Sharpsville Blue Devils
Coach (season, record): Paul Piccirilli (17th season, 143-48)
2011 overall record: 13-1
2011 region record (place): 7-0 (champion)
2011 playoff results: Defeated Cambridge Springs 48-0, Farrell 36-0 and West Middlesex 21-13 to win the District 10 Class A championship. Sharpsville then defeated Port Allegany 35-33 in the PIAA quarterfinals before losing to Clairton 30-8 in the semifinals.
Top players lost: Dylan Hogue, Jacob Henwood, Spencer Bland, Robby Moss, Dersean Alberty-Brown, Joey Flynn, Austin Rice
Top returning players: Tyler Luchey, Joey Pagliaroli, Cody Hughes, Joey Flynn, Kaleb Robertson, Zack Stafford, Derrick Odem
Assistant coaches: Gary Baker, Len Grandy, Fred Sablack, Joe Joseph, Steve Summers, Rich Pavone, Pat Campoli, Brian Weber, Doug Levis, Brent Pavone, Bill Henwood, Rick Grandy
Outlook: Sharpsville put together a terrific run in 2011 to win the District 10 Class A championship and make the final four in the PIAA playoffs. The Blue Devils’ program has raised to the level where the football team is competitive every year no matter how many players graduated. Sharpsville will need to reload six positions on offense and seven on defense this season to remain competitive on a high level. Dylan Hogue, Jacob Henwood, Spencer Bland, Robby Moss, Dersean Alberty-Brown, Joey Flynn and Austin Rice are all-region departures to graduation. Hogue was named to the all-district team at defensive line and was voted to the all-region first team at offensive and defensive line. Alberty-Brown was a first-team linebacker and Moss was a first-team offensive and defensive lineman. Bland was voted to the first team as a running back and a linebacker but the biggest loss could be Henwood, a first-team quarterback. The list of players lost also includes Rice, a second-team all-region tight end. Replacing all of the Blue Devils’ all-region players will be a tough task for longtime coach Paul Piccirilli in camp this fall.
Joey Flynn and Tyler Luchey bring back experience for Sharpsville. Flynn was a first-team defensive back last year, while Luchey was a first-team wide receiver and defensive back. Joey Pagliaroli is also back after being voted to the all-region first team at kicker. Sharpsville’s offense will be in search for a new quarterback and five other starters as well. Other than Flynn at running back and Luchey at wide receiver, the Blue Devils also have linemen Kaleb Robertson, Zack Stafford and Cody Hughes back. On defense, Pagliaroli, Luchey and Flynn are returning starters in the secondary, while Derrick Odem is back at defensive end. Greg Popatak, P.J. Campoli and Ross Llewellyn all started at linebacker last year at various times and could all compete for starting jobs in camp.
Sharpsville has been a mark of consistency in Class A football in recent history. The Blue Devils seem to always contend for a playoff spot and have reloaded their program every year. Sharpsville has an interesting schedule in the first four weeks of the season before a brutal second half. Sharpsville heads to Farrell in the final week of September before taking on contenders West Middlesex, Lakeview, Wilmington and Sharon. The Blue Devils have a few games early in the season to come together as a team and could be a dangerous team once again this season.
Schedule
August
31 Moniteau 7
September
7 Mercer* 7
14 Conneaut* 7
22 at Kennedy Catholic* noon
28 at Farrell* 7
October
5 at West Middlesex* 7
12 Wilmington 7
19 Lakeview* 7
26 Bye
November
2 at Sharon 7
*Region 1 games
Tuesday: Slippery Rock
– Tom Reisenweber
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