Brumbaugh has Lions roaring
Brett Brumbaugh was tired of waiting.
The South Fayette senior quarterback had done his part. He led the Lions to the WPIAL and PIAA Class AA championships last season, broke the WPIAL all-time career passing yardage mark and carried on the tradition his brother, Christian, began at the storied football program.
The 2013 Observer-Reporter Player of the Year and Male Athlete of the Year is currently ranked third in PIAA history with 9,644 career passing yards.
The scholarship offers from Bowl Championship Series college football programs never came. It did not matter to the 6-5, strong-armed quarterback who has South Fayette positioned for another run at Heinz Field.
He officially committed to play at Duquesne University for head coach Jerry Schmitt, who led the Lions’ program for two seasons in the early 1990s. Brumbaugh chose the Football Championship Series program over offers from Akron, Albany and Temple. He announced the decision Tuesday on his Twitter account.
After breaking the WPIAL single-season record for touchdown passes a season ago, Brumbaugh has been as equally impressive with new starters on offense. He has completed 62 percent of his passes for 2,298 yards and 30 touchdowns.
Duquesne kept in touch with Brumbaugh and South Fayette’s coaching staff since he attended the program’s junior day last spring and offered him a scholarship prior to last week’s win over Waynesburg.
“It pretty much came down to them and Albany. I liked Albany’s coaches a lot, but it kind of came down to Duquesne was close to home. I liked that part of it. A lot of that had to do with it and the offense they run had to do with it.”
With the decision made, Brumbaugh can turn his focus to the WPIAL Class AA quarterfinal game Friday night against South Park (8-2) at Peters Township High School (7:30 p.m. start).
South Fayette (10-0) defeated the Century Conference rival Eagles, 59-20, Sept. 12. With a victory, the Lions would extend their winning streak to 27 games and face either Seton La-Salle or Highlands in the semifinals.
Head coach Joe Rossi was pleased to see his record-setting quarterback commit to the Dukes.
“(Duquesne) is going to get a steal,” Rossi said. “The kid is phenomenal. They were waiting to see what happened with him and felt it was the right time for him. They are getting a person who fits their offense well. They run similar stuff that we do. It’s a match made in heaven, you would say.”
After soundly defeating an injury-riddled Waynesburg team in the first round, the Lions advanced to a test that has Rossi concerned. South Park has won six straight games behind quarterback Nick Scholle and a huge offensive line that is led by Ryan Podgrosky – a Division I prospect.
“Any time you face the same team a second time, it’s always difficult,” Rossi said. “They’ll throw a wrinkle or two in there. They are huge up front. They outweigh us big time. We have been in that situation, thankfully. We have good, lean linemen, but theirs average 300 pounds. They lean on teams and their offense is surrounded around a tremendous running quarterback.”
The season has not come without challenges. Seniors Roman Denson and JJ Walker have missed significant time because of injury, and South Fayette has three new starters on the offensive line and a new starting tailback.
The transition in the backfield has been aided by junior Hunter Hayes, who received playing time during the state championship run last year. He eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in last week’s victory over the Raiders and has rushed for 21 touchdowns.
“We knew at the beginning of the year that Hunter was going to be someone special,” Brumbaugh said. “He’s been playing great all year, but these past few weeks, he’s really had a coming out party.”
Defending a title can create a different challenge for any football team, especially in the playoffs. Brumbaugh and the Lions have not altered the approach that helped them defeat Aliquippa at Heinz Field for the title last November.
“We are looking at it the same way,” Brumbaugh said. “We look at every game as being a one-game season. You have to win that one game. If you start looking ahead, bad things start happening. We are keeping the same mindset.”