School-record rushing effort part of special season for Riverview’s Carlo Buzzatto

By: Michael Love
Saturday, October 21, 2023 | 11:01 AM

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Previous Next

It was a bittersweet feeling for senior tailback Carlo Buzzatto on Oct. 14 after Riverview football’s heartbreaking 29-28 loss to Leechburg in a rivalry game at Riverside Park that had huge playoff ramifications.

The Raiders rallied from a 29-14 deficit in the fourth quarter and had a two-point conversion play set up to take the lead.

However, the conversion attempt fell short, and the Blue Devils escaped Oakmont with a one-point win to make the Raiders’ road to the playoffs a little more difficult.

Riverview fell to 1-3 in the conference and 4-4 overall, and Leechburg improved to 3-2, a half-game behind Greensburg Central Catholic and Jeannette.

But within the game, Buzzatto made history.

The bruising running back was a workhorse for Riverview, carrying the ball 36 times for a school-record 418 yards. He scored on runs of 69, 69 and 36 yards to keep the Raiders close in the Eastern Conference clash.

“I’ll be honest. My head was so focused on trying to win the overall game that I didn’t have any idea what my totals were,” Buzzatto said.

“I wasn’t paying attention to my stats. I was really hurting after the game because we didn’t win it. When I heard the stats, it did cheer me up a little bit. It is an honor that I was able to do that and set the record. But again, it goes back to the fact that we really wanted to win that game.”

The new single-game record surpassed the previous mark of 387 set by Lucas Heakins in 1997.

“I had my legs with me, and I felt good in the fourth quarter,” Buzzatto said.

“I was just trying to be as fast as I could for my team the whole game. I think back to all of the drills and workouts over the summer to get us in condition and ready for these games.”

Riverview coach Trevor George said Buzzatto simply had a phenomenal game.

“Carlo and everyone else on the team really rallied around the conditions,” George said.

“It was rainy and cold and the field got a little muddy. Carlo just kept running hard the whole game behind a line who didn’t waver in those conditions. When you mix those two together, you have a recipe for what happened.”

Buzzatto said everyone on the team “worked their butts off” on both sides of the ball trying score the win over Leechburg. He credited his offensive line for opening holes to give him room to run the football.

“Those guys definitely help me get through my games,” Buzzatto said.

“They don’t stop. They are awesome.”

Buzzatto has carried the running load the past several games since his senior backfield partner, fellow senior Landon Johnson, went down with an injury in a Week 2 game against Northgate.

Johnson had accumulated 526 yards and five touchdowns on 66 carries.

Buzzatto, through eight games, totaled 1,438 yards and 13 touchdowns on 149 attempts.

He said it’s been tough emotionally to not have Johnson in the lineup at running back or linebacker.

“When he got hit hard, I really got upset about that,” Buzzatto said.

“We worked to get through it. Landon still is a great inspiration to the team. He’s a great leader and a great captain. He still puts so much work and his heart into this team even though he’s on the sideline not able to play. He’s been with us all the way through.”

George said senior Toby Green, a starting linebacker for the Raiders, stepped in and has given the offense some valuable work and carries in the backfield.

“He was sidelined all of last year with a collarbone fracture,” George said.

“He transformed his body into what he wanted to be as a linebacker. He’s really stepped up and has done good work for us with his blocking and running the ball.”

Riverview still was alive for a WPIAL playoff spot entering Week 8 against Greensburg Central Catholic.

Riverview hosts Springdale in Week 9 to cap both the Eastern Conference schedule and the regular season.

“These kids, from Buzzatto and Green, to Rocco Cecere at quarterback, and guys like Rio Stotts and Alex Schultheis, these guys fight and fight and never quit,” George said.

“With tough results like the one against Leechburg, that is when life parallels come into it and it is more than football. As a coach, these are teachable moments where how you respond is an important thing.

“The guys took the loss tough, but they were really positive looking forward to new opportunities. That has been the way these guys have approached things this season. They’ve grown so much. They come out and are flying around and loving football.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Riverview