Bethel Park is potentially dangerous
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Bethel Park lineman (from left) Coby Goelz, Braedon Del Duca, Logan Pettigrew, Dom Capone and Sam Sciullo are ready defend and protect their turf this football season.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Bethel Park football players work on their agility and footwork during a preseason training camp drill.
By Eleanor Bailey
Almanac Sports Editor
ebailey@thealmanac.net
BETHEL PARK – With 18 returning starters, nine on each side of the football, Bethel Park possibly could experience one of its most successful seasons since winning a WPIAL title and challenging for a state championship 14 years ago.
Don’t mention those prospects though to Brian DeLallo as he heads into his fourth season as coach.
“Potential is a dangerous word,” he cautioned. “Can we go as far as they went in 2008? Yes, but so can any other team. You have to be good, stay healthy, get hot at the right time and have luck.
“With all we have coming back, we know expectations are high but we are embracing that and not running away from it. We anticipate being a tough team to beat. We expect to contend for conference and WPIAL championships. If you win the WPIAL, then you usually are a contender for state.”
Gavin Moul makes the Hawks a serious challenger. He has been in the lineup since his arrival, starting six games as a freshman. A 6-1, 225-pound two-way player, he’s a fullback on offense and middle linebacker on defense, where he recorded 81 tackles, including 23 for losses, and eight sacks.
Moul, who recently committed to Delaware, is part of what DeLallo describes as a “three-headed monster” out of the backfield with senior Austin Caye at running back and sophomore Ryan Petras at wide receiver.
“Gavin has the wheels to play tailback but Austin’s healthy this year and ready to go and Ryan’s explosive. While he’s a receiver, we want to get the ball in his hands because his biggest asset is quickness.
“If you want a thumper though, Gavin’s our guy.”
Nick Howrylak and Jack Kohnfelder can carry the ball while Colton Pfeuffer, Dinari Clacks and Jason Nuttridge are other capable receivers along with Clancy Orie out of the tight end slot.
Defensively, DeLallo puts Moul in a category with Jared Pratt, who played at Colgate, and Adam Lazenga, who played at Pitt.
“He has tons of experience and we expect him to be our leader,” DeLallo said. “He makes big hits and hustles. He runs to the ball. The way he plays is infectious. He’s our anchor in the middle, for sure. A coach on the field. He makes all the calls. He can handle it.”
Caye has handled a move from strong safety to free safety. Last year, he managed 36 tackles. He broke up two passes and intercepted two others.
Back in the secondary also are Clacks, an all-conference cornerback, Jack Reilly and Nuttridge. A senior, who shares punting duties with Moul, Nuttridge started seven games as a sophomore but missed much of last year because of an injury.
Petras and Pfeuffer, along with Jeremiah Hamilton, Cordan McDonnell, Jack Kohnfelder and Mitch Paschl, will see action in the secondary.
“We have tons of experience and tons of depth in the secondary,” DeLallo said. “Those guys are also coachable, smart and athletic. They are not limited in what they can do. Because we have people who know what they are doing, it lets us do more formations and gives people something to think about.”
With equal measures of depth at the line positions, BP doesn’t worry about players going both ways.
On defense, the Hawks employ a three-man front and will rely on veterans Orie and Coby Goelz at end and Dom Capone at nose guard.
Logan Pettigrew is a returning starter at center. The remaining crew of Sam Sciullo, Toby D’Andrea, Braedon Del Duca, Jake Brown, Mike Frost, Dom Capone, Brady Remington, Aidan Campbell, Dylan Prindle and Rob Lakandula all started multiple games in the past.
Aidan Currie is a standout veteran at tight end. A three-year starter, he earned all-conference acclaim last fall. He also starts at strong-side linebacker while Ty Stewart plays the weak-side position. Sciullo, Howrylak and Christian Davis also are linebackers.
“Aidan will be one of our leaders because the older guys take on bigger roles,” DeLallo said. “We threw to him a lot last year so we have to find ways to consistently get the ball to him more.”
That responsibility looks to fall to Tanner Pfeutter and Jack Bruckner. The sophomores are embroiled in the battle to fill the quarterback vacancy caused by Max Blanc’s matriculation to Youngstown State.
“They have similar skillsets and have shown good leadership in the huddle,” DeLallo said. “They are buddies. They help each other. There’s no petty rivalry.
“We have to be smart about what we ask them to do. We need to be careful not to overload them.”
Regardless of who calls the signals, the Hawks need to be wary of mistakes. Miscues led to their demise last fall. They gave up two defensive scores in a 34-27 loss to Canon-McMillan. They had a field goal blocked and returned for a touchdown in a 21-14 loss to Upper St. Clair. A pick-6 resulted in a playoff loss to Woodland Hills, 27-23.
“Teams that are hard to beat take care of the football, don’t commit penalties and are disciplined,” DeLallo noted. “That’s been my mantra. Take care of the football. Don’t be disorganized. No penalties. We do those things and play solid dense, then we will be hard to beat.”