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The 2022 Pittsburgh City League season came to a close on Friday evening and did so with a shining moment.

Tagged under: District 8, Gameday Hub, News

| October 15, 2022


The 2022 Pittsburgh City League season came to a close on Friday evening and did so with a shining moment. The final contest of the season saw “Round One” between defending champions Allderdice and University. It was a spirited contest that Allderdice pulled out 21-20. The two teams will meet next week in the City League semifinals on Thursday night.

With the regular season in the books, this is a good time to look back on “The Season That Was” for the City Six and to also look ahead to “What Lies Ahead” for those who compete in the playoffs.

We’ll review in order of the final standings, with Carrick at the bottom as a City League school playing an independent schedule.

Westinghouse: A perfect regular season that had three exclamation point victories on it…Blowouts of Clairton, Butler and a drubbing of Steel-High to start the season. Donta Green’s charges blasted through the City League with ease. The ‘House enters the playoffs loaded with college talent across the roster and has the best QB in Western PA right now in senior gunslinger Keyshawn Morsillo. They’re not only favorites to win the City League title, they’re among the top contenders in Class AA for the State Title. The only thing standing in their way of a birth in the sub-regionals is Perry. Win the semifinal on Friday and they’re where they need to be.

Allderdice: Jerry Haslett is the “mad scientist” of Pittsburgh City League football. He’s got schemes, schemes and more schemes. New plays, trick plays, third quarterbacks…You name it, Jerry’s got it. He’s also a ruthless schedule maker, ducking nobody. This season, ‘Dice tackled North Allegheny, Altoona, Dover(OH) and Steubenville(OH) outside of the City League. They came up on the losing end in each of those high profile tests but those are the games that build up to the next two weeks for his staff. To play the best available competition, get through the City League with either zero or one loss and then go for it all in the playoffs. He’s got talented athletes, depth and a strong line. We’ve got a sneaky feeling that neither Westinghouse, nor anyone else they played, saw the full hand. There’s an Ace somewhere up Jerry’s sleeve. Always is.

University: Lou Berry’s team has had a solid season, also taking on several tough teams outside the city. They played Highlands and Steubenville—and also got the City wins they needed to get across the line. Daniel Cain is an electric return man and receiver, Terrell Allen-Tooks is a rock solid fullback and middle linebacker and we saw tonight that they have a secret weapon—Freshman QB Jaquille McIntosh. He stepped in for the injured Max Qureshi and was firing the ball around the field with the confidence of a senior. They’ll tackle ‘Dice again next week and could make some noise in the sub-regional with the athleticism they have.

Perry: The storied Traditional Academy found its footing this year. They started the season with a solid win over Seton La Salle, took Harrison Central(OH) to the end and also gave University a great game. Depth is an issue for them, but they do have a capable QB in Ahmad Arrington, several key athletes in Stephen Hale Jr, Chevar Simpkins and Manuel Williams; and one of the top running backs in Allegheny County, Julian Walker, a slept on recruit who is coming into his own. For Perry’s season to continue in sub-regional play, they have to find a way to play “The Perfect Game” and get Westinghouse next week.

Brashear: Banged Up. Bruised. Battered. All terms to describe what went wrong for Coach Drew Moore’s Bulls this season. First it was star LB TaMere Robinson who went down last season. Then it was Kameron Cheatom this summer. Then the injuries just kept piling up…For the second year in a row, Brashear’s highly hyped, very talented squad got bit by the injury bug and took the wheels off the bus on what they were hoping was the run to get them over the hill as a power player. The Bulls struggled to a winless season against a vicious non-city slate that included Wheeling Park(WV) and Our Lady Of Mt Carmel from Baltimore’s Catholic League. As the injuries mounted, senior Shawn Solomon shined brighter and brighter. One of the few upperclass stars who didn’t get hurt this year, Solomon broke the 1,000 yard mark in just eight games, played QB, played defense, returned kicks, punted if needed, did it all. The golden lining is young players got a lot of experience this year, so the freshmen and sophomores should put this to use, hit the weights hard this winter, run track in the spring to get fit for football and be ready to go in 2023.

Carrick: Rebuilding. Coach Greg Johnston has put in a lot of time to start turning the corner for the Raiders. They have been able to score a few victories this year, shutting out Carlynton and thumping Brownsville. They have a few non-conference games left and it should be a great learning experience for the younger players on the squad and a good opportunity to send off a senior class that has stuck it out with him with a few more memories, especially Rashod Woods, a do-it-all player for Carrick. Carrick is going about this the right way. They’re finding games they can compete in—Carlynton, Brownsville—They found games that ended up being trap games—Steubenville Central Catholic—They fought hard against Gallatin, Uniontown and University. They saw the next level with Wheeling Central Catholic. If they continue trying to formulate schedules this way—A few very winnable games—A game or two they “should be favored” in to make sure the kids learn how to not be complacent—and a few “guys, this is where we can to get to” type of contests—Carrick can increase its numbers and get ready to rejoin the City League full time.

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