South Side ready to take next step toward championship berth

By: Jerin Steele
Monday, August 21, 2023 | 9:51 PM

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One win separated South Side from the chance to play at Acrisure Stadium for a WPIAL championship.

A 49-21 loss to Bishop Canevin in the Class A semifinals ended an impressive 2022 season, and with many key returners, the Rams are primed and ready to make a championship run.

“Our core group is excited,” Rams coach Luke Travelpiece said. “They see the opportunity and know they were right there.”

The Rams return starting quarterback Brody Almashy, who passed for 1,127 yards and a dozen touchdowns last year, and their leading rusher Ryan Navarra.

Navarra rushed for 800 yards and scored 14 touchdowns last season.

Both are seniors and lead an experienced offense.

“We’re really excited to bring those guys back,” Travelpiece said. “We have a number of seniors that are three-year starters now and some that even spot started as a freshman. Some were all-conference players as sophomores and now they are seniors. They continue to grow and continue to develop.”

Almashy and Navarra will be protected by an experienced offensive line. Six linemen return with starting experience, including seniors JD Roy, Chase Knox, Eddie Glover and Casey Lewis, as well as junior Slayton Williams and sophomore Lucian Williams, who are brothers.

“People talk about our skill positions, but we have all five linemen back as well. That’s pretty exciting,” Travelpiece said. “We had six different kids start at least five games for us last year. JD Roy and Chase Knox were all-conference as sophomores. I’m biased, but I think they could be the top two linemen in the conference and they’re both lining up for us.”

The experience the Rams have will help them navigate a challenging Big 7 Conference, which had three of four semifinalists in Class A last year — South Side, Rochester and Union.

Union upset Bishop Canevin, 26-0, in the Class A championship.

“To see Union go out and win it and the way they did it in dominating fashion for us is encouraging, because we know what Union is,” Travelpiece said. “They are a great football team, and (Union coach) Kim (Niedbala) has done a great job in a short amount of time. It gives us a lot of confidence to know how strong our conference is. When we get to the regular season and hopefully make the playoffs, you are battle tested.”

The way South Side’s schedule is set up makes for an intriguing and challenging final four weeks. The Rams finish off the season by playing at Shenango, Laurel, at Union and Rochester. They went 3-1 during that stretch last year with the only loss against conference champ Laurel.

Those four games determined playoff spots last year and will likely do so again.

“You hope you stay healthy going into those games,” Travelpiece said. “We play games against the top of the top. We have Rochester and Union at the end of the year, and I’ve seen some have them ranked first and second. Those are semifinal-caliber teams. It’s almost like a reprieve, the first week of playoffs.”

South Side

Coach: Luke Travelpiece

2022 record: 11-2, 5-1 in Class A Big 7 Conference

All-time record: 290-328-19

SCHEDULE

Date, Opponent, Time

8.25 at Hopewell, 7

9.1 at Riverside, 7

9.8 Burgettstown, 7

9.15 at Northgate*, 7

9.22 Quaker Valley, 7

9.29 Summit Academy*, 7

10.6 at Shenango*, 7

10.13 Laurel*, 7

10.20 at Union*, 7

10.27 Rochester*, 7

*Conference game

STATISTICAL LEADERS

Passing: Brody Almashy

62-117, 1,127 yards, 12 TDs

Rushing: Ryan Navarra

125-800 yards, 14 TDs

Receiving: Parker Statler*

23-514 yards, 8 TDs

*Graduated

FAST FACTS

• Luke Travelpiece is entering his eighth season at the helm of South Side.

• The Rams will help Hopewell christen the new turf at Tony Dorsett Stadium when they travel to play the Vikings for a Week Zero game Aug. 25.

• South Side has two WPIAL titles, winning in 1970 and ‘99. Its last appearance in a WPIAL championship was 2018, a loss to Steel Valley in the Class 2A final.

• Ben Bird is a newcomer who previously played for the Rams’ soccer team. He’ll line up at wide receiver.

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer

Tags: South Side