Trib HSSN Football Player of the Week for October 20, 2024

From: Don Rebel

Sunday, October 20, 2024 | 3:27 p.m

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Trib HSSN Football Player of the Week – Brady Brinkley

School – North Allegheny

Class – Second semester

Size/Weight – 6-foot-3, 175 pounds

position – Quarterback, free safety

What the coach says – “He showed a lot of growth and maturity for a sophomore,” North Allegheny coach Art Walker said of Brinkley’s performance against Pine-Richland. “He had recently lost the ball on the goal line and was upset about it. It was a tough game that didn’t go his way, but he didn’t let it get him down. He responded brilliantly in the next series.

“It was a play-action pass that put him in a corner,” Walker said of the game-winning 78-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. “He made his reading progress and realized his best option was running. He made a few great moves, then his speed took over. Once he gets going, it’s difficult to catch up.

“He continued to make improvements week after week. He has developed from the start of the season until now and we expect that to continue.”

“He leads by example. He works hard in training, competes and over time has gained the trust of his teammates. This is the only way to be a leader as a sophomore. Once that foundation is laid, it will get stronger and stronger every week.”

#Earned – It was a non-conference game in name only, but there’s always something special when northern rivals North Allegheny and Pine-Richland face off. Every time the Rams scored, the Tigers had an answer, thanks in part to the play of sophomore quarterback Brady Brinkley. With Pine-Richland leading, Brinkley connected with senior wide receiver James Donaldson on a 57-yard scoring strike to tie the game in the second quarter. Just before halftime, Brinkley trailed by a touchdown and found Donaldson again with a 24-yard TD pass to tie the game again at 14-14. Then, with the Rams leading by seven points again early in the fourth quarter, Brinkley lashed out with his legs for a 78-yard touchdown run. North Allegheny took its first lead when Brinkley threw his third touchdown pass, a 5-yarder to senior tight end Dylan Langdon, giving the Tigers a 28-21 lead.

background – In the win over Pine-Richland, Brinkley was 11 of 21 for 200 yards and three touchdowns, as well as running for 93 yards and the long scoring run for NA. This season he has now completed 76 of 126 passes for 969 yards and seven touchdowns. He also has 414 yards rushing and seven touchdowns. He is second in rushing and all-time leader in touchdowns for North Allegheny. In the Tigers’ first three games, he attempted just 13 passes with six completions for 66 yards. Brinkley did not play varsity football as a freshman. He is also a member of the North Allegheny basketball team in the winter and the track team in the spring.

WPIAL Week 8 Honorable Mention

Tanner Pfeuffer, Bethel Park

A week ago, Bethel Park suffered its first heartbreaking loss of the season against undefeated Upper St. Clair (14-10). The Black Hawks and their senior quarterback recovered quickly and impressively from this heavy home defeat. Tanner Pfeuffer connected with senior Ryan Petras on touchdown passes of 28 and 62 yards, with senior Mitch Paschi on a 22-yard strike, and with senior Jack Bruckner on a 10-yard TD pass, as well as scoring on a 1 -yard run…all in the first half. He finished the game with 261 yards passing as Bethel Park past South Fayette 35-14.

Armand Hill, West Mifflin

Entering Week 7, West Mifflin was 0-2 in the Class 4A Greater Allegheny Conference and 2-5 overall. The Titans turned to sophomore running back Armand Hill, and he answered the call. A week after running for 189 yards in a shutout against Indiana, Hill rushed for 334 yards on 30 carries and scored four touchdowns on runs of 37, 24, 67 and 10 yards as the Titans rolled past Knoch, 48-21. The win moved the Titans to third place in the 4A wild card hunt.

Jacob Stephenson, Waynesburg Central

While Carlynton stunned Washington by thwarting the Class 2A Century Conference playoffs, Waynesburg Central took care of business to remain in control of its own destiny entering Week 9. Senior quarterback Jake Stephenson completed 9 of 14 passes for 163 yards and a 65-yard scoring pass to sophomore Jack Ricciuti, in addition to carrying the pigskin 16 times for 197 yards and touchdown runs of 1, 7, 8 and 67 yards, lifting the Raiders past Charleroi 49-23.

2024 HSSN Player of the Week

Week 7 – Kymon’e Brown, Jeannette

Week 6 – Tasso Whipple, Penn-Trafford

Week 5 – Julian Dahlem, Upper St. Clair

Week 4 – Matt Sieg, Fort Cherry

Week 3 – Trey Hopper, Montour

Week 2 – Tyler Eber, Thomas Jefferson

Week 1 – Donald Barksdale, Steel Valley

Week Zero – Drew Welhorsky, South Fayette

Tags: North Allegheny