate.
Other WPIAL players on the Mountain Hawks’ roster include defensive backs Corey Melzer (North Allegheny) and Devari Robinson (McKeesport), and freshman defensive lineman Sam Sheridan (North Allegheny).
Absolutely blessed to receive my first offer from @Coach_DiMike & @RDvoracek_LU for a full scholarship to Lehigh University. So thankful for this amazing offer. @CoachTomGilmore @LehighFootball @LehighU pic.twitter.com/DLMWTcXM0i
— Billy McChesney (@BillyMcChesney2) February 21, 2021
After a great conversation with @Coach_DiMike , I am extremely honored and excited to have received an offer from Lehigh University ????⚪️ pic.twitter.com/MCtOMRKPmg
— Cade Yacamelli (@cyacamelli) February 21, 2021
Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.
Tags: Greensburg Salem, Latrobe, Penn-Trafford
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