Prolific passing attack fuels ‘hungry’ North Catholic

By: John Grupp
Tuesday, August 12, 2025 | 6:01 AM

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Something is in the air at North Catholic.

Returning the WPIAL’s leading passer and receiver from a late-surging playoff team, the Trojans are poised to take another step forward.

“We kind of expect to pick up where we left off,” coach Chris Rizzo said, “just with probably a little bit more cohesiveness.”

Senior quarterback Joey Felitsky, who threw for a WPIAL-high 2,992 yards last season, and senior wide receiver Ryker Kennedy, who pulled in a league-best 97 receptions, spent the offseason refining the little things.

“We’ve been working on footwork, reads, pass game, stuff like that,” Felitsky said. “I’ve also been working on my run game, so I can run a little bit this year.”

But passing the ball is what Felitsky does best. At a heat-week evening practice at J.C. Stone Field in early August, he displayed the accuracy, passing touch and field vision that helped him lead the WPIAL in attempts (355) and completions (238), while throwing for 23 touchdowns (versus 10 interceptions).

His favorite target, Kennedy (5-11, 195), finished last season with 1,234 receiving yards and seven TDs, giving the Trojans a rare, prolific tandem. It marked the first time since 2008 that the same team had the WPIAL’s leading passer and receiver (Seneca Valley QB C.J. Brown and WR Matt Plautz).

Felitsky is motivated after North Catholic finished 5-7 (3-3 in the Western Hills) last season, his first as a starter. The 6-foot-1, 175-pounder worked this offseason with North Catholic assistant coach Mike McMahon, a former North Allegheny QB who played five seasons in the NFL. Felitsky helped the Trojans go 6-0 and win their bracket at the Pitt 7-on-7 passing camp in late June.

“He’s taken strides in terms of the little things that are required to play quarterback,” Rizzo said. “The defense is moving slower to him. He’s snappier with his reads. His footwork is cleaner.

“He took all of the stuff that needed just a little bit of refining and you are really starting to see it show up on tape. That’s exciting, because he’s a very natural thrower of the ball and obviously extraordinarily talented, but, golly, some of those more refined moments we’ve seen so far in camp are exciting.”

The Trojans are feeling good entering the 2025 season. They rebounded from a late four-game losing streak last season to upset No. 6 Deer Lakes, 21-14, in the first round of the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs before losing to No. 3 Elizabeth Forward, 45-42, on a last-second field goal in the quarterfinals.

The late surge provided momentum, and the players carried it into the offseason.

“It just gives us more motivation for this year, and we want it even more,” Felitsky said. “We’ve been working hard to take that next step. All of us want it and all of us want to win.”

They proved it in their actions. To accommodate the dual-sport athletes, Rizzo opened the weight room for early-morning workouts, in addition to the traditional afternoon hours. The results were startling. Typically, anywhere from 12-18 football players showed up at 6:25 a.m. to lift weights.

“I went to every single one of them,” said senior tight end Tommy Arth, who caught 48 passes for 508 yards last season and rushed for a team-high eight TDs. “We were working hard in the weight room all offseason. I think we are ready to go.”

The Trojans also return senior running back Logan Schade, who rushed for a team-high 440 yards, and junior wide receiver Will Waskiewicz (48-497 yards, 6 TDs).

Seniors Landon Walker (6-4, 280) and Jackson Schade (5-11, 240) anchor the offensive line.

The defense brings back senior tackle Max Lindner, senior linebacker Dom McNelly and a pair of safeties, senior Reid Rinker and junior Louie Iaquinta, among others.

Rizzo, a third-year coach, said the underclassmen exited last season determined because they experienced success in the WPIAL playoffs.

“They left so freakin’ hungry,” Rizzo said. “You could see it and you could feel it throughout the offseason.”

North Catholic

Coach: Chris Rizzo

2024 record: 5-7, 3-3 in Class 3A Western Hills Conference

All-time record: 481-328-32

SCHEDULE

Date, Opponent, Time

8.22 Seton-LaSalle, 7

8.29 Knoch, 7

9.5 Blackhawk, 7

9.12 at Quaker Valley*, 7

9.19 McGuffey*, 7

9.26 at Imani Christian, 7

10.3 Central Valley*, 7

10.10 at Beaver*, 7:30

10.17 Avonworth*, 7

10.24 at Hopewell*, 7

*Conference game

STATISTICAL LEADERS

Passing: Joey Felitsky

238-355, 2,992 yards, 23 TDs

Rushing: Logan Schade

80-440 yards, 5 TDs

Receiving: Ryker Kennedy

97-1,234 yards 7 TDs

* Graduated

FAST FACTS

• The Trojans are coming off back-to-back losing seasons, 5-7 last year and 5-6 in 2023. Before that, the program had no losing seasons from 1997-2022.

• North Catholic’s nonconference schedule includes two teams that went 11-1 last season — WPIAL Class 2A runner-up Seton LaSalle in the Aug. 22 opener and Class 3A power Imani Christian on Sept. 26.

• North Catholic won its lone WPIAL football title in 2013, when the current seniors were in kindergarten.

• Among the Trojans’ losses to graduation was three-star tight end Brady O’Hara, a freshman offensive lineman at Penn State.

Tags: North Catholic