Trib HSSN Football Player of the Week for 2021 Week 10

By: Don Rebel
Sunday, November 7, 2021 | 7:41 PM

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There was a serious chill in the air for opening night of the WPIAL football playoffs, but that didn’t prevent New Castle quarterback Christopher Hood from getting soaked with all of the “splash” plays he made Friday.

Hood rushed for 218 yards and threw for 178 yards as the Red Hurricanes swept past Highlands, 31-19, in a Class 4A first-round contest. It was the first playoff win in five years for New Castle.

“The explosive plays he made (stood out),” New Castle coach Joe Cowart said. “Chris made so many chunk yardage plays both in the run and pass game. It was very exciting to see as a coach, and I am so happy for him to have that kind of success.”

The senior, who is also a standout linebacker for the ‘Canes, connected on 9 of his 16 passes and carried the ball 19 times.

“Chris gets better every week; he’s a really a student of the game, so if there is something he is not doing well, he will work on it and fix it,” Cowart said. “His overall command of the offense and defense is what I would say has grown throughout the course of the year.”

Against host Highlands, Hood threw two touchdowns passes and had two long scoring runs. The first was an early 61-yard touchdown jaunt that opened the scoring.

“I was pretty excited for him and us,” Cowart said. “It was a great way to start the night.”

The Red Hurricanes led 18-7 at halftime, but the Golden Rams scored in the third quarter to pull to within five points.

Cue Hood and his second big touchdown run, a 57-yarder that put New Castle back up 25-13.

“That was huge,” Cowart said. “Highlands was getting back into the game and had a lot of momentum at that point. That was probably the biggest play of the game.”

Knowing the kind of player Hood is and the leader he is, Cowart was not surprised to see him after a monster game to keep the ‘Canes season alive into the second round of the 4A playoffs.

“Chris is a senior captain. I had a strong feeling he was going to play his best football on the biggest stage,” Cowart said. “He is versatile and tough. He can do it all on both sides of the ball, and he is tough as a $2 steak.”

The Red Hurricanes finished in third place in the Parkway Conference, a conference where every game against anybody not named Aliquippa was a dogfight that went down to the wire and was decided touchdown or less.

“No question,” Cowart said when asked if the conference prepared them for the postseason. “We thought that this game would be that way. We knew how good Highlands was and that they would respond. So the late-game battles in our league really helped down the stretch.”

With the win, New Castle improves to 7-4 and must now travel to the gold turf, known as “The Beach” at Belle Vernon to battle the top-seeded and undefeated Leopards in a quarterfinals game Friday.

“It’s a great opportunity,” Cowart said. “The Beach is a fun atmosphere to be in. We look to play our best football against the best team in 4A right now.”

WPIAL Week 10 Honorable Mentions

Logan Kushner – North Allegheny

Canon-McMillan has never defeated North Allegheny on the football field. Young quarterback Logan Kushner made sure that factoid would continue for another year.

The sophomore connected on 8 of 13 passes for 260 yards and threw three first-half touchdown passes and also had a scoring run in the Tigers’ 49-26 quarterfinals romp over the Big Macs.

Kushner has thrown for 1,180 yards and 12 touchdowns as North Allegheny heads to the 6A semifinals to face top-seed and undefeated Mt. Lebanon.

Julian and Jaden Dugger — Penn Hills

Penn Hills has a good formula for success here in the 2021 season. The 7-3 Indians just keep it all in the family.

Little brother Julian threw the pigskin while big brother Jaden caught it and racked up the touchdowns as the Dugger bothers helped deliver the dagger to Franklin Regional’s season.

Julian Dugger threw for 186 yards and four touchdowns, all going to older brother Jaden Dugger, whose four scoring receptions totaled 142 yards as the Indians rolled past the Panthers in a 5A first-round contest, 38-6.

C.J. Miller — Shenango

It has been a see-saw season for Shenango. It lost the first four games, won three straight Class A Big 7 Conference games, then lost two straight to close out the regular season.

The Wildcats proved that momentum heading into the postseason doesn’t mean much and thanks to C.J. Miller, their yo-yo season is trending up again.

The junior running back rolled up his sleeves and carried the ball 39 times for 291 yards and scored three touchdowns on runs of 2, 3 and 20 yards as No. 11-seed Shenango stunned No. 6 Carmichaels, 31-13.

Caden DiCaprio — Burrell

Yes, the Buccaneers lost to Mt. Pleasant in a 3A first-round game, but 47 carries for 191 yards? That’s a well-earned tip of the helmet. Sleep well my friend.

2021 HSSN Players of the Week

Week 9 – Cadin Olsen, Armstrong

Week 8 – Bobby Boyd, McKeesport

Week 7 – Brad Birch, Gateway

Week 6 – Alex Tecza, Mt. Lebanon

Week 5 – Nijhay Burt, Steel Valley

Week 4 – Devin Whitlock, Belle Vernon

Week 3 – Trenton Carter, Carmichaels

Week 2 – Abraham Ibrahim, Chartiers Valley

Week 1 – Graham Hancox, Seneca Valley

Week Zero – Carson Davidson, Blackhawk

Tags: New Castle