Strong playoff performance led to Penn Hills’ biggest offensive explosion in 5 years

By: Josh Rizzo
Sunday, November 12, 2023 | 11:01 AM

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Charles Morris had to wait until his second season to coach his first playoff game as the Penn Hills football coach. The Indians’ performance left quite the impression on anyone who saw it.

Penn Hills blasted Penn-Trafford, 63-28, in the WPIAL Class 5A quarterfinals. It was the first time the Indians had scored more than 60 points in a game since they beat Kiski Area, 64-28, on Sept. 21, 2018.

“It would say that was one of our better performances,” Morris said. “We had some games where we executed well offensively. I think the game against Penn-Trafford was a well-rounded effort from everyone. We got some turnovers and some special teams plays. It was a complementary performance.”

The 2018 season was also a solid one for Penn Hills. That year’s team went 18-0 and won the WPIAL and PIAA championships.

The Indians win set them up with a rematch against Pine-Richland during the WPIAL Class 5A semifinals at Martorelli Stadium. Results of that game were too late for this edition. The Indians won the first meeting during the regular season, 26-20 on Sept. 8.

Pine-Richland is coached by former Penn Hills coach Jon LeDonne, who resigned following the 2021 season to take the job with the Rams. LeDonne had a 46-13 record during his tenure at Penn Hills and was 1-1 in his first two meetings with the Indians as Pine-Richland’s coach.

Against Penn-Trafford, the Indians created plenty of extra opportunities for the offense. Penn Hills forced five Warriors turnovers and scored off four of those.

Morris was proud of how Penn Hills played against Penn-Trafford, which is led by longtime coach John Ruane.

“I think it’s a huge confidence booster,” Morris said. “I think he’s one of the best coaches in Western Pa. I knew it was going to be a huge task playing them. We had to be 100 percent on our game. I knew we had to put our guys in the best position to be successful because he was going to do that with his guys.”

Indians quarterback Julian Dugger led Penn Hills’ offense with 171 passing yards and threw four touchdowns. He also added 75 on the ground. Senior running back Amir Key led the team with 80 rushing yards and scored a touchdown. Martel Palmer and Cameron Thomas also caught touchdown passes.

“I think it was a good week of preparation,” Morris said. “It was a good week of practice. I think the amount of film study we showed from the coaches and players allowed us to play well.”

Penn Hills (9-2) was also challenged regularly throughout the season. Two teams the Indians played in the regular season, Moon and Pine-Richland, also won their first round games in Class 5A. Central Catholic had a bye, but will likely be competing for the WPIAL Class 6A title.

Moon’s win over Gateway was one of the first-round surprises.

“I told everyone,” Morris said. “No one was talking about Moon. Ryan Linn does a heck of his job and he has his kids ready. We’re hitting our stride at the right time. We prepare week by week and try to control what we can control.”