TJ 34 vs. Archbishop Wood 7

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PG South: TJ will put it all on the line in state title game

Thursday, December 11, 2008

By Ken Wunderley, Tri-State Sports & News Service

The loss of a star running back in the first quarter of a PIAA playoff game would spell doom for most teams.

Thomas Jefferson is the exception.

The Jaguars lost tailback Brian Baldrige in Friday's Class AAA semifinal game against West York when he sustained a thumb injury during his second carry of the game.

"It didn't faze anybody," said Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak, when asked how it affected the Jaguars. "It was business as usual. We just switch our gameplan."

With Baldrige on the bench, Cherpak switched to a spread offense and gave quarterback Tyler Wehner the responsibility of leading the Jaguars to victory. Wehner responded with five touchdown passes to lead the Jaguars to a convincing 49-21 victory against West York.

The win earned Thomas Jefferson its third PIAA title berth in five years. The Jaguars (14-1) have a chance to become the third WPIAL team to win three PIAA titles -- Rochester and Central Catholic have already accomplished that feat -- when it plays District 12 champion Archbishop Wood (13-2) in tomorrow's title game, which will take place at Hersheypark Stadium.

"The key in that situation is stay focused," Cherpak said. "We just switched from the power-I to the spread offense and put our emphasis on the passing game."

The Jaguars scored seven touchdowns against West York, including five touchdown passes by Wehner, who accounted for 294 of Thomas Jefferson's 424 yards of total offense. Wehner completed 10 of 14 passes for 274 yards through the air, and carried the ball 10 times for 50 yards and a touchdown.

"The offensive line deserves a lot of credit in a game like that," Cherpak said. "We changed offenses and they didn't skip a beat."

Thomas Jefferson has accumulated 6,131 yards in total offense in 15 games, which averages to 408.7 yards per game. The Jaguars have rushed for 3,591 yards and 49 touchdowns on 563 rushing attempts, and thrown for 2,540 yards and 30 touchdowns.

"Our offensive line turned in its best performance of the season against Erie Strong Vincent in the quarterfinals, and turned in another fine performance against West York," Cherpak said. "They are becoming more confident each week."

Four members of Thomas Jefferson's offensive line were also starters on last year's PIAA championship team. The most experienced member of the Jaguars line is three-year starter Rob McCall, a 6-foot-1, 260-pound senior who plays right guard.

Two-year starters on the line for Thomas Jefferson are senior left tackle Pat Eger (6-6, 275), senior center Sean Kundrat (6-2, 255) and senior tight end Brock DeCicco (6-5, 225).

"Pat [Eger] has accepted a scholarship offer from West Virginia, while Brock [DeCicco] is a Pitt recruit," Cherpak said. "Sean [Kundrat] is the best center I've ever had. He has great hands and great leverage. He is also very intelligent. Sean will be playing for one of the Patriot League teams next year."

The other two members of Thomas Jefferson's offensive line are sophomore left guard Dustin Vissari (5-10, 270) and junior right tackle Shane McNally (6-2, 235).

"This is the first time we've had two linemen get Division I scholarships," Cherpak said. "The only two others we've had are Tyler Reed [a former starter at Penn State] and Lucas Nix [a current player at Pitt]."

Cherpak was a lineman when he played high school ball at Steel Valley.

"My line coach in high school was Frank Brettschneider," Cherpak said. "Now Frank is my offensive coordinator. Frank is one of three coaches on our staff who are responsible for the offensive line. The other two are T.J. Srsic and Pat Oster. Both of them played for me."

Experience could be a big factor in the championship game. If so, Thomas Jefferson knows what to expect.

"Preparing for the state championship game is not easy when you consider all the outside distractions," Cherpak said. "We've been through it before and know what to expect. We have the routine down."

Baldrige is expected to return to Thomas Jefferson's backfield for the title game. In 15 games, he has rushed for 2,192 yards and 34 touchdowns on 274 carries.The game

• What: Thomas Jefferson (14-1) vs. Archbishop Wood (12-2).

• When: 7 p.m. tomorrow.

• Where: Hersheypark Stadium, Hershey, Pa.

• TV: PCN.

• The skinny: This game will decide the PIAA Class AAA title. Thomas Jefferson is in the final for the second consecutive year and is the defending champion. ... Archbishop Wood is from the Philadelphia Catholic League.

Thomas Jefferson pounds Archbishop Wood 34-7, win 2nd straight PIAA AAA football title

R. Frisco, December 12, 2008 10:18 p.m.

Thomas Jefferson quarterback Tyler Wehner accounted for five touchdowns, three passing and two rusing, to lead the Jaguars to their second straight PIAA Class AAA football championship Friday night at Hersheypark Stadium.

Wehner, the son of former major league baseball player John Wehner, scored on two short runs, including a 5-yard run just 28 seconds into the game after Thomas Jefferson's Anthony Grieves receovered a fumble on the opening kickoff.

Wehner also threw touchdown passes of 33 and 18 yards to tight end Brock DeCicco and a third of 13 yards to Dan Virgin.

Thomas Jefferson, which won 15 straight games after a season-opening 34-13 loss to Glenville, Ohio, has won three PIAA titles in the last five years, also claiming championships in 2004 and 2007.

Archbishop Wood (12-3) was the first District 12 team to qualify for a state championship, but was unable to claim the district's first PIAA football title. Fellow Philadelphia Catholic League member West Catholic will have that opportunity today in the Class AA championship game against District 10 champion Wilmington.