Thomas Jefferson players reflect on school’s 11th WPIAL football championship

By: Ray Fisher
Sunday, December 8, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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One for the other thumb? Definitely.

Distinguished coach Bill Cherpak led the Thomas Jefferson football team to the apex of the WPIAL Class 4A mountaintop this season.

The No. 1-seeded Jaguars defeated newly anointed rival and No. 3 seed McKeesport, 28-7, on Nov. 16 at Norwin to give Cherpak his 10th district title in his 30th year of coaching.

TJ has won all 10 championships since 2004.

“It was an amazing day at Norwin Stadium,” Cherpak said. “I am so proud of the team and staff and how they performed. We had a great week of preparation and it showed throughout the game. It was truly a team effort. The offense, defense and special teams were all great.

“The kids have been so focused doing whatever needed to be successful. It’s been one of the most enjoyable seasons I’ve ever had at TJ. A huge shout-out and thank you to the band, cheerleaders and the entire community who showed up to fill the stadium. We had a great crowd and the atmosphere was amazing. It is a memory the kids will have for a lifetime.”

Cherpak is now the all-time leader among WPIAL coaches with his 10 championships, as he broke a tie with Bob Palko.

And TJ moved into a tie for third all-time with its 11th WPIAL football title, sharing the spot with New Castle with only Aliquippa (20) and Clairton (14) in front.

The Jaguars also were WPIAL champions in 1980, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2020.

Bap Manzini coached the Jaguars when they won their first WPIAL crown in 1980, beating Aliquippa, 28-8.

McKeesport was trying for its first title in 19 years; the Tigers finished 8-5.

The star of the show in this year’s championship game was TJ senior WR/DB Brayden White, who caught three passes for 61 yards, including a 53-yard touchdown, and returned an interception 82 yards for another score.

“In my opinion, Brayden is the best wide receiver in the WPIAL,” Cherpak said. “He can do everything. He has great hands, excellent speed and is unbelievable with the ball in his hands. He is tough and always makes big plays as well as the routine ones.

“After missing the first three games of the season due to injury, he has been unstoppable. He cannot be defended by one player. Just look at what he did to the highly ranked DBs from Aliquippa. He is a great young man who is self-motivated and works hard every day in practice to get better. He’s definitely one of the best I have ever coached.”

White has received an offer to continue his career at South Dakota.

“His college interest is growing daily and other offers will be soon to follow,” Cherpak said. “There’s no doubt in my mind that he will be extremely successful in college.”

White’s interception against McKeesport came on the last play of the first half and gave the Jaguars a 21-0 halftime lead.

“It was a crossing route, and the ball was too high for the wide receiver, so I caught the ball and found some blockers to get to the end zone,” White said. “It was almost too good to be true. Honestly, going into halftime I was still amazed by what had just happened.

“My teammates make me a better player, period. If Luke (Kosko) didn’t put that ball on the money like he did, or without the rest of the defense getting in front of me to block and set a path to the end zone, I wouldn’t have had two touchdowns. So, all credit goes to them. It’s always a team effort.”

White ended the season with 68 receptions for 1,287 yards and 15 TDs, averaging 18.9 yards per catch. As for the WPIAL crown, the stellar wideout believes the Jaguars saw it coming.

“But it was still exciting,” White said. “Winning big like this with my brothers is a feeling not many people get to enjoy. We all fight for each other so hard, so making each other proud is the greatest feeling in the world. Cherp made us fix every mistake we made in our first matchup (with McKeesport), and we came out and simply didn’t make those mistakes again.”

Sophomore workhorse running back Tyler Eber, the Jaguars’ leading rusher, turned in another outstanding performance in the WPIAL finals.

Eber rambled for 158 yards on 33 carries and scored twice, boosting his season totals to 1,943 yards and 345 carries and 29 touchdowns.

Earlier in the playoffs, Eber broke the team record for carries in a game with 48 for 238 yards and two scores against West Allegheny. The previous record was 44 set by TJ multi-record holder Brian Baldrige versus Strong Vincent in 2008.

Eber also shattered Baldrige’s rushing record for number of carries in a season (291) with his 420 rushing attempts. He finished with 2,276 yards on the ground and scored 30 times.

Star No. 3 against McKeesport was Kosko, TJ’s senior quarterback who threw only eight passes but completed five for 82 yards and one TD. On the season, Kosko, a Cincinnati baseball recruit, increased his totals to 98 completions in 160 attempts for 1,768 yards and 21 scores with only four interceptions.

On the year, Kosko completed 112 of 189 tosses for 1,991 yards and 24 TDs with five interceptions.

Kosko, Eber and White were joined in the starting lineup on offense by senior Trent Miller (FB), sophomore Kane Eggerton (WR), senior Gavin Miller (WR), senior Kooper Kamberis (TE), junior Dom Volomino (TE), seniors Shep Turk (LT), a Pitt recruit, and Luke Janosko (LG), juniors Zane Sable (C) and Dom Metz (RG) and sophomore Beckett Everley (RT).

“It was a great day to be a part of,” Turk said. “Cherp is the GOAT. He’s by far the best coach in WPIAL history.”

Along with his dramatic interception return, White accounted for 11 tackles in the WPIAL championship game and was complemented by senior LB Matt Martinis with 11.

Martinis stood out as the team leader on defense this year with 95 tackles, including 64 unassisted. In fact, Martinis has led the team in tackles for the three seasons.

“I was so proud of our guys. This was a goal I’ve had for four years now,” Martinis said about winning the WPIAL title. “I was happy but unsatisfied; the ultimate goal is a state championship. Winning championships is the standard here at TJ, and it’s awesome to be a part of it.

“I take pride in being the leader of the defense, and holding McKeesport to only seven points was huge. All 11 of us knew what we had to do to stop them, and we executed. Our key to victory was playing mistake-free football. We know we can beat anyone if we play our best game. Our coaching staff is tremendous, and they put us in the best position to win every single week.”

Junior LB Zach Villa was another leading defensive player for the Jaguars in ‘24. Villa racked up 82 tackles (56 unassisted) and was credited with a game-high 13 stops versus McKeesport.

Martinis and Villa were complemented by a legion of players on defense, including White, Turk, junior DB Jarrett Becoate, junior LB Emmett Forte, sophomore LBs Kane Eggerton and Deacon Kamberis, sophomore DE Luccas Patterson, sophomore DB Nate Farison and senior DE Kooper Kamberis.

“It was just such a great moment after the win,” Turk said. “Every one of us worked so hard to get here and it just means everything to us. When you live and breathe football like our team does, it just means more to us. I was personally super excited immediately (after the game), but I think we all got over it pretty quick because we knew what’s next.”

TJ intercepted 14 passes in 2024, led by White and Becoate with four apiece.

The Jaguars’ starting defensive lineup in the postseason consisted of Patterson (DE), Kooper Kamberis (DE), Turk (DT), Deacon Kamberis (DT), Forte (LB), Eggerton (LB), Villa (LB), Martinis (LB), White (DB), Farison (DB) and Becoate (DB).

“Matt Martinis has been the heartbeat of our team,” Cherpak said. “We rely on him as the quarterback of the defense. He makes the huddle calls and many of the adjustments.

“Matt is one of the hardest workers and is a leader by example. He is an invaluable part of our defense. He is an even better person off the field and in the classroom. He is a great role model for the younger players.”

Speaking of younger players, Eggerton was one of the many underclassmen in starting roles for TJ.

“My immediate reaction was pure joy and happiness that all the work we put in had paid off,” Eggerton said following the WPIAL championship game. “I was just so proud of everyone — from the coaches to the players, and even to the fans for coming out and supporting. I truly believe we have one of the best fan bases in the state, which makes the games a lot more enjoyable because it feels like we are playing for the people.”

Eggerton said he wasn’t too surprised that the Jaguars won yet another WPIAL championship in ‘24.

“When you put a team that is willing to work as hard as needed — with the best coaching staff in the state — it is a formula for success,” he said.

TJ’s assistants this season were Tony Battaglini, Frank Brettschneider, Aaron Davis, Jon Drager, Jack Giran, Michael Murray, Pat Oster, George Souders, T.J. Srsic, Trevor Wildman and Shane Yuhas.

The Jaguars ended their WPIAL schedule with a 13-0 record; they finished 14-1 overall after falling to Lampeter-Strasburg, 20-16, in the state semifinals.

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