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Player of Year Williams, a line star, heads trio on first unit. A fourth is on second team.
Pittsburgh Central Catholic lineman Quentin Williams was celebrating his team’s 21-0 win over Parkland in the PIAA Class 4A football championship game when a bystander relayed comments made to him by losing coach Jim Morgans.
When told Morgans called the 6-foot-3, 235-pound Williams “the best defensive lineman we’ve seen all year, he’s a guy who changes games,” Williams just blinked, mouth agape.
“Umm, uhh, wow,” said Williams, a top student who lists Stanford among his potential college choices. “That’s just … I don’t know what to say.”
It might have been the only time Williams was thrown for a loss all season.
Williams is one of four Central Catholic players to make The Associated Press Pennsylvania Class 4A all-state team, with three Vikings on the first team. Because he was such a versatile and game-changing player at tight end and on the defensive line, Williams was chosen as the player of the year.
Central Catholic’s other first team players are defensive end Dan Vaughan, and defensive back Andrew Taglianetti. Tino Sunseri, a quarterback, made the second team after helping Central Catholic to a 16-0 season. All are seniors.
Central Catholic’s WPIAL nemesis, District 7 runner-up Gateway, also had three first-teamers in Pitt recruit Cameron Saddler and defensive players Shayne Hale and Dorian Bell.
Harrisburg, defeated by Pittsburgh Central Catholic in the PIAA West championship game, placed defensive lineman Brandon Ware and linebacker Adrian Robinson on the first team plus two others on the second team.
Ridley, beaten by PIAA runner-up Parkland in the PIAA East championship, had first teamers in quarterback Steve Egee and linebacker Andrew Hodges. Philadelphia Catholic League Red Division champion Roman Catholic, which isn’t eligible for the PIAA playoffs until next season, landed defensive back Nick Moody on the first team and two players on the second team.
John Waller, who revived Ridley’s program from a slump that began after longtime coach Joe McNicholas retired 11 years ago, was named the coach of the year following statewide balloting by writers and broadcasters.
Waller guided Ridley to a District 1 title after replacing his quarterback and top receiver from last season.
Williams, who made 89 tackles in a defense that tries to funnel opposing ball carriers to the linebackers, also caught 23 passes for 443 yards as a tight end to beat out several excellent candidates for the player of the year award.
Among them was Central Bucks South running back Erik Reynolds, who led all Class AAAA rushers with 2,814 yards on 262 carries, an average of 10.7 yards per carry.
Reynolds, who scored 34 touchdowns, recently committed to Boston College. His top blocker, Rob Kee, was a first team lineman.
Hazleton Area’s Nate Eachus, the PIAA Class 3A wrestling champion at 189 pounds, also was chosen as a first-team running back after gaining 2,167 and scored 28 touchdowns on 266 carries. He also led the team in tackles at linebacker.
Cathedral Prep running back Akeem Satterfield rushed for 1,879 yards and scored 27 touchdowns for the District 10 champions.
Egee, an outstanding basketball player, did not play football last year and was coaxed into playing by Waller. He responded by throwing for 1,759 yards in an offense that leaned more heavily on its running game than in the past.
Hodges doubled as Ridley’s running back, gaining 1,709 yards and rushing for 25 touchdowns. He was the leading tackler on a team that yielded slightly more than six points per game.
Gateway, which has nine players that are either committed to or are being recruited by Division I schools, nearly beat Central Catholic in the WPIAL finals, losing 35-34 in overtime. Central Catholic staged a near miracle comeback to gain the win.
Saddler was an outstanding kick returner for Gateway, returning eight kickoffs for touchdowns in his career, one short of the national record. In a game against Norwin, which produced a first-team wide receiver in Mike Shanahan, Saddler returned three kicks for scores — including a game-winning 62-yard kickoff return with 14 seconds remaining.
Hale played defensive line and linebacker for Gateway and has narrowed his college choices to Ohio State and Pittsburgh. Bell is a junior who led Gateway in tackles this year.