Burgettstown brings momentum into new Black Hills Conference

By: Don Rebel
Wednesday, August 24, 2022 | 12:01 PM

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Burgettstown returned to the playoffs in 2021 for the sixth time in seven years thanks to a strong finish with three straight regular season must-wins.

The Blue Devils finished 5-5 overall after falling to eventual champion Bishop Canevin in the Class A first round, but second-year coach Greg Marshall won’t soon forget it.

“Our first season was absolutely tremendous,” he said. “We had a great group of student athletes who really bought into what we wanted to do. Anytime you go into a new environment, there’s always going to be some growing pains and our first season was no exception. We started the year and built some confidence with our guys immediately because of the early success, but what was the most rewarding was actually seeing our guys continue to grow together and work together while we ran into some adversity. We were able to get refocused and play well at the right time and have success at the end of the year.

“To me and our coaches, it was much more rewarding to see our team come together and continue to push each other as a group than it was winning the last three games to clinch a playoff spot. The success that we had at the end of the year was a direct result of our team’s hard work, and it was great to see them get rewarded for it.”

Senior Corbin Harrison hopes he and his teammates can channel that unexpected October success into the new season.

“The last three wins to propel us into the playoffs was a second wind for us,” he said. “With this coaching staff, we knew the attitude going into the offseason. Offseason practices are not mandatory, but everyone we have has been to every practice. The responsibilities of the whole team have made us all closer as a family. We were told we were out of the playoffs and everyone doubted we would win three in a row, but we put our heads down and haven’t looked up since.”

As he prepares for his second season at Burgettstown, Marshall and his staff have now had the benefit of a full offseason with the team. He wasn’t hired until March of 2021, four months into offseason activities.

“The experience in the offseason has been tremendous,” he said. “Last year, it felt like everything was rushed. There were a lot of things that we wanted to implement in year one and before we knew it, the season was already upon us.

“I know for us as coaches, it has been great to be around during the offseason because we’ve now had an opportunity to really get to know our players and see them outside of the football spotlight. See how they work in the weight room, to see how they compete in other sports, get to know them individually, and even more importantly, they were able to get to know us as coaches.”

If a solid foundation was built last year by the new staff, then the Blue Devils have room to expand with seven starters returning on both sides of the ball.

Junior Brodie Kuzior, one of the key players in the Blue Devils’ run to the district semifinals in baseball this spring, returns at quarterback and linebacker.

“He is a very intelligent football player who was able to use his instincts and raw talent to find success last year,” Marshall said. “He’s a guy that you love to have as a coach because you can put him in a multitude of positions on the field offensively and defensively.”

Two top targets for Kuzior in the passing game will be senior Caleb Russell and junior Rudy Brown. Both also start at defensive back.

“Caleb is a quiet leader who does everything by example, but he’s not afraid to compete in everything he does,” Marshall said. “Rudy is just a guy who continues to get better and better every single day. He was a two-way starter as a sophomore, another guy who uses his intelligence to allow us to place him in different positions all over the field.”

The Blue Devils’ running attack will be led by Harrison, who also starts at linebacker.

“Corbin has been excellent during the offseason,” Marshall said. “He has been a great leader and has established that reputation unquestionably with his teammates.”

Senior Luke Ferris will lead the lineman up front. A Week 1 knee injury ended his junior year, but Marshall says he pushed himself hard in rehab to be ready for his senior season.

“Our team this year is not as big as last year, but we are faster and stronger,” Harrison said. “We have been focusing on fundamentals and little details.”

Burgettstown moves from the Class A Big 7 Conference to the newly formed Black Hills Conference, where it will battle defending champion Bishop Canevin, 2021 runner-up Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Avella, Carlynton, Chartiers-Houston, Cornell and Fort Cherry.

“To be honest, we’re not really concerned with anyone that isn’t us,” Marshall said. “We want to put all of our focus and energy into making ourselves the best that we can be. If we keep that focus and our guys continue to buy into that mindset like they have, who we are playing is really irrelevant. Every time we step on the field, we want to represent ourselves the very best that we can.”

Burgettstown

Coach: Greg Marshall

2021 record: 3-4, 5-5 in Class A Big 7 Conference

All-time record: 448-494-39

SCHEDULE

Date, Opponent, Time

9.2 at Beth-Center, 7

9.9 South Side, 7

9.16 Bishop Canevin*, 7

9.23 at Chartiers-Houston*, 7

9.30 Cornell*, 7

10.7 at OLSH, 7

10.15 Carlynton*, 1

10.21 at Avella*, 7

10.28 Fort Cherry*, 7

*Conference game

STATISTICAL LEADERS

Passing: Jackson LaRocka*

37-72, 437 yards, 3 TDs

Rushing: LaRocka*

371 yards, 5 TDs

Receiving: Caleb Russell

11-178 yards, 2 TDs

*Graduated

FAST FACTS

• Greg Marshall begins his second season as head coach at Burgettstown. He was an assistant coach at West Allegheny, where he was quarterback in the mid-2000s.

• Ninety-three years ago, Burgettstown won its first WPIAL football championship as the Blue Devils were declared Class A champs in 1929. A dozen years later, Burgettstown won its most recent title by defeating Crafton, 34-7, to win the 1941 WPIAL Class AA crown.

• The Blue Devils will be reunited with a couple of long rivals after realignment this season. Fort Cherry moves over to the Black Hills with Burgettstown. The Rangers hold a 19-17-1 lead in the all-time series. Also back on the Blue Devils schedule is Chartiers-Houston (16-11), Carlynton (17-18) and Avella (23-1-4).

• This is the 111th season of Burgettstown football, including preceding schools in the district.