32 • TRIB TOTAL MEDIA
VAUGHN MORRIS
VERNON REDD
Coach: Mike Warfield
2019 record: 11-2, 6-1
All-time record: 734-325-22
SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time
9.11 at New Castle* 7
9.18 Ambridge 7
9.25 Quaker Valley 7
10.2 at Beaver* 7:30
10.9 Chartiers Valley* 7
10.16 at Montour* 7
10.23 Blackhawk* 7
*CONFERENCE GAME
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing: Vaughn Morris
61-150, 1,173 yards, 18 TDs
Rushing: Antonio Quinn*
139-1,185 yards, 13 TDs
Receiving: Chinua Solomon*
22-522 yards, 11 TDs
*GRADUATED
FAST FACTS
• Mike Warfield begins his
third year as head coach at
Aliquippa and he is in his first
year as the law enforcement
coordinator for the U.S. Attorney’s
Office for the Western
District of Pennsylvania.
Warfield was the quarterback
on the 1987 Aliquippa WPIAL
championship team and was
an assistant coach at Central
Valley before taking the
head coaching job at his alma
mater.
• Only three schools have won
double-digit WPIAL football
championships. Aliquippa leads
the way with 17, followed by
Clairton with 13 and New Castle
with 11.
• In the record streak of 12
straight WPIAL championship
game appearances, Aliquippa
has not been a lock to win
it all in the last dozen years.
After losing in overtime to
Central Valley last November,
the Quips are now 5-7 in
those title games.
ALIQUIPPA STILL HAS
TITLE ASPIRATIONS
It took a pandemic to end one of the most
impressive streaks in WPIAL football history.
Every year since 2008, Aliquippa has played
for a WPIAL football championship at Heinz
Field.
The Quips’ 12 straight trips to the North
Shore are more than every NFL team outside
of the AFC North.
The WPIAL has not decided where or when
the district football championships will take
place, but it did announce that they will not be
played at Heinz Field.
While the Heinz Field streak ends, the championship
game run could still continue this fall
for the Quips.
But Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield doesn’t
care about just getting to the dance. He wants to
make sure the Quips are the solid gold dancers.
Last year, they were not. The Quips were 11-1
heading into the Class 3A title game, where
they lost for a second time to Central Valley,
13-12 in overtime.
“There are no moral victories in Aliquippa.
Either you do or you don’t,” Warfield said. “So
I was very disappointed.”
While expectations are always high at
Aliquippa, the team only has four starters
back on both offense and defense.
“Each year, it’s always a wait and see,” Warfield
said. “We are a young team with not a lot
of experience at some key positions.”
Quarterback Vaughn Morris is back after a
successful 2019 campaign. He threw for 1,173
yards and 18 touchdowns.
The team’s second-leading rusher behind
Antonio Quinn a year ago returns in running
back Vernon Redd. The senior averaged 6.7
yards per carry last fall, gained 716 yards and
led the Quips with 14 touchdowns.
Warfield said Redd, who also is a defensive
back, has very good size and speed.
“I’m ready,” Redd said. “I don’t feel there’s
any pressure on me and the other seniors. We
trust the younger guys, and I think it’s another
challenge that we have to overcome.”
Karl McBride will play a bigger role on
both sides of the ball. He averaged 18 yards
per reception and 3.4 yards per carry as a
junior.
Another senior counted on for big contributions
is tight end/linebacker Anthony Jackson.
“He is very talented with good size and
speed,” Warfield said.
The Quips will lean on a lot of underclassmen,
but Warfield has a special place in his
heart for his 12th graders.
“Your senior year is typically the year that
you remember, so I am excited for the seniors,”
he said.
Aliquippa is a Class A school enrollment-wise
that has always played up in football to face local
Beaver County rivals. After playing the last
four years in Class 3A, the Quips are moving
up to 4A because of the success they had last
two years.
It was enough success to be affected by the
new PIAA competitive balance point system
that takes into consideration success on the
field and program transfers off the field. When
a school crosses a certain threshold in a twoyear
span, it is forced to move up a class.
On the move up in class, Redd simply said,
“we love it.”
Now Aliquippa is part of the Class 4A Parkway
Conference with Beaver, Blackhawk,
Chartiers Valley, Montour and New Castle.
“It will be very tough to compete on a weekly
basis against teams with 70 kids to our 30 kids,”
Warfield said. “So it’s going to be a very big
challenge.”
Another challenge this year is just staying
healthy enough to compete. Warfield offered
this perspective about his biggest concerns for
the 2020 season.
“Covid-19 is no joke, especially for our team,
which is majority African American,” Warfield
said. “The health experts have said and continue
to say that the African American community
is greatly affected at a higher rate than others.
So we have to be especially careful throughout
this year.”
by DON REBEL
PARKWAY • ALIQUIPPA