Chase Winovich 2011-13

Linebacker/Safety/ QuarterbackHt: 6'4"

Wt: 220

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Thomas Jefferson High School linebacker Chase Winovich makes verbal commitment with Michigan

June 1, 2013 6:37 pm

By Mike White / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A top high school football player in Western Pennsylvania made his college choice tonight -- and Michigan came out the winner.

Chase Winovich, a linebacker at Thomas Jefferson High School, made a verbal commitment to Michigan. He was recruited by colleges across the country but had narrowed his choices to Pitt, Michigan and Ohio State. He also had scholarship offers from West Virginia, Florida State, Tennessee and Stanford, among others.

"It was just crazy how his recruiting took off," said Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak. "We had coaches from everywhere coming into school to recruit him."

Winovich is a 6-foot-3, 215-pound junior. He also was one of the top players on Thomas Jefferson's basketball team. His commitment to Michigan adds to a recruiting class that already is ranked No. 1 in the country by ESPN.

Winovich can't sign a binding letter of intent with Michigan until February of his senior year.

Blue Chip Chat with ... Chase Winovich, Thomas Jefferson

August 16, 2013 12:08 am

DATA

Year: Senior

Height: 6-3

Weight: 216

Pos: LB-QB

THE SCOOP

A position switch last season paid major dividends for Winovich, who moved from defensive back to linebacker. Not only did he instantly emerge as a starter, but he became a sought-after recruit at his new position, as Rivals.com has him ranked among its top 30 linebackers in the country. With the graduation of Joe Carroll, Winovich will be getting snaps as the Jaguars quarterback.

COLLEGE TALK

After interest in him spiked last year, Winovich committed to Michigan June 1 and expects to play linebacker.

Does coach Bill Cherpak's offense make the transition to quarterback more difficult? It makes it a little trickier. I would not want to be going up against him as a coach because the stuff he throws at us is pretty complicated. But he does a good job of breaking the stuff down. That's the sign of a good coach.

OUR QUESTIONS, HIS ANSWERS

How did you choose Michigan? It was a process I did a lot of thinking about, and it was definitely tough. It was one of those things I had to solve because I didn't want it to affect my teammates anymore with all the hype and stuff.

Since you can't sign until February, do you see that decision changing? No, I do not see it changing at all. I feel pretty solid in my commitment.

Were you apprehensive at all about the move to linebacker? As soon as I got in the hands of my linebackers coach, I don't think any skepticism would be allowed. I believe in myself and wherever my coaches wanted to move me.

Was it a pretty seamless switch? It was pretty natural. I was pretty quick to adapt.

Candid close-up with Thomas Jefferson's Chase Winovich

The Thomas Jefferson football team shut down rival Elizabeth Forward last week in a sterling defensive performance.

The Jaguars were spurred defensively by 6-foot-4, 220-pound senior quarterback/linebacker Chase Winovich, a third-year varsity starter who was credited with three unassisted tackles, two sacks and two fumble recoveries against the Warriors.

The following is a “one-on-one” interview with Winovich, a Michigan recruit who attended the Wolverines' home game against Notre Dame last weekend:

Q: Given the pre-game hype, do you consider the 42-0 win against Elizabeth Forward as a statement game for the TJ football team?

A: I think our true statement will come once we win the WPIAL championship, but beating Elizabeth Forward is simply a tradition to us at this point.

Q: What do you think was the key to winning the game?

A: Heart and (our) lineman. We wanted it more, and as a unit were willing to die for every single inch.

Q: Were you surprised by the lopsided final score?

A: I'm sure many people were, especially the newspapers who predicted us to lose, but we know the Jaguar Machine is a tough one to stop, so we really weren't.

Q: What are the expectations for the TJ football team in 2013?

A: States or bust. No team can match our heart; it's going to be an exciting year.

Q: How did your trip to Ann Arbor go? What's it like to experience a game at the “Big House?”

A: It was an awesome experience to see a night game in Ann Arbor and be a part of the biggest crowd ever at a college football game (115,000-plus). It's definitely something you'll never forget.

Q: What steered you toward making a verbal commitment to the University of Michigan?

A: Choosing Michigan over great schools like Pitt, Stanford and Ohio State was definitely not an easy task, and it really came down to where I felt most comfortable and where I had the best opportunity to excel.

Q: Do you know yet what you will be your major?

A: I plan to study business

Q: How much of an influence has your brother, Peter, been for you?

A: A huge influence. He has helped me every step of the way. Ever since I was a little kid I have always tried to be like him.

Q: Who's your favorite NFL player? Any particular reason why?

A: Jack Lambert. He had the mentality of a champion.

Q: What does it mean to you to play Thomas Jefferson Jaguar football?

A: It's an honor to play at a school with such tradition and spirit as we do. And it's a privilege to wear the jersey that many Jaguars have worn before me.

Q: Is there any significance to why you wear uniform No. 15?

A: When I was a freshman, I asked Cherp if I could have No. 11 (Peter Winovich's uniform number at TJ), and he tossed me No. 15 and told me to make it a special number. That's kind of been my goal, to make it a special number for other players, like Dom DeCicco did with No. 2. It's given me extra motivation.”

Q: What is your favorite subject in school? Please explain.

A: Anything to do with business. I like managing stuff and learning how everything works.

Q: Do you have a nickname?

A: My family calls me CC, but that's about it.

Q: Who has the best nickname on the team?

A: Luke Deanovich. We call him Sherbet, like the frozen treat

Gorman: Semi-tough loss for TJ's Winovich

By Kevin Gorman

Published: Friday, Nov. 15, 2013, 11:36 p.m.

Updated 9 hours ago

Chase Winovich has idolized his older brother, Peter, since he read stories to Chase's first-grade class while wearing his Thomas Jefferson game jersey.

Peter was the star quarterback and linebacker for the Jaguars in 2003, when they snapped their five-year streak of losing in the WPIAL Class AAA semifinals.

TJ lost to Neil Walker and Pine-Richland in the WPIAL final, but it was the first of six straight trips to Heinz Field for the Jaguars, who won four WPIAL and three PIAA titles.

“He was my hero, my inspiration for playing football,” Chase said of Peter, who is 10 years older. “I can finish what he started. They broke the jinx where they couldn't make it to Heinz Field for so many years. He got them past that jinx. The following year they won the state championship, and the rest is history. I'm looking to add to that history.”

History had repeated itself at TJ the past five years as the Jaguars haven't been to a WPIAL final since '08. Their string of 13 consecutive semifinal trips was stopped by Knoch in 2011, and they lost to eventual champion West Allegheny in the semifinals last year.

Ten years to the day that Peter's team broke the jinx, TJ placed its championship hopes on the broad shoulders of Chase, who understood the stakes of the WPIAL semifinals.

“Chase grew up seeing the expectations, knowing what Peter had to live up to, so for him that was just second nature,” Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak said. “He knew that he had to step in and not fill Peter's shoes but work to be successful — and he's done that. He's made a name for himself.”

The last thing Peter Winovich wanted was for his brother to continue to try to live up to the comparisons.

“It's Chase's own destiny,” said Peter, who played at Bowling Green and now works as a financial advisor for a sports management firm in Toledo, Ohio. “I'm just fortunate enough to be his brother. I drive back four hours every weekend to see him play. It's exciting to see him grow up from our waterboy into a man.

“He always talks about how he wants to prove it for himself and leave his stamp on TJ history.”

Chase, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound Michigan recruit, has done that by playing quarterback, tailback and linebacker for the Jaguars. He has been one of the most dominant players in Western Pennsylvania this season and will go down as one of TJ's all-time greats.

Given the school has produced NFL players like Tyler Reed, Dom DeCicco and Lucas Nix, as well as a handful of Division I players since 2000, that's good company.

Winovich came into his own last season after Cherpak switched him from safety to linebacker to take advantage of his aggressive nature.

Thanks to the tutoring of DeCicco, a former Pitt star who played middle linebacker for the Chicago Bears, and defensive coordinator Jack Giran, Winovich turned into a terror.

“Chase Winovich is one of your throwback guys, without question,” Central Valley coach Mark Lyons said. “I can't recall, since I've been here, where we've had one guy we've really, really had to (prepare for). Maybe (Rushel) Shell, but he was just an offensive guy.”

Winovich was involved in tackles on three of Central Valley's first five plays, setting the tone by driving Jordan Whitehead back 13 yards on a toss sweep for what was ruled a 4-yard loss.

“If you watch him play, you don't realize he's only been playing linebacker for a little over a year by how good he is, how fast he is — his closing speed is as good as I've seen in high school football — and he just has great instincts,” Cherpak said. “To move him up made all the difference in the world for us as a defense.”

Winovich also played a starring role on offense. In the season finale at West Mifflin, he took direct snaps at quarterback and rushed for 246 yards and four touchdowns. Against Highlands last week, he played tailback and ran for 200 yards and three touchdowns.

“Wherever they put me, whether it's defensive end, waterboy, safety or linebacker, I've just got to find a way where I can contribute for the team,” said Winovich, who carried the ball on 17 of TJ's 24 first-half plays for 91 yards.

“All Chase wants to do is win,” Cherpak said. “People may think he's out for the accolades but the only thing that's important to Chase is winning — and he'll do whatever we ask of him.

“If he doesn't make plays, we can't win. That's just the way it is. He's our best weapon on offense and our best defender on defense. Can he do it by himself? No, but we need him to have a big game to have a chance to win.”

Perhaps TJ was asking too much.

Despite battling the flu, Winovich ran for 139 yards and a touchdown and completed a 19-yard pass. But the Jaguars had no answer for Whitehead or quarterback John George in a 23-13 loss to Central Valley on Friday night.

Chase certainly left his stamp at Thomas Jefferson. Sadly, it just won't include a game at Heinz Field.

CHASE WINOVICH, Thomas Jefferson, LB-RB, 6-4, 220, Senior

College talk: Listed as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Winovich committed to Michigan in June and he plans on officially signing with the school in February.

The scoop: Though he will play linebacker in college, Winovich did a little bit of everything for the Jaguars as they had an undefeated regular season and advanced to the WPIAL Class AAA semifinals. Not only did he anchor a defense that allowed only 7.8 points per game, but he also rushed for 981 yards and 16 touchdowns at running back.

Most memorable moment this season? Definitely the West Mifflin game [a 35-0 victory]. Everything we worked for came together at that point and we also got [coach Bill Cherpak] his 200th career win.

As a Michigan commit, are you already starting to dislike Ohio State? I think it’s definitely developing. Once you sign, they almost by contract become your sworn enemy.

What’s the most played song on your iPod? “Electric Feel” by MGMT.

Thomas Jefferson's Winovich signs with Michigan

Now that Thomas Jefferson football star Chase Winovich officially has signed with Michigan, he can stop worrying about the constant calls from coaches and reporters.

Or can he?

“It kind of drags on. It seems like it takes forever,” Winovich said of the recruiting process, which started during his junior year of high school. “As time goes on, it gets really hectic and it wears you down.”

The 6-foot-4, 220-pound linebacker, who led Thomas Jefferson with 70 tackles, including 13 sacks, and accounted for 1,212 total yards of offense as a quarterback/running back, was the first of Michigan's recruits to send his signature Wednesday morning to the Big Ten school on National Letter of Intent Day.

But he had to make it official to end any speculation, it seemed.

“The big thing for me was to keep him in the right mindset, keep him feeling sure of himself,” Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak said. “He would have questions sometimes when he'd hear other schools ask him, ‘Why do want to go there?' As late as two days ago, Penn State was badgering him non-stop.”

Florida State, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oregon, Stanford and Pitt were among the other schools offering Winovich a scholarship.

“It's just such a relief for the kid, because now this eliminates the other schools from bombarding him with all the garbage that you see on Facebook and emails and texts,” said Cherpak, a former Pitt player who continued to be amazed at the current line of recruiting practices by some schools, fueled in part by social media.

“People don't realize the pressure these kids are under. It gets old. These are kids who sometimes are making the first major decision of their life. It's almost like a stepping stone into adulthood.”

Winovich has taken his coach's advice almost verbatim.

“Coach Cherpak did a great job of making sure that when you wanted to quit, that wasn't an option,” Winovich said. “He wants you to be the best you can possibly be.”

Cherpak, a Steel Valley graduate who played offensive line at Pitt from 1986-89, preaches a strict definition of the word “commitment” to all his high school players. It permeated his practices, game days and offseasons.

“When you say you are giving a commitment, that's it,” said Cherpak, who has coached at Thomas Jefferson for 18 years. “And when it comes to making a commitment to a college, you make that commitment and the school made its commitment. Then, you're done. Once you make it, you honor it. As a coach, you feel that's your responsibility.

“Once you make that decision, you don't need four other coaches telling you what a bad decision you made. You call the other coaches. You don't burn any bridges. You thank them, but they have to understand that it's ended and they can't badger you.”

Many players have heeded Cherpak's advice. Some, such as former Thomas Jefferson standouts Lucas Nix and Dom DiCicco, made it all the way to the NFL. Perhaps Winovich is in the same class.

He certainly has attracted the attention, though overwhelming at times.

“I can definitely look back and say it was a blast. It was a great experience that everybody should experience,” Winovich said. “I'm so happy that I got the opportunity to go through it. It was just a great time.”

Winovich enjoyed lunch during a private gathering Wednesday with family members, including his grandmother.

“I'm her favorite,” he boasted.

The day was a culmination of what could be described as a joyride of emotions for Winovich during the past year or so.

He'll continue to play basketball for Class AAA No. 4 Thomas Jefferson (19-2) as a way of keeping active and unleashing his abundant energy.

“Chase wanted to play everywhere — offense, defense, special teams,” Cherpak said. “We were concerned about wearing him down too much. We tried to balance it, but he is just so talented, and you knew he was giving everything he had down to his last breath.”

“I love the opportunity to compete,” Winovich said. “It comes natural. That's just my personality. You do it right and the best that you can, no matter whether it's in school or whatever.”

Dare anyone say, “Michigan football should be so lucky.”

TJ gridders Winovich, Costy enamored by Big 33 berths

By Ray Fisher

Published: Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2014, 9:00 p.m.

Two integral members of the 2013 Thomas Jefferson football squad — seniors Chase Winovich and Cole Costy — have been selected to participate in this year's Big 33 Football Classic.

Both will play for the Pennsylvania all-star team, Winovich as a 6-foot-4, 220-pound linebacker and Costy as a 6-2, 270-pound offensive lineman.

It is not the first time two players from the same TJ football team have been selected for the Big 33 game. Dom DeCicco and Chris Drager were selected for the 2007 contest, then went on to distinguished college careers at Pitt and Virginia Tech.

Other recent TJ gridders selected for the game include Brock DeCicco, Nate Nix, Lucas Nix, Brad Dawson, Tyler Reed and Michael Wainauskas.

“It's an honor to be selected for the Big 33 game. There have been so many big-time players who have played in it and represented Pennsylvania,” Winovich said. “There have been some great football players, and it makes you realize how blessed I really am.

“When I started working out as a freshman, I thought about what I wanted to achieve in my high school career, and down the road I thought playing in the Big 33 game would be an awesome achievement. I thought it would be cool (to play in the Big 33 game). I heard so much about it growing up and the history of it. And now I get to represent my team, and I get to play with another teammate at the game. It's a great accomplishment in my life.”

Costy echoed Winovich's sentiments.

“It's a pretty good honor to be selected,” Costy said. “Playing football at TJ, we're like a huge family. There have been other players at TJ who played in that game and went on to be successful. Hopefully, I can follow in their footsteps.

“Overall, it's an honor to be picked and to play in that game. I know (back) when I was in middle school, that it was a big deal to me. I'm super-pumped about it.”

The 57th annual Big 33 Football Classic all-star game will take place June 15 at Hersheypark Stadium.

Fifteen players from the WPIAL ranks have been named to represent Pennsylvania.

Winovich and Costy will be joined by Central Catholic's J.J. Cosentino (QB), Niko Thorpe (LB) and Tre Tarpley (DB); Aliquippa's Dravon Henry (RB) and Terry Swanson (RB); Gateway's Montae Nicholson (WR) and Anthony Davis (DB); Mt. Lebanon's Troy Apke (WR) and Alex Bookser (DL); Sto-Rox's Lenny Williams (QB), Bethel Park's Mike Grimm (OL), Upper St. Clair's Ben Huss (OL) and McKeesport's Jawan Hill (DL).

Winovich, a Michigan recruit, was one of four linebackers chosen for the game, along with Thorpe, Franklin Zaire of LaSalle College High School and Tyree Spearman of Erie McDowell.

Winovich is anxious to begin his college career in Ann Arbor following the Big 33 game. Michigan is a member of the Big Ten Conference.

“Choosing Michigan over great schools like Pitt, Stanford, and Ohio State was definitely not an easy task,” he said. “It really came down to where I felt most comfortable and where I had the best opportunity to excel.”

Michigan's head coach is Brady Hoke, who is in his fourth year as the Wolverines' field boss.

“Chase, out of the Pittsburgh area, is a guy who we think runs really well,” Hoke said. “He played a lot of positions and made a ton of plays at Thomas Jefferson. He played some quarterback, ran the ball at times, played some tight end, but we think he's a guy who's really instinctive and gets to the football at linebacker.

“Chase is a guy who's really athletic. It will be interesting to watch him play. He's a very good athlete with good length. He'll remind you a little bit of Jake (Ryan), that type of body type.”

The Big 33 Classic won't be Winovich's first appearance in an all-star game.

Winovich participated in the 2014 Offense-Defense All-American Bowl held at Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando, Fla. earlier this year. He had five tackles and forced one fumble on a sack.

“The game was played with a 45 degree temperature before the wind chill, but it went really well,” Winovich said. “I was so fortunate to be able to represent my city, my team and my family at such a prestigious event. And on top of that, I had so much fun and got the opportunity to meet and interact with a lot of great players and coaches.”

Costy is one of six offensive lineman chosen for the game, along with Grimm, Huss, Noah Beh of Scranton Prep and Josh Walmer of Parkland.

Council's Rock South's Eric Gallo is the only center listed on the Pennsylvania team roster.

Costy has accepted an offer to continue his football career at Youngstown State, and recently signed with the Penguins, who compete in Missouri Valley Football Conference.

Youngstown State's head coach is Eric Wolford, who is in his fifth year as field boss.

“Youngstown State plays a high level of football. I wanted to play in college at the highest level as possible,” Costy said. “I got along great with the coaches. The first time I went to visit (Youngstown State), it just kind of clicked for me.”

Costy, like Winovich, earned several individual accolades during his high school football career.

Pennsylvania's all-stars will face a team from Maryland in this year's Big 33 Football Classic game.

Winovich

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