Coaching Changes
- By HSFB99
- Pennsylvania Football Talk
- 19 Replies
Has Spring-Ford hired a coach yet? Brubaker left in early Nov if I remember correctly. Any insight?
I guess you do not have to go to St. Joes prep to be the best!Whitehall's Saquon Barkley and Downingtown West's Will Howard with the performances of the weekend in the NFL and NCAA.
On finals -Salamone got smoked by U17 world champion Paul Kenny (Christian Brothers Academy, NJ) 20-3, but just went out and flipped his loss to Reef Dillard from a week ago with a 5-2 win on a last second takedown (I actually think it came too late, lots of arguing at the table).
Some really good finals -
107: Jojo Burke, SJR vs Justin Farnsworth, Malvern Prep: both top five in the country
114: Freddy Bachman, FCA vs Liam Davis, LHP: Bachmann #1 in America and a big favoritr
121: John McGinty, SJR vs Paul Kenny, CBA: probably NJ state final
127: Joey Bachmann, FCA vs Karson Brown, St. Ed’s: disappointed Keanu Dillard had to scratch, but a good PA vs OH state champ battle.
133: Kasen Roark, Father Ryan TN vs Tyler Conroy, Malvern Prep: Mutarelli scratched here, and Tyler DeKraker had to injury default out
139: Ryan Kennedy, Spire Academy vs Caden Baum, Biship McDevitt: Cayden Riccardi scratching and Kennedy with an upset over Jayce Paridon caused chaos here.
145: Eren Sement, CRN vs Charlie DeSenna, LHP: Sement has been on fire
152: Chase Van Hoven, Brooke Point VA vs Zeno Moore, LHP: Pair of top ten kids, neither local but a high level match up
160: Collin Gaj, Quakertown vs Ben Weader, Chantilly VA: Future college teammates at Virginia Texh
172: Ryan Burton, SJR vs Asher Cunningham, State College: Bith top 5 in America, Burton has won their earlier match up this year. Marquee bout of the tournament.
189: Adam Waters, FCA vs Vincenzo LaVelle, Hanover Park NJ: Waters is incredible. One of the best junior upper weights I’ve ever seen.
215: Lucas Lawler, Bishop McDevitt vs Jason Singer, FCA: Probable 2A state semifinal for the right to wrestle Austin Johnson (Muncy)
285: Mark Effendian, FCA vs Jacob Levy, LHP: top two seeds, have been in the finals of a bunch of big tournaments.
Sement is wrestling really well. He's in a brutal weight class right now - he, Tahir Parkins (Nazareth), and Dalton Perry (Central Mountain) are all in the top 8 in the country and Parkins and Perry have both won state championships (Parkins last year, Perry won as a freshman, took 3rd as a sophomore, and lost in finals last year). I wonder if you'll see movement for the postseason - there is not a clear favorite at 139 right now, with Mutarelli going down to 133, and Trey Wagner seemingly up at 139 at least for now is a favorite as a returning state champ, but probably a step down from Parkins/Perry/Sement on a talent scale. I don't know what Sement is pulling to get to 145 or if getting to 141 (139 plus the two pound allowance) is feasible for him. And it's not impossible for him to win 145 - he beat Parkins for 3rd place two years ago at states when they were at 126, and Parkins-Sement was an overtime match in the Beast of the East finals. He and Perry have never wrestled in high school - but I don't think Perry is as invicible as it seemed like he was going to be after a dominant freshman year. And those three are going to Penn State (Perry), Michigan (Sement), and Rutgers (Parkins), so it may be a round-robin that continues into college.Happy for Eren Sement, hope he wins gold this year. The CRN-CRS match in a couple weeks could be interesting, obviously the rivalry has been somewhat lopsided over the years.
wasn't that always the case? NA has always been richer than North Hills and always right next to PittsburghThink housing. Younger families cannot afford NA or PR or SV.
Also, old timer NH people coupled with minorities wanting get out of the shit hole that is the Pittsburgh Public Schools.
yep good summary NewThink housing. Younger families cannot afford NA or PR or SV.
Also, old timer NH people coupled with minorities wanting get out of the shit hole that is the Pittsburgh Public Schools.
haha yep the band is very good- great bands? Hempfield, Seneca Valley- and now North Hills... I imagine lots of big schools in East Pa have great bands, but Football goes 6-4 and never wins championships. It takes so much to be great in sports in 2025. First- me, as a Pine Richland supporter- I would be happy if NH was good every year- makes our conference better, football more fun to watch- sharpens skills for playoffs. Here are some reasons why IMO that NHs is not strong-Good post. For whatever reason football is simply not important to the people of North Hills. The AD can stand on the sidelines laughing and joking while the team is down 40 points in a key football game, means nothing to him. As long as they scrape into the playoffs he is happy. The school board would never dream of replacing the ultimate mediocrity of Carey. He's a NH guy so he has a lifetime job just like McCurry, even though unlike McCurry he has very few accomplishments with the team. Think about it, NH tried to fire McCurry, yet replacing Carey is not even a topic of conversation, despite the fact so many kids won't play for him. The passion in NH is 1000X greater for the marching band than the football team, that's what people care about (and the band is good, no surprise).
There is still a hardcore group keeping football alive, you don't win 8 games in 5A on just luck. The youth football program is good. Unlike some bad teams I could mention, kids come to varsity and know how to play. Zangaro is a young coordinator who has tremendously improved the defense since coming on. The district has grown over the last decade, they need to get participation back up. I swear the marching band kids are bigger than the football team...
Salamone got smoked by U17 world champion Paul Kenny (Christian Brothers Academy, NJ) 20-3, but just went out and flipped his loss to Reef Dillard from a week ago with a 5-2 win on a last second takedown (I actually think it came too late, lots of arguing at the table).Salamone beats Timar 7-1, best win of his career. Second win over a top 10 kid in the country this year for Salamone (John McGinty, who will be in the other semi).
Good post. For whatever reason football is simply not important to the people of North Hills. The AD can stand on the sidelines laughing and joking while the team is down 40 points in a key football game, means nothing to him. As long as they scrape into the playoffs he is happy. The school board would never dream of replacing the ultimate mediocrity of Carey. He's a NH guy so he has a lifetime job just like McCurry, even though unlike McCurry he has very few accomplishments with the team. Think about it, NH tried to fire McCurry, yet replacing Carey is not even a topic of conversation, despite the fact so many kids won't play for him. The passion in NH is 1000X greater for the marching band than the football team, that's what people care about (and the band is good, no surprise).another post references "450 bottom feeders" to make the point- only a small # of programs care about / work / strive to win championships. NH is one of the "bottom feeders." The leadership "stays with" Carey, the HC, b/c he is an alu, he has had a couple winning seasons, had gotten into the playoffs. The community just does not do all the things necessary to build a successful program- they are good w "status quo" and "mediocre" football. They just don't care- which is sadly common, and typical, for most HSs in PA in 2025
Salamone beats Timar 7-1, best win of his career. Second win over a top 10 kid in the country this year for Salamone (John McGinty, who will be in the other semi).Nick Salamone of Easton pins his way into quarters, where he’ll see UVA commit Ethan Timar from St. Edward’s in Cleveland, Ohio. Timar was the Ohio state champ as a freshman and runner-up as a sophomore. Salamone has three wins over state finalists already this year (Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey) and this is a huge match up for him.
Also a really fun historical match-up. Easton and St. Ed’s both attended the Top Hat tournament at Williamsport in the early 80s which kicked off a decades relationship where they would dual each other, with Ed’s coming out to make the trip to wrestle Easton, Nazareth, Northampton, and Blair throughout the 80s, 90s, and early 00s. I don’t think the two schools have met in a dual since 2002, where Easton knocked off #2 nationally ranked Eagles at 25th Street Gym. When I was working for FloWrestling, I spent a lot of time covering Ed’s - Greg Urbas was the ultimate gentleman and John Heffernan (now the head coach) is also a great guy, and they would give me endless crap for how terrible and homer they thought the officiating in that dual was. I don’t know if that makes up for 34-18, but we had a lot of laughs over it. Good guys, hope Salamone goes out and kicks Timar’s butt.
Why getting seeded here is importent - tough draws for the Rovers.Monster Tournament this weekend.
Nationally Ranked Teams Attending
#1 Faith Christian Academy
#2 Lake highland Prep (FL)
#8 Malver Prep
#9 St. Joseph Regional (NJ)
#11 St. Edward (OH)
#24 Bethlehem Catholic
#28 St. Peter's Prep (NJ)
#32 Bishop McDevitt
#39 Ponganset (RI)
#40 Christian Brothers Academy (NJ)
#44 Staunton River (VA)
HM Southern Regional (NJ)
HM Notre Dame
HM Connellsville
HM Tampa Jesuit (FL)
HM Easton
State Ranked Teams Attending
3A: #1 Bethlehem Catholic; #2 Connellsville, #3 Notre Dame, #5 Easton, #11 Council Rock North; #13 Council Rock South: 2A: #1 Faith Christian Academy; #3 Bishop McDevitt
Some preliminary thoughts
106
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #13 (at 114)Killian Coluccio (Lacey Township; uncommitted), #3 Justin Farnsworth (Malvern Prep), #13 Nico Emili (Bethlehem Catholic), #8 Sean Kenney (CBA), #16 JoJo Burke (St. Joseph Regional).
#2 in the state Tommy Gretz (Connellsville) is the 12 seed in the tournament. Loaded weight class, it'll be interesting to see how Coluccio does down at 107 (109 with the allowance). Emili and Gretz are possible state finalists here in PA and this is their first direct head-to-head comparison.
114
Nationally ranked wrestlers: #1 Freddy Bachman (Faith Chrstian Academy; uncommitted)
Wide open after Bachman. Field also includes Kole Davidheiser (11 seed) who was a state medalist at Faith Christian who got recruited over and transferred to The Hill School. Max Tancini (Perk Valley) can make a statement, he's a possible PA finalist in 3A and the second seed here.
121
Nationally Ranked Wrestlers: #16 (at 127) Gauge Botero (Faith Christian Academy; Michigan), #7 Paul Kenney (CBA), #8 Ethan Timar (St. Edward; Virginia), #9 Luke Littleton (Malvern Prep; North Carolina), #17 John McGinty (St. Joseph Regiona; Oklahoma)
Monster weight class here. Very possible the OW comes out of this group. Behind Botero, Reef Dillard and Nick Salamone are the PA highlights, both are possible 3A finalists, and Salamone owns a win over McGinty at Beast of the East. Dillard throttled Salamone in their dual last week.
127
Nationally Ranked Wrestlers: #6 Keanu Dillard (Bethlehem Catholic; Lehigh), #2 (at 121) Joey Bachmann (Faith Cristian Academy), #13 Karson Brown (St. Edward; Pittsburgh), #14 Matty O'Neill (Malvern Prep; uncommitted)
Bachmann going up to challenge Dillard (who has an OT win over Botero at Ironman) is one of the highlights of the tournament. Both are Cadet World medalists this past summer, with Bachmann taking gold and Dillard taking bronze.
133
Nationally Ranked Wrestlers: #9 Tyler DeKraker (Chantilly VA; Ohio State), #17 Anthony Mutarelli (Council Rock South; Oregon State), #24 Bobby Duffy (CBA; uncommitted)
Mutarelli's first competition down at 133 this year and he looks like he's on a collison course with Ohio State commit Tyler DeKraker (formerly of Blair, formerly of Faith Christian, now back at his hometown school in Virginia).
139
#4 Caeden Ricciardi (St. Peters Prep; Navy), #5 Jayce Paridon (Lake Highland Prep; Virginia)
Huge national match as the probable final with your top two seeds. A chance for Caden Baum and Kai Vielma, two very good PA kids, to make a statement against some national kids. Chris Kelly from my alma mater a fun 10 seed.
145
#7 Eren Sement (Council Rock North; Michigan), #15 Joey Joyce (Pongansett; Brown), #19 Tyler Traves (Mountain View VA; Cornell), #24 Charlie DeSenna (Lake Highland Prep; uncommitted)
Sement is the top seed and can put together some nice national wins in his run, with Joyce as teh 5 seed and a semifinal opponent and DeSena or Traves in the finals. Mason Wagner (CBA) and Pat Kelly (CB West) are solid PA kids who will be tough outs.
152
#6 (at 157) Chase Van Hoven (Brooke Pointe VA; Lehigh) #7 Zeno Moore (Lake Highland Prep; uncommitted), #14 Max Stein (Faith Christian; Penn), #15 Evan Petrovich (Connellsville; Pittsburgh), #21 Ryan Lawler (Bishop McDevitt; Bucknell)
Another loaded weight, PEtrovich is a kid I've always liked who has a chance to climb, though Van Hoven and Moore is a heavily favored final.
160
#3 Collin Gaj (Quakertown; Virginia Tech), #10 Lucas Boe (Lake Highland Prep; uncommitted), #9 Ben Weader (Chantilly VA; Virginia Tech), #16 Chase Hontz (Faith Christian; Hofstra), #17 Charlie Scanlan (Bethlehem Catholic; Columbia)
Just rolling off deep weight classes. Gaj is going to win, because he's a mosnter, but he'll bolster his resume doing so. Gaj and Scanlan could be a state final. Chris Dennis (CB West) and Lonzy Vielma (Connellsville) are also really solid PA kids who can raise their stock.
172
#3 Ryan Burton (St. Joseph Regional; Virginia Tech), #5 Asher Cunningham (State College; Penn State), #20 Nick Singer (Faith Christian; uncommitted)
Burton and Cunningham is as high level a match up as you get. Virginia Tech vs. Penn State, NJ state champ vs. PA State champ, both really athletic, fun wrestlers. Singer and Ohio state champ Ty Miller (St. Edward) is the next tier who would be finalist in pretty much every other tourney in the country. Dom Sumpolec (Notre Dame), Shane McFillin (Bethlehem Catholic), and Gavin Cole (Council Rock South) is a nice preview of who could be opposite Cunningham in the 3A state finals.
189
#2 Adam Waters (Faith Christian; uncommitted), #6 JR Miller (St. Edward; Iowa), #7 Robet Kucharczk (Lake Highland Prep; Haravrd), #8 Vincenzo Lavelle (Hanover Park; Princeton), #21 Alex Reyes (Holmdel; uncommitted), #25 Kaleb Jackson (St. Joseph Regional; uncommitted)
Incredible weight class. Waters is a clear favorite, but could be any number of kids he's meeting in finals, though Miller is probably the most talented kid. There will be huge names who may not end up on the medal stand.
215
#19 Lucas Lawlar (Bishop McDevitt; Bucknell), #20 Landon Jobber-Spence (Staunton River; Arkansas-Little Rock), #21 Dylan Greenstein (Northfield Mount Hermon MA; Harvard), #25 Jason Singer (Faith Christian; Lehigh)
Guys are "only" ranked in the 20s here, so a relative breather. But a good test for Singer and Stosh Zalota (Malvern Prep) who are two breakout upper weights on their national schedules.
285
#7 Jacob Levy (Lake Highland Prep; North Carolina), #8 Mark Effendian (Faith Christian; Princeton), #14 Christian Alvarez (St. Joseph Regional; uncommitted), #15 James Bechter (Northfield Mount Herman; Stanford), #19 Luke Zalota (Malvern Prep; uncommitted)
Levy and Effendian is the expected feature bout, but again, a good set of big guys to close the tournament.