YOUGH LOOKS TO GIVE
SHOAF ROOM TO RUN
by bILL bECKNER JR.
Onthe surface, Yough has the cliched
look of a one-man show with
standout Dustin Shoaf returning
to defend his WPIAL rushing title.
Shoaf is good enough to take
over games when he gets into a
rhythm.
But the Cougars appear to have
more talent at their disposal than
just their senior running back.
And they are prepared to utilize
those other players’ skills in a
number of ways.
“You’ll see,” Shoaf said. “We
have other guys who just need
their chance.”
Now, don’t get too excited on
Cougar Mountain just yet. Coach
ScottWood isn’t making any promises
or guarantees, but he thinks
this group can be much better
than last year’s one that became a
tangledmess of injuries and inconsistency
and finished 2-8.
Shoaf wants Youghto channel its
inner Derry of 2016:“We have that
kind of look: Come out of nowhere
and be something special,” he said.
Regardless of the help he gets,
it will still have to start and end
with Shoaf.
“With Dustin, Iamreally excited
to see the potential and the expectations
with him,” Wood said.“We
were 2-8, so is 3-7 a big improvement?
Maybe. Are we 6-4 at best?
We’ll have to see.
“The hardest part is getting
them all to believe they can do it.”
Shoaf ran for 1,808 yards and
16 touchdowns and crept to within
115 yards of 3,000 for his career.
Acore of 15 seniors will lead the
Cougars.
“They have been playing together
since they were 5, so the chemistry
is there,” Wood said. “They
trust each other.”
Wood thinks he has potential
playmakers, sidecars to Shoaf, in
senior quarterback Jake Sever,
fullbacks in junior Reno Ustazewski
and senior Cameron Hopkin,
and receivers in sophomoreGamal
Marballie and senior C.J. Waldier.
Hopkin is a lead-by-example
player any coach would enjoy.
“I love working hard, coach,”
Hopkin said as he came off the
field during a summer workout.
The offensive line, though, will
have to be the cornerstone. It will
consist of five seniors: center
Brendan Roebuck; guards George
Tusing and Drake Croushore;
and tackles Nate McGill and Bill
Devirgilio.
“We had five juniors starting on
our line at the end of last season,
so they’re all back,” Shoaf said.
“We have some experience up front
which should help.”
Another one to watch is junior
tight end/defensive end Russell
Pytlak.
“We have to stay healthy,” Wood
said. “If we lose certain guys,
we could be in trouble. We have
some guys who don’t come off the
field: offense, defense and special
teams.”
Sever and Shoaf both are expected
to see time at quarterback,
Shoaf out of wildcat formations.
Sever can scramble when needed.
“Jake came a long way. He’s my
best friend, and I know what be
can do for us,” Shoaf said. “We
have the ability to be amuch faster
team.”
And that means using formations
that accentuate that speed,
like the spread.
“We’re a multiple-set team like
usual,”Wood said.“We’ll use some
TRIBUNE-REVIEW • SUNDAY, AUGUST 19, 2018 • 25
wing-T and some pro-I stuff too.
The thing is, we can run the same
plays out of any of those.”
Defensively, Yough will look to
shore up a unit that allowed 37.8
points per game. Defensive back
appears to be a strong suit.
The Cougars, looking for their
first winning season and playoff
berth since 2013, will play in
the new-look Class 3A Big East
Conference with Burrell, Cardinal
Wuerl North Catholic, Deer
Lakes, Derry, Elizabeth Forward,
Freeport, Mt. Pleasant and Uniontown.
Yough’s nonconference schedule
includes a home game against perennial
power Aliquippa inWeek 6.
SCHEDULE
Coach: Scott Wood
2017 record: 2-8, 2-5
All-time record: 152-303-11
Date Opponent Time
8.24 Serra Catholic 7
8.31 at Uniontown* 7
9.7 Mt. Pleasant* 7
9.14 at Deer Lakes* 7
9.21 Burrell* 7
9.28 at Freeport* 7
10.5 Aliquippa 7
10.12 Derry* 7
10.19 at CW North Catholic* 7
10.26 at Elizabeth Forward* 7
*CLASS 3A BIG EAST CONFERENCE GAME
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing: Jake Sever
37-105, 364 yards
Rushing: Dustin Shoaf
280-1,808 yards, 16 TDs
Receiving: Brian Donahue*
13-147 yards
*GRADUATED
No. Name Pos. Ht/Wt. Cl.
2 Gamal Marballie WR/DB 5-11/170 So.
3 Mikey Peterson WR/DB 6-1/175 Sr.
4 Tristan Waldier QB/WR/DB 6-2/175 Fr.
5 CJ Waldier WR/DB 6-2/175 So.
6 Christian Park WR/DB 6-0/160 Fr.
7 Robert Davis WR/DB 6-0/185 Jr.
9 Russell Pytlak TE/DE 6-4/220 Jr.
10 Dustin Shoaf RB/S 6-1/210 Sr.
11 Nate Markwzic WR/DB 5-6/145 Fr.
12 Cody Bogac WR/CB 5-10/170 So.
13 Kaden Bizzozero WR/CB 5-6/120 Fr.
15 Dylan Lynn Wr/LB 5-9/160 So.
16 Carson Hopkin FB/LB 5-10/190 Sr.
17 Donnie Wood WR/LB 6-0/170 Sr.
18 Mason Brunson WR/CB 6-0/160 Sr.
19 Dom Marra WR/DB 6-1/170 Jr.
21 Reno Ustazewski FB/LB 5-10/205 Jr.
22 Logan McCallister WR/DB 5-10/170 Sr.
23 Josh Schuster FB/LB 5-9/185 Sr.
25 Austin Caudill TE/DE 6-2/200 So.
29 CJ Layne RB/LB 6-0/190 So.
30 Seth Shipley RB/S 5-8/160 Sr.
33 Jake Magill RB/LB 5-10/160 Fr.
35 Jake Sever QB/S 5-10/180 Sr.
44 Dominik Ofchinick TE/LB 5-7/150 Jr.
51 Brendan Roebuck OL/LB 6-0/200 Sr.
52 RJ Ramono OL/DL 6-1/200 Fr.
53 George Tusing OL/LB 6-0/200 Sr.
56 Conor Thorton OL/DL 5-9/210 So.
57 Kylie Roebuck OL/LB 5-9/150 So.
58 Larry Hixson OL/LB 5-9/170 So.
59 Artie Hoak OL/DL 5-11/165 So.
60 George Dietz OL/DL 5-11/250 Fr.
61 Josh Thomas K 5-6/170 Jr.
66 Nate Magill OL/DL 6-4/295 Sr.
71 Jake Wardezak OL/LB 5-10/185 Jr.
73 Braydon Runk OL/DL 6-2/215 Sr.
75 Bill DeVergillo OL/DL 6-4/300 Sr.
77 Drake Croushore OL/DL 6-3/215 Sr.
78 Harlyn Schomer OL/DL 5-9/235 Fr.
ROSTER
DUSTIN SHOAF
RUSSEL PYTLAK
BIG EAST