14 • SUNDAY, AUGUST 22, 2021 • VALLEY NEWS DISPATCH “We had a strong passing of years, but the linemen able to put our hand in shoot forward in a short-something like that,” said Ian Quinn, who earned Allegheny honors last year.
“We have some big, strong are really going to move some and help us run the ball really team wants to have the ability Brandon Lawhorne-Moore doesn’t mind that his Kiski Area teammates and coaches call him “Beef.”
the run game and the have the guys (up front) who Double play
Freeport senior tight doesn’t mind being called blocking schemes. He is one tight ends, Leechburg’s have that jack-of-all-trades run-blocking and pass-protecting “I call myself a tweener,”“Some of my teammates Sometimes I split out wide,close to the line. I like being do whatever I can to help is blocking for Ben (Lane)getting us downfield on a Charleton said Freeport’s are ready for the challenge.
“Our offensive line is looking Charleton said. “We have in, but it is strong with Lindsey and Logan Jendrejewski.on the starting line last year.them is the way they understand offense works with so many “They are very fast and do. You have to be when Benny or Garrett when they or improvising with have to make adjustments is flipping a play to the they will get there. That confidence.
“You see our linemen amount of weight in the they are hanging with the They have the for a lineman of strength,Rolling with new schemes
Knoch coach Brandon Mowry staff moved to the Wing-the triple option, and one that move was the ability well within the framework workings of the offense.
“There are some similarities offenses, but where they some quicker guards who and wrapping and that didn’t really do much of BUILDING BLOCKS
New generation of versatile, athletic linemen
paves the way for A-K Valley offenses
It is a nickname that has stuck since sixth grade.
“My history teacher had these beef jerky days every Friday, and I would be the only one who would bring in the beef jerky,” said
Lawhorne-Moore, a senior offensive tackle and Division I recruit who has garnered more than a dozen offers since this time last
year.
“My teacher gave me that nickname, and it’s been with me ever since.”
In the years since sixth grade, Lawhorne has
“beefed up” to 295 pounds on his 6-foot-5 frame.
He is a leader of a pack of skilled offensive
linemen of all sizes in the Alle-Kiski Valley who
are ready to make an impact in a variety of offenses
— up-tempo or methodical in nature — for
the 2021 season.
It is often said that the offensive line is the
lifeblood of a high school offense. “It all starts up
front” is a phrase commonly uttered.
Coaches often build gameplans and schemes off
of the particular talents in the trenches.
At the same time, linemen see opportunity in
front of them with the desire to be well-rounded,
whether that is opening holes up the middle in
the run game, using speed to get on the edge on
a play to the outside or creating a wall to protect
the quarterback in the pass game.
That well-rounded package also can be a benefit
in the hopes of taking their abilities to a
college program.
“As I grew and got older, it was pretty
sure I would be an offensive lineman,” said
Lawhorne-Moore, who will expand his efforts to
include work on the defensive line. “I am never
satisfied with where I am. I always know I can
get better.
“I have talked to college coaches, and they
have told me what they look for when they are
scouting, like aggressiveness on the field, finish
a block and never give up on a play. I take
that to heart, and it helps me every day in my
preparation.”
Lawhorne-Moore said the advice he got from
those college coaches is something every lineman
can take with them as they look to improve.
Ever-changing formulas
Matt Morgan enters his ninth season as Plum
coach. Since his playing days at Plum and
through his time at Pitt and in the NFL with the
Buffalo Bills and St. Louis Rams, he said he’s seen
every type of offense imaginable and also every
blocking scheme up front.
“When I played in high school, we had the size
and we played that smashmouth, run-it-downyour
throat style of offense where we pushed you
around and moved you from A to B,” said Morgan,
who was 6-7 and 300 pounds his senior year.
“There are a few teams still like that, but with
all these quick offenses and spread offenses, it’s
not so much that kind of blocking now. I don’t
want to say its positional blocking, but it’s a lot
of that get in front of a guy quick to create a seam
or get in front of a guy quick so the quarterback
can get the ball off type of schemes.
“It definitely has changed the game, so to speak,
for a lineman where they aren’t necessarily
holding onto a block for four or five seconds any
more. With having more up-tempo offensives,
being well conditioned is so vital.”
Still, linemen like Lawhorne-Moore get
pumped when there is the opportunity to drive
his feet and put a defender on his back or have
him backpedalling 10 to 15 yards downfield.
“It’s a great feeling to pancake someone and
then look to the sideline and see your teammates
are going wild,” he said. “It really gets
me hyped.”
And a number of coaches, no doubt, get giddy
when there is a play call where linemen have the
ability to deliver a straightforward challenge to
a defense.
by MICHAEL LOVE
LOUIS B. RUEDIGER | TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Kiski Area linemen work out earlier this month at Kiski High School.